每一个印度城市至少有一个专门出售廉价无品牌服装的商业区，其中80%的零售消费（2023年达到1万亿美元）和60%的时尚消费（总额为1000亿美元）都在这样的门店和摊位完成。然而，自疫情以来，电商平台的兴起明显冲击了这些传统市场。2019至2024年间，电商在时尚市场的份额从不到7.5%翻倍到近15%，虽仍远低于中国和美国的40%，但增长迅速。例如，Meesho平台年活跃用户数从2020年的200万增长至今年的1.99亿，并计划以70亿至80亿美元估值上市。

这种转变带来了两大深远影响。其一是结构性变化：五年前印度85%的零售属非正规业态，预计到2030年将下降到66-68%。电商平台如Meesho正推动小商贩由无组织市场转向正规经济。其二是市场规模扩大。Meesho通过低价与免佣金，吸引全国小商家参与，并将市场范围从本地扩展到全国，推动客户选择的极大丰富。90%的Meesho用户生活在八大城市之外，显示电子商务普及正突破城市限制。

这一趋势不仅重塑商业格局，也正在改变印度社会结构。社交媒体和电商共同提升了小城镇的消费能力和志向。电商物流发展（如Delhivery等公司及各大平台自建物流）弥补了过去邮政和地址系统不足，使商品得以抵达最偏远地区。年轻一代的时尚和消费观念因此更加接近大城市，社会融合和现代化步伐不断加快。

Every Indian city has at least one district dedicated to low-cost, unbranded clothing, where 80% of retail spending (reaching $1 trillion in 2023) and 60% of fashion spending (totaling $100 billion) occur. However, since the pandemic, e-commerce platforms are clearly impacting these traditional markets. From 2019 to 2024, e-commerce’s share in the fashion market doubled from under 7.5% to nearly 15%. While still far below China and America’s 40%, growth is rapid. For instance, Meesho’s active user base grew from 2 million in 2020 to 199 million this year, and it now hopes for a public listing at a $7-8 billion valuation.

This shift brings two significant effects. First, a structural change: five years ago, 85% of retail in India was informal, but by 2030, this could fall to 66-68%. E-commerce platforms like Meesho are bringing small traders into the formal economy. Second, market size is growing. Meesho, with low prices and a zero-commission model, enables small merchants to reach buyers nationwide, expanding from local neighborhoods. About 90% of Meesho’s shoppers live outside India’s eight largest cities, showing e-commerce’s reach beyond urban areas and vastly increasing customer choice.

This trend is reshaping not just commerce, but society as well. Social media and e-commerce are raising aspirations and consumption in small towns. The growth of logistics firms like Delhivery and in-house platforms has overcome prior challenges in postal delivery and addressing, allowing goods to reach even the most remote areas. Younger generations in smaller towns now increasingly resemble their big-city peers in style and consumer habits, reflecting accelerating social integration and modernization.