Flipkart Expands into Food Delivery, Intensifying Competition in Quick Commerce

Walmart-owned Flipkart is preparing to make its foray into India's online food delivery market, intensifying competition in a segment currently dominated by Zomato and Swiggy. The e-commerce major is expected to roll out the service in the coming weeks, beginning with a pilot before expanding based on customer feedback and early operational learnings.

Speaking about the initiative, Flipkart CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy said food delivery will be introduced as another use case within the company's existing e-commerce platform. The offering will be deeply integrated with the government-backed Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), enabling Flipkart to leverage the open digital network for restaurant discovery and order fulfilment.

According to sources, the company plans to introduce the service on its flagship Flipkart app while also testing a standalone food delivery application before scaling operations nationwide.

Bengaluru is expected to be the first market for the launch with Flipkart planning a sizeable rollout in the city to meet customer expectations associated with the brand.

The move forms part of Flipkart's broader strategy to build a comprehensive digital ecosystem spanning multiple consumer services. Besides its core e-commerce business, the group has expanded into fashion through Myntra, travel via Cleartrip, financial services through super.money and quick commerce with Flipkart Minutes.

Flipkart's entry comes at a time when the food delivery landscape is witnessing increased competition beyond the established duopoly of Zomato and Swiggy. Ride-hailing platform Rapido recently entered the space with Ownly, a zero-commission model aimed at keeping restaurant menu prices closer to offline rates, while Swiggy has launched Toing, a value-focused offering targeting price-conscious consumers.