Swiggy and Zomato reign supreme as the dominant players in India’s online food delivery market, collectively commanding an impressive market share of around 50%. According to a Ken Research report, the journey of online food delivery market players in India began in 2006 with the pioneering ventures of “JustEat” and “FoodieBay.”
Furthermore, companies like Foodpanda, Tiny Owl, Swiggy, and Uber Eats entered the market over time. But consolidation and successful exits from the market have resulted in only two players, Swiggy and Zomato sustaining in the industry. However, the player could not enjoy the leading position, tension-free for longer.
The arrival of ONDC has shaken up the top players in the Indian food delivery sector. Here is why?
ONDC (Open Network for Digital Commerce), backed by the Indian government allows restaurants to sell food directly to customers without the need for a third party and has been giving tough time to the private rivals, Swiggy and Zomato.
As per observations, ONDC has been growing rapidly over the last few weeks as daily retail orders that includes food and beverages and grocery segments have jumped over 100x from nearly 200 orders at the end of February. The hefty discount available on the platform is the key growth driver of the ONDC in the country. Its evidence is the screenshots uploaded by consumers on the internet that depicts the comparison of the food items available on Zomato/Swiggy and ONDC. An Mc Aloo Tikki Burger costs Rs 140 on Zomato/Swiggy and Rs 89 on ONDC, about 60 percent cheaper. The non-veg lovers will have to spend around Rs 398 for a Murgh Afghani Tikka Biryani on Zomato but only Rs 342 on ONDC.
Will the “discounting” strategy cut down the competition in the sector?
Presently, Swiggy or Zomato charges a commission of anywhere between 18% and 26% from restaurants whereas the ONDC platform partners charge only 2-6%. This is the key growth driver of the ONDC. But is the discounting policy here to stay?
Well, according to the CEO of ONDC T Koshy, discounting is just a short-term strategy to start the transaction but the ONDC will be driven by competition and fair practices, not unhealthy discounting in the coming years. This embarks the conversation of healthy competition in the industry. Also, it highlights the need for the market players to come up with strong customer-centric strategies in order to stay ahead of the competition.
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