Walmart-backed Flipkart expands push-commerce fast as Amazon rises in India

As fast-paced commerce becomes India’s next e-commerce battleground, Walmart-backed Flipkart said on Wednesday its Minutes service has built a network of 1,000 micro-fulfillment centers — small, conveniently located warehouses designed to enable deliveries in minutes — within two years of its launch, a milestone Amazon is also targeting as it expands its business in South Asia.

Flipkart said it plans to expand the network to 1,500 micro-fulfillment centers by the end of 2026, a fast-paced build that will strengthen its position in India’s fast-moving commerce sector, where Blinkit, Zepto, Swiggy Instamart and Amazon are racing to add infrastructure and customers.

Based on the current store count and announced expansion plans, Flipkart may emerge as the second largest fast-commerce network in India by the number of micro-fulfillment centers, behind Blinkit, which operates 2,243 such centers, according to a recent note by Jefferies. Competitors Zepto and Swiggy Instamart are also expanding their networks.

India has emerged as one of the world’s fastest-growing e-commerce markets, with companies racing to build networks that can deliver everything from groceries and beauty products to electricity in minutes. Blinkit, owned by food delivery company Eternal, remains the market leader, while Zepto, Swiggy Instamart, Flipkart, and Amazon are investing heavily to expand their reach and win customers.

Competition has intensified in recent months as Amazon accelerates the rollout of Amazon Now, which is currently available in more than 15 cities and operates more than 500 small fulfillment centers. The company plans to expand the service to 100 cities with more than 1,000 micro-fulfillment centers while expanding its assortment beyond groceries with categories such as clothing, electronics, and home products.

This change is also visible in the shopping patterns of Flipkart Minutes, which launched in August 2024. Demand is increasingly coming from sectors like electronics, beauty, and personal care products rather than just groceries, Kunal Gupta, head of Flipkart Minutes, told TechCrunch. Orders on the platform have grown nearly 400% since last year, and customer retention is up 20% year over year, he said. Both figures come from the company and could not be independently verified.

“What started as a way to fulfill daily needs has become a new shopping habit for millions of Indians,” said Gupta. “Customers aren’t just ordering more; they’re ordering differently.”

Flipkart said it has extended Minutes to more than 130 cities and 8,000 postal codes, and growth is increasingly coming from smaller cities rather than major cities in India. Those markets have recorded growth of more than 4,000% since last year, helped by expansion in 90 new cities, according to the company.

This trend, the Guptas say, is evident in the way newly launched markets are growing. He cited cities like Patna, Guwahati, and Siliguri as examples of where new stores are filling up faster than expected, and described Lucknow as one of Flipkart Minutes’ best-performing markets even though the company has yet to cover every city in its network.

Amazon is also betting on demand outside India’s major cities. The company told TechCrunch that 70% of new members are from smaller markets and that it is on track to double its membership base from 2023 levels by the end of the year. Amazon added that everyday essentials now account for one in two units shipped on Amazon.in, and Amazon Now is increasing the frequency of purchases among customers.

The Guptas told TechCrunch that Flipkart sees customers using Minutes alongside its core e-commerce platform instead of replacing it, driving frequent purchases and helping to expand into categories like new products and daily essentials. The company said average order values ​​for fruit and vegetables were up 30% year-on-year.

Flipkart, Gupta said, plans to continue opening between 75 and 100 small centers a month while expanding to more cities across the country.

The rapid expansion of Flipkart and Amazon underscores how India has become the testing ground for the next phase of e-commerce, with companies racing to transform e-commerce from a grocery delivery service into a comprehensive shopping platform. The country already has more than 5,500 black shops, according to Bernstein, and industry analysts expect that number to rise to about 7,500 by 2030 as companies expand into smaller cities and expand their product offerings.

“We will continue to expand rapidly, we will not slow down after 1,000 stores, and we are all coming in,” said Gupta.