Despite an increase in store purchases amid waning COVID-19 infections, demand for last-mile delivery executives and supply chain personnel is on the rise among quick e-commerce companies like Zomato, Swiggy, BigBasket, Shadhowfax and Ecom Express.
In the next three months, more than four lakh jobs will be open for delivery executives in grocery, food, medicines, and apparel and fashion segments, The Economic Times reported. The openings, almost 50 percent more than last year, will be for both regular and gig workers.
Shadowfax Technologies, a network for quick delivery that collaborates with online marketplaces like Flipkart Quick, Zepto, BigBasket and Swiggy Instamart, is looking at increasing hiring of delivery agents by three times in 2022 compared with last year.
"Online and on-demand tech-backed gig marketplace for instant deliveries will drive more demand, considering the shift in purchasing behaviour," Abhishek Bansal, Co-Founder of Shadowfax, told The Economic Times.
Zomato is also looking at engaging more delivery partners, including women and transgender participants, a company spokesperson said.
The demand for executives comes on the back of a surge in online shopping. Leading online platforms are also looking at taking a number of initiatives such as setting up dark stores, engaging in instant delivery and creating hyperlocal distribution networks.
Last week, food delivery major Zomato said it would be piloting a 10-minute food delivery service from next month, a move that could reduce the cost to end-customers by 50 percent.
Earlier this month, Reliance Retail said it would start instant grocery delivery with its JioMart platform. By end of the next quarter, Reliance plans to take instant grocery sales to over 200 cities and towns where JioMart is present and double the reach in the next few months.
According to a report by management consulting firm RedSeer, India’s quick commerce market is set to grow 15 times to touch $5.5-billion market size by 2025. At present, the total addressable market for quick commerce in India is about $45 billion with metros and tier-1 cities driving demand.
