BigBasket to invest $100mn to strengthen supply chain

New Delhi: Alibaba-backed company BigBasket is pumping in $100 million (about Rs 698 crore) to strengthen its supply chain by setting up vending machines and smaller distribution centres across various cities it operates in.

The online grocery platform -- which is registered as Supermarket Grocery Supplies -- had recently raised $150 million in funding, led by Mirae Asset-Naver Asia Growth Fund, CDC Group and Alibaba Group.

Founded in 2011, BigBasket operates in 25 Indian cities. It plans to utilise the proceeds of this fundraising - which has placed the Bengaluru-based company in the unicorn club (companies with valuation of $1 billion and above) - to further penetrate into existing markets with more investments in the first mile, scaling-up of its supply chain and for developing new reseller channels.

"We want to enable two-hour delivery in top 10 cities that we operate in by July this year. For that, we have been investing in strengthening our distribution centres. We have 18 large and 80 smaller distribution centres together with our resellers and this will be ramped to 20 large and 100 smaller ones by June this year," BigBasket co-founder Vipul Parekh said.

This move will help BigBasket reduce delivery time and ensure quality of dairy and fresh produce, he added.

The company expects its capital expenditure towards these initiatives to be about $100 million this year.