VIVEKANANDA INSTITUTE OF PROFESSIONAL STUDIES

Affiliated to Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University

AU-BLOCK (Outer Ring Road), Pitampura, New Delhi-110034

A MINOR PROJECT REPORT ON

“A STUDY OF BIGBASKET AND HOW IT PRESENTED ITSELF

BY
IT’S MARKETING STRATEGIES”

Submitted in partial fulfilment for the award of degree of

BACHELORS OF COMMERCE (HONS.)

B.Com (H)-II Semester

Batch 2022- 2025

SUBMITTED TO DR. NIVRITI

SUBMITTED BY SNEHA GUPTA

ENROLLMENT NUMBER- 07429888822

 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

A lot of effort has gone into this project report and for that I would like all those who have contributed in
completing this project. I am highly indebted and extremely thankful to Dr. Nivriti , professor at VIPS who
as my guide was a constant source of inspiration and encouragement to me. The strong interest evinced
by her has helped me in dealing with the problems I faced during project work I express my profound
sense of gratitude for timely help and co-operation in completing the project. Lastly, I would like to thank
my entire beloved family & friends for providing me monetary as well as non monetary support, as and
when required without which this project would not have completed on time. Their trust and patience are
now coming out in form of this research project.

DECLARATION

I hereby declare that the project work entitled “A STUDY OF MARKETING STRATEGIES ADOPTED BY
BIGBASKET”
1 is the result of my own study done under the supervision and guidance of Dr. Nivriti,
Professor, and I further declare that the findings in this project report are independent study1 done by me
and it has not been submitted earlier to any University/Institution for the award of any other course.

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that SNEHA GUPTA , enrolment number 07429888822 pursuing B.Com(Hons) from
VIPS has successfully completed the research project on “A STUDY OF MARKETING
STRATEGIES ADOPTED BY BIGBASKET” under my supervision and guidance.

She has taken care of all necessary aspects and has shown keen interest and utmost sincerity during
the completion of this project file. I certify that this project file is up to my satisfaction and as per the
guidelines laid down by the Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University.

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TABLE OF CONTENT
S.NO. DESCRIPTION PAGE NO.
1. INTRODUCTION (FIG 1.1) 15

2. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT 2

3. DECLARATION 3

4. TABLE OF CONTENT 5

5. TABLE OF FIGURES 6

6. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 7-12

7. CHAPTER II COMPANY PROFILE 13-19

8. ABOUT THE COMPETITORS 20-23

9. OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY 24

10. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 25-29

11. CHAPTER III DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS 30-38

12. CHAPTER – 4 S.W.O.T ANALYSIS OF BIG BASKET 39-57

13. RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSIONS 58

14. BIBLIOGRAPHY 59
5

TABLE FOR FIGURES

S.NO. DESCRIPTION PAGE NO.
1 COMPANY PROFILE ( FIG 2.1) 14

2 COMPANY PROFILE( FIG 2.2) 15

3 COMPANY PROFILE( FIG 2.3) 16

4 COMPANY PROFILE( FIG 2.4) 17

5 COMPANY PROFILE( FIG 2.5) 19

6 COMPITIORS (FIG 2.6) 20

7 COMPITIORS (FIG 2.7) 23

8 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY (FIG 2.8) 27

9 DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS (FIG 3.1) 32

10 DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS (FIG 3.2) 35

11 DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS (FIG 3.3) 37

12 DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS (FIG 3.4) 38

13 S.W.O.T ANALYSIS (FIG 4.1) 40

14 S.W.O.T ANALYSIS (FIG 4.2) 45

15 S.W.O.T ANALYSIS (FIG 4.3) 49

16 S.W.O.T ANALYSIS (FIG 4.4) 50

17 S.W.O.T ANALYSIS (FIG 4.5) 51

18 S.W.O.T ANALYSIS (FIG 4.6) 52

19 S.W.O.T ANALYSIS (FIG 4.7) 53

20 S.W.O.T ANALYSIS (FIG 4.8) 55

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CHAPTER – 1 INTRODUCTION TO THE TOPIC

MARKETING

Marketing is the process of communicating the value of a product or service to customers.

Marketing can sometimes be interpreted as the art of selling products, but selling is only a small
fraction of marketing.

Marketing can be looked at as an organizational function and a set of processes for creating,
delivering and communicating value to customers, and managing customer relationships in ways
that benefit the organization and its shareholders. Marketing management is the art of choosing
target markets, as well as acquiring and keeping customers through providing superior customer
value.

There are five competing concepts under which organizations can choose to operate their
business; the production concept, the product concept, the selling concept, the marketing concept,
and the holistic marketing concept. The four components of holistic marketing are relationship
marketing, internal marketing, integrated marketing, and socially responsive marketing. The set of
engagements necessary for successful marketing management includes ,capturing marketing
insights , connecting with customers , building strong brands , shaping the market offerings ,
delivering and communicating value , creating long - term growth , and developing marketing
strategies and plans

What Marketing Strategy Is ?

A marketing strategy is a process that can allow an organization to concentrate its limited resources
on the greatest opportunities to increase sales and achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. A
marketing strategy should be centered around the key concept that customer satisfaction is the
main goal.

A marketing strategy is most effective when it is an integral component of corporate strategy,

defining how the organization will successfully engage customers, prospects, and competitors in
the market arena. corporate strategies, corporate missions, and corporate goals. As the customer
constitutes the source of a company's revenue. marketing strategy is closely linked with sales. A
key component of marketing strategy is often to keep marketing in line with a company's
overarching mission statement.
It can serve as the foundation of a marketing plan. A marketing plan contains a set of specific
actions
required to successfully implement a marketing strategy. For example: "Use a low cost product to
attract consumers. Once our organization, via our low cost product, has established a relationship
with consumers, our organization will sell additional, higher-margin products and services that
enhance the consumer's interaction with the low-cost product or service."
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A strategy consists of a well thought out series of tactics to make a marketing plan more effective.
Marketing strategies serve as the fundamental underpinning of marketing plans designed to fill
market needs and reach marketing objectives. Plans and objectives are generally tested for
measurable results.

