Flipkart, the Indian e-commerce powerhouse owned by Walmart, is gearing up to take on the duopoly of Zomato and Swiggy in the food delivery sector. This move comes as the company enters a highly competitive market that has previously thwarted attempts by giants like Amazon and Google. Based in Bengaluru, Flipkart is currently conducting internal tests of its food delivery service, expanding its trials from a few hundred employees to over 8,000, according to hinews. The company has also established a dedicated fleet of riders through its logistics division, Ekart, distinct from those managing its quick-commerce deliveries, in preparation for a public launch.
The employee-only service is featured as a separate tab within Flipkart’s main shopping application, alongside its Minutes quick-commerce service and travel bookings, as reported by hinews. It utilizes restaurants listed through ONDC, a government-supported network facilitating connections between online buyers and sellers across various platforms, in addition to those restaurants that Flipkart has directly partnered with. Riders donning jerseys emblazoned with the “Eat-in by Minutes” branding have commenced fulfilling orders on the streets of Bengaluru, the city that serves as Flipkart’s headquarters.
As Flipkart broadens its food delivery operations, it enters a market projected by brokerage firm Bernstein to be growing at an annual rate of 18% to 20%. However, online delivery currently represents just over 15% of India’s overall food services industry. Zomato, owned by Eternal, and Swiggy collectively cater to an estimated 85 million to 95 million paying customers each year, according to Bernstein. This statistic underscores the dominance of these two platforms and highlights the potential for new entrants to capture a share of the online food ordering market in the world’s most populous nation, which boasts over a billion internet subscriptions.
Flipkart is not alone in its quest to disrupt India’s food delivery landscape. Ride-hailing service Rapido, which has already posed significant challenges to Uber and its Indian competitor Ola, is expanding its Ownly food delivery service, which charges restaurants no commission. Concurrently, Swiggy has introduced Toing, a separate application targeting customers seeking more affordable meal options. These initiatives reflect the increasing pressure on the existing pricing structures within the industry and the commissions that restaurants are obligated to pay.
“Monopoly is detrimental, but a duopoly is even worse,” stated Sagar Daryani, president of the National Restaurant Association of India, headquartered in New Delhi, which represents over 500,000 restaurants across the country. “What one does, the other mimics.” Daryani emphasized the long-standing need for restaurants to have alternatives to the two prevailing platforms.
Flipkart is not the first well-funded entity to attempt to penetrate India’s food delivery market. In 2020, Amazon launched a food ordering service in Bengaluru, only to discontinue it two years later. Similarly, Google’s Areo app, which combined food ordering with other services, failed to gain traction. Uber also exited the market in 2020, selling its Uber Eats division in India to Zomato. Daryani identifies a significant distinction between Flipkart and its predecessors in the food delivery space. While Zomato and Swiggy initially focused on meal delivery before branching into quick commerce, Flipkart is reversing this approach by leveraging its established e-commerce platform and expanding quick commerce as a launchpad into food delivery.
“Flipkart’s quick commerce advantage will translate into food delivery, making it more streamlined and efficient,” Daryani informed hinews. Restaurants are optimistic that the entry of new players will lower the costs associated with online meal sales. Daryani, who is also the co-founder and CEO of the dumpling chain Wow! Momo Foods, noted that Flipkart has proposed a base commission of around 10%, in contrast to the 20% to 25% typically charged by Zomato and Swiggy. However, commissions represent only a fraction of the total expenses; when advertising, discounts, and other promotional costs are included, restaurants can end up spending 40% to 50% of an order’s value on established platforms, according to Daryani. He anticipates that Flipkart will maintain that total cost closer to 15% to 16%, potentially allowing restaurants to retain more revenue from each order.
Nonetheless, attracting restaurants is one challenge, while winning over customers presents another. Bernstein estimates that new entrants could save customers approximately ₹20 to ₹30 (around 20–30 cents) per order through more efficient operations, which may not be sufficient to entice customers away from Zomato and Swiggy. The two incumbents could also respond with deeper discounts to retain their clientele.
Flipkart does not intend to limit its operations to Bengaluru for long. The company has informed restaurants that it anticipates launching its food delivery service publicly by the end of October and aims to expand to five or six cities by the close of this year, according to Daryani and reported by hinews. This push into food delivery coincides with the uncertainty surrounding Flipkart’s long-awaited stock market debut. Chief Executive Kalyan Krishnamurthy recently refrained from providing a timeline for an IPO, even as the company continues to diversify into sectors that could drive more frequent customer engagement with its app.
Flipkart’s expansion occurs amidst intensifying competition in India’s e-commerce landscape. Quick-commerce platforms that initially focused on delivering groceries in minutes are now also offering the latest iPhones and other discretionary items, positioning them in more direct competition with Flipkart and Amazon. Flipkart did not respond to a request for comments.
