Bengaluru: Reeling from revenue losses across most of 2020, Small Businesses across India found respite in digital technologies. Through Razorpay, MSMEs started accepting and making millions of transactions digitally, spearheading the digitization of finance in the Indian economy at its largest scale ever. In the past 15 months, over 1.5 million SMEs chose Razorpay as their Payments partner. To celebrate the spirit of MSMEs on World SME Day on 27th June, Razorpay today announced the campaign #YouAreAweSME, which seeks to crowdsource netizens’ favorite MSMEs creating wonders both online and offline and gift them a celebration pack along with free Razorpay payment solutions for a limited period.
The United Nations declared 27th June as World MSME Day in 2017 and has since been observed as the day to celebrate MSMEs the world over. In India, MSMEs are the second-largest employment generating sector after agriculture and contribute 31% to the nation’s GDP. Traditionally, Small Businesses, especially from Tier-2 and Tier-3 towns have preferred transacting in cash. Moving to digital payments not only helped them to automate most finance processes, but also allowed them to cater to a larger catchment of audiences outside their immediate sphere of influence. This shift has helped MSMEs grow their revenues and survive the harsh effects of the pandemic on businesses. Overall, the transaction volume of MSMEs on the Razorpay platform grew over 200% from March ’20 – May ’21, and over 51% of online transactions happened in tier-2 and 3 towns. This stands testament to the fact that the digital finance revolution is not just an urban phenomenon but is relevant and thriving in the hinterlands as well. The fintech unicorn aims to catalyze this digital adoption and be the partner of choice for millions of MSMEs that are set to go online in the times to come. The Rise of Small Businesses in the Post-COVID Era
Razorpay’s campaign #YouAreAweSME went live on all social media platforms today, asking netizens to recommend an MSME that’s close to their hearts. Every such identified MSME was given a shoutout by the brand, along with a free celebration pack which consists of one month of free bundled Razorpay services to help their business grow. Razorpay hopes that this campaign will reinforce MSMEs dreams and visions, and in a small way celebrate the successes of Small Businesses that make a big difference in peoples’ lives.
Speaking on the genesis of the initiative, Vedanarayan Vedantham, SME Business Head, Razorpay, said, “Small Businesses have a big heart and often go above and beyond to deliver a great experience and delight. Most times as consumers, we don’t see the blood and sweat behind an on-time delivery, great packaging, or that personal touch that a Small Business puts into that order. With #YouAreAweSME, we at Razorpay salute the entrepreneurial spirit of MSMEs and wish to celebrate and recognize netizens’ favorite MSMEs across India. We hope this collective gesture from not just Razorpay but admirers across the country brings a smile to Entrepreneurs and encourages those who want to take the plunge.”
