Start your business this festive season
Free, from India, live this week. Six selling dates are still ahead after Diwali, and a small online store with UPI, cash on delivery and WhatsApp orders can be open before the next one.
By Manan Agrawal, Founder · Updated November 3, 2026
Between Diwali (8 November 2026) and Republic Day (26 January 2027) there are seven selling dates. A store on SitesPlaced publishes free the same day with 0% commission, takes UPI, cards, cash on delivery and WhatsApp orders on your own account, and costs ₹0 to run. Paid plans start at ₹199 a month for your own domain and faster pages, and in India you can pay once with nothing renewing. Pick one category, list five to ten products, switch on payments and delivery, tell twenty people, and time one offer to the next date. The seven-day plan below is the whole of it.
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The selling dates still ahead
Each date has its own buyers and its own products. You do not need all of them; two done well is a season.
| Date | Occasion | What sells |
|---|---|---|
| Sunday 8 November 2026 | Diwali | Sweets and dry fruits, diyas and décor, ethnic wear, gift hampers |
| Saturday 14 November 2026 | Children's Day | Toys, kidswear, books, party supplies, personalised gifts |
| Friday 27 November 2026 | Black Friday | Electronics accessories, winter wear, skincare sets, home décor |
| Monday 30 November 2026 | Cyber Monday | Earbuds, chargers, cases and gadgets under ₹999 |
| Friday 25 December 2026 | Christmas | Gift hampers, Secret Santa gifts under ₹500, cakes and bakes, candles |
| Friday 1 January 2027 | New Year | Planners and journals, party wear, a clearance of festive stock |
| Tuesday 26 January 2027 | Republic Day | The last sale of the season before the wedding and Valentine's run |
The seven-day launch plan
Day 1: pick one category and five to ten products
Something you can make or source this week: chocolates, candles, hampers, kidswear, party wear, accessories. One category, five to ten products, photographed in daylight on your phone. Not a catalogue — a start.
Day 2: open the free store
sitesplaced.com/start, pick the template that matches what you sell, add the products with a name, a price and a photo, and publish. Your store is live at yourname.sitesplaced.site the same day, with 0% commission.
Day 3: switch on the ways people pay
Cash on delivery on, UPI and cards through your own Razorpay, PhonePe or Cashfree account, and WhatsApp checkout next to the normal one. Phone number required at checkout, so every order can be confirmed and delivered.
Day 4: decide how orders get there
Set a delivery charge and free delivery above a value. If you deliver by hand, list the pincodes you serve and checkout refuses the rest. For couriers, connect Shiprocket or Shipmozo and book from the order.
Day 5: tell twenty people
Twenty real WhatsApp messages with the link, asking for feedback rather than an order. The store link in your Instagram bio and your WhatsApp status. The first three orders come from here.
Day 6: one offer for the next date
A coupon with an expiry and a minimum order, or free delivery above a value, timed to the next selling date in the table. One offer, done properly, beats three.
Day 7: reply, pack, repeat
Answer every enquiry with the product link, pack the first orders with a handwritten note, ask each buyer for a photo and post it. Then move to the next date on the calendar.
What is in the free store
Everything a festive-season seller needs is built in. The plan each one needs is in its title.
Free store, 0% commission · Free
Unlimited products and orders, 16 store templates, your products brought in from Instagram or a website in minutes.
UPI, cards, COD and WhatsApp · Free
Online payments through your own Razorpay, PhonePe or Cashfree account, cash on delivery, WhatsApp checkout, and an exact-amount UPI QR for manual payments.
Coupons, sale prices, free-shipping bar · Free
Coupons with an expiry and a minimum order, strikethrough sale prices, and “add ₹200 more for free delivery” in the cart.
Delivery area and shipping charges · Free
Deliver only to your pincodes, set delivery charges and a free-delivery threshold, or book couriers from the order.
Hampers and personalisation · Free
A build-your-own hamper page and per-product personalisation — a note, a photo, paid gift wrap — for the gifting dates.
Own domain and faster pages · Starter ₹199
yourbrand.com, the badge removed, and store pages that answer about 4× faster. Growth at ₹499 adds Buy X Get Y and the sales boosters. Pay once, nothing renews.
What should you sell?
