Food Delivery

Decoding Zomato-Blinkit deal and quick commerce’s next phase

Aditi Shrivastava

March 16, 2022 | 10 Min Read

Zomato is going for a share-swap deal to buy Blinkit, which indicates that conserving cash is again a priority for India’s largest consumer internet companies. But for Zomato’s investors, this could mean a significant dilution of stake — all for entry in a business where numbers don’t add up yet

When Grofers raised $100 million from Zomato in July last year, its employees started viewing the food delivery giant as their parent company. The technicalities — Zomato held only a 10% stake at this point — didn’t matter as they saw signs of an imminent change.

Soon, Grofers rebranded itself as Blinkit and shifted its business model from private label-focused, next-day dispatch of groceries to delivery in 10 minutes.

“You see when conversations about a pivot to quick commerce started to happen within the company sometime in May-June, the writing on the wall was clear. The business was being reset to build what Zomato wanted,” said an engineering team member at Blinkit, requesting anonymity.

An acquisition made sense for both companies. Quick commerce was the only thing missing in Zomato’s game, while strategy-hopping Blinkit needed a fresh beginning after the nth stumble. However, the timing wasn’t right.

Corporate

Access unlimited content at a special discounted rate. Trusted by top VC’s and leading organizations, we provide bulk subscriptions for groups of 30+. Contact us for more details

Campus

Top educational institutions have collaborated with us for campus-wide subscriptions. For bulk campus-wide access, please get in touch.

Join our community of 100,000+ top executives, VCs, entrepreneurs, and brightest student minds

Trusted by the best

Karthik Reddy

Blume Ventures

The CapTable brings a refreshing set of insights for us at the Blume team, highlighting stories that bring together the underlying business and founders with that of investors' journeys with these startups. It's an important perspective that very few bring to startup ecosystem enthusiasts.

Latest Articles

Urban Company’s fastest-growing vertical is also its biggest drag

Insta Help, Urban Company’s on-demand, quick housekeeping service, is fuelling growth but also bleeding money. The Rs 44-crore loss in Q2 FY26 pulled the company back into the red. The next few quarters will test whether it becomes UC’s biggest moat or its costliest experiment.

Shivani Verma

How Brand Candere is emerging from Kalyan’s shadows

Once a low-key acquisition, Candere is now central to Kalyan Jewellers’ push into lightweight jewellery and omnichannel retail, as young Indians look for more affordable alternatives to traditional jewellery

Parvathi Benu

Demat or non-demat for mutual funds? Here’s how you can decide

With a demat account you can hold and manage stocks, mutual funds, and bonds, all in one place. But the traditional SOA (statement of account) aka non-demat mode also has its advantages, especially if you mainly invest in mutual funds.

Maulik M

From a sprawling HQ to a mailbox: Inside the Great Byju’s sale

From billion-dollar boardrooms to a rented desk, Byju’s story returns to where it began, smaller, quieter, and up for sale. The insolvency-led auction of India’s most famous startup isn’t just about ownership but whether the country’s biggest tech dream still holds any value.

Nikhil Patwardhan

Inside the fight to reclaim ‘ORS’ from misuse

The battle over ORS-branded beverages exposes the cracks in India’s food regulation and how companies can exploit medical trust. A paediatrician’s complaint has forced the FSSAI and courts to confront a long-ignored grey zone.

Anuj Suvarna

Convinced that The Captable stories and insights
will give you the edge?

Convinced that The Captable stories
and insights will give you the edge?

Subscribe Now

Stories

Explore