Poor product data costs Indian eCommerce ₹5,000 crore

Indian online retailers and quick-commerce platforms lose about ₹5,000 crore each year because of inconsistent and inaccurate product information, according to a new study by standards body GS1 India and consultancy Kanvic Consulting.

The report estimates around ₹2,000 crore in gross margin erosion and nearly ₹1,900 crore in return-related costs. It describes the impact as systemic, with weak product data governance creating financial exposure across the sector.

India's eCommerce market has expanded rapidly across categories and fulfilment models. The study identifies product data quality as a key operational issue affecting customer experience, fulfilment performance and regulatory compliance, arguing that failures are widespread rather than limited to individual sellers or listings.

Data gaps

The study highlights gaps in product attributes, images, descriptions, logistics information and compliance disclosures. These shortcomings can reduce discoverability and conversion, and are linked to fulfilment errors and higher return rates.

Product information has become more prominent as marketplaces promote side-by-side comparisons, and ratings and reviews increasingly shape purchase decisions. Inaccurate information can weaken trust and reduce long-term demand.

The analysis uses a top-down economic model based on India's 2025 e-retail gross merchandise value, supported by SKU-level analysis and interviews with industry participants. The findings suggest data-quality failures run across the ecosystem, not just a narrow set of categories or platforms.

Category impact

The report breaks down the effect by category. High-volume segments such as FMCG and food drive the largest absolute impact on margins. Fashion apparel and accessories generate higher return-related costs, consistent with fit-driven buying behaviour.

Beauty and personal care stands out for margin sensitivity. Healthcare is smaller in scale but carries higher compliance risk because disclosures and regulated information play a larger role in purchase and fulfilment decisions.

The findings show how small data errors can compound operational costs. A missing attribute can reduce visibility in search filters. An incorrect dimension or weight can cause packing and delivery problems. A weak description can increase returns when items do not match customer expectations.

Standards focus

GS1 India is part of the global GS1 network, which sets widely used identification standards such as barcodes. In India, it works with industry and public-sector bodies, and its standards are widely used for product identification and supply-chain labelling.

S Swaminathan, CEO of GS1 India, framed the study in the context of a broader shift towards digitalisation and interoperability in Indian industry.

"High-quality product data is no longer an operational detail - it is a strategic growth lever for India's digital commerce ecosystem. By strengthening data governance and standardisation across the value chain, businesses can unlock meaningful revenue, improve customer trust, and build more resilient, scalable commerce models," said Deepak Sharma, CEO, Kanvic Consulting.

Calls for action

The report recommends steps for brands, marketplaces and regulators. It urges brands to treat product data as strategic infrastructure and invest in governance. It also calls on marketplaces to move beyond reactive enforcement of listing requirements and adopt standardisation and validation.

For regulators, it recommends aligning compliance requirements with interoperable data standards and shared identification frameworks. Consistent product identifiers, it argues, can reduce ambiguity across listings, documentation and disclosures.

The study was released at the GS1 India Forum 2026 in Mumbai, where sessions covered artificial intelligence, digital transformation, next-generation barcodes, traceability and smart packaging. Executives from retail, healthcare, pharmaceuticals and agriculture joined discussions on standards and interoperability.

Speakers included Jeyandran Venugopal, President and CEO of Reliance Retail Ventures; Ravi Kapoor, Partner and Lead - Retail & Consumer Sector at PwC India; and N. Dayasindhu, Co-founder and CEO of Itihaasa Research & Digital. The sessions examined how standards can support emerging technologies in supply-chain operations and data-driven business practices.

GS1 India and Kanvic said the scale of the estimated losses suggests product data quality will attract greater attention from platform operators, brands and regulators as online retail grows and fast-delivery models expand into more cities and product categories.