MAM
Simpl introduces ‘Early Settlement’ for D2C to reduce CoD settlement time up to 90 per cent
Mumbai: Simpl – Checkout Network announced the introduction of its newest business offering ‘Early Settlement’ for direct-to-customer (D2C) merchants, aimed at reducing the settlement time for cash on delivery (CoD) orders by up to 90 per cent and improving daily sales by nearly 40 per cent. This assumes significance as CoD orders, which constitute nearly 60 per cent of all online orders, typically take 15-20 days for settlement at the merchant’s end, thereby blocking cash flow and increasing merchants’ working capital requirements.
In addition to this, the new business offering from Simpl also settles prepaid orders with merchants in the shortest time possible, thereby providing/giving merchants the ability to improve their cash flow with same-day settlement of both CoD and prepaid orders. Simpl’s ‘Early Settlement’ also offers settlements on all 365 days and not just on business working days, which is a first in the industry. Its fully automated settlement system ensures timely and accurate payments to merchants, helping improve their cash flows and reconciliation.
Commenting on the launch of Early Settlement, Simpl CXO Khanaz K.A said, “As an organisation with a nuanced understanding of merchants’ pain points, the tardy pace of cash flow settlements from CoD transactions in India has been a persistent challenge for D2C merchants in India. This leads to ballooning of monthly unsettled cash for D2C merchants to $ 300 million, which leads to an increase in their working capital requirements. With Simpl’s Early Settlement, merchants will be able to reduce their CoD order settlement time by as much as 90 per cent and improve their average daily sales by nearly 40 per cent. In the first two months of its pilot stage, nearly two dozen D2C merchants have already adopted our newest business offering, in a testament to its efficacy in solving their cash flow concerns, which they can redeploy to further their business growth”.
Among the two dozen early adopters of Early Settlement, merchants such as Wabi Sabi, Frido and Italian Colony have witnessed a substantial upward shift in their sales, experiencing a 40 per cent increase after expanding their cash on delivery (CoD) capacity. Interestingly, women’s luxury wear brand Wabi Sabi has recorded over 125 per cent improvement in sales within a month of adopting this Early Settlement.
The onboarding process for merchants to activate ‘Early Settlement’ takes approximately 15 minutes and the technology stack has been designed to ensure error-free execution without the need for any human intervention. Once the integration is successfully completed, merchants can expect prompt and hassle-free settlements as a testament to the efficiency of our system. Simpl is also working on ensuring real-time settlements for COD transactions over the next few months, to further streamline the settlement process. With Early Settlement, Simpl is expanding its offerings for merchants after 1-Tap Checkout, Pay after Delivery and Checkout Suite to improve conversions and reduce return to origin (RTO).
With over 26,000 merchants and millions of customers choosing Simpl as their preferred checkout partner, the company has over the last several years developed and strengthened its artificial intelligence-powered technology platform, which powers consumers’ checkout journey seamlessly and helps merchants improve their business.
AD Agencies
Havas Media Network India names Archana Aggarwal chief growth officer
The appointment comes as the network accelerates its integrated, data-led push across one of its top ten global markets.
MUMBAI: Havas Media Network India is moving fast, and it wants someone who can move faster.
The network has appointed Archana Aggarwal as chief growth officer, tasking her with driving the new business agenda and deepening client partnerships across Havas Media, PivotRoots, Havas Play and Arena Media. Based in Gurugram, she will report to Mohit Joshi, chief executive of Havas Media Network India.
Aggarwal arrives with more than two decades of media and marketing experience, most recently as vice-president of media at Airtel, where she led integrated media strategies tied to shifting consumer behaviour and business outcomes. Before that, she worked across some of the world’s most demanding marketing accounts, including P&G, Unilever, L’Oréal, Coca-Cola, the Diamond Trading Corporation and Airtel, spanning FMCG, telecom and the broader marketing ecosystem. She is noted for her command of emerging platforms, including connected TV, AI and the metaverse.
Rana Barua, group chief executive of Havas India, South-East Asia and North Asia, framed the hire as timely. “India continues to be a critical market for Havas globally and is among our top ten markets worldwide,” he said, noting strong momentum across the network’s integrated model and growing client partnerships. “Archana’s appointment comes at a pivotal time as we continue to scale our capabilities and accelerate growth.”
Joshi was equally direct. “Her deep understanding of consumer behaviour and proven ability to translate insights into business outcomes will be instrumental as we continue to scale our integrated, data-led capabilities across agencies,” he said.
Havas Media Network India currently serves more than 100 clients and employs over 1,000 professionals across Gurugram, Mumbai and Bengaluru. The network’s growth engine runs on Converged.AI, its proprietary operating system that brings together data, technology and human insight under the global vision of “Growth Powered by Desire.”
Aggarwal, for her part, called the opportunity compelling. “The chance to drive growth across a diverse and integrated ecosystem is exciting,” she said. “I look forward to working with the teams to deliver meaningful impact for clients.”
In a market where media fragmentation is accelerating and clients are demanding cleaner proof of return, Havas has hired someone who has sat on both sides of the table. That, in itself, is a statement of intent.
