E-commerce businesses in the Indian scenario have lately seen an overwhelming growth and acceptance owing to factors like better Internet penetration and advancement in technology. The E - commerce business models, in particular, have aroused a great interest among researchers and academicians. Majority of the players operating within the e-commerce space in the country have a single-point agenda of driving motivation and creating needs by way of offering lucrative discounts, cash on delivery options, and a wide variety in terms of products and services. In terms of 'value' offered, several rewarding options are made available to the customers, but the point of differentiation for the players is thinning, leading to a visible clutter, and hence, pressures on profitability, indicating a need for innovation to make the business models more sustainable. Integrating secondary data and expert opinion, this paper attempted at proposing a framework by identifying key areas, which can be reinforced by these companies to differentiate themselves and create a sustainable advantage.

1. Barney, J. (1991). Firm resources and sustained competitive advantage. Journal of Management, 17 (1), 99-120.
2. Bhatia, N. (2012). The future of E-commerce in India. Retrieved from
3. <a href=http //www.nitinbhatia.in./Marketing-casestudy target="_blank">http //www.nitinbhatia.in./Marketing-casestudy</a>
4. Bogaisky, J. (2014, February 12). Retail in crisis : These are the changes brick and mortar stores must make. Forbes. Retrieved from <a href=http//www.forbes.com/sites/jeremybogaisky/2014/02/12/ target="_blank">http//www.forbes.com/sites/jeremybogaisky/2014/02/12/</a>
5. Damanpour, F., & Damanpour, J. A. (2001). E-business e-commerce evolution: Perspective and strategy. Managerial Finance, 27 (7), 16 - 33.
6. Ghosh, S. (1997). Making business sense of the Internet. Harvard Business Review, 76 (2), 126-135.
7. Hansen, E. G., & Schaltegger, S. (2016). The sustainability balanced scorecard: A systematic review of architectures. Journal of Business Ethics, 133 (2), 193-221.
8. Hoessle, U. (2013). Ten steps towards a sustainable business. Series 1. Seattle, United States. Walla Walla Solutions Worldwide.
9. Joshi, D. J. (2013). An analysis of the existing literature on B2C E-commerce. Indian Journal of Marketing, 43 (12), 34 - 46. DOI: 10.17010/ijom/2013/v43/i12/80512
10. Lee, C.-S. (2001). An analytical framework for evaluating e-commerce business models and strategies. Internet Research, 11(4), 349 -359. DOI : <a href=http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/10662240110402803 target="_blank">http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/10662240110402803</a>
11. Lin, M., Ke, X., & Whinston, A. B. (2012). Vertical differentiation and a comparison of online advertising models. Journal of Management Information Systems, 29 (1), 195-236.
12. López-Nores, M., Blanco-Fernández, Y., & Pazos-Arias, J. J. (2013). Cloud-based personalization of new advertising and e-commerce models for video consumption. The Computer Journal, 56 (5), 573-592.
13. Minculete, G., & Minculete, G. D. (2013). Approaches related to E-commerce models in the e-business. Land Forces Academy Review, 18 (1), 101 - 101.
14. Mitra, S. (2015, April 25). The curious case of India's e-commerce. Business Standard. Retrieved from <a href=http://www.business-standard.com/article/companies/the-curious-case-of-india-s-e-commerce-115042500594_1.html target="_blank">http://www.business-standard.com/article/companies/the-curious-case-of-india-s-e-commerce-115042500594_1.html</a>
15. Nair, A. A. (2016, April 18). Will CoD kill the Indian e - commerce star? Retrieved from <a href=https://yourstory.com/2016/04/cod-kill-indian-e-commerce/ target="_blank">https://yourstory.com/2016/04/cod-kill-indian-e-commerce/</a>
16. Oliver, C. (1997). Sustainable competitive advantage: Combining institutional and resource-based views. Strategic Management Journal, 18 (9), 697-713.
17. Osterwalder, A., & Pigneur, Y. (2010). Business model generation: A handbook for visionaries, game changers, and challengers. USA : John Wiley & Sons.
18. Peterovic, O., Kittl, C., Teksten, R.D. (2001) Developing business models for eBusiness. International Conference on Electronic Commerce 2001, October 31- November 4, Vienna.
19. Porter, M. E. (1985). Competitive advantage : Creating and sustaining superior performance. New York, NY : The Free Press.
20. PWC - ASSOCHAM. (2014). Evolution of e-commerce in India : Creating the bricks behind the clicks. Retrieved from <a href=http://www.pwc.in/publications/publications-2014/evolution-of-e-commerce-in-india-creating-the-bricks-behind-the-clicks.html target="_blank">http://www.pwc.in/publications/publications-2014/evolution-of-e-commerce-in-india-creating-the-bricks-behind-the-clicks.html</a>
21. PwC. (2014). eCommerce in India : Accelerating growth. Retrieved from <a href=http://www.pwc.in/assets/pdfs/publications/2015/ecommerce-in-india-accelerating-growth.pdf target="_blank">http://www.pwc.in/assets/pdfs/publications/2015/ecommerce-in-india-accelerating-growth.pdf</a>
22. Sardana, M.M.K. (2015). Evolution of ecommerce in India: Challenges ahead (Part 1) [Discussion Notes] . New Delhi : Institute for Studies in Industrial Development.
23. Teece, D. J. (2010). Business models, business strategy and innovation. Long Range Planning, 43 (2), 172-194.
24. Tian, Z., Zhang, Z., & Guan, X. (2013). A new evolution model for B2C e-commerce market. Information Technology and Management, 14 (3), 205-215.
25. Wagner, B. A., Fillis, I., & Johansson, U. (2003). E-business and e-supply strategy in small and medium sized businesses (SMEs). Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 8 (4), 343-354.