Hardeep Singh
Indians are increasingly using the internet to shop for groceries. India’s online food retail sector is expected to reach $10.5 billion by 2023, according to a Redseer forecast.
You don’t have to stroll up and down store aisles when you shop online. You may check in at any time of day or night, even 2 a.m., and have access to a fully stocked store. Furthermore, using the delivery route saves you time and money by eliminating the need to go to the store.
Introduction
In India, Big Basket is the most popular online marketplace. Fresh fruits and vegetables, grains and dals, drinks, personal care goods, meats, and other home staples are among the 18,000 items offered by the organisation, which offers over 1000 distinct brands. This platform was created in India to address the issue of busy individuals lacking the time to shop for food and other necessities. In addition to Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Chennai, Pune, Delhi, Gurugram, Noida, Indore, Surat, and Kolkata, they also have offices in Mumbai, Chennai, Pune, Delhi, Gurugram, Noida, Indore, Surat, and Kolkata.
Founder and Foundation Stone
BigBasket’s founders sought to cash in on the expertise they gathered when the dot-com bubble crashed, so they founded the company. As a consequence, they chose to create a one-of-a-kind website that had never been seen before. All of Big Basket’s founders have relevant and recent e-commerce experience when they started Fabmart.com. Fabmart.com was an online bookstore that sold books, toys, and food in 1999. Only a few months prior, they had concluded that not only our country, but the entire world, was unprepared for the digitization mania.
The crew regrouped in the golden year of 2011, and began to contemplate the possibility of producing something new and thrilling once more. They were adamant that now was the moment to do something that would put them on the map, notwithstanding the opposition. In 2011, the smartphone industry was booming, and everything was for sale, with the exception of food, of course. That was their eureka moment right there. Prior to building its first warehouse, BigBasket used to fill orders by collecting products from Metro cash & carry stores.
Furthermore, BigBasket’s private-label services are used by over a thousand Kirana shops, major organisations, and HoReCas on a B2B basis (hotels, restaurants, cafes). The inventory idea and a hyper-local approach are both part of Big Basket’s business strategy. The inventory model needs the corporation to purchase things from reputable vendors such as P&G, HUL, mills, farmers, and others, keep them in warehouses, and then distribute them to clients as needed. They have relationships with local farmers and suppliers through which they may obtain things on demand and, in the case of perishable items, transport them to consumers.
BigBasket holds a significant market share in this rapidly growing business. As Supermarket Grocery Supplies Pvt. Ltd., BigBasket was founded in 2011 by dotcom bubble survivors V.S. Sudhakar, Hari Menon, V.S. Ramesh, Vipul Parekh, and Abhinay Choudhari. It quickly became a household name. Bengaluru-based BigBasket has risen to become India’s largest online grocer, handling over 150,000 orders every day.
After purchasing a 64 percent share in BigBasket in a recent transaction, Tata Group now owns the firm. In May 2021, BigBasket’s stock is estimated to be worth $1.85 billion.
Concept and ideation that came into execution
BigBasket specialises in supplying essential culinary requirements to its customers, such as ghee (clarified butter), sliced coconut, and fragrant basmati rice, as well as over 40,000 other items for purchase and delivery, ranging from bread to laundry detergents. Their objective is to make online grocery shopping more convenient for clients, allowing them to avoid traffic and the monotony of travelling to the store. BB Daily, BB Instant, and BB Beauty are three new firms founded by the corporation to explore new potential. BB Daily, a subscription-based business, allows customers to purchase milk and fresh foods.
Customers must order by 10 p.m. the night before, and the items must be delivered between 5 and 7 a.m. the next day.
BigBasket’s BB Instant unmanned vending machines may be found in corporate offices, tech parks, and residential complexes in Tier I cities. BB Beauty, on the other hand, allows clients to purchase a wide range of beauty and personal care products online. BigBasket will launch its first physical store, “Fresho,” in Bangalore in the final week of October 2021, according to an internal business email. The aforementioned shop has been open to clients of Bangalore’s Basaveshwar Nagar since October 25, 2021, according to BigBasket co-founder VS Sudhakar, who alerted all of the company’s personnel.
Current Proliferation and Growth
Over 6 million individuals use BigBasket’s mobile app, which is available in 26 locations throughout India. BigBasket’s client acquisition strategy is unique in that it examines the distinct needs and spending habits of its customers from different cities. With their meticulous attention to detail, the founders set themselves apart from the competitors. The team created a plan to get them through the city. They doubled the amount of leafy greens in Mumbai, launched a new rice type (named Sona Masoori) in Bangalore, and even offered eight distinct eggplant kinds to choosy clients.
Considering internet shopping necessitates quick delivery, the team concentrated on it. They developed proprietary software to transport drivers to their destinations automatically, allowing the company to maintain a near-perfect on-time record. Customers will receive a 10% discount if their order is delivered late. Missing items are reimbursed at a rate of 50% of the item’s original cost.
Fundings of the Company
BigBasket has raised $1.1 billion in funding across 16 rounds. On April 15, 2020, they received their most recent funding through a Debt Financing round. Bigbasket’s gross sales in fiscal year 2021 were $1.1 billion. (8000 crore in Indian Rupees) It has increased by 80% in the previous year and is expected to continue on its rising trend. The Indian Competition Commission has approved Tata Digital’s acquisition of BigBasket. According to rumours, the Tata Group has acquired a 64.3 percent stake in BigBasket, a unicorn in food delivery. The $1.2 billion purchase increased BigBasket’s post-money capitalization to more than $2 billion.
Acquisitions and Mergers
Big Basket has made five purchases thus far. They bought the hyper-local delivery platform DailyNinja on March 24, 2020. The company bought ‘Delyver,’ an online platform that connects small businesses with customers, in June 2015. In October 2018, Big Basket acquired ‘Raincan,’ a subscription-based service provider for morning and breakfast supplies located in Pune. In October 2018, Big Basket bought ‘KWIK24,’ a company that designs and produces smart vending machines. On October 19, 2018, Big Basket announced the acquisition of Bangalore-based ‘Morning Cart.’ Morning Cart is an online store where you may buy your daily essentials.
Challenges in the past
Despite its rapid growth, BigBasket is up against severe competition in the market. LocalBanya, PepperTap, which is financed by Sequoia, and Grofers, which is supported by SoftBank, are all rivals. Despite the fact that these competitors have developed a strong market position over time, the company tends to stay fit and good and win the market thanks to its vast and growing customer base.
Given the high level of resistance, encouraging consumers to test the service first is one of the most challenging challenges for any business in India. Keep these consumers despite all other market variables like competitors, local suppliers, and buying patterns. Because it was a one-of-a-kind grocery firm that had never been done before, it took time for people to trust the brand and begin using its services. BigBasket’s private label business is driven by lower costs and higher profitability. Private brands account for around 35% of overall revenue.
Conclusion
BigBasket is adamant about remaining India’s most popular grocery delivery business. As a result, the goal is to construct warehouses in each of India’s 26 operational cities in order to shorten delivery times to three hours.
According to the co-founder, BigBasket aims to go public in the future, but not right immediately. According to ET, the e-grocer will go public within the next two years.
The objective is to have 60,000 SKUs and triple the number of farms to 5,000 by 2022. BigBasket’s private label service will be expanded by utilising Alibaba’s capabilities to find and import a selection of products six times that of large-format retailers.
