Zepto

I want to work with Zepto founders. To demonstrate the kind of value I can bring to the team, I've proactively revamped the Zeptonow website and analyzed the grocery market and indian psychology and mindset to offer my two cents on where zepto can focus next.

Here are some observations I made regarding the technical aspects of the Website.

While browsing the Zeptonow site, I noticed an alignment issue with the Apply Buttons, not matching the Job labels.

Additionally, the experience displayed initially shows 0-0 years,

but after clicking, it correctly indicates 4+ years.

The We’re hiring text appears slightly out of place, and the Careers link does not lead to any destination.

Lastly, there seems to be some responsive issues, and scaling problems.

I developed this website using the latest tech stack (NextJs, TailwindCSS, and MongoDB) that aims to provide a more updated and responsive feel.

You can visit the Zepto website deployed on Vercel.

As CEO Aadit Palicha mentions in an interview with Nithin Kamath, the Indian population is more likely to buy loose groceries such as atta, rice, dal, and cereals, and there have been no significant brands for specific grocery items except Aashirvaad for atta.

Taking the liberty of being a middle class boy, I would like to put my perspective forward.

There’s an innate sense of purity and genuineness that comes from buying firsthand from these ‘mills’ or loose-packed items. When the atta (wheat flour) is freshly grounded, and the dal (lentils), sattu (gram flour) etc, we belive its fresh and pure, thus giving us a sense of genuineness.

However, over the past years, due to poor growth in mills, bad crop and higher prices, the mills have considerably low quality material. And, people have started trusting more on packaged items as they source better quality products, the marketing is genius, although it costs more.

To achieve the goal of making people buy these items from us, I can think of these strategy:

1. Partner with a High-Capacity Local Mill / Distributor: As not every product has an established brand, we have to partner with local mills or directly contact the distributors, to source the product.

2. Brand Packaging: Package these items under our own brand, Zepto, to build and enhance brand trust and recognition.

3. Leverage Proven Strategies: Following the lead of major players like Amazon and Flipkart, who have successfully adopted this strategy with smaller brands, in our case mills/distributors. By capturing popular trends and branding these items under our label, we can significantly boost the trust factor and loyalty towards our brand.

This approach will help us not only meet market demand efficiently but also establish a stronger presence and trust in the market.

One more the thing from the interview is, what mentality does the indian population has, let me explain.

1. Price Below MRP: The price of an item should be less than the MRP.
2. Lower Total Cost: When ordering, customers expect to pay less than the total MRP, with no platform fee or delivery charges. Otherwise, they might prefer buying from a nearby shop.

The above points seem very unjust and loss bearing to our business, but many grocery delivery startups have been surviving this efficiently.

My two Cents

To fulfill these needs while ensuring our business remains profitable, I propose the following strategies:

1. Reduced Delivery Fees: Although eliminating platform and delivery fees is non-negotiable, we can minimize (strategically reduce) them. Our idea is to reduce item prices but impose a nominal delivery fee on all orders, regardless of size/ quantity. This should not be an big overhead, as zomato and swiggy have already made that inculcated that cognitive factor on people in the past few years.

2. Efficient Sourcing: By tracking the 50-60 most heavily ordered items, we can source them directly from factories / distributors. This will lower costs and allow us to adjust transportation expenses when marking up prices in the future.

3. Optimized Delivery Operations:

   • Efficient Resource Use: In small localities (sub-5km radius), a single or two delivery agents can manage multiple deliveries within a 10-15 minute window given its a prepaid order. However, multiple agents often overlap due to order placing times, which is inefficient.

   • Centralized Coordination: We can improve efficiency by grouping delivery agents at a central point. Here, they can exchange products destined for the same locality, allowing free drivers to fulfill other orders.

   To explain it I made a small diagram, please excuse me for my diagram skills.

Consider a common scenario in the rapid delivery business:

Two orders are placed at almost the same time, with delivery destinations within a 5 km radius. Typically, two delivery personnel would each handle one order, despite their destinations being nearly identical. This results in an inefficient use of resources.

What if we could streamline this process by having one delivery personnel handle overlapping destination orders?

Currently, Zepto’s delivery agents handle multiple orders placed simultaneously within a close proximity (sub-5km radius). However, as a 10-minute instant delivery service, our products often hit the assembly line before the customer has even checked out. This means multiple delivery agents might be dispatched to the same locality, which can be resource-intensive and inefficient.

To optimize resource utilization, we could implement a system where delivery personnel, already en route, meet to exchange orders in a central point when their destinations overlap. This allows one agent to handle both deliveries while the other can either retreat or take on different orders with unique destinations.

Implementing this strategy, though theoretical and experimental, holds great promise. It not only enhances operational efficiency but also helps us better meet customer expectations.

While it may seem straightforward on paper, I understand the complexities involved. It requires substantial time and effort to address all these pain points effectively.

With my experience as a software engineer and consultant for multiple companies, I’ve gained significant insights into large-scale operations. By working closely with customer-facing products and focusing on operational efficiencies, I am confident in my ability to contribute meaningfully and enhance team effectiveness.

I have a strong aptitude for both technology and business. I thrive under pressure and excel at multitasking. I am committed to treating Zepto with the utmost care and dedication, striving to make it profitable and ensuring net income remains positive.

Thank you for reading. I would love your feedback, send it through kaushalc64@gmail.com