‘Q-Comm Cos Preying on Other Retail Channels to Drive Growth'
HighlightsOnly 6–8 per cent of sales on quick commerce platforms are truly incremental, with most growth occurring at the expense of modern trade and ecommerce. Quick commerce platforms, such as Zepto, Blinkit, and Instamart, are generating limited new demand and are primarily taking market share from other sales channels. Despite quick commerce being the fastest-growing sales channel, it still accounts for only 3-6 per cent of overall sales for most consumer goods firms in India.
Only 6–8 per cent of sales on
quick commerce
platforms are truly incremental, while most of the channel's growth comes at the expense of other formats—primarily
modern trade
and ecommerce, followed by local kiranas, according to a report by Kearney.
This is despite supermarkets and
ecommerce platforms
offering the steepest discounts to shoppers—typically in the range of 13–18 per cent, compared to 6–9 per cent on quick commerce and 2–5 per cent on kiranas or general trade, said the report exclusively shared with ET.
Industry officials agreed that platforms such as
Zepto
,
Blinkit
, and
Instamart
are generating little in terms of new or additional demand.
'Quick commerce is taking some share from marketplaces, they are taking some share from general trade," said
Saugata Gupta
, managing director of Marico, maker of Parachute oil and Saffola cooking oil.
To reduce '
cannibalistic sales
,' the company needs to 'ensure that we have a tailor-made portfolio to drive offtake, and not just give price discounting,' he added.
While quick commerce started off as a top-up service for last-minute purchases for groceries and small-ticket items, it is now the fastest-growing sales channel, especially for premium portfolios.
The contribution of quick commerce to ecommerce sales has been doubling every year, although on a small base. It roughly accounts for between 3-6 per cent of overall sales for most
consumer goods firms
in the country.
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