Flipkart Plus launched: Similar to Amazon Prime, but without subscription fees

Posing to be the direct competitor to Amazon Prime, Flipkart has launched ‘Flipkart Plus’, its own membership program, sans any membership fees.Essentially, Flipkart Plus will be a premium account that will win users additional benefits of free and early deliveries and early access to products, among other things. Under the program, there will apparently be benefits based on loyalty points, also called ‘Plus Coins’, which effectively work like digital currency which customers can gather from every order they place.[caption id="attachment_4980331" align="alignnone" width="1024"]

Flipkart. Image: Reuters[/caption]How to get the Flipkart Plus membership?Starting today, every Rs 250 spent on purchases, will earn you one Plus Coin. Shopping worth Rs 1,000 for example, will earn you four coins. Flipkart limits the number of coins earned to every order to a maximum of 10 Flip Coins.Once you have accumulated 50 coins, you will be eligible to join Flipkart Plus, and will then be able to avail all the benefits of the membership.So, while there are no fees involved, you still need to be an avid Flipkart shopper to get on board the membership program.Where all can I use Flipkart Plus points?Partnering Flipkart on this model are some of the biggest internet companies like BookMyShow, Cafe Coffee Day, MakeMyTrip, Ixigo, Zomato, Chai Point, Hotstar, and others.“This is a customer-benefit programme rather than a loyalty programme. Potentially, any one of our 100 million customers can earn the coins and start unlocking benefits and rewards,” Shoumyan Biswas, head of Flipkart Plus, marketing and ads, told ETTech.