WhatsApp’s uphill battle to conquer e-grocery in India

Welcome to The Checkout! Delivered every Thursday, this free newsletter breaks down the biggest stories and trends in ecommerce. View past issues here or sign up here to receive future newsletters.

Hi there,

In the past couple of months, I’ve found myself growing increasingly dependent on Astro, a quick-commerce service.

How could I not? The dark store near my apartment is pretty good at delivering what I need within 30 minutes. Plus, you get free delivery when you order for more than 100,000 rupiah (US$6.70).

Sure, some of the items are slightly more expensive than I’d find them if I dragged myself to the store (startups have to make money too). But as many of my fellow Jakartans would attest, given the city’s notorious traffic, quick commerce is more convenient than driving to the nearest Indomaret every time you run out of something.

Now, it’s easy to assume everyone else shares my experiences. But that’s exactly the kind of blind spot journalists need to avoid.

In this week’s Big Story, my colleague, Samreen, dives into the partnership between WhatsApp and JioMart in India that will let consumers buy groceries directly through the messaging app. While the numbers look great (India tops the world with more than 400 million users), there is an inherent tension there.

Urbanites who prize convenience (like me) already are using e-grocery apps. Meanwhile, one of WhatsApp and JioMart’s prime targets are “boomers,” who only use the platform for free messaging – but would they even consider paying a premium for e-grocery?

In this week’s Hot Take, I look at Alibaba’s recent US$912.5 million investment to bolster Lazada. Is it enough for the latter to achieve its European ambitions?

– Putra

THE BIG STORY

400m Indians live on WhatsApp. Will they shop on it?

Image credit: Timmy Loen

Meta’s WhatsApp and Reliance’s JioMart can be a match made in heaven, but cracking e-grocery in India is not easy.

THE HOT TAKE

Is Lazada’s European entry a distraction?

FYI

NEWS YOU SHOULD KNOW