Flipkart to launch food delivery service soon, taking on Zomato and Swiggy

Ordering dinner could soon become one more thing you can do on Flipkart. The Walmart-owned e-commerce giant is preparing to enter India's online food delivery market in the coming weeks, taking on established players such as Zomato and Swiggy. While the launch will begin on a small scale, the company says it plans to fine-tune the service based on customer feedback before expanding across the country.

FOOD DELIVERY LAUNCH TO BEGIN IN PHASES

Flipkart Group CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy confirmed that the company will launch its food delivery service within the next few weeks, reported Moneycontrol.

He said Flipkart would first introduce the service to a limited set of users and then gradually expand it after understanding how customers respond.

Krishnamurthy explained that, like its other businesses, the company would first introduce the service on a limited scale, test its value proposition with customers, gather feedback and continue refining the offering until it meets customer expectations. Only after that would Flipkart begin expanding the service to a larger audience.

The phased rollout is similar to the approach the company followed for its quick commerce business, Flipkart Minutes.

AVAILABLE THROUGH A SEPARATE APP AND FLIPKART

Krishnamurthy said customers will be able to access the food delivery service both through a separate app and from within the main Flipkart app.

However, he did not reveal what the service will be called or which city will see the first launch.

According to sources, Flipkart is expected to roll out the service by integrating with the government's Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC). The company, however, did not comment on how the business will be structured.

Rather than discussing how Flipkart plans to compete with existing food delivery platforms, Krishnamurthy said the company only enters a business when it believes it can offer customers something new.

He said value is not just about lower prices. Customers also expect a wide choice of restaurants, dependable service, quick deliveries and a smooth overall experience.

According to him, Flipkart will focus on improving all these areas before expanding the service nationwide.

Krishnamurthy also said the company wants customers to find a broad range of restaurants on its platform over time.

He noted that if food delivery becomes part of the Flipkart app, customers would naturally expect to see most of the restaurants already available through other platforms. The company, he said, will work towards building a comprehensive restaurant catalogue as it grows the business.

COMPETITION SET TO INTENSIFY

Flipkart's entry is expected to make India's food delivery market more competitive. The sector is currently led by Eternal-owned Zomato and Swiggy, while ONDC-backed food ordering has also been gaining attention by offering an alternative network-based model.

With its large customer base, strong logistics network and growing quick commerce business, Flipkart will be hoping to carve out its own space in a market where convenience, speed and customer experience have become key deciding factors.