Quick commerce no longer a mad dash as firms use algos to group orders and cut costs

Analysts said the aggregation represents more than just a cost adjustment and marks a turning point for swing trading. “Over time, these algorithms will start to prioritize customers,” said Madhur Singhal, managing partner and head of consumer and internet at Praxis Global Alliance. “This will allow platforms to enable premiumization and potentially launch premium subscriptions to reward loyal customers,” he added.

But for now, bulk trading mostly helps swing traders cut losses without disappointing clients.

BigBasket, one of the oldest online grocers operating with pre-scheduled deliveries, has made a complete comeback after switching to express deliveries via BBNow in 2022 and is now fine-tuning its bundling engine. BBNow is fully incorporated into BigBasket as its core swing trading arm.

“The routing engine sees each customer’s promised ETA (estimated time of arrival) as the primary constraint,” said Aashutosh Taparia, national head of last mile delivery at BigBasket. “Orders are only grouped when they can be delivered within the promised window.”

Taparia added that the company plans to launch an improved version of its blending engine by December and has no plans to return to scheduled deliveries. “We are not currently considering the option of advancing our planned service,” he said.

Flipkart Minutes, the flash commerce arm of the Walmart-owned e-commerce giant, started bundling earlier this year, about a year after its launch, a Flipkart spokesperson said. “When a micro-fulfillment store sees a surge in demand, the system automatically picks nearby orders to ease the load. [the company’s term for its delivery workers] Earn a fixed incentive for every additional delivery with minimal additional travel,” the spokesperson added.

For Zepto, bundling has been built into the delivery model from day one. “By grouping nearby orders, we reduce return trips and optimize routes, helping minimize delays even during peak hours,” said Vikas Sharma, Zepto’s chief operating officer, adding that delivery workers earn additional incentives for group rides.

Swiggy’s Instamart started collecting orders in bulk in June 2024. Emailed queries to Swiggy and Eternal’s Blinkit received no response.

Borrowed from food delivery

Bundling is not new for India’s food delivery giants Swiggy and Zomato, which have been quietly operating similar models for years usually under “Eco Saver” or by allowing users to plan their orders. These models allow users to have slower, cheaper delivery tiers to bundle together nearby orders that are typically priced. ₹5-10% lower than normal deliveries.

This model is now being extended to flash commerce, where “algorithms are used to prioritize one customer over another,” said Abhivardhan, president of the Artificial Intelligence and Law Society of India, an industry forum.

He noted that restaurants with higher ratings, faster prep times and larger order sizes already receive algorithmic boosts, and it makes sense to extend that prioritization to customers.

Inside Food delivery, such systems can even span multiple restaurants. However, in flash trading, bulk processing is often limited to orders within the same bay or within a 500 meter to 1 kilometer radius, so order fulfillment tends to happen from a single dark store, industry executives said. Mint.

Interestingly, this marks a comeback for Blinkit, which ceased operations in 2021 In regions where it cannot keep its 10-minute delivery promise. This was before Zomato Ltd (now Eternal) acquired it for $568 million in an all-stock deal in 2022. This year, Blinkit moved to an inventory-driven model where dark stores stock stock directly, and has expanded aggressively, targeting 3,000 dark stores by the end of the year.

Swiggy followed Blinkit on one front but backtracked on the other front. It too moved towards an inventory-focused model, but Dark store expansion taken a step back.

No compromise in competition

The move to optimize rapid deliveries comes at a time when competition in the space shows no signs of easing. Reliance-owned JioMart has strengthened by adding 600 dark stores in the last two quarters as part of its accelerating commerce pivot. In metros, Blinkit is trying to take market share from incumbents like Swiggy and Zepto and currently offers delivery in 1,000 cities, compared to Blinkit’s 152 cities as of October.

“It will take many years for competition to reach its goal.” [places where] We are already one step ahead. What we need to do is capture share from competitors in major cities, Dinesh Taluja, chief financial officer of Reliance Retail, said during the company’s Q2FY26 earnings call.

Meanwhile, companies are simultaneously increasing their efforts to acquire new customers and retain existing customers by offering deep discounts. Swiggy, new release ₹10,000 crore qualified institutional placement (QIP) launched the ‘Mega Savings Festival’ offering zero delivery, transaction and fluctuation charges from October 3 to November 7. Zepto’s recent $450 million fundraising raises similar discounts like zero fees on orders above ₹99.

What does this mean for employees and customers?

For delivery workers, grouping can feel like a Faustian bargain. Workers Mint When I spoke on different platforms, he said that standard deliveries are paid ₹26-30 per order, bulk work costs approx. ₹45-50. But two single orders would pay roughly ₹60. Although the payout is lower for bulk deliveries, the time saved can help offset this.

“Standard [single] delivery usually ₹26 to ₹32 per order, if in bulk ₹45 for two drops,” said Ravi, a 28-year-old delivery worker in Delhi’s Govindpuri. “Sounds better, but the second order usually takes about 5-10 minutes and you have to wait longer in the store. It only balances out if orders are close and consistent.”

“If picking becomes the norm and drivers can do more clustered work in a shift, that could be equal across the board, but only if there is a steady flow of bulk orders and a few single deliveries in between,” said Farheen, an analyst at the center for critical and emerging technologies at the Asian Institute for Advanced Study. Shorter distances between deliveries can also reduce fuel costs, making bulk orders a little more feasible during long shifts, delivery drivers say.

Meanwhile, customers are noticing the delay. Several swing trading users Mint Interviews across Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru reported that delivery times had increased from 10-12 minutes to around 20-25 minutes, although the apps still showed similar ETAs. Platforms rarely disclose that orders are placed in bulk. For example, BigBasket shows route details to passengers but not to customers.

“Deliveries used to take 10-12 minutes; now they usually show up in 20-25 minutes,” said Neha, a 24-year-old marketing professional based in Bengaluru. “The app doesn’t mention that orders are placed on stick, but you notice it when the driver tells you there’s another stop first.”

But analysts say this 5-10 minute slip isn’t a deal breaker, at least not yet. “Quick commerce players have realized that customers have embraced the channel and are not worried about a delay of a few minutes if the order size is small,” said Singhal.