At the Maha Kumbh Mela, these startups are learning to hustle afresh

Devotees throng the Triveni Sangam to take a holy dip on the first day of Maha Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj. (PTI)
Devotees throng the Triveni Sangam to take a holy dip on the first day of Maha Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj. (PTI)

Summary

  • From catering to a diverse and new set of consumers to experimenting with pricing and packaging, several startups have made their way to the Maha Kumbh Mela for cues that could shape their future.

Bengaluru: At the Maha Kumbh Mela, India’s largest spiritual congregation, several established startups are elbowing their way through the rush to convert devotees pouring in from the country’s remotest corners into consumers.

Among those are Zomato-owned grocery delivery platform Blinkit, which has opened a temporary store to sell select products to pilgrims, and Swiggy’s Instamart, which has installed a stall at the heart of the Kumbh–near the Triveni Sangam, a confluence of three holy rivers that has seen hundreds of thousands of people gather in recent weeks.

Fintech platform PhonePe, in partnership with ICICI Lombard General Insurance, has introduced insurance coverage for travellers attending the Kumbh, and Chai Point has assigned about 175 people and set up 18-20 mini stations to cater to the pilgrims.

“We think of ourselves as a value-plus brand and our primary target segments have always been upper blue collar and the white-collar workforce," said Amuleek Singh, founder of Chai Point. “But at the Kumbh, we are seeing nearly 95% (of our customers) come from outside our usual spectrum."

Also read | Inside the big, fat $30 billion Maha Kumbh economy

Singh himself was stationed at the Kumbh for nearly a week to oversee the operations. Since the religious event began on 13 January, Chai Point has been selling about 16,000 litres, or 160,000 cups, of tea per day, according to the company.

Blinkit’s chief executive officer Albinder Dhindsa said in a social media post that the company had curated an assortment of products for various rituals apart from chargers, power banks, towels and blankets. “We’ve also got Triveni Sangam Jal bottles in stock," Dhindsa wrote, referring to the sacred offering gathered from the Triveni Sangam.

“The Kumbh has been a solid platform for brand awareness and customer acquisition for some of these brands," said Rohan Agarwal, partner at Redseer Consultants. 

“Over a period of (about) 45 days, they have the opportunity to interact with a good chunk of India," he said. “While most of their gross merchandise value and monthly transacting users are linked to the top cities in the country, an event of this scale will give them exposure to interact with smaller towns."

Also read | Maha Kumbh 2025: The ultimate confluence of bhakti and brands

Pilgrim pricing

Several of these startups at the Maha Kumbh Mela are also experimenting with pricing and packaging to cater to customers not from their typical target market.

Insurance plans from the PhonePe-ICICI Lombard partnership are available in two variants: ₹59 for individuals traveling by train or bus and ₹99 for those traveling by domestic flight. The insurance plans cover hospitalisation, doctor consultation, accident cover, loss of checked-in baggage, and trip cancellation, among other things. 

Chai Point is selling its tea at a relatively lower price at the Kumbh, charging ₹10 for a 50 ml cup and ₹20 for a 100 ml cup—both smaller than its usual cup sizes. In India’s metropolitan cities where Chai Point primarily operates, a 200 ml cup of its tea costs about ₹100. 

“This is not our usual core segment so we are compromising on pricing and gross margins in a significant way. But that is important because otherwise it could be counter-productive to the brand if we play with an overtly aggressive pricing strategy, said Singh, the Chai Point CEO. “Our goal is to accomplish a break-even or may be a minor profit as our audience here is very different."

Blinkit, Swiggy’s Instamart, and PhonePe did not disclose sales and other details related to Kumbh.

Agarwal of Redseer Consultants said that for startups that have adopted an event-based pricing model at the Kumbh, the challenge lies in getting some of the users to transact with them even post the event. “If the new-age consumer startups are able to attract even a fraction of the population, it is still a win for them. The key is to try and get them (the pilgrims) to use the brand and create a recall factor."

Also read | How startups are cashing in on the virtual Kumbh rush

Business blessings

The Maha Kumbh, which has seen hundreds of millions of pilgrims and tourists gather, has pushed startups to enhance their speed and operational efficiency at a much larger scale than they are used to.

Chai Point, for instance, is using a cloud-connected machine called a brewing bot that can generate about 15 litres of tea every 12 minutes. Each of its 10 outlets at the Kumbh has two brewing bots that can generate 800 litres of tea per day, said Singh.

“The ability to produce such high volumes through our bots, packaging, understanding the supply chain and the kind of products which can hold in such a distant and extreme place are all key learnings we have derived for our future mega events," he said. 

“The speed at which we can offer these services and right technological interventions also become very important at that scale and it has given a lot of new product ideas to take on."

Also read | Maha Kumbh Mela a godsend for travel industry as spiritual tourism takes wing

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