Quick commerce is evolving beyond a distribution channel into a testing ground for product innovation, enabling brands—from new-age to legacy players, across categories from milk to makeup—to launch, refine and scale offerings.
The appeal lies in the cost advantage over traditional rollouts, particularly for smaller brands that can test in small batches, track repeat purchases and tweak products in real time.
“Rather than spending ₹10 crore on a big-bang launch, brands can test with ₹20-30 lakh and see what works,” said Sashi Kumar of organic dairy enterprise Akshayakalpa Organic.
The Bengaluru-based firm launched its high-protein milk exclusively on Swiggy to validate demand. “The expectation was not volumes, but whether consumers come back and buy again,” Kumar said, adding that the channel removes hurdles like listing fees and in-store promotions, while offering sharper targeting and faster feedback.
Strong repeat rates helped Akshayakalpa, whose quick-commerce business is growing about 40% year-on-year, to scale the product offline.
Beyond staples, the model is also gaining traction in seasonal and impulse-driven categories. Incense maker Cycle used the platform to launch festival-themed products, such as eco-friendly Ganesha idols and Pongal-themed incenses, timed to peak demand.
Arjun Ranga, the managing director of Ranga Rao and Sons Pvt. Ltd, the parent company of the brand, said such launches would be difficult in general trade due to slower distribution cycles. Moreover, “a lot of product discovery is now happening on quick commerce,” he said.
In beauty, Shankar Prasad, founder of Plum, said brands are beginning to tailor offerings for the channel. “Right now, it’s at the level of gifting combinations, pack sizes and bundles,” he said. “Creating formulations specifically for quick commerce is just starting, as platforms want more exclusivity.”
Plum has rolled out limited-edition packs and exclusive combinations, a strategy that is expected to deepen as platforms seek differentiation beyond price and speed.
Mint's emailed queries sent to Bkinkit, Swiggy Instamart, Big Basket, Flipkart Minutes and Amazon Now remained unanswered.
Key growth lever
Smaller brands’ preference for quick commerce as a platform for product innovation aligns with large packaged consumer goods companies, which have long relied on general trade, turning to it as a key growth lever. Though still a small part of the grocery market, the channel is expanding rapidly and is expected to grow 37-39% annually to reach ₹5.8 trillion by 2030, according to Redseer Consulting.
Arvind Ramachandran of Dairy Day Ice Creams said the company is building products specifically for the channel, particularly in its take-home portfolio.
“Take-home is big on quick commerce and set to become bigger,” he said. The company introduced products such as Double Sundae tubs and real fruit ice creams online before expanding them to general trade. “These were created for quick commerce and have taken off strongly; we’ve now extended them offline.”
One of the key draws is access to real-time consumer data. “Quick commerce partners see search trends and tell us what consumers are looking for,” Ramachandran said. “It gives us real consumer evidence and a much faster turnaround to test and scale.” In some cases, trends now originate online before moving offline, he added.
For global brands, the approach is slightly different. Ritesh Gauba of snacking company Pladis Global said it uses quick commerce to target premium consumers rather than create channel-specific products.
“We don’t create products only for quick commerce, we create them for a certain consumer,” he said. “That top-end consumer shops on quick commerce, so those products naturally perform better there.”
Product innovation
First Club, a Bengaluru-based quick-commerce company founded by Ayyappan R., is among those betting on this shift by working closely with brands to co-create products instead of merely listing them.
The company is also working directly with manufacturers to develop products tailored to its platform. About half of its assortment is exclusive, created in partnership with suppliers, allowing tighter control over both quality and pricing.
“We don’t just take what exists in the market and sell it; we create products with brands,” Ayyappan said, adding that this approach enables the platform to offer higher-quality products at prices comparable to mass-market alternatives.
For instance, the company develops differentiated stock-keeping units (SKUs) for existing brands, tweaking packaging, sourcing, or formulation to better suit its consumer base. In categories such as staples, this could mean freshly milled atta, while in packaged foods, it involves selecting only top-performing products through internal testing.
This model, he said, reflects a broader shift in how quick commerce is evolving. “Speed will become hygiene, it won’t be the reason consumers choose a platform,” Ayyappan said. “The differentiation will come from the quality and uniqueness of products.”
The approach also ties back to changing consumer behaviour, particularly among urban households. “If a good product is available at a good price, consumers are willing to spend; that mindset has shifted significantly,” he added.
Quick commerce is increasingly shaping product innovation by offering access to young, urban early adopters who often signal broader demand trends, said Anand Ramanathan, partner and consumer industry leader at Deloitte South Asia. “If a product works here, it is likely to be aspirational for the rest of the market,” he said.
The channel is well-suited for premium portfolios under brands’ barbell strategies. Beyond distribution, it also acts as a retail media platform, enabling faster awareness and sales feedback. He said brands face a “secular decline in brand power” when it comes to tweaking products to suit platform requirements, even as data sharing remains limited and largely operational. Still, he said that, quick commerce is here to stay with urban-led demand increasingly scaling across markets.