Veeba Founder: Use Quick Commerce Gains to Scale General Trade

Direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands should capitalize on the quick commerce boom and use the generated gains to expand their presence across general trade channels, according to Veeba founder Viraj Bahl.

"Quick commerce has become essential for B2C today. But I see brands that have scaled significantly driven by quick commerce but don't use the runway generated from 10-minute deliveries to scale their general trade. Earn from quick commerce but reinvest that in retail in India," Bahl stated.

Bahl explained that quick commerce entered Veeba’s 13-year journey relatively late but has since become an important revenue channel and growth driver for the sauce and condiment maker. Quick commerce currently accounts for approximately 8%-10% of Veeba’s revenue, with sales through platforms like Blinkit and Zepto. However, traditional general trade, including small neighborhood 'kirana' stores, still accounts for over 70% of Veeba’s business.

Bahl believes quick commerce can help brands improve visibility and consumer discovery, which can subsequently support their expansion into general trade. He sees both channels growing simultaneously and creating broader momentum for emerging consumer brands.

Veeba's past ventures, such as its foray into the child nutrition segment with V-Nourish, resulted in significant losses and were discontinued in 2021. This experience taught the company to impose stricter limits on marketing expenditure when entering adjacent categories. Looking ahead, Veeba may explore the high-protein condiments category, but will test the proposition in smaller markets first before aggressive expansion.