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Online grocery platform Bigbasket is looking at hiring 10,000 people for its warehouses and last-mile delivery to clear pending orders quickly and meet the spike in orders on account of the nationwide lockdown. "We are looking to hire 10,000 people for our warehouses and last-mile delivery. This hiring will happen across all 26 cities that we are present in," BigBasket Vice President-Human Resources Tanuja Tewari told . She added that the pressure is being felt across all cities with the challenges being higher in tier I cities. E-commerce companies have been struggling to deliver orders after the 21-day lockdown, imposed to contain the spread of the deadly coronavirus, came into effect from March 25. Even though the government has allowed delivery of essential goods including food, pharmaceuticals and medical equipment through e-commerce platforms, players have complained of their delivery staff being hassled by police. With local authorities shutting down warehouses and stopping trucks from crossing state borders, e-commerce players have seen their operations getting disrupted. The companies have resumed operations and working to complete pending orders. Some companies are giving people the option to cancel their orders, and are also delaying taking fresh orders to ensure the pending orders get delivered. gro Another challenge facing the industry is the availability of limited staff for warehouses and logistics. Tewari said currently, there is a shortfall of 50 per cent staff in the company's warehouses and delivery team. The company has started taking orders in all the cities but due to capacity constraints the slots are getting filled very quickly, she added. In a tweet, bigbasket said it is operating at about 40 per cent of its planned capacity. "We are operational across all our cities with limited slot capacities except Kochi and Indore... We were operating at 10 per cent of our capacity on March 25 and as of yesterday (April 2), we are operating at 40 per cent of capacity planned," it said. The company also has permits/passes from government authorities to ensure that its employees have safe passage for their work. It is also providing attractive salary and benefits package including health insurance to help staff at this difficult time. On Thursday, bigbasket partnered with ride-hailing platform Uber to deliver household essentials to customers.

COVID-19: Bigbasket to hire 10,000 people for warehouses, delivery

<ul><li>Twitter was flooded with complaints about <keyword id="964794" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="BigBasket">BigBasket</keyword>, Grofers and other delivery apps about delayed deliveries, lack of available slots and delayed refunds.</li><li>BigBasket CEO <keyword id="6379851" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="hari-menon">Hari Menon</keyword> took to Twitter to explain why finding slots on the app is difficult right now.</li><li>All refunds will also be processed in the next 2-3 days, he said.</li></ul>With the coronavirus lockdown, Indians are stuck inside their homes and are looking to get essentials delivered at their doorstep through ‘contactless delivery’. But as they turn to apps like BigBasket, there is growing frustration as delivery slots are unavailable. “I keep waiting for the slot to be available and order within seconds. If you don’t do this, the slot is gone,” said an IT professional in Hyderabad. Twitter too has been flooded with complaints about BigBasket, Grofers and other delivery apps about delayed deliveries, lack of available slots and delayed refunds. BigBasket CEO Hari Menon took to Twitter to explain why finding slots on the app is difficult right now. Menon said that they plan for demand three months in advance including setting up of warehouses, procuring racks, picking devices, crates, hiring people, delivery vans etc. <div type="twitter" handle="harimenon_bb" handlename="Hari Menon" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1243987352654983168/NSLjaE8F_normal.jpg" favoritecount="419" retweetcount="153" status="Over the last few weeks you may have found it hard to find slots on bigbasket (hopefully you're finding it better o… https://t.co/1SWvqk2RbL" createdat="1587407126000" id="1252302372207902720"></div> However, BigBasket had one major issue as the demand went through the roof – its workforce returned to their villages right before the lockdown. “That was something we didn't anticipate, and which meant we couldn't pick orders and deliver them in sufficient numbers to satisfy the 3-6 fold increase in demand,” Menon wrote on Twitter. So, BigBasket thought quickly and turned to look for options and ways to deliver faster and quicker. It partnered with ride hailing app Uber to deliver groceries. The startup also acquired Bengaluru-based milk delivery app DailyNinja for a <a href="https://www.livemint.com/companies/start-ups/bigbasket-acquires-bengaluru-based-milk-delivery-app-11585043760435.html">reported</a> $15-$20 million. Menon said that they are also hiring. “We've been trying to recruit warehouse staff and delivery executives in all cities. However, recruitment and training do tend to take time; also, a lot of the people who applied for jobs were only willing to join after the lockdown. Fortunately, things have improved now, and should get better in the next few weeks,” he wrote. The startup worked on multiple product changes and to bring in transparency they also started showing the number of orders per day on the app. They are also working on refunds, while he added that the volumes are very high right now. “When the lockdown hit and a large chunk of our manpower left for their hometown, we started with delivering 30,000 orders. Today we deliver 2.83 lakh orders and are growing. However, sadly, the expectation is 3-6 times this number,” said Menon. See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/ecommerce/news/you-wont-be-able-to-order-non-essential-items-on-amazon-flipkart-and-others-till-lockdown-is-lifted/articleshow/75230373.cms">Amazon, Flipkart cannot deliver non-essential items like mobile phones, TVs during lockdown</a>

