TechCrunch reported Flipkart’s Bengaluru food-delivery employee pilot had topped 8,000 participants, while National Restaurant Association of India President Sagar Daryani says a proposed base fee could undercut incumbent platforms.
The outlet published its report Oct. 19, citing two people familiar with the test. It described “Eat-in by Minutes” as a tab inside Flipkart’s shopping app, with restaurant options from the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) and businesses that signed up directly. The service uses couriers from Ekart, Flipkart’s logistics arm, TechCrunch reported. Flipkart did not respond to TechCrunch’s request for comment. EconoTimes earlier reported on the employee test and a courier-facing app.
Daryani told TechCrunch Flipkart had proposed a base commission of about 10%. He put the usual rate at Zomato and Swiggy at 20% to 25%. Daryani said advertising and promotions can bring restaurant spending on those platforms to 40% to 50% of each order’s value; he estimated Flipkart’s total cost at 15% to 16%. Flipkart has not confirmed the pricing. If adopted, the proposal could reduce participating restaurants’ platform costs. Daryani said Flipkart could carry quick-commerce efficiencies into food delivery, calling the model “leaner, more efficient.”
Price competition could matter for diners, too. TechCrunch, citing Bernstein, reported that the service might save customers ₹20 to ₹30 per order. TechCrunch also reported that Zomato and Swiggy could respond with deeper discounts. Swiggy said in February that its Toing app was live in 11 cities with no platform fees or packaging charges. Redseer estimates India’s food-services market at about $90 billion in fiscal 2025-26 and projects it could reach $150 billion by 2030. Uber completed the sale of its India food-delivery business to Zomato in January 2020, according to an SEC filing.
In July, Flipkart Group Chief Executive Kalyan Krishnamurthy told Moneycontrol that the company could begin in one city, gather customer feedback and then decide whether to scale. Daryani told TechCrunch that Flipkart had given restaurant partners an end-of-October public-launch target and planned to enter five or six cities before year-end. Flipkart has not confirmed that timetable.
