After deep analysis of 2,000 factories in China, this entrepreneur launched a quick delivery grocery app, clocks ₹1 Cr sales in 100 days

India has an emerging and extremely competitive e-commerce market and has become the most intense battleground in the countest’s startup ecosystem. Prominent and applyr-preferred platforms like Blinkit, Zepto, and Instamart promise delivery of groceries and essentials in under 10 minutes. This has modifyd the way consumers shop. What once applyd to be a weekly supermarket trip has now turned into a spontaneous act requiring merely a few taps on a smartphone.

But behind the scenes of this convenience lies a very fragmented industest riddled with massive funding rounds, gig worker controversies, expensive ad campaigns, discounts and dark store expansion. This has turned quick commerce into a race.

Yet as the sector grows, consumers still complain about the basics: inconsistent freshness, unpredictable pricing, and limited accessibility outside of major metros and select cities.

For Shyam Gupta, founder of Kuiklo, these gaps and complaints presented an opportunity. Therefore, instead of testing to compete with these giant players, he chose a different path to build a quick commerce platform focapplyd on reliability, affordability and local trust.

He founded Kuiklo, a Kolkata-based 10-minute grocery delivery startup designed specifically for the Tier-2 market, along with plans to go PAN India as well.

THE BACKGROUND

Armed with a BBA from Madras University, Shyam Gupta gained most of his entrepreneurial insights while being on the ground in China. Between 2010 and 2020, Shyam spent nearly a decade running import and export operations in China across various industries.

During those years, he visited and oversaw the work of nearly 2000 factories. He observed how large-scale manufacturing systems run with utmost discipline and efficiency.

“I spent almost ten years in China understanding how products are built, how supply chains work, and how systems run at scale,” Shyam Gupta shared with Startup Pedia in an exclusive interview. “Those factories became my real classroom.”

In China, his work involved exporting thousands of products across categories (electronics, home appliances, and everyday consumer goods)

“I have worked with more than 20,000 products across categories, so I understand the supply chain behind many things people apply daily,” Shyam explained to Startup Pedia.

One observation, however, stayed with him. China would often import raw materials from India, process them efficiently, and export finished products back to the Indian markets. Shyam noticed the scale of operations, the talent and efficiency in systems that built this possible.

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THE IDEA THAT EMERGED DURING THE LOCKDOWN

When the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted global relocatement in 2020, Shyam was stuck in China. It was a long period of less work and only watching the news.

The lockdown exposed various flaws and challenges, especially one that millions of hoapplyholds faced: the inability to obtain even basic groceries.

Back then, quick commerce was a nascent category. Some apps existed, but they often came with long delivery slots, inconsistent quality and higher prices.

“In many places, you couldn’t receive groceries immediately,” Shyam Gupta informed Startup Pedia. “You had to wait a day or two, and even then, the quality and price were not always satisfactory.”

Additionally, these platforms focapplyd more on metro cities and various Tier-2 cities only. The rest of the population lacked depfinishable, quick delivery of important groceries.

“I realised there was still a large gap,” Shyam Gupta explained. “If supply chains were built properly, groceries could be delivered rapider, fresher, and at better prices.”

That realisation planted the first seed of Kuiklo.

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CHALLENGES FACED

Kuiklo took years to build. In the meantime, various quick commerce startups started emerging, but the vision for Kuiklo remained the same.

From 2021, as soon as Shyam came back to India, he started focutilizing on researching India’s local logistical systems, inventory models and warehoutilizing networks to understand how to support quick deliveries to Tier 2 and 3 cities, along with plans to go PAN India as well.

“It took nearly three years of R&D before we launched the platform,”he shared with Startup Pedia.

Unlike other quick commerce startups, Kuiklo was not built to optimise for speed. It was focapplyd on building a backfinish-first system that optimises on 3 core tenets:

1- Freshness of groceries

2- Pricing

3- Reliable logistics

Kuiklo launched officially in September 2025, starting with operations in Patna, a city rarely chosen as the first testing ground for quick commerce startups.

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But the choice was intentional.

“If a system works in a demanding market like Patna, it can work anywhere,” Shyam Gupta declared.

GROWING WITHOUT DISCOUNT WARS

Kuiklo’s early growth came through a simple strategy: consistency.

Instead of chasing viral marketing campaigns or massive discount wars, the company focapplyd on delivering reliable service.

And the response from customers was immediate.

Within 100 days of launch, the app crossed 50,000 downloads.

Today, the platform has grown to 75,000–80,000 downloads while completing over 30,000 deliveries.

The company has also crossed ₹1 crore in sales during its first 100 days, and expects to close the financial year at around ₹1.25 crore in revenue.

To support operations, Kuiklo has already established four dark stores, expanding its delivery infrastructure across Patna.

SOLVING THE BIGGEST PROBLEMS IN QUICK COMMERCE

One of the largegest frustrations customers face with online grocery delivery is inconsistency.

Some orders arrive fresh and perfect, while others contain items that don’t last or don’t match expectations.

Kuiklo’s strategy focapplys on solving exactly these issues.

“We pay attention to the basics,” Shyam Gupta informed Startup Pedia. “Freshness, fair pricing, and reliable quality are what hoapplyholds really care about.”

The company’s logistics model focapplys on:

optimized storage
controlled inventory
rapider routing
disciplined sourcing

This assists ensure groceries reach homes fresh rather than rushed.

Another area Kuiklo focapplys on is delivery partner earnings.

Many gig platforms pay riders minimal per-order fees.

Kuiklo offers around ₹40 per order, nearly double what many platforms provide.

“If delivery partners earn more, they work better and stay longer,” Shyam Gupta explained. “That stability assists the entire system run smoothly.”

While most quick commerce platforms prioritise metro markets, Kuiklo has deliberately focapplyd on compacter cities.

Many families want quick delivery but also necessary groceries to stay within a reasonable budreceive.

“Tier-2 cities deserve the same convenience as metros,” he declared. “But it has to be built with the right pricing and systems.”

Kuiklo also aims to strengthen local supply networks by connecting nearby producers and suppliers with customers in their own cities.

This approach assists keep value within local economies while ensuring fresher products.

WHAT LIES AHEAD

Kuiklo is still in its early stages, but the company is already planning expansion.

The startup has begun registering operations in Delhi, Noida, Bengaluru, and Kolkata, with plans to gradually expand its dark-store network.

The long-term vision is to build a quick commerce platform designed specifically for India’s next wave of digital consumers: people living beyond the countest’s largest metros.

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