BigBasket CEO explains why is it difficult to get slots for grocery delivery

<ul><li>After the government in states like Maharashtra, Bihar, Tamil Nadu and Delhi instructed schools, colleges and malls to remain shut till March 31, <keyword id="1640900" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Online-grocery">online grocery</keyword> stores like <keyword id="2466939" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Grofers">Grofers</keyword>, <keyword id="964794" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="BigBasket">BigBasket</keyword> and Supr Daily have seen an upsurge in orders for essentials. </li><li>Online grocery delivery majors have seen an increasing demand for products such as sanitisers, masks, atta &amp; dal, fruits, and vegetables.</li><li>Platforms are also advising customers to avoid using cash, which can be a source of transmitting the virus between individuals. </li></ul>As the number of people infected by Covid-19 keeps increasing with each passing day, there has been an increase in the demand of orders from online grocery stores in the past few days. The government in states like Maharashtra, Bihar, Tamil Nadu and Delhi have instructed schools, colleges and malls to remain shut till March 31. The government is also advising social distancing, with a lot of organisations asking its employees to work from home. The closure of malls, and with it, a lot of supermarkets, has led to a direct increase in the order of staples online. Much like the US and UK, that witnessed a huge surge in online orders for essentials, in India too, a lot of online marketplaces like BigBasket, Future Group and Grofers are witnessing an increase in demand, with most people ordering for staples. Supr Daily, that delivers daily essentials like milk, bread, fruits and vegetables, told its customers that it will deliver till 9 a.m. instead of the usual 7 a.m. due to increased demand. In the past few days, BigBasket has witnessed a 2X increase in its traffic and its revenue. BigBasket said in a statement that they are witnessing a 15-20% increase in the basket value. Increased demand has been for essentials such as staples, atta &amp; dal, fruits, and vegetables. However, it said that it is in control of the supplies, given that a predominant share is from its private label products. The platform is currently not facing any shortage for FMCG branded products except in the case of sanitisers. In the last 30 days, as per Google Trends, there has been a rise in web search for sanitisers. 
 <div type="image" title="web search saniti" msid="74657409" hostid="261"></div>



