This comes at a time when companies are looking to hire incremental sales force and direct distribution roles to penetrate newer tier-2 and tier-3 markets and the hinterland in expectation of demand recovery in the new fiscal.
“It is progressively getting harder to find salesmen across FMCG. These are hard jobs, you’ve to pound the pavement and get the sales, when eight months of the year it’s extremely hot or the weather is harsh,” said Dinkar Ayilavarapu, head of Flipkart Wholesale, the B2B marketplace owned by the Flipkart Group.
ET Bureau“We’re finding this to be a big challenge, as these executives with average mid-rung salaries of ₹32,000-40,000 per month, are preferring other office jobs like sorting, mailroom, security officers, inventory and storage management, call centres, other support staff, or driving their own taxis,” he added.
Executives pointed to the dual challenge of high attrition in sales and the emergence of newer job options, especially in the gig workforce with skill sets that are funnelling younger workers into delivery, logistics, dark stores and warehousing. “There are challenges of attrition in traditional salesforce roles, perhaps the highest among all functions, but there is no option,” said Mayank Shah, VP at Parle Products.
Doubling Down on Incentives
“There are more than 12 million FMCG retail outlets which need to be serviced, unlike overseas where you find a majority of self-service outlets,” he said.
On average there are 15-20 million such feet-on-the-street workers, according to industry executives. Executives said they are doubling down on incentives to strengthen the attractiveness of such jobs.
“Companies are changing models to increase their feet on the street. Good incentives and career paths for traditional sales managers have helped them lead teams,” Shah said.
“There’s significant migration happening from traditional FMCG sales roles to the gig workforce. The pay structures are not very different, and pressures of frontline sales force jobs based on outcomes are not there,” said Balasubramanian A, senior VP and business head at staffing and recruitment firm TeamLease Services.
“To be able to attract a young workforce in traditional feet-on-street roles is challenging. Hence, companies are working on enhancing career paths of such workforce to help them rise through the ranks,” he added.
Bisleri International chief executive Angelo George outlined the challenges.
“Hiring frontline sales personnel is becoming increasingly challenging as many prefer roles in retail, warehouse management, and dark stores due to similar salaries and structured work environments. Extreme heat in field sales further drives this shift toward indoor roles,” George said. “Additionally, the rapid expansion of quick commerce is intensifying competition for the same talent pool. As a result, both hiring and retaining sales talent for longer tenures are becoming more difficult.”
Another senior executive at a large soft-drinks maker echoed the sentiment and said they were hiring salesmen on temporary basis.
“The challenge we are facing is retention of frontline sales force; we depend heavily on these roles, now more so with a prolonged summer ahead when there is an accelerated need to step up servicing of trade,” the person said. “But with demand for gig workforce by quick commerce and ecommerce channels almost always available, recruiting for traditional frontline roles is becoming increasingly challenging. We, too, are now recruiting frontline for salesforce roles on a temporary basis.”
TeamLease Services said in a report on Wednesday that the gig workforce remains predominantly young, with the average employee age at 25-26, given the sector’s fast-paced operations and companies relying heavily on temporary and seasonal staffing, with associates averaging a tenure of six months.
“India’s quick-commerce sector is expanding at an unprecedented rate, with the market size projected to reach $5 billion by 2025, growing at a CAGR of 10-15%. The surge in last-mile delivery, dark store operations, and warehouse management roles is reshaping the gig economy,” the report said.
