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20 stories for “dark stores”

Stacked grocery cartons and bulk packs on metal shelves in a large supermarket back aisle

Retail

DMart lifts store count to 518 as Q2 revenue rises 18.4% to ₹19,206 crore

Strong top line failed to calm investors worried about same-store growth and quick-commerce leakage; shares fell over 6%.

Meera Iyer · 7 Oct · 4 min read

Empty retail construction site with scaffolding and stacked tiles under afternoon light

Opinion · Retail

Do big store bets still pay when dark stores multiply?

Listed retailers are funding aggressive offline expansion even as quick commerce densifies urban delivery. The P&L test arrives this festive season.

The Desk · 5 Oct · 4 min read

Wide supermarket aisle with stacked grocery cartons under fluorescent lights

Retail

DMart Q2 revenue rises 18.4% to ₹19,206 crore

Avenue Supermarts ends September with 518 stores as sequential sales climb 4.7%, keeping pressure on kirana margins in its core markets.

Meera Iyer · 5 Oct · 4 min read

Roadside clothing stall with stacked low-price garments under morning sun

Opinion · Retail

Why value fashion still beats premium this festive

Zudio-style volume keeps winning while department stores chase margin; the till tells the story.

The Desk · 4 Oct · 4 min read

Retail

DMart lifts Q2 revenue 18% to ₹19,206 cr, stores hit 518

Everyday low price holds volume as full results land 10 October; kiranas watch the till gap widen.

Meera Iyer · 4 Oct · 4 min read

Stacked snack cartons on a small wholesale counter with weighing scale

Supply Chain

D2C food brands widen offline trade as quick-commerce shelves fill

Dark-store space crunch before festive forces snacks and sweets makers onto B2B marketplaces and kirana-modern trade routes.

Farhan Qureshi · 3 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

Empty wide retail floor with scattered shopping trolleys and high windows letting in morning light

Opinion · Retail

Why physical stores still write the festive cheque

Opinion: Dark stores win minutes, but square footage still wins baskets and private-label margins when families stock up.

The Desk · 27 Sep · 4 min read

Back-room stock shelves with cardboard boxes and a delivery crate near a service door

Retail

Vishal Mega Mart runs quick commerce from 767 of 819 stores

Value retailer turns existing floors into fulfilment nodes, lifting order share to 5% plus in most locations without new dark-store capex.

Meera Iyer · 27 Sep · 4 min read

Wide empty supermarket aisle with stacked shelves of packaged goods under bright ceiling lights

Retail

Carrefour opens 50,000 sq ft Noida flagship, eyes 50 stores

French hypermarket returns via Apparel Group franchise, betting physical clusters still beat pure quick commerce for bulk grocery.

Meera Iyer · 27 Sep · 4 min read

Large empty warehouse interior with stacked cardboard boxes and sorting conveyors under industrial lights

Ecommerce

Amazon opens first Varanasi fulfilment centre

New 1-lakh-cubic-feet hub and sort centre cut festive delivery times in UP, squeezing local courier margins and kirana restock cycles.

Ananya Rao · 26 Sep · 4 min read

Empty festive gift boxes and ribbon spools on a packing table under warm evening light

Opinion · Retail

Why festive hiring and beauty capital signal real demand

Seasonal headcount at Myntra and minority cheques for indie beauty brands show merchants still bet on physical and digital tills filling up.

The Desk · 25 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

Wide supermarket aisle with stacked produce crates and packaged goods under bright ceiling lights

Retail

Carrefour opens Noida store eyes 50 outlets in NCR UP

French retailer returns with 50,000 sq ft format and cluster plan, testing whether hypermarket economics still work against q-comm.

Meera Iyer · 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

Empty fashion store aisle with price tags hanging from garment racks under bright lights

Opinion · Retail

Value fashion’s 1,000-store reality check

Zudio’s density forces every mid-market buyer to choose volume or margin before the next festive cycle.

The Desk · 18 Sep · 4 min read