The startup doing the splits on online and hyperlocal commerce in India

Photo credit: iakovenko / 123RF.

The morning after a Saturday night that had no chill, you find yourself walking in a daze down Bangalore’s main shopping street. Post-brunch, you don’t want to retreat into your apartment to live out the rest of the weekend as a Netflix-consuming lump, so you stroll down the street in the vague hopes of finding something better to do. You’ve been feeling the need lately to find a casually edgy shirt that makes a statement. You saw some actor wearing one on TV last week and need the same aesthetic in your life.

Three stores down, you’re really starting to regret your decision to walk anywhere in the bright, bright sun, when your phone goes off. It lets you know that just across the street is a white t-shirt with a faded stripe pattern. The print? No chill, no service.

In the midst of your fatigue, you feel a zap of excitement. That’s the perfect shirt. You prepare to cross the street and find your phone has another message for you – because you’re in the vicinity, you get 5 percent off if you buy it today.

Bridging a gap

Part of the Mobmerry team meets in their Bangalore office. Krishna wears the green shirt. Photo credit: Tech in Asia.

If you’re like investors around the world, the phrase “ecommerce in India” is likely to bring to mind bells and whistles. Still, ecommerce in the country only makes up 1 percent – or even less – of overall sales. The remaining 99 percent is where Bangalore-headquartered startup Mobmerry sees its opportunity.

The majority of India’s stores aren’t owned under names of international giants like Raffles or Walmart – they’re either local franchises or individually operated. Mobmerry began its approach last October by targeting a hyperlocal area, Indiranagar – a single neighborhood in Bangalore that includes the city’s biggest shopping street.

Ecommerce in India only makes up 1 percent – or even less – of overall sales.

For last mile deliveries in Bangalore, Mobmerry either utilizes the store’s own delivery services. If it doesn’t have one, it uses Bangalore-based concierge startup Dunzo, which specializes in hyperlocal delivery in Bangalore. Customers may also choose to buy using the app and pick up the product at the store. If an item is out of stock, a shopper may request it ordered to the store or ask for a notification when it’s back on shelves.

Customers may also use the app for local discovery and order items straight to their residences, where it will be delivered in two hours.

A future goal for the company is to improve upon that feature. “[In the future] you can also request not just one retailer but retailers around your location to see if they have a similar product,” says Krishna Prasad, who co-founded the startup with Gaurang Gupta.

For customers

Mobmerry’s beacons. Photo credit: Mobmerry.

For merchants

Growth room