With India’s B2B ecommerce market projected to hit $200 billion by 2030, fulfilment speed is becoming a long-term moat
Same-day and next-day deliveries which have long the benchmark of B2C ecommerce are now redefining the B2B playbook. Platforms like Moglix, Udaan, and Flipkart Wholesale are making speed a strategic lever, investing heavily in fulfilment capabilities to cater to the growing expectations of kiranas, HoReCa businesses, and MSMEs.
Platforms like Moglix, Udaan, and Flipkart Wholesale are overhauling their supply chains to enable next-day and same-day deliveries, betting that faster fulfilment can drive loyalty, improve cash cycles, and differentiate them in a highly commoditised market.
“Our move to next-day delivery, which we started in 2018, wasn’t just a logistical upgrade—it was a customer-centric innovation,” a Udaan spokesperson told businessline. “It’s grounded in deep insights into the working capital challenges faced by small kiranas and HoReCa businesses.”
For Moglix, this shift meant compressing delivery timelines from 96 hours to next-day delivery across 21 cities, covering 5,000+ monthly orders in categories like PPE, MRO supplies, and electrical consumables. The company relies on hyperlocal stocking of over 1 lakh SKUs, a network of 45+ fulfilment centres, and dynamic route optimisation to minimise lead times. A 100 per cent prepaid model has helped bring return-to-origin rates under 5 per cent .
Speed also enables better inventory planning and working capital cycles for buyers, allowing businesses to run leaner operations. “FMCG and staples like rice, pulses and flour—where replenishment urgency is high—see the strongest traction for fast delivery,” the Udaan spokesperson added.
Yet, faster fulfilment comes at a cost. Companies report a 1–2 per cent increase in logistics cost, which is being absorbed through centralised procurement, tech-enabled orchestration, and low RTO rates. “In underserved industrial hubs where reliability was lacking, the value we create with faster fulfilment outweighs marginal cost increases,” Rahul Garg, CEO and Founder, Moglix.
Next frontier
The next frontier could be sub-hour or hyperlocal delivery, but for now, players are focused on expanding next-day reach and depth. “If a strong demand case and favourable economics emerge, we’re open to micro-fulfilment models in critical clusters,” Garg said.
With India’s B2B ecommerce market projected to hit $200 billion by 2030, fulfilment speed is becoming a long-term moat. The winners, insiders say, will be those who can blend supply chain intelligence with operational efficiency to make speed scalable and sustainable.
Published on July 24, 2025
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