In the ever-evolving landscape of Indian retail, few phenomena have captured attention and reshaped consumer behavior as rapidly and profoundly as quick commerce. In less than a decade, what began as a niche experiment in 10-minute grocery delivery has transformed into a multi-category, urban consumption revolution—one that promises to redefine convenience, accessibility, and even the nature of consumer planning itself.

At the heart of this transformation lies BigBasket, one of India’s earliest and most influential online grocery players. Seshu Kumar, Chief Buying and Merchandising Officer at BigBasket, recently revealed that the company has fully committed to quick commerce, marking a significant strategic pivot.

“We have now integrated both of our offerings—BB Now and Super Saver—into a single BigBasket app. In most metro cities, the majority of products are now delivered in just 10 minutes,” said Kumar. “We’re evolving our long tail categories like large appliances and fashion products, which currently take 30 minutes to an hour. But the future is clear—complete quick commerce in 40-50 cities.”

This shift marks a substantial departure from traditional "planned shopping," which had long been the norm in Indian households. Whether it was the once-a-month stock-up or weekly grocery planning, Kumar believes the era of cognitive burden caused by planning is fading, replaced by a desire to shop as and when needed.

“Planning creates mental stress. Customers don’t want to plan. They want to shop when they like, when they need something,” he explained. “This new behavior is more natural and more scalable.”

The Shift from Planning to Spontaneity

Historically, the Indian consumer was defined by thrift, planning, and the monthly ration mindset. That paradigm shifted during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. The emergence of 10-minute delivery services not only offered speed, but also a new way to live, allowing customers to forgo lists and stockpiles in favor of immediate gratification.

This shift, however, isn’t just behavioral. It’s logistical. Quick commerce is predicated on a dense network of dark stores—essentially micro-warehouses strategically placed within urban centers to ensure hyper-local delivery within minutes. “Quick commerce is essentially a hyper-local business,” noted Adarsh Menon, Partner at Fireside Ventures. “You need to fulfill demand from customers within 1 to 2 kilometers. This is how speed can be guaranteed.”

Menon emphasizes that the core audience today is the affluent, time-poor, convenience-first urban household. These are households willing to trade money for time. While not every consumer may want to pay a premium today, Menon believes monetization is inevitable. “Platforms must begin charging for convenience, and many users will be happy to pay,” he said. “If you compare with general trade, yes, quick commerce will be more expensive. But it’s justified.”

Tier II and Beyond: A Measured Expansion

While quick commerce has proven itself in metros, the big question remains—can it work in smaller cities and towns?

Kumar believes it can. BigBasket is seeing growing demand in Tier II and even Tier III cities, especially where professional employment patterns mirror urban lifestyles. “These aren’t farmer-dominated towns anymore. People are busy with their jobs. When they come home at 8 or 9 p.m., they don’t want to shop. They want convenience,” he said. “We’ve seen demand in cities with populations up to five lakh. We haven’t tried in ultra-small towns yet, but we’re optimistic.”

The key to scale, however, is sustainability. While demand and supply are steadily proving viable, profitability remains the biggest hurdle. Kumar admits that the company is still experimenting with the economic model, especially as it ventures beyond metros.

“We’re confident about sustainability in metros and Tier II cities. Beyond that, we’re still learning. The goal is to build a model that scales with demand and remains profitable,” he added.

Affordability vs Assortment: The Consumer Trade-off

As quick commerce grows, a clear value proposition (CVP) is emerging, anchored on convenience, speed, and modern assortment, but with trade-offs in price and affordability. “Consumers have always shopped locally. Kirana stores were the original quick commerce,” said Menon. “But apps today offer better selection, digital payments, and a much wider range of new-age brands—things kiranas can’t match.”

He warns, however, that affordability could become a limiting factor, especially for price-sensitive middle-class households. “At some point, a middle-class customer may hesitate to pay Rs 15-20 for a Rs 100 order just for speed. In those segments, demand might taper. This is why quick commerce must strike a balance between convenience and cost.”

Quick Commerce as a Brand-Building Bridge

For startups and emerging D2C brands, quick commerce offers a powerful new launchpad. Traditionally, a brand’s growth followed a linear path—D2C website, marketplaces like Amazon, modern trade retailers like Reliance or DMart, and finally, general trade.

Quick commerce has changed that progression.

“Quick commerce bridges the online-offline gap. Brands can now go digital-first for longer, avoiding the cost and complexity of offline,” said Menon. “We’re very excited about this as consumer investors.”

This is especially important because quick commerce platforms are tunnel-like—consumers search with intent. So, unless a brand already has awareness, it won’t get discovered. This forces companies to build brand equity outside the platform first, reinforcing the need for omnichannel marketing and pre-platform engagement.

Vertical Quick Commerce: The Next Frontier

Menon also sees growing momentum in vertical quick commerce, where speed-based delivery models are being tailored for specific categories like fashion, beauty, and medicines. “We recently met a startup building quick commerce just for Gen Z—fast, curated, and impulse-driven. These niche players will thrive if they deliver on the convenience promise,” he observed.

One such example of a differentiated approach comes from MagicPin, a platform that eschews dark stores entirely in favor of partnering with local retailers. “We don’t operate dark stores,” said Naman Mawandia, Co-Founder at MagicPin. “We work with existing stores, help them digitize inventory, and enable discovery and transactions on our platform.”

This model gives MagicPin an asset-light, scalable edge, leveraging technology and data to transform neighborhood stores into quick commerce-ready hubs. It also aligns with the broader ‘Bharat enablement’ strategy, where small businesses are empowered to ride the digital wave without being left behind.

The Road Ahead: Challenges & Consolidation

Despite the optimism, experts agree that quick commerce is not without its challenges. Profitability, supply chain efficiency, warehousing costs, and last-mile delivery remain critical areas of focus. Over time, consolidation is likely, with only a few players surviving the capital-intensive demands of the model.

Yet, the fundamental appeal—instant gratification and zero-friction shopping—is too strong to ignore. In a country like India, where mobile-first behavior, rising disposable incomes, and young digital-native consumers dominate the narrative, quick commerce is no longer a luxury—it’s an expectation.

As Kumar puts it succinctly, “No customer really wants to plan. They want to buy when they want, and get it when they want. That’s what we’re building for.”

To Sum Up

The Indian quick commerce story is only just beginning. What started as a novelty has now found deep resonance in urban life and is making its way into smaller towns. With evolving infrastructure, intelligent supply chains, and a growing ecosystem of brands and platforms, the model is inching closer to viability.

However, success will depend on balancing convenience with affordability, localization with scalability, and speed with sustainability.

In the words of Adarsh Menon, “It’s a slam dunk for urban India. For the rest, we’re watching closely.”