Flipkart Extends Its Quick Commerce Arm in Bengaluru Flipkart has recently launched a quick commerce vertical called 'Minutes', exclusive to Bengaluru

Flipkart has made its first move to establish itself in the quick commerce sector in India. The e-commerce giant has unveiled a quick commerce (q-commerce) arm called 'Minutes'. This vertical will be in competition with already established q-commerce players such as Swiggy, Zomato, Blinkit and Zepto among others. The company will deliver goods such as groceries, electronics, smartphones and other products within 8-16 minutes. However, the service is only available in select areas such as Belandur and HSR in Bengaluru for now.

Flipkart has introduced an introductory offer of free deliveries on all orders over INR 99. However, they are charging a platform fee of INR 5, a new revenue strategy that companies are exploring for extra income. Additionally, Flipkart Minutes provides a unique feature allowing customers to cancel or reject items directly at the doorstep if they are not satisfied with their order, a service not currently matched by any other company, as per Financial Express.

A report from ET highlights Flipkart's strategy to enhance its q-commerce capabilities by establishing approximately 100 dark stores—small warehouses used for rapid deliveries—during this festive season. Meanwhile, Blinkit has announced an ambitious plan to expand its network to 2,000 dark stores by 2026, a significant increase from its previous target of 1,000 stores by March 2025. Similarly, Zepto aims to double its dark store presence to 700 by March 2025. As of the end of June 2024, Swiggy Instamart operates over 500 such warehouses, while Blinkit had 639 dark stores in operation.