 A spokesperson from the Future Group that owns Big Bazaar and Easyday reported a similar increase in their online orders. "We have seen an upswing in the demand for daily essentials from our customers in certain geographies. We are making sure that we are managing our stocks and supply chain in a way that meets all our customer needs. We are also following and complying with various government/local body directives related to store operations.” While there were a lot of instances of hoarding in the US and UK with a lot of essentials being sold out quickly, most of these platforms haven’t witnessed hoarding yet. BigBasket said, “We are not witnessing hoarding behavior thus far. To our customers, our stance will be not to panic and buy more than what they need. We will gear up for the increased demand and availability of products will not be an issue.” In a note on its website, Grofers asked its consumers to avoid hoarding. “Buy what you need and maybe add some cushioning on top as we will keep working hard to keep items in stock and reasonably priced for all our customers. Excessive buying or multiple orders to bypass inventory limit can lead to order cancellation,” its blog read. Grofers has disinfected its warehouses and is sanitising on a daily basis to keep the inventory virus free. Telling us more about the spike in their business and safety precautions, Albinder Dhindsa, Co-Founder &amp; CEO, Grofers, said, “Over the last couple of days, we have seen customers buying items on our platform in large quantities across cities as well as categories. Mumbai, Bangalore, Pune and Ahmedabad have seen a higher surge with nearly 80% growth followed by Delhi NCR and Hyderabad at a 60% spike in business. We have seen a rise in both the number of orders (45%) as well as order value (18%). Personal hygiene products, followed by floor cleaners have seen a surge in demand along with immunity-boosting products such as chyawanprash and honey. Essential items such as atta, dal and rice are also being bought in large quantities by our customers." Grofers has suspended travel between locations and offices, so each of its 20+ units across the country can stay isolated and clear of the virus. Its supplies are now passing through separate areas, manned by different personnel than those that work in crowds in store. The crates are also being washed and disinfected after every usage. However, a lot of delivery partners are hesitant to come to work. With higher demand and lack of resources, there is a delay in delivery. It is currently 3 days in Delhi and less than 2 days in most other cities. In such a scenario, it is advisable to plan your groceries in advance and avoid dealing in cash as it can be a possible source of transmitting the virus. A spokesperson from Big Basket said that they are working to expedite their product deliveries. “We will face some constraints for a few more days because it takes time to build capacity in terms of storage, delivery fleet and people. Our teams are working hard to streamline this and we will be back on track very soon.” Some platforms have been kind enough to provide essentials at a price lower than its usual market rate. For example, Grofers is selling N95 face masks at Rs 90, when the general market prices are in the range of Rs 450-500.

As malls shut down, online grocery stores in India see a surge in demand

<keyword id="964794" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="BigBasket">BigBasket</keyword>, one of the country's second-most valuable ecommerce firm focused on a specific segment, is all set to get a funding of around Rs 800 crore, or $ 120-million. 
 
Online grocer BigBasket is going to get funding from US-based Sands Capital, International Finance Corporation and Bessemer Venture Partners. 
 
Reportedly, the deal is going to take at least two weeks. Presently, BigBasket's valuation is Rs 2,100 crore, or about $320 million. 
 
Through the latest funding round, it will be able to keep its growing competitors such as Grofers and PepperTap behind. 
 
Recently, BigBasket’s chief executive Hari Menon had said that he expected gross merchandise value of $300 million, or Rs 2,000 crore, for the ongoing financial year ending in March 2016. 
 
BigBasket, which has one-third of its sales from its own brands such as Fresho and BB Royal, ensures delivery of majority of the products as it operates on an inventory-based model. 
 
“We cater to both consumer needs, bulk pre-planned as well as on-demand emergency top-ups, with an inventory-led approach. For bulk orders, we fulfill orders through our warehouses and for one-hour express deliveries, we have set up about 63 'dark stores' around the city," Menon had said. 
 
Apparently, BigBasket handles about 2,700 orders per day.

