From delivery to discovery: How quick commerce is becoming a branding tool

When a Bengaluru-based professional ordered milk on a quick commerce app earlier this year, the delivery included a small pack of flavoured yoghurt from a brand she had never heard of. The add-on was not planned, but curiosity led her to try it. A week later, she reordered it—this time intentionally.

 

“I had never heard of the brand earlier,” said Latisha, a New Delhi–based resident who ordered paneer from Noice on Instamart. “I tried it because it was discounted. The quality turned out to be good, and I have continued buying it.”

 

For the startup behind the product, that single impulse-led trial captured what quick commerce platforms are increasingly enabling: compressing the distance between discovery and repeat purchase. Apps such as Blinkit, Zepto, Swiggy Instamart, Amazon Now and BigBasket’s BB Now are no longer being used only to move goods quickly, but to shape how new brands are discovered and remembered.

 

“For a brand like us, quick commerce means instant visibility in a very crowded consumer landscape, where finding the product is often the greatest challenge. It has made it possible for brands to be present at the exact location and time when the consumer needs the product, that is, within the consumer’s daily routine,” said Rahul Singh, co-founder and chief executive officer, EcoSoul Home.

 

EcoSoul Home Inc. is a US-based corporation crafting eco-friendly goods from renewable resources. It sells its products on Blinkit, Zepto, Instamart and BigBasket.

 

“A new brand uses quick commerce not just to deliver a product, but to deliver a brand story rooted in real-time, context-specific consumer needs, while simultaneously using the platform’s infrastructure to gather vital market intelligence and de-risk its business,” said Samir Kapur, director, Adfactors.

 

He further added, “Brands can launch small batches of new products (SKUs) in select micro-markets (for example, specific pin codes) to test demand, pricing elasticity and product-market fit before investing in large-scale production or traditional retail distribution. This de-risks expansion and optimises the supply chain.”

 

A new brand uses quick commerce not just to deliver a product, but to deliver a brand story rooted in real-time, context-specific consumer needs, while simultaneously using the platform’s infrastructure to gather vital market intelligence and de-risk its business.

 

Discovery at the moment of need 

Unlike traditional e-commerce platforms, where shopping is often planned and price-led, quick commerce thrives on urgency and replenishment. Consumers open these apps multiple times a week, typically for essentials, creating frequent, high-intent touchpoints.

 

“By eliminating barriers of time, location and planning, quick commerce has emerged as a powerful branding tool for emerging brands. It allows brands like Pee Safe and FURR to show up in high-need, high-relevance moments, building credibility, strengthening brand recall, and embedding values of convenience, care and dignity into everyday consumer habits,” said Karun Arora, quick commerce lead, Pee Safe. He added, “Quick commerce has helped transform Pee Safe from a niche brand into a trusted, everyday hygiene partner.”

 

“Quick commerce has reshaped brand building by shifting it from a long, awareness-led process to a behaviour-driven experience. Earlier, new brands had to build trust over time before earning a trial. Quick commerce changes this by enabling instant trial, reducing the psychological barrier to trying new products when they can be delivered within 10 to 20 minutes,” said Anmol Sahai Mathur, vice president of marketing, Mars Cosmetics.

 

Samir Kapur also added, “For new, unproven brands, being consistently available and reliably delivered via a trusted ecosystem like Amazon Fresh or Amazon Now automatically transfers a trust halo from the platform to the new brand, addressing initial customer scepticism. The brand becomes synonymous with safe, instant convenience.”

 

Marketing budgets shift 

This behavioural advantage is prompting startups and consumer brands to treat quick commerce as a marketing channel rather than just a distribution layer. In-app visibility tools such as sponsored listings, search prioritisation and home-page placements are increasingly drawing marketing spends that earlier went to social media or search platforms.

 

Industry executives say customer acquisition costs on quick commerce can be lower than those on traditional digital channels, particularly for fast-moving consumer goods.

 

“Startups certainly enjoy the major advantage of instant exposure to potential customers, which allows them to cut down on the cost and time needed for building brand memory accordingly. However, depending only on discovery is not enough. For brands like Kalyanamm, which fit perfectly with the quick commerce ecosystem, these platforms are the best channel that both connects and reinforces their overall growth strategy,” said Nidhi Sabbarwal, founder, Kalyanamm Holy Waste Recycling Pvt Ltd.

 

Branding beyond screens 

Beyond the app interface, brands are also experimenting with physical touchpoints to reinforce recall. Platforms such as Zepto, Blinkit and Swiggy Instamart have, in recent months, allowed brands to include pamphlets, flyers or coupons inside delivery bags, enabling targeted, offline-style marketing linked to online purchasing behaviour.

 

Founders say these inserts often arrive at a moment of heightened attention, when consumers are unpacking groceries rather than scrolling on a screen. “The pamphlet lands when the customer is already interacting with the product,” said the founder of a Mumbai-based branding strategist. “It feels more contextual than a digital ad.”

 

“Platforms for quick commerce such as Zepto, Blinkit, Instamart and BigBasket have prioritised building our brand presence. For nascent beauty brands like ours, quick commerce is not merely a way to sell more substrates but rather a strong weapon in the fight to increase brand visibility and establish a lasting bond with the audience,” said Mihir Jain, sales and marketing director, Insight Cosmetics.

 

The growing pull of quick commerce is now strong enough to draw even large, established brands into the model. Companies that traditionally relied on large-format stores and planned purchases are exploring ultra-fast deliveries to stay relevant with urban consumers. Sportswear and equipment retailer Decathlon, for instance, is understood to be evaluating quick delivery options in select cities, signalling how expectations around speed and convenience are reshaping even non-grocery categories. Industry executives say the move reflects not just competitive pressure, but the branding value of being visible on platforms that consumers open multiple times a week.

 

The appeal of quick commerce is evident even before brands formally enter the market. A New Delhi–based professional planning to launch a packaged makhana brand said his go-to-market strategy is centred on quick commerce platforms rather than traditional retail or large e-commerce marketplaces. He believes the high-frequency usage of these apps and their ability to trigger impulse purchases make them one of the most effective ways for a new food brand to secure early visibility and trial. “If consumers can discover you while ordering essentials, half the battle is already won,” he said.

 

The growing branding potential of quick commerce also brings risks. Platforms aggressively promote their own private labels, often offering sharper pricing and more prominent visibility than third-party brands.

 

Startups acknowledge the imbalance but say the trade-off remains compelling. Startups end up competing with the platform’s own brands; the volume and visibility are difficult to ignore, but for early-stage companies, discovery matters more than margins.

 

Beyond the metros 

For now, branding-led activity on quick commerce remains concentrated in Tier-I cities, where order density and experimentation are highest. However, platforms and brands are beginning to test similar strategies in select Tier-II markets as delivery networks expand.

 

As competition intensifies and platforms seek to diversify revenues beyond logistics, advertising and brand partnerships—both on screen and inside the delivery bag—are expected to play a larger role. For consumer brands, the 10-minute delivery model is increasingly doubling up as a 10-minute branding opportunity.