New Delhi [India], October 21 : Aadit Palicha, co-founder and CEO of quick commerce company Zepto on Monday said his company is expanding its business geographically across India. He also added that the unicorn startup has been able to raise the necessary capital for the expansion.
"At this point we are expanding very meaningfully...In the past 18 months or so we have been slow on expansion from a geographic perspective, but in the existing markets we have grown very rapidly, largely because capital was difficult to come by," he said, speaking at the NDTV World Summit 2024 here in the national capital.
"Now we have proven the economics to a great level and we have been able to raise capital and expand very aggressively, geographically," he added.
In the past 3 months, Zepto launched its businesses in cities such as Nashik, Chandigarh, Jaipur, Lucknow, and Coimbatore.
Zepto has a valuation of over USD 5 billion.
Founded in 2021 by Aadit Palicha, Zepto offers a quick commerce service, delivering online groceries, fruits, vegetables, electronics, and many more in a few minutes. Palicha, born in Mumbai, began his business career as an entrepreneur at the age of 17.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the idea of quick online commerce gained much currency in India and the world over.
Palicha was studying for a bachelor's degree in Computer Science at Stanford University when he made the decision to drop out and pursue his startup. Palicha and his team proved that when the fire of entrepreneurship converges with innovation, age is not a roadblock to success.
"At Zepto, we are a customer company...Most of the people we spoke to told us that ordering multiple times has to be seamless, as easy as going downstairs and picking up fruits and vegetables, or day-to-day package foods," Palicha said.
Zepto launched its first warehouse, also called the dark store, in Mumbai's Bandra.
Cut to today, Zepto now has about 50,000 delivery partners, and increasing with the company expanding its businesses in newer cities.
On asked how why Zepto chose 10 minutes as the delivery time given most of India's cities are flood-prone besides the heavy traffic, Palicha said the normal delivery time may change depending on the weather conditions and traffic, but the average turn-around time is about 10 minutes.
In conclusion, Palicha said he and his company want to generate large cash flows, which compound at a rapid pace, supporting the overall startup ecosystem in India.
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