BigBasket gets bigger, to get Rs 800
cr funding

<ul><li>As pandemic craze settles down, several startups in the consumer tech space like <keyword id="2900267" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="byju" source="Orion">Byju</keyword>’s, <keyword id="6630114" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="unacademy" source="Orion">Unacademy</keyword>, <keyword id="2016957" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="vedantu" source="Orion">Vedantu</keyword>, <keyword id="864887" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="pepperfry" source="Orion">Pepperfry</keyword>, <keyword id="255703" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="bluestone" source="Orion">BlueStone</keyword> and CaratLane are rushing to open offline.</li><li>Brand creation, expansion and a huge offline market are some of the reasons behind growing offline models.</li><li>Also, the fact that India online is still 10-12% of the total commerce and 85-90% is still offline, which is a much larger pie for grabs.</li></ul>India has been registering almost 80 <keyword id="138263" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="startup" source="Orion">startup</keyword>s every day and the count has grown in the last couple of years. Pandemic saw every other startup investing and marketing their strong online presence thinking it will last forever. Now that the pandemic boom has faded, edtech startups like Byju’s, Unacademy, Vedantu or furniture retailers like Pepperfry, Wakefit are working to expand their offline presence – into brick and mortar stores, or in some cases, launching their own stores. Experts believe that brand creation, expansion and a huge offline market is why consumer startups should open offline stores as well. “According to multiple industry reports, the Indian online market is still just around 10% of the total retail market of which about 90% is still offline, which is a much larger pie. Online businesses are therefore coming offline for multiple reasons -- brand creation, expansion. The market is much larger offline so they would want to have a share of the pie,” Amit Nawka, partner – deals and India startup leader at PwC India told Business Insider India. The emerging hybrid model After the pandemic consumers are looking for a personal touch and visiting stores, which is proving a challenge for such consumer startups. Most cash rich online companies are acquiring companies to help them build an offline presence, quickly. It’s already visible in the edtech space as students have developed screen fatigue during two years of the pandemic. Experts say that Byju’s Akash acquisition was to make its mark offline. And Unacademy and others would have to follow suit. In an emerging digital era, even offline stores are still a priority for many, online and offline models are supposed to work seamlessly with one another -- store for people to walk in and experience the brand and then also purchase online. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; table-layout: fixed; width: 468pt;" class="redcator-table-advance"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Startups opening experience centres to expand offline </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Byju’s acquired tutoring chain Aakash Educational Services to expand physical branches </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Vedantu experimenting a hybrid model, opens offline centres that will like a learning centre </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Unacademy will have 15 offline centres in nine cities by mid-July </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">IPO bound Pepperfry has opened studios in Odisha, Bangalore </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Wakefit announced launch of 10 retail stories across India this year </td></tr></tbody><tbody></tbody><tbody></tbody></table> Offline play is now being called an ‘omni-channel approach’. FirstCry and Ratan Tata-backed retail jewelry companies like BlueStone and CaratLane which were predominantly online players have started going offline. The costs, cannibalization - the Nykaa case study Nykaa, which is more of an e-commerce company for beauty, wellness and fashion products, has been opening stores to let consumers recognize their brand in person. Since 2014, Nykaa has turned omnichannel and opened physical retail stores to get closer to customers. Its retail store count has come up to 95 across 47 cities in the country and has declared plans to triple the store count to 300 across 100 cities. “On the surface, this seems like a distraction from the digital-first, tech enabled positioning that the company continues to portray. However, it is important to understand the strategic reasons for the company to aggressively pursue store expansion,” said a report by JM Financial. While it could be a long-term strategy, in the medium term however brokerages feel that going offline could be a stress on the balance sheets of companies – especially those which are on their path to profitability. “Besides providing some brands (and within that only some SKUs) the route to market in the physical world in addition to the online realm, we do not see any rationale in entering this business. There will be significant overlap with other providers such as Jio and Udaan, not to mention its own distribution in some cases,” said an IIFL report on Nykaa. The report also says that physical stores might result in cannibalization of business for beauty and personal care products in Nykaa. It gets a lot of business from small towns which do not have retail presence and this business can be eaten away from its own physical business, according to IIFL. Will buy online but want to ‘see’ offline J M Financial however believes otherwise. In urban and rural areas both, a majority of the population still feels comfortable transacting on digital platforms when they can connect it to a physical presence as well. “The retail footprint provides peace of mind to the customers and, hence, becomes a strong brand building factor as well,” said the J M Financial report. Tech innovations such as virtual try-ons work to some extent for certain products but having the opportunity to access a store can be a game-changer. Purple too went for the Faces Canada acquisition, which was predominantly offline. Quick commerce adding warehouses or dark store Retail businesses are in need of brick and mortar presence, the most. Quick delivery platforms -- Zomato, Dunzo, Bigbasket -- are also expanding their warehouses as they promise to deliver groceries in 10-15 minutes. A dark store is generally a large warehouse that can either be used to facilitate a ‘click-and-collect’ service, where a customer collects an item they have ordered online, or as an order fulfillment platform for online sales. These quick commerce platforms rely on these dark stores for quick deliveries. During the pandemic, online businesses have expanded and thrived but as they tried to ‘take over’ from physical businesses, they saw something they never probably saw earlier – how close they can get to their customers and how many more they can reach physically. This is the starting point of the trend reversal in startups and new-age digital businesses. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; table-layout: fixed; width: 468pt;" class="redcator-table-advance"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Dunzo operates 120 dark stores across the eight cities and is looking to expand </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Zomato’s new acquisition Blinkit has about 400 such stores and may expand further </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Bigbasket aims to expand its dark store network to 300 stores </td></tr></tbody><tbody></tbody><tbody></tbody></table> SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/politics/india/news/uddhav-thackeray-the-accidental-chief-minister/articleshow/92559485.cms">Uddhav Thackeray: The accidental chief minister</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/indian-credit-card-users-spend-40x-more-than-debit-card-users-online/articleshow/92543305.cms">Indian credit card users spend 40x more than debit card users online</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/credit-card-spends-hit-a-record-high-and-most-of-it-is-online-and-not-at-stores/articleshow/92535200.cms">Credit card spends hit a record high and most of it is online and not at stores</a>

