AJIO is a curated fashion marketplace, not a second Myntra. Brands that list a tight, well-shot edit that fits the platform, protect their pricing through its sale events, and prove a small range before widening it tend to do well. Brands that copy their Myntra catalogue across usually see a long tail of styles nobody finds.
How AJIO Is Different From Myntra
On paper AJIO and Myntra look like the same opportunity: two large fashion marketplaces, overlapping shoppers, similar categories. In practice they are built on different logic. Myntra behaves like a very large mall. It carries an enormous range across every price band, and most of its discovery happens through search, filters and sort-by-discount. A brand there competes on breadth, on visibility in results, and very often on how deep the markdown goes.
AJIO, which sits inside Reliance Retail, has always leaned toward curation. Its catalogue is edited more tightly, its category pages and editorial collections do more of the selling, and the platform cares about how a brand looks next to the labels already on it. The shopper who browses AJIO is often looking for something that feels a little more considered than the default result on a bigger marketplace, and the platform is built to serve that.
That difference is why so many brands are disappointed by their first months. They take the catalogue, imagery and pricing that work on Myntra, list it on AJIO, and wait for a second Myntra to appear. What they get is a long tail of styles that nobody sees, because nothing about the listing fits how AJIO presents fashion.
| Myntra | AJIO |
|---|---|
| Very wide catalogue, every price band | Curated catalogue with a sharper brand edit |
| Search and filters do most of the discovery | Category pages and editorial stories do more of the work |
| Rewards breadth of styles and sizes | Rewards a tight range that fits the edit |
| Discount depth is a large part of the pull | Brand fit and imagery matter before price |
Neither model is better. They reward different things, and a brand that understands which one it is selling into makes very different choices about range, photography and price. If you have not been through Myntra's process yet, our guide to Myntra's catalogue, commission and first ninety days is the useful baseline to compare against.
What AJIO's Curation Means for Your Catalogue
The single most useful decision is to list less. A brand with two hundred styles does not need all two hundred on AJIO. It needs the forty or fifty that have a clear point of view and sit naturally beside the brands AJIO already features in that category. A tight edit is easier for the platform's merchandising team to pick up for collections and campaigns, and easier for a shopper to understand in one scroll.
Imagery is the second lever, and it is where most marketplace-first brands fall short. Flat, heavily retouched catalogue shots that are fine for a price-led marketplace look out of place in an edited feed. Consistent backgrounds, real styling, a model shot that shows how the garment actually sits, and a detail shot of fabric and finish all do more work on AJIO than on a platform where the shopper has already filtered by discount. If you are reshooting anyway, treat it as a chance to fix the fit information that drives returns, which we cover in reducing return rates for fashion brands on Myntra; the same fixes carry straight across.
Finally, write product content for a browser rather than a searcher. Titles still need the basic attributes, but the description and the brand page are where you explain what the label stands for. On a curated platform, a shopper who likes one style is far more likely to look at the rest of your range if the brand page gives them a reason to.
Pricing and Discounting Without Undercutting Yourself
AJIO is curated, but it is not immune to discounting. It runs large sale events through the year, and fashion brands are expected to participate. The common mistake is to treat AJIO as a channel for clearing stock at whatever price moves it, which quietly undermines the full-price positioning that made the brand a fit for the platform in the first place.
Set the MRP and a floor price per style before the first sale arrives, not during it. Decide which styles are allowed to go deep in a sale and which are protected, and keep that consistent with what you do on your own site and on other marketplaces. A shopper who sees the same kurta at three different prices across three platforms in the same week stops trusting the brand's prices everywhere. Our piece on pricing the same product across marketplaces without channel conflict sets out how to structure that.
"AJIO picks brands for how they look beside the labels already on it. Discount your way onto the platform and you give away the one thing it chose you for."
- Brand Integer Marketplace Growth Team
Read the commercial terms carefully when you are onboarded. Commission, fulfilment and return charges together decide what a sale is actually worth, and a style that looks profitable at full price can lose money once a sale discount and a return are both applied. Model the worst realistic case per style, not the average.
Getting Onto AJIO and the First Season
Brands typically come onto AJIO either through its seller onboarding process or through a direct conversation with its category team, and the platform looks at brand fit as well as paperwork. Expect to be asked about your range, your price positioning and your imagery, and go into that conversation with the edit you intend to list rather than your full catalogue. Once you are live, the first season is about proving a small range, not filling the shelf.
- Pick the edit Choose the styles that fit AJIO, not the whole catalogue
- Reshoot to fit Imagery that sits naturally beside the brands already listed
- Price for the sale calendar Set MRP and floor price before the first big sale arrives
- Watch returns by style Fix size charts and fit notes on the styles that come back
- Widen what sells Add colours and sizes only to styles that proved themselves
The step brands most often skip is the fourth. Returns on fashion marketplaces are driven largely by fit and expectation, and they show up style by style, not as a brand-wide average. A style that sells well and comes back often is a size chart or a photo problem, and it is cheaper to fix than to keep shipping. Only once a style has sold steadily and held up on returns is it worth adding colours and sizes, which is the opposite of how most brands launch on a new marketplace.
Plan inventory with the sale calendar in mind as well. A style that gets picked up for a collection or a sale banner can move far faster than its everyday rate, and running out mid-event wastes the visibility you waited months to earn.
When AJIO Is Not Worth the Effort Yet
AJIO suits brands with a clear aesthetic, a range that photographs well, and enough margin to survive sale events without losing money. It is a harder fit for brands that compete mainly on price, brands with very broad and undifferentiated ranges, and brands that do not yet have the imagery or the operational discipline to manage returns on another channel.
If that describes you today, the better move is usually to get one marketplace working properly first, then expand. Our marketplace growth playbook for Amazon, Flipkart, Myntra and Nykaa covers how to sequence that. AJIO tends to reward brands that arrive with a point of view and a small, well-shot range, and it is far easier to build those once than to rebuild them after a disappointing launch.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is AJIO better than Myntra for a new fashion brand?
Neither is better in general; they reward different brands. Myntra suits brands that can compete on breadth, visibility in search and discount depth. AJIO suits brands with a clear aesthetic, a tight range and strong imagery that fits its curated catalogue. Many brands do well on both, but they should not list the same catalogue the same way on each.
How do I start selling on AJIO?
Brands usually come onto AJIO through its seller onboarding process or a conversation with its category team, and the platform looks at brand fit alongside documentation. Prepare a focused edit of the styles you want to list, consistent imagery, and a clear view of your price positioning before you apply, rather than submitting your full catalogue.
Do I have to join AJIO sale events?
Fashion brands on AJIO are generally expected to take part in its sale events, and sales can bring a lot of visibility. Decide in advance which styles can be discounted deeply and set a floor price for each, so a sale moves stock without undermining your full price or creating price conflicts with your own site and other marketplaces.
Should I list my entire catalogue on AJIO?
Usually not. A focused edit of the styles that fit AJIO's catalogue tends to perform better than a long tail of products nobody sees, and it is easier for the platform to feature in collections. Start small, watch sales and returns style by style, and expand colours and sizes only on the styles that prove themselves.