A marketing strategy often integrates an organization's marketing goals, policies, and action
sequences (tactics) into a cohesive whole. Similarly, the various strands of the strategy, which might
include advertising, channel marketing, internet marketing. promotion and public relations, can be
orchestrated. Many companies cascade a strategy throughout an organization, by creating strategy
tactics that then become strategy goals for the next level or group. Each one group is expected to
take that strategy goal and develop a set of tactics to achieve that goal. This is why it is important
to make each strategy goal measurable

What should a marketing strategy consist of?

The constituent parts of a marketing strategy are based on a thorough and
objective understanding of the current situation. They usually include: 1
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∙The scope of the business: the customer groups you serve, the benefits they are seeking
and which you deliver, and the technology you use. This may provide you with
what some companies call a 'vision' or 'mission statement, a set of words explaining what
your business is about and where it is going.

∙Marketing objectives: eg market share, sales or market share growth, market entry, increase
awareness, etc.

∙ Target segments and positioning: the specific customer groups or segments you are
targeting and your business' position in those segments. For further information
on segmenting and targeting customers see the Related Items section below for a link to
the Factsheet: Segmentation, targeting and positioning.]

∙Marketing mix: the products, price, place (distribution) and promotion that you are using as
'marketing tools to deliver benefits to your customers and beat competitors.

∙ Implementation: includes action plans, budgets, timescales and resources. The best
marketing strategy is not going to help if it you cannot implement it. When you have
finished your marketing strategy, it is worth checking that you have the operational
capacity and processes capable of fulfilling the extra orders, delivering on time
and providing any extra services reliably and efficiently

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 What information is needed for marketing strategy?

The key in marketing strategy is to understand and match the capabilities of your
firm to the opportunities available in the market. We need a range of information
such as:
∙Market data: Data about the size and growth rate of the market, who potential
customers are, what they buy, when they buy, from whom and through whom do they
buy, etc.

∙ Competitive data: Data on who direct competitors are, their products, prices, etc.
It also helps to identify indirect or potential competitors who may take you by
surprise.

∙ Internal data: Data within your business will help to assess the strengths and
weaknesses of your product/service and its core capabilities. Your business
judgment will play a key part in deciding marketing objectives, target markets
and suitable positioning strategies.

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CHAPTER – 2
COMPANY PROFILE

OVERVIEW OF THE COMPANY

BIG BASKET

FIG 2.1

Big Basket is one of the largest online grocery super market in India. It was founded in 2011 by
Hari Menon, VS Sudhakar, V S Ramesh, Vipul Parekh and Abhinay choudari. It has its
headquarters in Bengaluru. It operates in more than 30 cities in India. Big basket offers variety of
products ranging from fresh fruits, vegetables, Food grains, oil, masala, packaged snacks,
beverages, household supplies, healthcare products. It has more than 20000 products and 1000
brands in its catalogue. Customers order groceries through online website which will be
delivered to their doorstep. Bigbasket has a valuation of 1.8 Billion dollars. It has reached unicorn
status. The investors include Alibaba Group, Abraaj Group, Ascent Capital, Bessemer Venture
Partners, Brand Capital, Helion Venture Partners, ICICI Venture, IFC Venture Capital Group,
LionRock Capital, Paytm Mall, Sands Capital Management, Sands Capital Ventures, Trifecta
Capital and Zodius Capital.

It has over 10 million customers. Its customers are working people, students, old people who have
no time or energy to go to grocery stores, stand in line and buy the necessary products. Big basket
helps these people to browse through a huge variety of quality grocery items. Customers

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the required products which will be delivered within 90 minutes for express delivery or next
morning for slotted delivery.

•Slotted Delivery: Customers can pick a convenient slot when they want their purchase
to be delivered

• Express Delivery: This service can be availed by customers in cities like Bangalore,
Mumbai,
Pune, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Delhi-NCR . Delivery will be done within 90 minutes

•BB Specialty stores: Big basket has partnership with specialty stores like Karachi
bakery. Customers can request a product from the store which will be delivered within 90
minutes.

FIG 2.2

Big basket has acquired 100% stakes in milk delivery ventures Raincan and morningcart. It got a
controlling stake in smart vending machine startup Kwik24. The milk delivery service was branded
as BB daily where customers can get milk delivered to their home in the morning everyday through
subscribing for a fee. Big basket has also installed over 100 smart vending machines in Bangalore.
Customers can order through BB instant app and get the products from vending machines.

It also acquired a hyperlocal delivery startup named delyver. It helped to strengthen its delivery
system in all the cities it is operating in.

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Customers order groceries through online website which will be delivered to their doorstep.
Bigbasket has a valuation of 1.8 Billion dollars. It has reached unicorn status. The investors
include Alibaba Group, Abraaj Group, Ascent Capital, Bessemer Venture Partners, Brand Capital,
Helion Venture Partners, ICICI Venture, IFC Venture Capital Group, LionRock Capital, Paytm

Mall, Sands Capital Management, Sands Capital Ventures, Trifecta Capital and Zodius Capital.

FIG 2.3
 1
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FIG 2.4
It has over 10 million customers. Its customers are working people,
students, old people who have no time or energy to go to grocery
stores, stand in line and buy the necessary products. Big basket
helps these people to browse through a huge variety of quality
grocery items. Customers can order the required products which will
be delivered within 90 minutes for express delivery or next morning
for slotted delivery.

IMPORTANCE OF BIG BASKET

Bigbasket.com allows you to walk away from the drudgery of grocery shopping and
welcome an easy relaxed way of browsing and shopping for groceries. Discover new
products and shop for all your food and grocery needs from the comfort of your home or
office. No more getting stuck in traffic jams, paying for parking, standing in long queues
and carrying heavy bags – get everything you need, when you need, right at your
doorstep. Food shopping online is now easy

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 HISTORY OF BIG BASKET

Initiated in 1999, there were five friends- Hari Menon, VS Sudhakar, Vipul Parekh,
Abhinay Choudhary and VS Ramesh launched their online retail website known as
“Fabmart”. Being quite ahead of its time, the idea attracted attention but could not shake
the masses.