Startups go physical from digital as pandemic boom ends

Adani Enterprises will be setting up a hyper-scale data centre at <keyword id="7009895" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bengal-Silicon-Valley" source="Orion">Bengal Silicon Valley</keyword> in the New Town area in the northern outskirts of Kolkata, according to the West Bengal Commerce and Industries Minister Partha Chatterjee. "We have already allotted 51.75 acres of land for that purpose at Bengal Silicon Valley. The land is being allotted on the basis of a 99-year lease," he told media persons at the Assembly premises here on Monday. However, Chatterjee declined to comment on the quantum of investment that Adani Enterprises will be making behind that project. He was also silent on the number of direct employment that the proposed project will ensure. While addressing the Bengal Global Business Summit (BGBS)-2022, the annual event organised by the state government to showcase the state as an attractive business destination, in April, <keyword id="6367820" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="adani-group" source="Orion">Adani Group</keyword> Chairman <keyword id="111343" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="gautam-adani" source="Orion">Gautam Adani</keyword> said that his group will invest Rs 10,000 crore in the state over the next ten years. Then he also said that this proposed investment will be in sectors like date centres, warehouses and under-sea cables. "This will provide direct and indirect employment to around 25,000 people. As we make these investments, we will bring in the state world class technology," he had said. According to Chatterjee, this hyper-scale data centre will be the first tranche of the investment of Rs 10,000 crore by Adani Group in the state. He also said that proposals for setting up four bicycle manufacturing units by four different companies at Kharagpur Vidyasagar Industrial Park in West Midnapore district have also been received by the state government. According to him, the four projects combined will entail investment to the tune of Rs 40 crore and will ensure employment to 140 individuals. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="http://www.businessinsider.in/retail/e-commerce/news/tataneu-could-be-worth-15-billion-all-thanks-to-bigbasket-croma-and-westside/articleshow/92052094.cms">TataNeu could be worth $15 billion all thanks to BigBasket, Croma and Westside</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="http://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/flexiloans-com-bags-90-million-to-cover-six-years-of-journey-in-one-year/articleshow/92041187.cms">FlexiLoans.com bags $90 million to cover six years’ of journey in one year</a>

Adani Group to set up hyper-scale data centre near Kolkata

<ul><li>On the day of the <keyword id="1814675" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Janata-Curfew">Janata curfew</keyword>, from 7 am to 9 pm, everyone stayed home, the roads bore an empty look, with nothing but <keyword id="6835803" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="essential-services">essential services</keyword> plying. </li><li>However, grocery delivery service <keyword id="2466939" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Grofers">Grofers</keyword> faced major issues on the day of Janata curfew.</li><li>Its delivery agents were stopped and arrested which led to a delay of 60,000 orders across the country. </li></ul>On March 22, India observed a Janata curfew, or a self-imposed curfew called for by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi. From 7 am to 9 pm, everyone stayed home, the roads bore an empty look, with only essential services set to be available to stall the spread of <keyword id="1754604" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="coronavirus">Coronavirus</keyword>. However, grocery delivery service Grofers faced major issues on the day. Its delivery agents were stopped and arrested which led to a delay of 60,000 orders across the country. “As per the directive of the central government, we at Grofers continued to provide essential goods to customers across the country on the day of Janta Curfew. State Government and local administration are advised to exempt e-commerce operations (warehousing and logistics facilities and services), wholesaler, their vendors and third party delivery partners who are a part of the supply and logistics chain ecosystem, from any type of prohibitory orders etc,” said Albinder Dhindsa, co-founder &amp; CEO, Grofers. While a lockdown has been issued, only essential services will be open. E-commerce is listed under the essential services category which meant that delivery agents from Amazon, Flipkart, Zomato, Swiggy, Bigbasket, Grofers and others would be able to continue with work. In spite of this, Grofers says it faced major issues. “Due to some confusion regarding the services exempted, many of our delivery riders were stopped and arrested which led to a delay in the delivery of almost 60,000 orders countrywide. This does not only affect the morale of the delivery staff who are working selflessly to support people but is also causing inconvenience to many customers who are relying highly on our services,” said Dhindsa. He also added that in a few states including Maharashtra, they are also being forced to shut down their warehouses. “Our teams are working relentlessly to support people and we are abiding by the rules and ensuring the maintenance of proper hygiene and sanitation in our facilities and vehicles,” Dhindsa said while appealing the government to further clear the air around the issue. See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/coronavirus-lockdown-in-india-list-of-essential-services-during-a-lockdown/articleshow/74761160.cms">Coronavirus lockdown in India: List of essential services operational during a lockdown</a>

