Swiggy, Blinkit, Zepto could be in Trouble, Retail Group Demands Investigation From CCI for Low Pricing

In the last few years, the business of quick commerce has grown rapidly in the country. Big companies in this segment, Blinkit, Swiggy and Zepto have allegedly been accused of increasing business by reducing prices. Quick Commerce companies promise to deliver everything from groceries to electronics in as little as 10 minutes.

The All India Consumer Products Distributors Federation (AICPDF) wrote to the Competition Commission of India (CCI) last week. Letter It has been told that companies associated with Quick Commerce are trying to attract customers by giving low pricing or huge discounts. Reuters has seen this letter. In this, CCI has been requested to implement measures to protect the interests of general distributors and retailers. AICPDF, representing approximately four lakh retail distributors of large companies, has said in this letter that it is very difficult for ordinary distributors and retailers to compete with this type of approach.

CCI did not respond to questions sent by Reuters in this regard. AICPDF declined to comment on this letter. This year, the annual sales of companies related to quick commerce are likely to exceed six billion dollars. According to market research firm Datum Intelligence, Zomato-controlled Blinkit’s share in this market is about 40 percent. In this, Swiggy and Zepto each have a market share of about 30 percent.

A government official told Reuters that the CCI has the power to initiate an investigation if the facts in a complaint are found to be true. Recently, CCI’s Investigation Unit had found that big e-commerce companies like Amazon and Flipkart have violated laws through low pricing practices. However, these companies have denied such allegations. Business related to quick commerce is growing rapidly. Zomato’s share price has doubled this year. Swiggy, invested by Japan’s SoftBank, also plans to launch an IPO of more than one billion dollars soon. Such allegations have been made against these companies before also.