They attempted to revolutionise the retail industry but they failed. In spite of being
infamous, they decided to set up a physical retail chain of grocery stores in South
India“Fabmall”. Today, the stores are currently operating all over the world as MORE, by
the Aditya Birla Group.

Then, the group of five friends reunited again to work on the idea of getting back to their
original idea of an online grocery store. After procuring funds, the group of five friends
finally gave birth to BigBasket.com in December 2011.

In March 2019, BigBasket raised $150 million in investment from Mirae, Alibaba Group
and CDC Group giving the company a valuation of over US$1 billion.

In March 2020, they acquired micro-delivery firm, DailyNinja.

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In February 2021, the Tata Group acquired a 64.3% stake in BigBasket for around ₹9,500
crore (US$1.3 billion).

ACQUISTIONS AND INVESTMENTS

Tata Digital, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tata Sons, has acquired a majority stake in
Indian online grocery seller Big Basket.

Tata Digital CEO Pratik Pal said: “Grocery is one of the largest components of an
individual’s consumption basket in India, and Big Basket is India’s largest e-grocery
player, fits in perfectly with our vision of creating a large consumer digital ecosystem. We
are delighted to welcome Big Basket as a part of the Tata Digital.”

The announcement came after India’s antitrust body Competition Commission of India
(CCI) approved the acquisition of up to a 54.3% stake in BigBasket by Tata Digital in
March this year, as reported by PTI.

Financial details of the transaction are not disclosed, but according to media sources, the
deal is valued at approximately $1.31bn (Rs95bn).

The deal reportedly involves buying out Chinese online retailer Alibaba’s stake in the
company.

And other investors like ICICI Ventures, IFC Venture Capital, Brand Capital, and
Bessemer Ventures partners etc.

FIG 2.5
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 COMPETITORS OF BIGBASKET

FIG 2.6
The direct competitors of Bigbasket are Grofers and Freshtohome. Big giants
Amazon,
Walmart and Reliance have also started their grocery business recently. Other new
entrants are Swiggy and Zomato.
GROFERS

Grofers is the main competitor of Bigbasket. It was started in 2013. It is backed by

Softbank. It differentiates itself by providing more deals and products at cheaper prices
than Bigbasket. It operates in only 13 cities compared to 30 cities by Big basket. Its
number of customers and Revenue is also very less compared to Big basket. The range
of products provided is also very less compared to Big basket. It targets people who are
price conscious and want better offers. People buy from Grofers to get good deals while
Big basket customers buy from it as it has wide
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variety. Its current strategy is bolstering
its private labels, opening more offline stores and cutting costs.
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FRESH TO HOME

Fresh to home is an e-commerce platform for fresh chemical free fruits, vegetables, meat,
fish, steak etc. It was launched in 2015. It has been successful in the state of Kerala
where fish is a stable diet. It has 5 lakhs customers and gets around 8000 orders a day.
Recently it has expanded its operations to UAE. It has strong presence in select cities of
Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Its value proposition is providing chemical free food
items which is in direct competition with Big basket’s organic food value proposition.

AMAZON

Amazon, the E-commerce giant has recently entered the grocery business in India. It has
over 10 crore prime users who have automatically became customers for its new business
venture. As of now, Amazon provides AmazonFresh, Its fresh vegetable and fruits
platform, in select locations in Bangalore, Mumbai and Pune. It is likely to expand this
feature to other cities as well. Its Amazon Pantry feature for other groceries products like
packaged foods, snacks, beverages etc is available in 110 cities in India. Its strength is
its foothold in 110 cities, huge capital, established supply chain, brand name and Huge
customer base. Amazon doesn’t have to attract new customers, it just has to make its
existing prime customers to use this new feature. Customers buy from amazon as it has
a proven record of delivering quality products on time, easy return policy, variety of
product categories and extra benefits like amazon prime video streaming service,
amazon music etc.

RELIANCE SMART

Indian Giant Reliance industry has been planning to enter the e-commerce industry. It
has launched its grocery service arm Reliance smart/Fresh direct in selected cities like
Mumbai, Bangalore and Pune. It is a subsidiary of reliance retail. Its strengths are its
strong brand name, huge capital and customer base of other subsidiaries. Its strategy is
to partner with kirana stores in India. Reliance will help the kirana stores to modernize
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by providing agile jio network, developing an app that helps them to do GST and
develop
their own chatbots. Reliance will benefit by getting required goods for its ecommerce
business. Entry of reliance will be a gamechanger in e-commerce industry of India.
WALMART’S FLIPKART

Flipkart has launched its grocery business arm “Supermart” in November 2017. Its
portfolio includes stables, FMCG products and private labels. It is present in 5 cities
(Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, New Delhi and Mumbai) as of now. It is likely to
expand its operations across India. Its strengths are established e-commerce
network, huge capital and existing customer base of its retail business. “Buy now pay
later” is a feature of “Supermart” where customers can buy products without paying
immediately. The total amount should be paid before 10th of next month. “open box
delivery” is a feature where the products are delivered in an open box. Customers can
see the products, check the quality and if some individual items are not of good quality,
they can be returned to the delivery person.

Bigbaske Grofers Fresh to mazon eliance

ome resh/pantry/ Smart/
ri me et ail

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2
FIG 2.7
 ounding 2011 2013 2015 2019 2014
date/
launch
ate in
India

3636 3157 43 NA NA
Number
of
Employees
locations 13 cities 6 cities 110 cities Bangalor
30 e,
Mumbai
cities ,
pune

Revenue NA NA
242 150
3200
crores crore
crore
investors Alibaba Softbank Iron Amazon
pillar,Al Relian
Nasser ce
holdings
group
10,00,00 6,00,000 5,00,000 10 crore NA
Number 0 prime users
of
customers
rod Grocery, Grocery Fish, Electroni
cts stables, seafood, cs,
tables,
ateg house poultry, fashion,
hol d househ grocery,
ries
products old personal
mutton,
, care,
product steaks
personal
care Househ
, old

Product
Electronics,
fashion, s
s,
grocery,
persona
l personal care,
household
care
products
 Delivery Within 35 Within Within
∙ Slotted
delivery 2 2
Everyday hours 2 hours for hours
morning for fresh groceries in for fresh
and vegetabl Vegetabl
evening es and selected cities es and
∙ fruits fruits
Express
delivery
90 Within 2
minutes
hours
∙BB
Specialt
y
stores90
minute
s

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OBJECTIVES OF STUDY

(i) To study marketing strategies of Bigbasket

(ii) To study the competitive analysis of Bigbasket

(iii) Challenges and growth of Bigbasket w.r.t to its competitors

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RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Research is "creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of

knowledge, including knowledge of humans, culture, and society, and the use of
this stock of knowledge to devise new applications."or on the other hand
Research is a process of steps used to collect and analyze information to
increase our understanding of a topic or issue. At a general level, the research
consists of three steps:

1. Pose a question.

2. Collect data to answer the question.

3. Present an answer to the question.

This should be a familiar process. You engage in solving problems every day
and you start with a question, collect some information, and then form an
answer. Research is important for three reasons.

