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20 stories for “food”

Handwritten discount board and stacked plastic stools outside a small Indian retail shop at dusk

Opinion · Retail

Value retail’s festive tightrope looks thinner this year

Inflation absorption and quick-commerce frequency are testing the old low-price promise just as footfall peaks.

The Desk · 7 Oct · 4 min read

Handwritten discount board leaning against stacked grocery cartons in a quiet aisle

Opinion · Retail

Value retail’s festive tightrope looks thinner this year

Inflation absorption and quick-commerce frequency are testing the old low-price promise just as footfall peaks.

The Desk · 6 Oct · 4 min read

Wide supermarket aisle with stacked grocery cartons and price tags under cool overhead lighting

Retail

DMart adds 15 stores to 518 but shares slide over 6 per cent

Strong top line failed to calm investors worried about same-store growth and quick-commerce leakage.

Meera Iyer · 6 Oct · 4 min read

Two parallel retail aisles one bright value racks one softer premium displays

Opinion · Retail

Will private-label department stores outrun value fashion this festive?

Trent’s Westside bet and Nykaa’s fee waiver both point to the same shopper: one who wants curated product without endless discounting.

The Desk · 3 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

Retail

ITC seals full Yoga Bar ownership with ₹645 crore buyout

Remaining 52.5 percent stake gives the FMCG giant complete control of the clean-label nutrition brand ahead of festive health push.

Meera Iyer · 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 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

Handcrafted baskets and packaged foods arranged on a simple wooden table

Ecommerce

UP SHG products list on Amazon Flipkart Meesho

More than 3,000 village-made goods go live on major marketplaces, giving rural producers direct festive shelf space.

Ananya Rao · 17 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

Side-by-side view of a busy apparel store floor and a compact warehouse aisle under separate lighting

Opinion · Retail

Why value density still beats quick-commerce hype

Zudio’s 1,000 stores and Minutes’ 1,200 centres show physical throughput remains the real P&L lever.

The Desk · 13 Sep · 4 min read

Open sacks of grains and vegetables under market canopy light

Supply Chain

India retail inflation seen at 4.9 percent in August

Mint poll of 21 economists projects 20-month high on food prices, lifting input costs just before festive buying.

Farhan Qureshi · 12 Sep · 4 min read

Wide empty hypermarket aisle with stacked shelves and overhead fluorescent lights

Retail

Carrefour opens 50,000-sq-ft Greater Noida hypermarket

Apparel Group joint venture plants French format in NCR as organised grocery eyes scale.

Meera Iyer · 9 Sep · 4 min read

Wide aisle of a new hypermarket with stacked fresh produce crates and overhead lights

Retail

Carrefour opens 50,000-sq-ft flagship in Greater Noida

French hypermarket returns via Apparel Group franchise; first store tests big-box against 10-minute delivery for NCR shoppers and suppliers.

Meera Iyer · 5 Sep · 4 min read

Open freezer cabinet stocked with colourful ice-cream tubs and cones under supermarket lights

Retail

Reliance Consumer Products launches Bombay Creamery from ₹10

Ice-cream foray starts in western India with cones cups tubs bars and sticks; private-label push tests value pricing against established dairy brands.

Meera Iyer · 3 Sep · 4 min read

Stacked cardboard delivery crates inside a dim warehouse corridor

Ecommerce

Karnataka suspends Amazon Instamart BigBasket food licences

State acts after Datura sold as food with FSSAI numbers; quick-commerce platforms face immediate compliance heat.

Ananya Rao · 26 Aug · 4 min read

Quick commerce dark store shelves with packed grocery totes ready for dispatch

Ecommerce

Zepto hikes free delivery minimum to ₹299

Threshold jumps up to 100 per cent in peak hours, aligning with Blinkit and Instamart and testing low-basket shoppers.

Kabir Menon · 23 Aug · 4 min read

Dark store shelves stocked with packaged groceries and essentials under bright warehouse lights

Ecommerce

Swiggy clears path for Instamart inventory model

Shareholders approve India-owned structure so the quick-commerce arm can stock goods like Blinkit and chase better margins.

Ananya Rao · 22 Aug · 4 min read

Worker picking groceries in a night-time dark store

Ecommerce

Blinkit is no longer a side quest. It is Eternal's company.

Zomato's parent is discovering what every marketplace learns too late: the 10-minute grocery habit pays the bills the 30-minute meal no longer does.

Ananya Rao · 17 Aug · 7 min read

Dark store picking cart in a narrow grocery aisle

Ecommerce

Zepto's IPO clock is a product review in disguise.

The 2026 new-age pipeline has a grocery app in it because public markets now understand 10-minute demand. They still have to price 10-minute costs.

Ananya Rao · 14 Aug · 6 min read