Grofers says its delivery agents were arrested during Janata curfew, led to a delay of 60,000 orders

<ul><li>Indian e-commerce companies raised concerns about their delivery agents being stopped by the police during <keyword id="91743" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="lockdown">lockdown</keyword>. Some have even been arrested.</li><li>Under directives issued by the government, e-commerce comes under the essential services umbrella. </li><li>It means that delivery agents from <keyword id="18635" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amazon">Amazon</keyword>, <keyword id="6354742" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Flipkart">Flipkart</keyword>, <keyword id="830092" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Zomato">Zomato</keyword>, Swiggy, Bigbasket, Grofers and others should be able to continue with work. </li></ul>Since March 22, India has been in a lockdown to contain the spread of <keyword id="1754604" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="coronavirus">Coronavirus</keyword>. While offices, malls are shut, ‘essential services’ like grocery stores, pharmacies are allowed to stay open. In a relief for the Indian e-commerce sector, online retail too fell under the essential services category. However, the relief was been short-lived. Delivery agents from Amazon, Flipkart, Zomato, Grofers, Milkbasket and others were stopped by the police on the roads. Some have also been arrested. On Janata <keyword id="23410" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Curfew">curfew</keyword> (March 22), Grofers said that its delivery agents were stopped and arrested by the police across the country, leading to a delay of over 60,000 orders. Another <keyword id="2709620" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="grocery-delivery">grocery delivery</keyword> startup Milkbasket said that its staff, vendors and vehicles are being pushed back from the roads by local police, disrupting our operations. “We are being told to shut down our distribution centers. Yesterday we had to cancel thousands of orders. We could only operate at 40% capacity in Gurgaon. Even lower in Noida. We might have to cancel all the orders today, impacting over 150,000 families across 4 cities,” said the company’s official statement. Even their warehouses are being asked to shut down. But they aren’t alone. E-commerce behemoths Amazon and Flipkart are facing similar issues. “We are working with the local authorities to enable us to perform these important services providing safety for our delivery associates and allowing them to make sure those priority goods can arrive safely at our customers’ homes without any disruption,” an Amazon spokesperson told Business Insider. While they intend to move ahead with uninterrupted services during the testing times, they are also working with local authorities to work on the issues. “There are operational issues on-ground which impact our ability to seamlessly service the communities as they stay indoors. We are working with the central and state government as an industry to solve these challenges,” a Flipkart spokesperson told Business Insider. A Zomato spokesperson told Business Insider that these are unprecedented times. “The government has provided strong guidance which we are adhering by and trying our best to execute on the ground. Coordinating with multiple local authorities is challenging however, we are hoping to iron this out soon,” said the spokesperson As people stay at home, they are relying more and more on online deliveries. But if these issues continue to rise, it could lead to the delay and cancellation of thousands of orders from across the country. Perhaps, having a uniform for delivery agents could be the answer, but one of the e-commerce giants told Business Insider that most of the companies already have an uniform and it hasn’t helped. All the e-commerce companies are appealing to the government to sort out problems for seamless deliveries of essential supplies. “A suggestion would be to issue access permits / ID cards to staff engaged in essential services such as grocery delivery, medicines, food delivery, and others,” suggested Milkbasket. As many states move from lockdown to curfews, the agents will have to be issued curfew passes which is another roadblock that e-commerce companies have to overcome. See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/ecommerce/news/grofers-says-its-delivery-agents-were-arrested-during-janata-curfew-led-to-a-delay-of-60000-orders/articleshow/74766803.cms">Grofers says its delivery agents were arrested during Janata curfew, led to a delay of 60,000 orders</a>

