10-Minute Dopamine Rush: How quick commerce is rewiring your brain

Quick commerce and its promise of 10-minute deliveries is upending retail behaviour in India’s major cities. What started out as the speedy delivery of essential groceries has morphed into a ceaseless craving for convenience. Today, quick-commerce platforms such as Blinkit, Instamart, Zepto, and BigBasket deliver everything from cooked food to home appliances, premium smartphones, fashion, and even gaming consoles in about as long as it takes to make a pot of chai.

And while two years ago the question was whether 10-minute deliveries were even necessary, the answer appears to be an unequivocal yes. India’s top quick commerce platforms are expected to grow at 70% year-on-year for the next five years even as big consumer goods companies grapple with a consumption slowdown.

Forget essentials, even indulgence products are seeing significant traction through quick commerce channels. Already, quick commerce accounts for a tenth of Hindustan Unilever’s ice cream sales nationwide, while close to a third of Dabur’s entire beverage business happens via quick commerce platforms.