Delhivery to now provide dark stores for rapid same-day deliveries

Sahil Barua, MD and CEO, Delhivery

Logistics company Delhivery will provide a network of shared dark stores to e-commerce companies for rapid same-day deliveries, the company's management said in an earnings call on August 2.

"Multiple companies will be able to deliver from the same dark stores. Stand-alone dark stores will be pretty expensive. The idea is to allow companies to variablise their costs...I don't think it will be a significant driver of revenue for us," Sahil Barua, CEO of Delhivery said while speaking to analysts after announcing the company's Q1 results.

The launch is a big shift for Delhivery, which is otherwise known for its expertise in large intercity shipments. However, the increasing importance of rapid deliveries, typically delivered in 15-20 minutes, is forcing companies to become part of the growth story in different ways.

"We already have mother warehouses for quick commerce dark stores. We already do fulfilment from warehouses to dark stores. (But) this will be a service that will also connect the last mile," he added.

The target different companies are however different from the prominent names currently.

"Quick commerce companies like Blinkit, Instamart, Zepto may not immediately become customers for this. This quick commerce dark store network will be for 2-4 hour deliveries, not 15-20 minute (ones)," Barua said.

The company was previously piloting a similar offering, Barua had said in an earnings call previously. Between the 15-20 minute deliveries and same-day or next-day deliveries, there will be a sub-segment, a 2 to 4 hour window, where Delhivery wants to participate.

This will be a fit for mobile phones and adjacent products, Barua had previously said.