4. The research adds to our knowledge:

Adding to knowledge means that educators undertake research to contribute to the

existing information about issues .

2. Research improves practice:

Research is also important because it suggests improvements for practice.

Armed with research results, teachers and other educators become more
effective professionals.

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Research informs policy debates

Research also provides information to policymakers when they research and debate
educational topics.

A research project may also be an expansion of past work in the field. Research
projects can be used to develop further knowledge on a topic, or in the example of a
school research project, they can be used to further a student's research progress to
prepare them for future jobs or reports. To test the validity of instruments, procedures,
or experiments, research may replicate elements of prior projects or the project as a
whole. The primary purposes of basic research (as opposed to applied research) are
documentation, discovery, interpretation, or the research and development (R&D) of
methods and systems for the advancement of human knowledge. Approaches to
research depend on epistemologies, which vary considerably both within and
between humanities and sciences. There are several forms of research: scientific,
humanities, artistic, economic, social, business, marketing, practitioner research, life,
technological, etc. The scientific study of research practices is known as meta-
research.

Data collection

Data collection is a standout amongst the most essential stages in carrying on

research. You can have the best research plan in the world , however, in the event
that you can’t gather the necessary data you will not have the capacity to complete
your venture. Data collection is an extremely challenging work that needs
exhaustive planning, diligent work, understanding, determination and more to have
the capacity to complete the assignment effectively. Data collection begins with
figuring out what sort of data is needed, followed by the collection of a sample from a
certain section of the population. Next, you have to utilize a certain tool to gather the
data from the chosen.

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Sources of Data Collection

Normally we can gather data from two sources namely primary and secondary. Data gathered through
the perception or questionnaire reviews in a characteristic setting are illustrations of data obtained in an
uncontrolled situation. Secondary data is the data acquired from optional sources like magazines,
books, documents, journals reports, the web and more. The chart below describes the flow of the
sources of data collection FIG 2.8
 Sources of Primary Data Collection

Primary data will be the data that you gather particularly with the end goal of your research
venture. The leverage of Primary data is that it is particularly customized to your analysis
needs. A drawback is that it is costly to get hold of. Primary data is otherwise called raw
information; the information gathered from the first source in a controlled or uncontrolled
situation. Cases of a controlled domain are experimental studies where certain variables are
being controlled by the analyst.

The source of primary data is the populace test from which you gather the information. The
initial phase in the process is deciding your target populace. For instance, if you are looking
into the attractiveness of another washing machine, your target populace may be newly-wed

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Clearly, it’s impracticable to gather information from everybody, so you will need to focus on the sample
size and kind of sample. The specimen ought to be arbitrary and a stratified random sample is
frequently sensible. In our washing machine illustration, subpopulations may incorporate adolescent
couples, moderately aged couples, old couples, and previously wedded couples.

Sources of Secondary Data Collection

You can break the sources of secondary data into internal as well as external sources. Inner
sources incorporate data that exists and is stored in your organization. External data refers to
the data that is gathered by other individuals or associations from your association’s outer
 environment. Examples of inner sources of data incorporate, but are not restricted only to, the
following:

✔ Statement of the profit and loss

✔ Balance sheets

✔ Sales figures

✔ Inventory records

✔ Previous marketing studies

If the secondary data you have gathered from internal sources is not sufficient, you can turn
to outside sources of data collection, some outside sources of data collection include:

✔ Universities

✔ Government sources

✔ Foundations

✔ Media, including telecast, print, and Internet

✔ Trade, business and expert affiliations

✔ Corporate filings

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Method used in the project
In this project, secondary data is collected as it is economical. It saves efforts and expenses and is time

saving .It helps to make primary data collection more specific since with the help of secondary data, we

are able to make out what are the gaps and deficiencies and what additional information needs to be

collected. It helps to improve the understanding of the problem.

It provides a basis for comparison for the data that is collected by the researcher
 But also, Secondary data is something that seldom fits in the framework of the marketing research
factors. Accuracy of secondary data is not known and Data may be outdated.

Comparing both the advantages and disadvantages, it was clear that the project has to be made through
the method of secondary data. As convenient as it may sound, thefirst hand information was tough or
nearly impossible to get for the project and hence, the whole project is based on secondary data.

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CHAPTER-3
DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS 30

PRODUCT

Big Basket is a leading Indian e-commerce website focusing on grocery items being delivered.
Themain product in its marketing mix is its website and app, which gives access to users to buy
groceries and food online. Big Basket offers a variety of products ranging from grocery to dairy
products, to staples to meat products. Following are the varieties of product categories it offers:

•Fruits & Vegetables – Fresh fruits, Fresh Vegetables, Cut fruits, Cut Vegetables,
3 Exotic
0
fruits & vegetables, Sprouts, Organic produce, Flowers.

•Food grains, Oil & masala – Dals, pulses, Rice, Salt, Sugar, Organic Staples, Flour, Dry
fruits
• Bakery & Dairy – Bakery snacks, gourmet breads, cakes, desserts, dairy • Beverages –
Tea

& Coffee, Fruit Juices, Energy Drinks, Soft drinks

• Branded Foods – Breakfast Cereal, Ketchup, Pasta, Baby food etc.

