bigbasket new categories: Not in a hurry to add new categories; will focus on grocery: BigBasket CEO Hari Menon

Tata Digital-owned online supermarket BigBasket said it is not in a rush to broaden its product portfolio and will continue to focus primarily on grocery even as quick commerce rivals such as Zomato-owned Blinkit and Mumbai-based Zepto are rapidly diversifying into newer categories.

“We evaluate new categories carefully and are very careful about entering segments beyond grocery… For now, we’ll remain a grocer and depending on the need we will keep adding categories as we go along,” Hari Menon, cofounder and CEO of BigBasket, told ET in an interaction on Tuesday.

On March 4, ET reported that Blinkit and Zepto are expanding their presence by adding categories such as fashion, beauty, electronics, and toys. Subsequently, they plan to introduce thousands of stock-keeping units (SKUs) in the next two months.

BigBasket, though, will only diversify into adjacent categories to grocery like kitchen and home appliances, Menon said.

He was speaking on the sidelines of an event in Mumbai where BigBasket announced a strategic partnership with celebrity chef and entrepreneur Sanjeev Kapoor to launch a new frozen food brand named Precia. The brand will cover three product categories – frozen vegetables, frozen snacks, and frozen sweets. It aims to achieve a target of Rs 100 crore in online sales by 2026.

Addressing the issue of profitability, Menon said that with the exception of its quick commerce arm BBNow, all business segments are currently profitable. BBNow also would achieve profitability within the next 6-7 months, he said.

During FY23, BigBasket reported an 89% increase in losses for its business-to-consumer (B2C) arm Innovative Retail Concepts alongside a 5% growth in operating revenue. Similarly, its business-to-business (B2B) arm Supermarket Grocery Supplies saw a 21% widening of losses.Menon said in FY24, BigBasket is set to clock a growth rate of over 35% higher than industry average.

As reported by ET earlier, Tata Digital, in a move to streamline operations and enhance market responsiveness, is exploring the integration of operational structures among its group assets including BigBasket, online pharmacy platform 1mg and online shopping site Tata Cliq. The plan involves consolidating these standalone apps under the Tata Neu umbrella.

Recently, BigBasket revamped its slotted delivery service to ‘supersaver’, pledging to fulfil orders in under two hours and offering an additional 5% savings on a range of products.