Now Reading: FirstCry CEO warns of ‘fatalities’ in niche quick commerce
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FirstCry CEO warns of ‘fatalities’ in niche quick commerce
FirstCry managing director and chief executive Supam Maheshwari has said that niche quick-commerce platforms face a high risk of failure due to unsustainable economics. He told Mint that high logistics, inventory, working…
FirstCry managing director and chief executive Supam Maheshwari has said that niche quick-commerce platforms face a high risk of failure due to unsustainable economics. He told Mint that high logistics, inventory, working capital, and customer-acquisition costs make it difficult for specialty platforms to achieve profitability, predicting 'fatalities' in the space.
Maheshwari said large retailers with established store networks, in-house brands, and logistics arms have a structural advantage. FirstCry operates RocketBees, its logistics unit launched in mid-2025 across 72 cities, and Qwik, a two-to-three-hour delivery service active in 12 cities that shipped about 125,000 orders in June. The company targets about 10% of online orders through Qwik in the next few quarters.
FirstCry, which generates over half its gross merchandise value from in-house brands, reported consolidated revenue of Rs 2,106 crore in Q1FY27, up 13% year-on-year. Adjusted Ebitda fell to Rs 89.3 crore from Rs 92.7 crore, squeezing the margin to 4.2%. The company plans to add 90-100 stores in FY27.
Indian Opinion Analysis
The warning comes as investor money flows into vertical quick-commerce players focused on mother-and-baby and kids categories, with two startups raising over $13 million combined in recent weeks. FirstCry's own financials show margin pressure, with India multi-channel adjusted Ebitda margin shrinking from 8.6% to 5.7% in the March quarter, highlighting the challenge of balancing speed with profitability. The company's bet on in-house brands, which account for over half its GMV, gives it pricing power that niche platforms lacking private labels do not have. The next signal to watch is whether Qwik's share of online orders reaches the 10% target in the coming quarters, and whether the margin recovers as the logistics network matures.
Source: livemint.com
This brief was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