• Beauty & Hygiene – Oral Care, Beauty, Grooming, Hygiene, Fragrance, Skincare

• Household – Utensils, Storage, Stationary, Car needs, Electricals etc.

• Gourmet – continental snacks and confectionaries

• Eggs & Meat, Baby Care etc.

PRICE

Big Basket is the first to venture into this sector and has many competitors currently. Even with all
the competition, it continues to be the market leader and most popular amongst the customers. It
tries to increase its margins by setting a nominal price of Rs.20 as a delivery charge for items
ordered below Rs.1000. It also provides a nominal discount on the order of Rs.3000 or Rs.5000 and
above to encourage households to buy their monthly groceries from Big Basket thus providing
economies of scale. They mark up the prices of the groceries a little higher from the market prices
so as to cover their high variable costs. High variable costs are incurred due to wastage of
perishable items, cost of transportation, cost of labor, transportation damage, cost of storing
inventory etc. Although there’s a markup in the price it still tries to keep the prices competitive with
the other players in the market.

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PLACE

Big Basket is spread over many parts of the country which include cities like Bangalore, Mumbai,
Hyderabad, Pune, Chennai, Delhi-NCR, Madurai, Coimbatore, Mysore, Vijayawada-Guntur,
Ahmedabad, and Nashik. Big Basket will soon be expanding their operations soon to other cities.
The customers place their orders online according to their needs. While doing so, they choose the
delivery timings and the mode of delivery. It provides two types of deliveries: Standard and Express.
Express delivery is done within two hours of placing the order and Standard is delivered on the next
day. Since Big Basket follows an inventory model, it procures its goods from HUL, P&G and other
big manufacturers, farmers and retail stores and stores it in the warehouse.

Upon receiving the order, the delivery personnel picks it up from the warehouse and delivers the
goods to the said person within the chosen time.

PROMOTION

Big Basket has used many marketing and pricing strategies over the years to stay ahead in the
business. The biggest marketing strategy they introduced was to name Shah Rukh Khan as their
brand ambassador and launch TV, media and digital marketing campaigns which were aimed at
gaining popularity and visibility amongst the masses, as celebrities tend to be very influential in
the Indian set up. Big Basket provides offers periodically to its most frequent customers, heavy
shoppers and also cash back in their digital wallets. FIG 3.1

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Since this is a service marketing brand, here are the other three Ps to make it the 7Ps
marketing mix of Big Basket.

PEOPLE

With the scaling up of business, it has to constantly scale up the workforce to keep up with the
operations since it is a very operation oriented business. The business works on the efficiency of
the delivery guys who, if fail to delivery correctly or on time, and the customer service staff who, if
fail in delivering optimal solutions, would lead to customer complaints and thus degrade the Big
Basket brand amongst customers.

PROCESS

When Big Basket started it used to follow a Just in time model where the delivery staff used to
procure the items from the local retailers as and when the order is received. But with time it
started to follow Inventory model. Now, the goods are procured in advance and stored in the
warehouse.

Whenever an order is received from the customer, it does the weighing, packaging and sends out
the items for delivery on the customer-specified timing. The model of Big Basket is a hub and spoke
model. It has a main warehouse in the city and many other distribution centers throughout the city
where the goods are shipped for delivery. Currently, it has been focusing on implementing the hyper-
local strategy where it has tie-ups with the local vendors to deliver goods within an hour or two.

PHYSICAL EVIDENCE

Physical Evidence of Big Basket is seen from the way that we get the delivery of the goods, the
quality service provided by the customer care executives, the warehouse storage, transportation
services etc. Hence this covers the marketing mix of Big Basket.

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3

CURRENT SCENARIO

BigBasket has been implementing a Hyper-local strategy, wherein, it has joined hands with
more than 1,800 neighborhood grocery stores across India to deliver goods within an hour.

Looking for the current scenario – BigBasket now processes almost 20,000 orders a day, with the
involvement of 2000 team members.
Earlier they had acquired a hyper-local delivery start-up ‘Delyver’, to further strengthen its delivery
service. Although, the company still functions as an independent firm, but the co founders of
Delyver have also been included in the management team of BigBasket.

This acquisition has helped BigBasket in their Express Delivery model, to delivery groceries in
one hour.

Moving on, around the mid of 2015, BigBasket also roped in Bollywood actor – ‘Shah Rukh Khan’
as their brand ambassador, for an undisclosed sum; following which, they also launched a high
volume television, digital and print media campaign as well.

REVENUE MODEL OF BIG BASKET

BigBasket purchases the products from the direct manufacturers/suppliers like P&G, HUL, farmers
& mills and stocks them in their warehouses saving big on each product cost. To generate revenue,
it adds a small margin to the cost price before vending them. Most of its profits and revenue are
dependent on its private label products like Fresho, Royal Organic, Happy Chef Gourmet and more.

With the imposed restrictions of lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus, many people are
dependent on BigBasket for their essential needs. Company noticed the demand for groceries rose
by 3-5 times when compared to pre-lockdown days. BigBasket is receiving around 200,000 orders
a day.

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4

BUSINESS MODEL OF BIG BASKET

Big Basket has a hybrid model combining Inventory led and a hyper local strategy for procurement.
They follow an inventory led wholesale approach for the high order fill rates and longer self-life
products, while they also use a hyper local strategy, to get perishable products in just in time model
to keep the quality at the top and cost at the bottom. They have a mobile app and a website, which
generates about 70% of their revenue. The remaining part comes from the other businesses
including hotels, restaurants as well as offline retail brands.
 FIG
3.2 35
3
5

ADVANTAGES OF ONLINE GROCERY:

1. Convenience.
2. More variety.
3. Better price.
4. No crowds.
5. Easy price comparisons.
 DISADVANTAGES OF ONLINE GROCERY:

1. Shipping problems and delays.

2. Spending too much time online.
3. Returns can be complicated.
4. No sales assistance.
5. Risk of fraud.

CREATION OF BRAND

Bigbasket was launched at the time when India’s busy workforce in cities, finding it difficult
to allocate time to buy groceries and home essentials .Shopping groceries have never been
an easy task for buyers, even the housewives. To top it, local grocery stores are one of the
36
most crowded places today,especially in metropolises. Big basket gave them the flexibility
3
to place their order anytime and get the things delivered at their preferred time 6
.Bigbasket
B2C players like Grofers and Insta cart already have their personalized apps to make
grocery shopping convenient for their shoppers. To beat the competition, brands like
BigBasket have made their online grocery.
FIG 3.3
FIG 3.4
SUCCESS OF BIGBASKET

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3
7
Today, Big Basket is the India's largest online grocer that receives over100,000 orders per
day. Online grocery shopping is fast gaining popularity among the Indians. According to a
Redseer report, India's online grocery retail market is all set to touch $10.5 billion by 2023. A
company that holds a huge share in this fast growing market is Big Basket. Founded in 2011,
by dotcom bust survivors V.S. Sudhakar, Hari Menon, V.S. Ramesh, Vipul Parekh and
Abhinay Choudhari.

