Asia’s richest man Mukesh Ambani is mimicking the strategy of popular Indian grocery start-ups to drastically change how his retail empire operates: from home deliveries that can take a day or two, his business is now targeting a 10-30 minute service.
Quick commerce has reshaped how Indians shop as Zomato, SoftBank-backed Swiggy and Zepto now promise deliveries from their neighbourhood warehouses within 10 minutes, even beating Amazon.
These multi-billion-dollar quick commerce businesses, though loss-making, have disrupted the sales of mom-and-pop stores and supermarkets as people opt for quick deliveries of everything from milk and chocolates to Apple iPhones.
The sector has become too hot, too fast for Ambani’s Reliance to ignore, even though experts say its late entry will face challenges including a lack of small-scale warehouses and running the business from supermarkets focused on walk-in customers.
Datum Intelligence estimates quick commerce sales will hit $6 billion this year, up from just $100 million in 2020.
Reliance plans to leverage its 3,000 supermarkets in 1,150 cities for quick deliveries
by deploying small teams operating from dedicated kiosks inside, according to three people familiar with its strategy and Reuters’ visits to outlets near Mumbai.
The sources provided previously unreported details of order volume targets, delivery plans and links to Reliance Retail’s long-awaited IPO.
Reliance’s bet is sparked by changing shopping trends. A recent Datum survey of 3,000 Indian quick commerce shoppers showed 36 per cent had reduced shopping at supermarkets and 46 per cent cut back purchases from local grocers.
“Reliance is making an entry as quick commerce is already impacting modern retail and will also impact its stores,” said Satish Meena, an adviser at Datum.
Reliance is aiming for a 10-30 minute delivery window because it does not believe customers need orders within 10 minutes and the longer timeframe will help ensure the business is sustainable. Ambani hopes quick commerce will bolster its business ahead of an IPO of Reliance Retail.
