Online grocery war: where Omnichannel SC takes the lead

Hello, readers! I'm Mathews currently pursuing 2nd year MBA at Amrita School of Business, Coimbatore.   Here's my new blog post!

    Quick delivery has always proven to be a robust strategy that could elevate and retain market share of businesses. Speed being one of the key factors for successful supply chain management, it is vital for businesses to deliver the right product to the right location at the right time. When it comes to perishable products like groceries, along with attractive prices the speed at which products are being delivered could be the real order winner. Let us see the emergence of new online grocery businesses in India during COVID-19 period and how their supply chain activities contribute to their success.

    During the Pre-COVID period, Radhakrishanan Damani led Avenue Supermarts (D-Mart) performed exceptionally well with its splendid business model. Lowest prices offered to customers being its key strategy, D-mart continued to increase its market share and customer loyalty with the help of its massive bargaining power to grab the least prices from its suppliers. However, the supply chain disruptions due to pandemic did enable new businesses to emerge in the online grocery market. Jiomart owned by Mukesh Ambani led Reliance Industries is one such successful entrant that challenges the robust growth of D-Mart.

    Jiomart after its successful piloting in several areas of Navi Mumbai, expanded to 200 cities across India within a short span of 3 months. With aggressive pricing strategies and technological adaptation (Android, iOS apps and whatsapp integration), Jiomart is likely to reach 5 lakh daily orders by September. The question now is, how do they ensure the smooth and quick flow of personal care products and online groceries across the country?

The O2O business model with the integration of Kirana stores

    With the coronavirus lockdown in place, the local mom-and-pop stores or kirana stores have become the go-to stores. E-commerce giants have tapped in to this opportunity to work with Kirana stores across the country for their online-to-offline (O2O) business model, where orders placed through online are being delivered at nearest local retail stores. Enriching shopping experience by sending invoices via whatsapp and increasing the credit limit turned out to be an added incentive to the online shoppers.

    Thus omnichannel SC has become the best bet for e-commerce giants like Jiomart, Flipkart, Big Basket and Amazon to ensure quick delivery of groceries that could help them stay ahead in operations with respect to their competitors.