With the recent deal, Tata Group becomes the owner of BigBasket by acquiring a majority
stake of 64% in the company. BigBasket's valuation rockets to around $1.85 billion as of May
2021.

Read About BigBasket Company Profile, Story, Founders, Competitors, Business Model,
Revenue, Funding, Acquisitions etc.

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9

CHAPTER – 4
39

S.W.O.T ANALYSIS OF BIG BASKET

FIG 4.1

40

4
0

STRENGTH:

1. Product Range:

Big Basket offers a huge range of products which stretches to about 18000 products.
 2. Exotic Range:

It also offers exotic fruits, vegetables and imported groceries which are not easily
available in nearby retail outlets. This gives them an edge in catering to customers who
like buying such stuff.

3. Discounts:

Basket offers huge discounts on various products. They also have the product bundling
technique to maximize sales and offering maximum discounts to the customers. This
makes them a lucrative option for customers to buy.

4. Convenience:

Big Basket offers an escape from the hassle of standing in the queues of malls or going
all the way to the retail stores. They give the products right at the door step and offer
multiple payment options. The on-time delivery guarantee makes them a lucrative
option, Customers, especially in big cities where life is very fast and it is difficult to
reach the customers, can shop at any time of the day.

5. Target Group:

They have selected their target customers very carefully and have established a footing
in the metropolitan and some tier-I cities. They operate in Bangalore, Hyderabad,
Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, Delhi, Mysore, Vadodara, Patna, Indore, Vijaywada, etc. They
are currently operational in about 25 cities.

41

6. Low Fixed Cost business model:

4
1
Most of the items that Big Basket offers are perishable hence they depend on the retail
stores
they are coordinating with for the products. This means they have no inventory cost and
makes their business model more profitable.
 WEAKNESS:
1. Delivery Time:

Big Basket delivers the groceries the next day. Many retailers have started the facility
of home delivery to nearby societies and customers in just few minutes to hours. So
customers prefer this instead of waiting for 24 hours.

2. High Variable Cost:

Cost of running many delivery guys, delivery trucks, storage for perishable items,
wastage during transportation makes the business run at a high variable cost. They
have to bleed more money and will take longer to break even.

3. Minimum order quantity/price compulsion:

Big Basket does not offer home-delivery below a certain set order price limit. This
means that customers would be forced to add a product or two just to avail the
service. This makes them lose a customers.

4. Be at home:

Customers have to be at home when Big Basket is about to deliver. This means the
customers have to plan according to the delivery time. If by some means the order gets
delayed customer gets angry and unhappy by the service. On top of this they have to
pay a little add on price for the home delivery.

5. Order Cancellations:

They depend on stores that they have tied-up with to provide them the items. If they
do not have the items available they won’t be able to deliver them. This sometimes
tend in cancellation of orders. Out of stock issues tend to make the customers

42

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 2
unhappy and repetitive of such issues makes the customers reluctant to reuse the
service.

OPPORTUNITIES:
1. Market:

Indian retail market is valued at more than approx. $550 million and grocery alone
covers 60% of this share. Hence it’s a huge market with many players to accommodate
and customers to cater.

2. Grocery Growth:

India is the 6th largest grocery market in the world. E-commerce grocery market is
growing with a year on year growth rate of 19%.

3. Expansion:

Many cities are still not covered by these startups and Big Basket can target them and
gain the first movers advantage. They can expand to tier-2 cities and increase their
market.

4. Cross selling and Value Packaging –

Cross selling is a major advantage for Big basket as it can sell multiple products by
product bundling.

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 3

THREATS:
1. Competition:

It has small presence in terms of cities covered hence, it is getting a huge competition
from other startups like Grofers, PepperTap, Nature’s Basket, Zop Now, Aaram Shop,
Mera Grocer, etc.

2. Bigger Players:

Bigger players in terms of financial backing and presence are also entering this
lucrative industry. Players like Amazon, Flipkart and Google have also entered this
industry. This may prove fatal for smaller players like Big Basket to compete with them.

3. Smaller Players:

Many other localized shops have picked up on this trend and have started home
delivery service to nearby customers thereby killing groups of target customers across
regions and cities.

4. Customer Retention:

It is very difficult to retain customers. They would tend to move with the service
provider that offers the most discounts.

44
4
4
Business Model Analysis:
Big Basket has a hybrid model combining Inventory led and a hyper local
strategy for procurement. They follow an inventory led wholesale
approach for the high order fill rates and longer self-life products, while
they also use a hyper local strategy, to get perishable products in just in
time model to keep the quality at the top and cost at the bottom. They
have a mobile app and a website, which generates about 70% of their
revenue. The remaining part comes from the other businesses including
hotels, restaurants as well as offline retail brands.
Now, let’s discuss the business model of BB in detail using the below
framework:

FIG 4.2

Customer Value Proposition:

45

There is a different aspect that a customer considers to be important for

them. Adding value to the product or service that provides better value to
45
the customer, than what they are looking for, will ensure the company’s
position among its competitors.
 a. Functional Value:

As the number of people shifting to major cities increases, the shops

become more congested and the traffic level in the cities increases. For
working professionals, buying groceries after a tiring work schedule in the
busy city adds more pressure and makes the process more
uncomfortable. Big Basket provides a functional value to its customers
where they can order the groceries online and Big Basket delivers it at
the customers doorstep at the time they wanted it. The convenience
offered by Big Basket attracts the customers to use its service.

b. Economic Value:

Ordering grocery online requires very less time and energy spent
by the customer. If the customer must visit a grocery store to
purchase the same, the added costs and wastage of time due to
various external factors overshoots the grocery purchase cost at
times. Big Basket offers more economic benefit to the customers as
they help them to save time and energy. Also, as Big Basket
procures goods from the farm/producers directly, they eliminated
the layers in between, thus providing at lesser price to the
customers.

c. Symbolic Value:

The customers get attached to a brand for the value it provides.

