Introduction
Blinkit, formerly known as Grofers, has radically transformed the way Indians shop for groceries. Founded in December 2013 by Albinder Dhindsa and Saurabh Kumar, Blinkit started as a scheduled e-grocery delivery platform. However, recognizing India’s shifting consumer behavior, it rebranded and pivoted in 2021 to a quick commerce (q-commerce) model—promising grocery and essential deliveries within just 10 minutes. Blinkit now processes millions of monthly orders, operates 1,300+ dark stores across India, and has surpassed even Zomato’s food delivery arm in Gross Order Value (GOV) as of 2025. Its meteoric rise is a case study in understanding local needs, optimizing logistics, and scaling a new retail category.
Founders and Vision
Albinder Dhindsa, an IIT-Delhi graduate and former Zomato executive, teamed up with Saurabh Kumar to co-found Grofers in Gurgaon. Their vision was simple: eliminate the inefficiencies in India’s daily grocery shopping experience. By 2021, they saw that the real consumer need wasn’t just convenience—it was instant gratification. Thus, they rebranded Grofers to Blinkit, emphasizing speed, and shifted to a hyperlocal dark-store model. In 2022, Zomato acquired Blinkit in a $568 million all-stock deal, backing its potential as the future of Indian commerce.
Business Model
Blinkit operates on a dark-store model where inventory is stored in micro-warehouses located within 1.5–2.5 km of high-demand clusters. Orders are packed and dispatched within minutes. The company generates revenue through three primary channels:
- Merchant Commissions: Blinkit earns a cut on each order placed, averaging 10–20% depending on the category and vendor relationship.
- Delivery Fees: Customers are charged a nominal delivery fee (₹10–₹50), waived or discounted for large orders or subscription users.
- In-App Advertising and Sponsored Listings: FMCG brands pay for premium visibility and banner placement on the Blinkit app.
Blinkit also introduced express delivery services for electronics, stationery, and cosmetics—expanding beyond groceries to capture high-margin categories.
Financial Performance
Blinkit’s financials have seen a remarkable turnaround in the last three years. In FY 2021-22, revenue stood at ₹263 crore with heavy operational losses. By FY 2022-23, revenue jumped to ₹727 crore. In FY 2023-24, it crossed ₹2,301 crore in revenue. Q1 FY25 alone clocked ₹942 crore in revenue, putting Blinkit on track to exceed ₹4,000 crore in FY25. Though the company is still in the red, losses have narrowed significantly. Adjusted EBITDA losses dropped from ₹1,300 crore (FY22) to under ₹400 crore (FY25 est.). Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal recently noted that Blinkit could achieve profitability by FY26.
Product Ecosystem
Blinkit’s ecosystem is designed to turn the app into a one-stop convenience engine. It includes:
- Quick Commerce: Instant delivery of groceries, snacks, beverages, dairy, meat, and bakery items in under 10 minutes.
- Stationery & Electronics: Power banks, chargers, notebooks, pens, and more—all delivered in minutes.
- Pharmacy & Health: OTC medicines and wellness products.
- Gifting & Festive Essentials: Rakhi, Diwali kits, flowers, chocolates during festivals.
- Subscription Plans: Blinkit Pass for unlimited free deliveries.
- Tech Stack: Real-time inventory, predictive restocking, and order routing based on hyperlocal demand.
Compliance and Operations
Blinkit complies with India’s FDI norms by operating as a marketplace and is transitioning to an inventory-led model under Zomato’s newly obtained Indian-Owned and Controlled Company (IOCC) status. This shift will enhance supply chain efficiency and improve gross margins. Blinkit uses advanced demand forecasting and AI for SKU planning, reducing wastage and enabling faster fulfillment.
Marketing Strategy: Built for Speed, Not Noise
Unlike many competitors, Blinkit does not rely on heavy ATL marketing. Instead, it has leaned into:
- Hyperlocal digital ads on Google and social media.
- In-app discounts and seasonal promos.
- Viral social campaigns, like “India Ka Last Minute App”.
- Brand visibility through storefront QR codes.
- Word-of-mouth in urban and semi-urban neighborhoods.
It spends significantly less on customer acquisition compared to its rivals, relying instead on repeat purchases, convenience, and reliability.
Lessons for Entrepreneurs from Blinkit’s Growth
- Pivot With Courage
Blinkit didn’t hesitate to switch from Grofers’ scheduled model to instant delivery—even if it meant rebuilding the tech and logistics from scratch. - Build for Daily Use, Not Occasional Delight
Blinkit delivers items users need every day—bread, milk, Maggi, snacks. This ensures high frequency and retention. - Solve the Last Mile First
Rather than spending on national ads, Blinkit invested in local dark stores and optimized fulfillment—making speed its brand. - Optimize, Don’t Just Scale
Blinkit’s data-led SKU planning, dynamic pricing, and smart routing improved unit economics over time, proving scale isn’t enough. - Don’t Be a Super App—Be a Super Useful App
Blinkit avoided the temptation to add bloatware and stuck to fast delivery of essentials. That clarity of purpose drives trust. - Partner With Ecosystems, Don’t Compete
Its acquisition by Zomato allowed resource sharing, shared infrastructure, and bundled user incentives—benefiting both platforms. - Build a Culture of Continuous Improvement
According to Deepinder Goyal, Blinkit’s internal culture of “dissatisfaction” fuels its drive to optimize every part of the process daily.
Conclusion
Blinkit is not just a grocery delivery app—it is India’s most successful experiment in quick commerce. From delivering milk and Maggi in 10 minutes to selling tech gadgets during Diwali, Blinkit has become the go-to app for India’s “last-minute” needs. It redefined expectations around logistics, speed, and daily utility. With Zomato’s backing, it now plans to reach 2,000 dark stores and expand further into high-margin verticals.
While competitors chase new categories or raise billions in funding, Blinkit is quietly building a powerful, habit-forming brand rooted in everyday relevance. As India’s tier-1 and tier-2 cities embrace hyper convenience, Blinkit is well positioned to be the Amazon of fast essentials.
“We’re not just in delivery—we’re in solving time poverty.” – Albinder Dhindsa, CEO
