Representative Image Retailers – large chains, e-grocers and kiranas – are restricting the quantity of products their consumers can purchase at one go amid low supplies and indications that hoarding of essentials is on the rise on fears that the lockdown may be extended or lifted with restrictions. Spencer’s Retail, EasyDay, Nature’s Basket, Grofers, Reliance […]
Covid-19 pandemic is teaching us to do more with less: Grofers CEO Albinder Dhindsa
In the wake of the Covid-19 virus outbreak, businesses have been faced with unprecedented challenges as they try and fulfil consumer demand in a vastly changed environment. Online grocery retailing is one sector that has witnessed a massive demand surge, leading to capacity constraints and operational bottlenecks. In the first story of this series, ET’s […]
How teachers took the classroom online
Representative image ‘Ma’am, ma’am, it’s S’s birthday today,” is a familiar refrain for most school teachers. It’s usually followed up with everyone singing for S while she sits there, with an awkward smile plastered on her face. A similar celebration took place in Shrawasti Ganguli’s virtual classroom recently. The children did sing happy birthday, but […]
How Covid-19 has made data experts the new-age social media influencers
Until three weeks ago, Divya Vinekar had not heard of Norbert Elekes, a self-proclaimed “data storyteller”, who has been tweeting Covid-19 statistics round the clock to over 180,000 followers for the last month or so. “Suddenly his tweets started showing up on my timeline,” says the 31-year-old theatre artist from Mumbai, implying that a lot […]
Quibi launching Hollywood ‘on the go’ streaming amid lockdown
L-R: Meg Whitman and Jeffrey Katzenberg Quibi, the multi-billion-dollar streaming platform launching Monday, is betting it can transform entertainment with short, Hollywood-quality clips to watch “on the go” — even as much of the world is trapped at home. Industry legends and stars from Steven Spielberg and Guillermo del Toro to Jennifer Lopez and Reese […]
Zomato raises $5M from Baillie Gifford affiliate fund, valuation hits $3.25B
Online food delivery and restaurant recommendation platform Zomato has raised close to $5 million (Rs 38.20 crore) from Pacific Horizon Investment Trust, a fund managed by British investment manager Baillie Gifford. According to documents filed by Zomato with the Registrar of Companies, and accessed by business intelligence platform Tofler, the Gurugram-headquartered company has allotted 1,177 […]
Amazon to delay Prime Day sales event due to coronavirus
Amazon is postponing its major summer shopping event Prime Day until at least August and expects a potential $100-million hit from excess devices it may now have to sell at a discount, according to internal meeting notes seen by Reuters. Amazon declined to comment. Prime Day, a marketing event Amazon started in 2015 to drum […]
E-commerce firms tie up with retailers and e-grocers to help in last mile delivery
Illustration: Rahul Awasthi Several food delivery services, cab and bike taxi aggregators, and non-essential ecommerce firms are joining hands with retail chains and online grocers to supply groceries to consumers stuck at home because of the lockdown. Uber, Domino’s Pizza, Rapido, Zypp, Swiggy, Zomato and Scootsy have all ventured into grocery delivery in partnerships with […]
Remittances to Bharat hit by return of the native
Domestic remittances, usually from big cities and more affluent areas to India’s rural hinterland, plunged about 80% in the past two weeks, triggered likely by a sudden loss of jobs and the return of the migrant workers to their homes. The Centre’s decision to transfer funds directly to their bank accounts might cushion the impact, […]
BigBasket and Grofers to hire 12,000 staff to meet demand surge
Illustration: Rahul Awasthi India’s largest online grocer BigBasket said it will hire 10,000 permanent on-ground staff to work at warehouses, distribution centres and as delivery personnel, over the next few days. Its rival Grofers also plans to recruit 2,000 additional workers, as both the companies look to service a massive demand surge caused by the […]