The festive buyer is buying for someone else, in a hurry, with a budget in mind. Things that are gift-ready, under ₹999, and easy to pack sell first. Pick the free template that matches your category and change the colours and photos to suit.
- ✓Gifts and hampers — boxes, sets, Secret Santa gifts under ₹500
- ✓Food — chocolates, cookies, sweets, dry fruits (FSSAI registration applies to food)
- ✓Home and décor — candles, diyas, lamps, cushions, fairy lights
- ✓Fashion — ethnic wear for Diwali, winter wear for December, party wear for New Year
- ✓Electronics accessories — earbuds, chargers, cases, small gadgets for Black Friday and Cyber Monday
- ✓Beauty — skincare and perfume sets at a set price
GiftsGifts & Lifestyle Store
Laid out like Chumbak. A home page of big stacked category photos, shop by occasion, and a preview of the shopper’s own photo on personalised products.
View live demo
FoodFood Store
Laid out like The Whole Truth. A giant type headline instead of a banner photo, colourful category cards, and pack sizes right on the product card.
View live demo
HomeHome & Decor Store
Laid out like Troost. A dark header, a calm product grid, a photo mosaic of your categories, and each rug or print design shown as a photo on the product page.
View live demo
ClothingClothing Store
Laid out like Jnorss. Edge-to-edge photos, the sizes still in stock on every card, and a save-% tag on anything on sale.
View live demo
ElectronicsElectronics Store
Laid out like boAt. Categories above the banner, a strip of key specs on each card, and coupon offers laid out on the product page.
View live demo
BeautyBeauty Store
Laid out like Bella Vita. Bestsellers and New arrivals tabs, a benefit line with star ratings and Add to cart on every card, an offer band, and a bottom menu on phones.
View live demoWhat it costs, in one paragraph
Publishing a store is free, for ever: unlimited products and orders, 0% commission, UPI and cards through your own payment account, cash on delivery, WhatsApp checkout, coupons, sale prices, the free-shipping bar, personalisation and the hamper page. Starter is ₹199 a month or ₹1,990 a year for your own domain, the badge removed, analytics, Meta Pixel and store pages that answer about 4× faster. Growth is ₹499 a month or ₹4,990 a year for Buy X Get Y, cart upsells, reviews and the other sales boosters. In India you can pay once — ₹199 or ₹499 buys 30 days, the yearly price buys a year — and nothing renews by itself. With autopay, the code FREE7 gives 7 days free. See plans and pricing.
Guides for the season
Open your free store today
Live the same day at yourname.sitesplaced.site, with UPI, cash on delivery and WhatsApp orders on your own account and 0% commission. Six festive selling dates are still ahead.
Start my free store →Already selling on Instagram? Paste your profile link and the importer builds the store from your posts.
Frequently asked questions
Can I really start an online business for free in India?
Yes. On SitesPlaced a store publishes free at yourname.sitesplaced.site with unlimited products and orders and 0% commission. UPI and cards go through your own Razorpay, PhonePe or Cashfree account, cash on delivery and WhatsApp checkout are included. You pay only for extras such as your own domain, from ₹199 a month, and you can pay once with no autopay.
Do I need GST or a company to start selling online?
Many first-time sellers start as individuals, and GST registration is generally required only above a turnover threshold or for selling across states through certain channels; the rules depend on what and where you sell. Check the official GST portal and confirm with a CA before you cross a threshold. Food needs FSSAI registration (foscos.fssai.gov.in). SitesPlaced does not require a GST number to open a store.
Can I start with no stock?
You can start with what you can make or source this week, five to ten products, and restock from orders. Print-on-demand sellers can connect Qikink and have products made and shipped per order. Pre-orders are not a feature: say the delivery date on the product and in the announcement bar instead.
Should I take cash on delivery or ask people to pay online?
Both. Cash on delivery gets the first orders from people who do not know you yet; online payment gets you paid before you pack. Keep COD on, add a small COD charge if returns hurt, and offer free delivery for prepaid orders. The guide on getting customers to pay online covers the wording.
How fast can I be live?
The same day. Opening the store, adding five products and publishing takes under an hour; most of the week in the plan above is about payments, delivery and telling people, not about building.
Is it too late to start after Diwali?
No. Diwali is the first of seven selling dates between November and January. Children's Day, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Christmas, New Year and Republic Day follow, and the wedding season runs through February. A store that opens this week has six dates left.