Amazon, Flipkart, Zomato fall under ‘essential services’ but their delivery agents are being stopped by the police

New Delhi, May 26 () Billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries has launched an online extension of its grocery business under JioMart brand across 200 cities. The service is being offered in all leading metros (Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and Kolkata), and even in smaller towns like Mysuru, Bhatinda and Dehradun. JioMart is now delivering in more than 200 cities, Damodar Mall, the chief executive officer of Reliance Retail's grocery business said in a tweet. JioMart last month started a pilot project serving users in three neighbourhoods surrounding Mumbai. Credit Suisse said, "The national roll-out provides customers with a useful alternative to existing players (BigBasket, Grofers) as online grocery orders have spiked, given the fewer store visits". D-Mart, it said, mentioned that April revenues are down 45 per cent year-on-year as nearly 50 per cent of the stores are shut or have very restricted hours of operation. Therefore, online orders should help offset some of the lower sales in physical stores. CLSA said as of now, the website will only use Reliance's offline grocery supply chain as its backbone and deliver to homes. "Success at its ongoing beta tests in Navi Mumbai, which also encompasses mom and pop stores and uses WhatsApp as a platform to order, will be later extended to pan-India," it said. Users can order from a full suite of grocery items by visiting the JioMart website. Products include fruits and vegetables, dairy and baked goods, staples, snacks and branded foods, beverages, and personal and home care. Reliance's private labels also featured prominently. "While it does not commit on a delivery timeline when ordering (due to the lockdown), it aims to deliver orders within a two-day timeframe," CLSA said. Eventually, like other online retailers, it is possible that Reliance integrates its entire retail offerings, including fashion, lifestyle and consumer electronics, onto one super e-commerce platform and mobile app. "This, along with a pan-India extension of partnerships with mom &amp; pop stores after a successful beta test and ramp-up of this new commerce venture is crucial in Reliance's grand plan of converting Jio's 400 million-plus subscribers into customers for its eCommerce and other offerings," CLSA said. Recent partnerships with Facebook-owned WhatsApp for JioMart will only help in increasing monetisation opportunities by increasing the convenience and reach of consumers. The grocery platform was previously piloting deliveries only in select areas of Mumbai. "JioMart has seen a 4x rise in online orders from a low base. With its pan India presence JioMart now directly competes with Amazon and Flipkart in eCommerce," Bernstein said in a separate report. Grocery is 70 per cent of the Indian retail market, 90 per cent-plus unorganised, driven by Kirana stores/small retailers. "Organised penetration is less than 10 per cent while online penetration for grocery is less than 1 per cent," it said. Facebook has made a bigger push into e-commerce with the launch of Shops. "The idea is to bring millions of small businesses online. This will allow free online storefronts for small businesses and retailers and expand Facebook presence across Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger," Bernstein said. "Facebook shops will be complimentary to WhatsApp business use to sign and onboard Kirana stores for JioMart (grocery app of Reliance Retail)." Credit Suisse said JioMart currently fulfills the order by own entity and kiranas likely to be on-boarded subsequently. "The platform lists all the major grocery categories like fruits and vegetables, staples, dairy and bakery, snacks, beverages, personal care, home care and baby care. "In terms of pricing, Reliance has extended the Smart promise of 'minimum 5 per cent off on MRP' to all products on JioMart. The discount is higher on its private label brands, and is competitive to branded products," it said. Reliance Retail had been piloting the initiative in Navi Mumbai, Thane and Kalyan among select population group. It was serving these customers through both Kirana stores and their own warehouses. It also set up Smart Points, which were acting as delivery points in neighbourhood. However, orders post the national launch are being serviced by Reliance Smart and Fresh stores, Sahakari Bhandar stores (owned by Reliance retail), and is not yet fully leveraging kirana network (as on-boarding of Kirana stores is still ongoing), Credit Suisse said. "Just prior to the national launch, Reliance Retail tapped the WhatsApp customer base in the three pilot regions to source orders. In our view, it was just a test phase of integration. The orders were available only for pick-up from nearby Kirana store, whose details were sent to the customer via WhatsApp. However, the national launch, so far, does not have integration with WhatsApp," it said. The brokerage said it placed an order on JioMart but the delivered order value was 55 per cent of the booked order value, due to inventory limitation in the nearby Sahakari Bhandar store. ANZ BAL

