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20 stories for “Instamart”

Empty quick-commerce dark store aisle with stacked crates and overhead LED lights at dawn

Ecommerce

Amazon Now doubles to over 120 cities in two weeks

Minute-level drops reach Amritsar Jalandhar Vizag Kochi just as Great Indian Festival opens 8 October.

Ananya Rao · 2 Oct · 4 min read

Compact empty dark store interior with shelving of grocery packs and packing table under cool LED light

Ecommerce

Amazon bets $3 billion on India quick commerce dark stores

Plan lifts Amazon Now from roughly 750 stores toward 1,300 by April and targets daily essentials share now at 6.2 percent.

Ananya Rao · 1 Oct · 4 min read

Empty stainless steel food prep counters and stacked delivery bags inside a compact dark store

Ecommerce

Zepto Cafe cuts footprint to 250-350 sites after peak

Quick-commerce player scales back from 850-900 locations to focus on high-performing cities and tighter menus, easing dark-store cost pressure.

Ananya Rao · 30 Sep · 4 min read

Stainless steel kitchen counters and empty prep stations in a compact cafe kitchen

Ecommerce

Zepto Cafe cuts footprint to 250-350 sites after peak

Quick-commerce firm scales back from 850-900 locations to focus on high-performing cities and tighter menus.

Ananya Rao · 29 Sep · 4 min read

Rows of stocked metal shelves inside a compact urban dark store under fluorescent light

Ecommerce

Flipkart Amazon near 1,000 dark stores in q-comm sprint

Bernstein note shows Flipkart approaching the mark while Amazon eyes festive season scale, pressuring Blinkit margins.

Ananya Rao · 29 Sep · 4 min read

Stacked snack packets and oil bottles on metal shelves inside a compact dark store under cool LED lighting

Ecommerce

Flipkart Minutes launches Pykd private label in gourmet

Quick-commerce arm adds namkeen, chips and premium grocery range; dark-store margins and basket values get a lift ahead of festive demand.

Ananya Rao · 28 Sep · 4 min read

Metal racks stacked with medicine boxes and grocery packs inside a small warehouse bay

Ecommerce

Rio Health raises $4.5 mn to scale NCR dark stores

Pre-Series A funds push network from three to over 15 dark stores and target ₹150 crore annual run rate in quick commerce.

Ananya Rao · 25 Sep · 4 min read

Stacked food cartons and sealed packets on a warehouse shelf under fluorescent light

Ecommerce

FSSAI starts penal action against Amazon Flipkart Zepto Instamart

Five platforms face proceedings over Happilo claims and Dhatura listings, raising compliance costs for every dark-store operator.

Ananya Rao · 24 Sep · 4 min read

Row of parked delivery bikes outside a small urban warehouse at dawn

Opinion · Ecommerce

Why Amazon and Flipkart still cannot ignore the dark-store math

Festive capacity is useless if the minutes layer keeps taking the daily habit.

The Desk · 23 Sep · 4 min read

Smartphone box on a metal shelf inside a compact dark store

Platforms

Blinkit and Zepto turn iPhone 18 launch into 10-minute marketing play

Quick commerce platforms list scarce units on launch day to own the immediacy conversation.

Rhea Kapoor · 23 Sep · 4 min read

Smartphone and electronics boxes stacked on a warehouse conveyor

Ecommerce

Flipkart Big Billion Days starts 9 October a day after Amazon

Both platforms lock the festive calendar and force brands to split inventory and ad spends.

Ananya Rao · 23 Sep · 4 min read

Warehouse aisle stacked with sealed cartons under fluorescent lights

Ecommerce

Amazon sets Great Indian Festival for 8 October with 1.6 lakh jobs

Network adds 20 fulfilment centres and 150 last-mile stations just as shoppers start stocking lists.

Ananya Rao · 23 Sep · 4 min read

Neatly folded apparel stacks on metal warehouse shelving under cool LED light

Ecommerce

Clovia lists 100 styles on Zepto for 10-minute delivery

Lingerie and sleepwear reach 18 cities via quick commerce, turning intimate apparel into an impulse dark-store category.

Ananya Rao · 22 Sep · 4 min read

Stainless steel kitchen counter with stacked empty food trays and a closed service hatch

Ecommerce

Zepto cuts Café outlets to 250-350 from 850-900

Menu slimmed and equipment sold as the quick-commerce player retrenches the food format after hygiene and demand issues.

Ananya Rao · 22 Sep · 4 min read

Rows of packed grocery shelves and delivery crates inside a compact urban warehouse

Ecommerce

Amazon India eyes 300 cities and 3,000 quick-commerce stores

Late entrant pushes micro-fulfilment and urban centres; Prime free speed raises the bar for Blinkit Zepto.

Ananya Rao · 16 Sep · 4 min read

Rows of stocked shelves and packing stations inside a compact urban dark store

Ecommerce

Flipkart Minutes pushes 627 dark stores for default app status

Quick-commerce arm claims lead in top-10 cities and wants to become India’s everyday shopping destination.

Ananya Rao · 15 Sep · 4 min read

Stacked cardboard boxes and delivery crates inside a compact urban warehouse aisle

Ecommerce

Flipkart Minutes targets 1,500 centres by year-end

Service already in 150-plus cities and running 1.1-1.2 million daily orders, aiming to become India’s default shopping app.

Ananya Rao · 14 Sep · 4 min read

Stacked cardboard boxes and shelving inside a compact urban warehouse under cool LED lighting

Ecommerce

Flipkart Minutes reaches nearly 1,200 micro-fulfilment centres

Quick-commerce arm hits two-year mark with 4x growth and tier-2 surge, raising dark-store density stakes.

Ananya Rao · 13 Sep · 4 min read

Long empty supermarket aisle with stacked bulk packs under cool white light

Opinion · Retail

Why big-box grocery still draws capital in the 10-minute era

Carrefour’s 50-store plan and DMart’s fresh paper show physical formats remain the cheapest way to own the large basket and private-label margin.

The Desk · 11 Sep · 4 min read

Rows of stocked metal shelves in a compact empty fulfilment room

Ecommerce

Blinkit pushes dark stores beyond metros

CLSA notes the platform alone is expanding outside top cities while rivals consolidate core networks.

Ananya Rao · 6 Sep · 4 min read