Amazon, Flipkart hail new GST reforms, gear up for festive season sales boost

Amazon, Flipkart hail new GST reforms, gear up for festive season sales boost

E-commerce majors Amazon and Flipkart have lauded the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council’s latest reforms, noting that the streamlined and predictable tax framework offers much-needed clarity for sellers and platforms as they gear up for the crucial festive sales season.

While both e-commerce majors praised the broader reforms, the rate cut on large appliances—including air-conditioners, dishwashers, televisions, monitors, projectors, and set-top boxes—is expected to have the most direct impact on their upcoming flagship sales.

Flipkart’s Big Billion Days and Amazon’s Great Indian Festival together contribute nearly a fourth of their annual revenues, and the clarity on these high-value categories now allows them to confidently plan for the festivities.

At its 56th meeting, the GST Council slashed rates on large appliances from 28 percent to 18 percent, effective September 22, 2025. The move is part of a broader effort to simplify India’s indirect tax structure by scrapping the 12 percent and 28 percent brackets and retaining just two slabs of 5 percent and 18 percent, aiming to ease compliance, improve affordability, and boost consumption.

ALSO READ: Amazon, Flipkart await govt clarity on GST reforms before finalising festive sale plans

Calling it a “landmark” reform, Flipkart said the move will not only support small sellers and artisans by simplifying compliance but also fuel consumption across categories during the festive rush.

“Timely implementation of these reforms ahead of the upcoming festival season will surely give a huge boost to consumption across categories, widen market access, and accelerate our collective journey towards a Viksit Bharat,” said Rajneesh Kumar, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, Flipkart Group.

Amazon, too, lauded the GST revamp, emphasising how the simplified two-rate structure will ease compliance and bring stability to sellers operating on its marketplace.

“This forward-looking reform brings much-needed predictability and stability to the tax framework. The streamlined approach will help reduce complexity for the hundreds of thousands of sellers selling through our marketplace,” an Amazon spokesperson said, adding that the changes “empower thousands of small sellers, especially from tier 2 and 3 cities, to effortlessly reach customers nationwide.”

With the GST changes in place, both companies are expected to firm up and announce their flagship sale dates in the coming days.

Analysts note that this clarity arrives at the perfect time. Many big-ticket purchases had been postponed in August, with customers holding off in anticipation of lower tax rates. For e-commerce companies, the lack of clarity made it difficult to lock in logistics, capacity and marketing spends for their flagship events.

“The key concern was around the timing of GST implementation. Now that it has been set for September 22, e-commerce platforms are likely to firm up and announce their flagship sale dates soon after. The cuts should boost festive spending, especially in categories like TVs, ACs, and large appliances,” said Satish Meena, founder of market research firm Datum Intelligence.

The potential upside is significant. A Datum Intelligence report projects festive season sales in 2025 could rise by as much as 27 percent year-on-year to Rs 1.2 lakh crore — up from nearly Rs 1 lakh crore in 2024 and Rs 81,000 crore in 2023. Without the clarity on GST, the firm had earlier expected growth to be limited to 5–7 percent.

Consumer durables makers, too, see a clear tailwind. Kamal Nandi, Business Head & EVP at Godrej Appliances, said lower taxes on ACs and dishwashers will help improve affordability and penetration in a market where adoption remains relatively low.

“Given the increasingly harsh summers in India, air conditioners are no longer a luxury and go a long way in improving the day-to-day quality of life. The drop in GST improves affordability for consumers and is expected to improve product penetration levels over time,” he said.

With the uncertainty finally resolved, platforms are now expected to shift from lobbying and contingency planning to executing their mega-sale playbooks. For millions of online shoppers waiting on the sidelines, the festive season may just have gotten more affordable — and more tempting.