Is Quick Commerce The Future Of Retail Or Just A Speedy Fad?

In a world where quick commerce has emerged as the poster child of hyper-convenience, consumer expectations have transformed to expect everything from groceries to electronics within 10-30 minutes.

While Zepto and Instamart got a head start on quick commerce, a new wave of specialised platforms has emerged. One such player is DavaNinja, a pharma quick commerce company that delivers medicines and health products in minutes. DavaNinja claims to go deep, offering a wide catalogue of specialised products—focusing not just on speed, but also on discovery and accessibility. Yet, the question remains: is quick commerce truly a game-changer? Are these companies genuinely revolutionising retail?

Evolving consumer expectations post-pandemic: The COVID-19 pandemic altered shopping behaviours dramatically. Consumers, once content with same-day or next-day deliveries, began to demand even faster fulfilment. Quick commerce filled that void by promising ultra-fast deliveries, catering to safety-conscious and convenience-seeking urban dwellers. Platforms like Blinkit leveraged data, local warehouses (dark stores), and predictive analytics to ensure that essentials reached doorsteps in under 15 minutes. For young professionals, parents with toddlers, and the elderly, this speed has been transformative, bringing back a forgotten ingredient for dinner or an emergency medicine almost instantly.

Impact on traditional retail: According to the All-India Consumer Products Distributors Federation (AICPDF), around 2 lakh kirana shops have shut down due to the intensified competition caused by quick commerce. While kiranas offer familiarity and community ties, they often cannot match the speed, UI-based convenience, or pricing discounts offered by digital-first players. In urban areas where q-commerce penetration is high, small retailers are witnessing reduced footfall. The traditionally siloed kirana stores are now looking to partner with quick commerce and list their inventories. Aggregators like Jio Mart and Udaan are helping kiranas digitize their operations, and companies like Dava Ninja are potentially turning local pharmacies into part of the quick commerce supply chain

Hyper-convenience vs. Sustainability: While q-commerce champions speed, it raises critical concerns about environmental impact. The logistics of delivering single items in record time often mean more delivery runs, underutilised transport capacity, and increased carbon emissions. Riders on two-wheelers making multiple short trips add to urban congestion and pollution. Furthermore, the model often uses plastic-heavy packaging for quick handling and delivery. Critics argue that the system fuels impulsive buying, with consumers ordering what they don’t need, thereby promoting wastefulness. Balancing consumer desire with eco-conscious practices is a looming challenge for the sector.

Job creation: One of the undeniable upsides of q-commerce is employment generation. The surge in demand has created thousands of jobs in logistics, particularly for last-mile delivery executives and warehouse staff. For instance, Zepto alone hired over 10,000 delivery partners within a year to support its pan-India rollout. While these jobs offer flexible income opportunities, particularly to gig workers and youth, they also raise questions about fair wages, job security, and working conditions, especially when performance metrics are tied to time-bound deliveries.

Consumer overdependence: The ubiquity of q-commerce has begun fostering overdependence, where consumers minimise planned shopping. The gratification is quick, but so is the erosion of discipline around consumption. For instance, families that once made weekly shopping lists are now opting for five to six small deliveries a week—often spending more cumulatively.

Hybrid model for long-term success: As the sector matures, the long-term success of quick commerce may hinge on a hybrid model, one that blends speed with sustainability, technology with empathy, and scale with responsibility. Meanwhile, some quick commerce platforms are exploring electric vehicle fleets and sustainable packaging to reduce their environmental footprint. Ultimately, for the industry to endure, convenience must coexist with conscious consumption.

(Udai Chopra, the Co-Founder of DavaNinja)

Published on: Sunday, June 08, 2025, 12:00 AM IST