For the customers, using the service offered by Big Basket gives
them a status that they value more. Many customers feel superior
when they order and receive milk every day from Big Basket than
getting it directly from the farm. It provides a status for the
customers within their social group.
46

d. End Value:

Big Basket offers high level of service to its customers as

communicated by them. Ensuring the availability of wide range of
products that customers are looking for and adhering to the timing
46
committed for final delivery offers an enhanced overall experience
to the customers which helps Big Basket to provide the end value
more than the customer expects.
47
Growth Model:

With the entry of Amazon fresh and Walmart into Indian market, it
becomes tough time for Big Basket to sustain the competition. Along with
Inventory-model, Big Basket is also adopting Hyper local model to reduce
the distance to reach the customer and is trying to improve the services
offered. There was 70% reduction in expense when the order is delivered
through a hyper local store. As there is no inventory and infrastructure
requirements, it was beneficial for the business. But to sustain in the
business, hyper local stores is difficult to manage and maintain the
standards of Big Basket.

To ensure customer retention, Big Basket has a subscription program, BB

Star, where a customer will pay a subscription fee to have various
features for free. For a BB star customer, order above Rs.600 will be
delivered without any delivery charges, priority for choosing delivery slots,
etc., are offered. This will help the company to prevent the customers
from shifting to competitors.

BB specialty is also a new model introduced by the company to provide

wider range of products to its customers. The company partners with
specialty stores and delivers the customer’s order directly in a shorter
time period. These specialty stores include bakeries, flowers, chocolates,
etc., By this model, Big Basket was trying to be a one-stop shopping
place for the customers. The delivery slots were also fixed in a way that
suits all the working professionals.

Big Basket also introduced BB instant and BB daily. BB instant uses

kiosks where customer can buy the products through mobile app. BB
daily offered dairy products which will be delivered during early hours of
the day.

As they have eliminated few intermediaries and reduced the length of the
supply chain, they were able to pass the cost benefit to customers as
offers. Cost of acquiring a customer will be high and it is difficult to retain
a customer. Also, government has introduced new regulations for e-
commerce companies.

Big Basket has introduced various divisions based on customer

requirements. In the history of online grocery business, companies have
failed not because of the service but due to introduction of technology at
wrong time.
48 48
 Revenue Model:

Big Basket has successfully completed 14 funding rounds and raised

$1.02 billion of total funding till now. They have 10 million registered
customers. Big Basket processes 1 lakh order daily across 25 cities in
India.

Big Basket follows different revenue models.

1.Markup Based
Big Basket procure groceries from farm and other producers and store
them in the inventory. They sell the items through their online portal with
a margin and provide home delivery as a value-added service.

2.Production Based
Big Basket procure groceries in large quantity and sell
them under private label. The grains are processed and
are packed to be sold under Big Basket’s private label.

3.Subscription Based

a subscription plan to its customers where the get

free delivery on orders above Rs.600 and get slot
bookings. This model ensured retention of
customers and more repeat purchase orders from the customers.

49
FIG 4.3

Capabilities:

49 Big basket has a wide array of capabilities that gives it a unique competitive advantage
4
and interesting value propositions to its customers. These are the capabilities that BB
9
developedover time organically based on the need and some of them were right in
their business model to position itself away from the competitors

∙Supply chain Capabilities - A hybrid operation

model
FIG 4.4
 5
0

Model Advantages Disadvantages

Inventory More suitable for monthly bulk orders • Cold storage is required
model
• Inventory holding cost
 Hyper local • No inventory cost •Bulk orders are
model
• Fast delivery difficult as it requires

collecting,
packaging and delivering
the product
• Cannot confirm the

availability of order at the

time of ordering

FIG 4.5

Risks of perishable products: Perishable products are procured only on order.

This reduced their loss of stock by 3-4%.

It requires high investment to build the business infrastructure (Supply

chain, storage facilities and delivery systems). Also, selling groceries is
a low margin business. To have a better control and better margins, big
basket worked with its own fleet.

Big basket initially started with market place model, it shifted to mixed model
(Inventory model + Hyper local model) to achieve economies of scale

∙Procurement Capabilities

BB procures household goods, branded food items, beverages and

food grains directly from big firms
For fresh produce, procurement is done from three sources farmers,
vendors and national sourcing
∙Farmers- 70% of SKUs-Farmers deliver their
produce at a collection centre nearest to their village
∙Vendors-20% of SKUs- Exotic fruits and vegetables

∙National sourcing-10% of SKUs- for products having

more shelf life (onions, potatoes, etc)
51

51

∙Delivery
Capabilities
 ∙Morning & Evening prefixed slot delivery - Available
with our complete range of 20,000 products
∙90-minute Express delivery - Available with our
range of daily essentials (about 1,500 products)
∙Specialty shops delivery - Picked up from your
neighborhood stores & dropped to the
delivery address

FIG 4.6

∙Network Effect
70% of Big Basket’s sales comes from the portal Big Basket.
Which includes both a mobile app and a website. The app is
compatible across all smartphones. By incorporating a referral
marketing promotion, the company was able to increase the
user base very rapidly. More and more people are joining the
network, making it more valuable, beside acting as a one stop
– from the home shop to the customers.

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 Profitability Analysis

VARIM Framework
We will use VARIM framework to analyse the profitability of Big Basket.
FIG 4.7

Value
Does the business offer benefit to the customers that which are valuable to
them? Big Basket offers convenience to its customers. As mentioned earlier,
due to busy work schedule and increasing population density in cities, grocery
purchase becomes a difficult task for working class people. Big Basket
provides wide range of products that customers wants and delivers it as per
the customer
preference. The price of items listed on Big Basket is also cheaper as
compared to a retail store. The better service provided by Big Basket is valued
more by the customers.