Reliance launches JioMart across 200 cities; analysts say co eyeing spike in online grocery orders

This ‘developing’ nation’s ecommerce market has turned into a ground where many exciting games are being played for almost a decade. Venture Capitalists or VCs tested waters with India’s <keyword id="35621" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="e-commerce">e-Commerce</keyword> growth and have been pouring in billions of dollars ever since. No other business presents such a wonderful marriage of two generations – the age old retail trade coupled powered by new technology. 
 
Few of the local players have already made the market an exciting place to be. Bigbasket.com, and <a href="http://localbanya.com/" target="_blank">localbanya.com</a> are two prominent names that have carved a niche for themselves in the market. But then, they have also thrown open the gaping opportunity that’s waiting to be seized. How about some new and fresh players to make the market more feasible for the consumer? 
 
Reliance heard you right now! The company, which has been into unconventional mega scale businesses all over India at mid level, and even into shale gas extraction in foreign countries at very ‘high’ level, has now entered the much untapped online grocery sector to hot up the competition in new India. 
 
When one considers the profit margins, online grocery is not a huge market. In conventional sense, the local traders who run a set up, as humble as it can be, get only up to 10-20% profit on their investment. The funds are usually rotational with slice of revenue fluctuating owing to factors such as inflation, perishable quality of goods and diverse consumer behavior etc. 
 
But there is a huge potential to this section of e-Commerce, and the credit of this has to go to growing cities that have less and less space to allow consumers to shop in peace. This could be a sole driving factor for many consumers to opt for online grocery shopping over conventional mode. 
 
The market has just matured to imbibe this new concept, and also the fact that e-Commerce has become a dominant part of people’s lives by now. Though there is a difference between selling books or electronic gadgets online, as against selling tomatoes or eggs online; the consumers are willing to give a pretty long rope to this sector to grow–much for their convenience. 
 Among other common reasons for the growth of this sector would be high disposable income level, vibrant <keyword id="34412" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="80" keywordseo="economy">economy</keyword>, government policies that would certainly give a positive push to this new concept and increased efficiency in supply chains. 
 
Reliance has made a quiet entry into this market that stands integrated with e-Commerce, which stands at $100 billion in the next half a decade or so. Right now, ecommerce stands at $15 billion with a huge growth potential that is expected to surge every month. 
 Reliance’s retail subsidiary <keyword id="58448" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Reliance-Retail">Reliance Retail</keyword> launched in 2006 with its first Reliance Fresh store. Today the chain has 700 stores in over 63 cities in the country. The fate of these stores hangs in balance while Reliance brings about this change in business plan, which could also be applauded for being ‘forward looking’. 
 Several online retailers are planning to take a jump too including Kishore Biyani’s Future Retail and Kumar Mangalam Birla’s <keyword id="6359480" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Aditya-Birla">Aditya Birla</keyword> Retail. 
 
Customer behaviour in big cities is quite typical considering the cost of buying grocery in person. Given the fact that traffic congestion is high in big cities, which also have high income group living in posh localities, e-Commerce can harness the power of ever expanding middle class in the country. 
 
Having sensed the potential, Bigbasket.com has already been funded by up to $32.6 million dollars with the help of Helion Ventures and Zodius Capital. LocalBanya is also looking at raising some handsome amount to carve a niche for itself in the e-Commerce sector. 
 
E-grocers will have it pretty easy owing to the fact that their overheads are probably lesser than running a complete set up. Economical options like having a warehouse with lesser rent and better facilities outside the town, with good supply network would do a world of good to this sector. 
 
The e-Commerce market in grocery sale will probably bring India some of the biggest lessons in the segment, with some valuable management know-hows because soon, small and big business houses will transition into online sales leaving aside their brick-and-mortar models. Challenges will be new and logistics will have to be realigned to meet the supply chain demands. 
 
Image: indiatimes

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