Zepto is the first rapid commerce company to impose a platform charge of Rs 2

Zepto is the first quick-commerce startup to charge a small group of consumers a platform fee of Rs 2 every order. Thus far, industries such as food delivery and e-commerce have seen a higher prevalence of platform fees.

For example, Zepto’s immediate competitors, Zomato-owned Blinkit and Swiggy Instamart, do not presently charge such a fee on grocery orders. But, clients who request meal delivery from the two businesses must pay a platform charge.

Zepto charges its clients extra fees in addition to a platform cost. In certain circumstances, it also charges a Rs. 15 late-night handling fee for purchases submitted after 11 p.m. Additionally, the business no longer offers free delivery to some customers.

“We don’t think it’s possible to be successful by relying too much on shipping fees. We consider cost containment and fundamental operational efficiency to be lucrative. Zepto Pass is the perfect illustration of how we are on schedule to reach the Ebitda positive milestone even with much decreased delivery costs, according to a company representative.

“Blinkit and Instamart may probably rely on their client base for food delivery services to cross-sell quick-commerce…Although Blinkit presently has the biggest market share, our research shows Zepto is becoming more assertive in its attempt to capture market share. In most cases, Zepto also has the lowest delivery rates, according to a recent study by BofA analysts.

According to a January estimate by Bernstein analysts, Zepto is the third-largest participant in fast commerce, with a market share of around 20%, behind Zomato’s Blinkit (40%) and Swiggy Instamart (37–39%).

Weeks after the firm introduced Zepto Pass, its loyalty program, which offers higher discounts and free delivery, the company has incurred more expenditures. During the Zepto Pass test program, users allegedly raised their monthly app spending by over 30%, according to the business.