∙Adaptability
Is the business model cost-effectively reconfigurable to offer benefits that
customer perceives as value to them? Big Basket uses inventory based as
well as hyper local model to fulfil the customer orders. The adaption of hype
local model into the business is to satisfy the customer demand of faster
delivery for fresh vegetables and fruits. Big Basket’s business model can be
reconfigured to satisfy the customer preference based on the products and the
time frame.
53

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3
∙Rareness:

Is the firm only one that offers the customer benefit? The competition in the
online grocery sales in increasing and many companies have ventured into
this business. Big Basket is trying to differentiate itself by offering variety of
products and position itself as one stop solution for grocery purchase. They
also acquired a logistics company to improve the last mile delivery. But there
are very less differentiating factors in this business when compared with the
competitors.
∙Inimitability:

Are the benefits difficult for other firms to imitate, substitute or leapfrog?
Competitors like Amazon and Flipkart can imitate the business model easily.
But the brand image and the network effect of Big Basket for online
grocery purchase can’t be imitated easily by other competitors. Big Basket is
trying to bring more local retail stores into its supply chain which can add more
benefit to the company.

∙Monetization:

Does the firm make, or stand to make, money from offering the benefits to
customers? Big Basket offers products at lesser price when compared to retail
stores. The main reason for this pricing is that they procure products directly
from farms and have higher margins to sell. They pass on this benefit to the
customers and offer free delivery for orders of high value. Revenue has been
on a increasing trend and the operational losses are reducing year on year.
With the current market trend continuing, Big basket will start making profit
from the business in few years, given the competitors won’t imitate the
business model

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4
 Teece Model

FIG 4.8

The model of Big basket is very highly imitable. Anyone in the market can
launch similar app and a logistic platform. The entry barriers is also very
less. This makes it high on imitability.

However, big basket has its complementary assets held tightly with itself. Many
of these capabilities are developed organically and are a direct function of the
learning they had over the years. Some of these capabilities as discussed
earlier includes the following:

∙Supply chain capabilities, where they have a strategic relationship with

various retailers across the country helping them achieve
excellence in hyper local delivery
∙Procurement capabilities including the longer shelf items procured directly
from farms and companies in bulk, helping them achieve
economies of scale. At the same time, the perishable, shorter
shelf life items from hyper local chain helps them achieve impeccable
quality
∙Delivery Capabilities that they developed inhouse helps them use various
delivery methods, thus providing the customers with a great flexibility
 55 5
5

Strategies to adopt
Bigbasket can adopt the following strategies to compete in the market:

∙Subscription service

Under this, the company can start a subscription service (like Amazon
Prime), that will help in creating a large and permanent customer
base. Once users subscribe to the service, it is highly likely that they
buy from Bigbasket itself as these customers would get special
services for subscribing. It can be free and quick delivery,
early access to promotional deals etc. Subscription service has
been very successful with e-commerce companies and there is high
chance that it will work for Bigbasket as well.

∙Happy Days

Happy days, is a marketing technique used currently by Grofers.

Under this, the companydeclares a few days of month, say Oct 25 to
Oct 29 as Happy days. In these days, customers would get special
discounts and offers on products. This is like Amazon’s ‘Great Indian
festival’ and Flipkart ‘Big billion days’. There is high probability that
this technique would for Bigbasket, the same way it worked with
e commerce companies. This also helps in repurchase of customers.

∙Expanding the Product catalogue

Bigbasket can focus on expanding the range of products offered.

Grocery is a good business for Bigbasket, but to stand in this
hypercompetitive market, it should bring in new products to be offered
in its catalogue. New product offerings mean catering to broader range
of customer needs.

∙Expand to New cities

Bigbasket, no doubt is trying hard to serve the best in most metros
and Tier 2 cities. It can also work on expanding to newer cities. With
Amazon
 Pantry, backed by its cash rich parent Amazon, now entering the
market of Grocery, it is now important for Bigbasket to fine tune its
logistics and improve efficiency.
56
56
∙Continuously improving from buyers’ feedback

Bigbasket should be active enough it taking buyers feedback, it can be

from Bigbasket App or website and should seriously work on improving
where its lagging. This is a great source of information where Bigbasket
can understand where its good at and where it must improve. Ex: If
majority of customers are complaining on delivery, then Bigbasket got a
queue that it has work on logistics.

∙Working on its IT, CRM strategies

At present, majority of businesses have a strategic IT team to take care

of Information Management. IT has become a key enabler in todays
business. Bigbasket should work on integrating all of IT, be it lifecycle
management, change management etc. An integrated platform provides
a much better holistic view of business. It can also focus on enhancing
customer relations through much effective usage of Customer
Relationship Management (CRM) tools.
 57

57

CONCLUSION:

we can infer that individuals are purchasing more online on account of absence of time,
offer and rebates, assortment of item and furthermore great quality they are giving and
free home conveyance. From the venture report we can infer that Big Basket can't fulfill
the client needs. The Big Basket should expand their execution. The Big Basket can't
convey item on time so they have to chip away at conveyance benefit, they should
procure more conveyance young men.

From the investigation we can infer that individuals are purchasing more online on
account of absence of time, offer and rebates, assortment of item and furthermore
great quality they are giving and free home conveyance.
The Big Basket container is spending less sum on special costs, it isn't giving
appropriate centered around daily paper and magazine.

SUGGESTION:

THEY OUGHT TO ENHANCE THE NATURE OF BASIC NEED SOLD.

RETURN POLICY SHOULD BE CLEAR.

THE PRICE OF SOME PRODUCTS ARE HIGHER THAN MARKET PRICE.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

www.wikipedia.comwww. Big basket .com

www.google.comhttps://www.indeed.co.in/cmp/Big-Basket/reviews

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/ Big basket

http://techstory.in/bigbaske/

https://www.facebook.com/ Big basket com/

http://www.yosuccess.com/success-stories/hari-menon/https://www. Big basket .com/contact/