Would growing quick commerce make Amazon/ Flipkart irrelevant?

Salutations, Olio aficionados! 👋

Happy Hump Day and welcome to the 80th edition of Weekly Olio - your trusted source for giggles, wisdom, and a dash of intrigue, courtesy of our tantalizing thought piece (yes, buckle up for Publisher's Parmesan). 🧀

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The Quote󠀢 💭

The Tweet 🐦

This is a great read from a VC and a former founder with a very simple message - everything in a deal is always negotiable. It is up to you to figure out the right point of leverage and to build confidence to force this.

The Infographic 💹

"Music when we were growing up was the best. Everything these days is so terrible." Turns out across every single generation, quality of music peaks at age 17 and you begin to start hating any music made after you're 35. The Nostalgia Effect is powerful!

The Short Read 📝

How David Attenborough Went From Delighting at the Natural World to Pleading for Its Future - by Smithsonian Magazine

If you have ever watched wildlife videos, chances are that the voice over in one of them was from the legendary David Attenborough. This piece is a preview of an upcoming BBC series called the ‘Mammals’ where Sir Attenborough has again given his voice - still going strong at the age of 98.

One of the most travelled people on earth, he has inspired generations of scientists, conservationists, filmmakers and photographers. The ‘voice of nature’ - as he is popularly known, has grown more somber and desperate over the years. He has first hand seen the destruction that humans are wrecking over the planet. A must read piece on one of the stalwarts of our time.

The Long Read 📜

How Boeing broke down: Inside the series of leadership failures that hobbled the airline giant - by Forbes

Boeing has been in the news for all the wrong reasons - from design faults in the 737 Max planes to a door falling out when the aircraft was in the air. A once vaunted system of quality control and trouble shooting has been hobbled with poor decision making and a short-term focus on boosting stock prices.

A landmark shift in Boeing’s journey was the acquisition of the defense contractor McDonnell Douglas. As a result of this acquisition, Boeing’s focus shifted from being the best in engineering and quality to caring a bit too much about stock prices. It was also the time when Boeing shifted from building key components in-house to adopting a decentralized contractor based model for manufacturing. This shift and the rush to compete with Airbus led to multiple poor decisions. This is an insightful read into the saga unfolding at Boeing.

Publisher’s Parmesan 🧀

Would growing quick commerce make Amazon/ Flipkart irrelevant?

We live in a time where people want things right away. Not long ago, no one thought we would need beauty products or clothes delivered to our homes in just 10 minutes. But now, that's exactly what's happening. Recently, quick-delivery companies like Blinkit, Zepto, and Swiggy Instamart have started offering products that we usually buy from big online stores like Amazon and Flipkart.

As more city dwellers in India choose fast delivery for all kinds of products, the top 10-minute delivery companies are planning to expand beyond groceries and compete with the big e-commerce companies.

In the heart of Bangalore, the summer of 2024 unfurled with a ferocity that left the city gasping. The mercury climbed with a relentless determination, marking it as one of the worst summers the city had endured in years. The news channels buzzed with updates, and I can personally attest to the oppressive heat that gripped us all. It was during this time that Arjun, my office colleague, faced his own battle against the sweltering heat.

Arjun, who had always been averse to the idea of artificial cooling, found himself cornered by the intense heat. On a day when the temperature soared to new heights, he finally relented. His quest for a cooler began in earnest, and to his astonishment, he discovered the possibility of instant relief through Blinkit. There, on his screen, was a 27-litre water cooler, promising delivery within a mere 20 minutes. It was a revelation, a testament to the efficiency of Quick Commerce apps that had become a staple in our lives.

These apps, once the domain of grocery deliveries, had transformed into something much grander. They had become the modern-day genies of urban life, granting wishes at a moment's notice. Behind the seamless experience of receiving a water cooler or a packet of milk at our doorsteps lies a complex web of logistics and inventory management. It's a system that has been perfected over time, turning the extraordinary into the everyday.

Blinkit, along with its contemporaries like Swiggy Instamart, and Zepto, had ventured into the realm of 'everything stores,' akin to mini-Amazons. This evolution brought with it a fierce competition in the Quick Commerce space, where the race for the widest range of products and the fastest delivery times became the new norm. Yet, the non-grocery segment remained relatively uncharted, a fresh territory ripe for exploration.

These companies were not just delivering groceries anymore. Over the past year, they had expanded their horizons to include a plethora of items—smartwatches, speakers, makeup, novels, and more. To accommodate this diversification, their delivery playbook underwent significant changes. Dark stores, strategically located within close proximity to customers, became the nerve centers of this operation.

Blinkit, for instance, ensured that multiple dark stores were available within a 5km radius of each customer. This strategic placement meant that an order could be split between stores if necessary, ensuring that all items, whether it be coriander leaves or a type C charger, arrived promptly, ideally within 30 minutes. Swiggy's approach involved categorizing stores by size, with larger ones housing a more extensive range of products, including non-grocery items.

Zepto introduced an innovative system where pickers, equipped with apps, retrieved items from shelves in under a minute and a half for smaller orders, and slightly longer for larger items. This efficiency was mirrored by Instamart and Blinkit, who employed similar technologies to streamline their processes.

Analysts watching this space had their say, emphasizing the importance of single-source deliveries from dark stores to minimize costs and maximize efficiency. They also highlighted the ongoing challenge of optimizing dark store layouts to accommodate both groceries and non-groceries, a critical factor in mastering the non-grocery game.

As the share of non-grocery items on these platforms increased, so did the average order value. Blinkit led the pack with an average order value of just over INR 600, while Instamart and Zepto hovered around INR 500 to INR 550. The addition of new categories not only diversified the offerings but also drove up the average order value, with non-grocery categories like beauty and personal care commanding higher commissions.

The story of Quick Commerce is one of constant evolution, of platforms adapting to the changing needs and expectations of their customers. It's a narrative that underscores the importance of convenience and the relentless pursuit of delivering not just goods, but experiences. And as we navigate through the digital aisles of these everything stores, we're reminded that the true magic lies not in the products themselves, but in the intricate dance of technology and human effort that brings them to our doorstep.

So as we recount Arjun's tale of seeking solace from the heat, let's appreciate the unseen symphony of operations that make such stories possible. It's a symphony that plays out every day, in every order, and in every satisfied sigh of relief as we find what we need, when we need it, all thanks to the marvels of Quick Commerce.

Olio Jobs 💼

• Arize AI | U.S. Remote - Backend Engineer, Frontend Engineer

• Cribl | U.S. Remote, Canada Remote - Principal Software Engineer, Backend, Senior Software Engineer, Stream (Backend)

• Weaviate | Remote - Machine Learning Engineer, Senior Software Engineer Database

That’s all for this week. If you enjoyed this edition, we’d really appreciate if you shared it with a friend, family member or colleague.

We’ll be back in your inbox 2 PM IST next Wednesday. Till then, have a productive week!

Peeyush and Mohit

Disclaimer: The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in the text belong solely to the author, and not necessarily to the author's employer, organization, committee or other group or individual.