India’s festive buying goes instant: The rise of q-commerce over kiranas

Flowers and feasts anchor festivities in Indian homes with the quintessential image of the youngest generation being sent on countless kirana store runs for last-minute errands. The only thing motivating them? The change they could pocket. Today, however, the kirana store runs and the pocketable change seem to be disappearing thanks to the advent of quick commerce. 

Apps such as Big Basket and Nature’s Basket have scheduled next-day grocery deliveries since 2011 and 2015, respectively. However, e-commerce truly transitioned into q-commerce only with the introduction of Swiggy’s Instamart in 2020. 

Quick commerce delivers essentials within minutes using local dark stores, unlike e-commerce’s days-long delivery and wider product range that is delivered from distant warehouses.

Blinkit, formerly Grofers (2021), Dunzo Daily (2021-2025), Zepto (2021), Flipkart Minutes (2024) and Amazon Now (2024), followed Instamart and created a $5.38 billion quick commerce market in India in 2025, as per Statista, a business intelligence database. The q-commerce market has grown approximately 280% between 2022 and 2024, according to a report by Chryseum, a financial services firm. 

Whether forgotten genda phools and rakhis are still bought by sprinting children of forgetful families or they are being Zepto-ed is a question that afaqs posed to some brand representatives, and this is what they had to say:

"Quick commerce has completely reshaped festive shopping. What was once a planned activity spread across multiple store visits has now become spontaneous, with families increasingly turning to Zepto for last-minute festive needs,” notes Devendra Meel, chief business officer, Zepto.

“We are seeing a clear rise in festive orders year-on-year, with mithai hampers, chocolates, dry fruits, fresh flowers, puja essentials, and festive décor emerging as the top-selling categories,” he adds. 

In addition to the year-round allure of 10-minute instant-gratification deliveries, q-commerce platforms also bank heavily on festive seasons. Instant delivery apps change their User Interface (UI) to match the festivity on the calendar. Think firework animations and dedicated sweet hamper tabs for Rakshabandhan, Diwali, Christmas, etc. 

Zepto prepares months in advance with “scientific, hyperlocal planning through ATOM, our AI sales and consumer insights platform, doubling festive SKUs (stock-keeping units) and onboarding a wider mix of D2C and legacy brands”.

Meel asserts that orders are packed in under 75 seconds and delivered within minutes, making it easy for customers to celebrate without the stress of errands.

“We’ve also introduced festive UI, curated hampers, exclusive offers, and hyperlocal assortments like Bathukamma flowers in Telangana or Dhunuchi in West Bengal to ensure that our platform feels not just convenient, but also culturally relevant during this season,” he adds. 

Brands central to festive preparations in India also echo Zepto’s testimonial. Ghazala Ali, head of e-commerce at Dabur India Ltd, says, “While we see momentum picking up across our portfolio as traffic on q-commerce platforms sees an organic uplift, major impact is visible on our foods and beverages and home care business. Also, for Dabur, these festivals coincide with a season transition; we also activate our health care brands and create awareness and relevance with the increased traffic.”

Festivals also boost beauty and skin care needs, which has resulted in a “strong attraction towards Dabur’s bleaches, detan and facial kits, etc. across channels.”

“Quick commerce makes a significant contribution to our overall e-commerce business. Festivals and the events around them are planned across platforms. Brand roles are differentiated based on trends and focus,” she adds.

New-age brands such as ZOFF Foods, specialising in spices and pre-mixes, are also aligned, with approximately 90% of their sales originating from e-commerce and quick commerce.  

Akash Agrawalla, co-founder of ZOFF Foods, notes, “Quick commerce has definitely reshaped ZOFF Foods' festive sales pattern. While retail continues to play an important role, a significant share of our festive orders now comes through online channels. Consumers increasingly turn to quick commerce platforms for last-minute purchases, whether it’s cooking essentials, gifting options, or festive-ready ingredients.”

Talking specifics, Agrawalla highlights that their “spice blends, dry fruits, and Ready-to-Cook (RTC) range see the highest traction during the festive period.”

Instead of a sweaty, slightly exasperated kid triumphantly returning with a handful of change, we now have a uniformed delivery rider arriving within minutes with those genda phools, mithai hampers, and even the Bathukamma flowers equipped with a QR code eliminating the need for change, all thanks to q-commerce.