Reliance Industries' Hyperlocal Commerce Orders Surge 300% YoY, Challenging Blinkit and Zepto

Reliance Industries Limited is doubling down on its quick commerce push, with hyperlocal delivery emerging as the fastest-growing lever in its retail business, signalling a structural shift from store-led expansion to doorstep fulfilment. The company said hyperlocal commerce orders surged more than 300% year-on-year in the March quarter, underscoring the rapid scale-up of its last-mile capabilities across categories and intensifying competition with players like Blinkit and Zepto.

“The most significant shift this year was structural. Hyper-local commerce orders grew more than four-fold year-on-year. We operate India's widest hyper-local delivery network across grocery, electronics and fashion,” said Isha M. Ambani.

Reliance is leveraging its retail footprint of over 20,000 stores, effectively converting them into fulfilment hubs. Its network now spans more than 1,200 cities and 5,100 pincodes, giving it one of the most extensive distribution systems in the country.

The operating scale is already reflecting in transaction momentum. Annual transactions rose to 1.93 billion, while registered customers reached 387 million, reinforcing Reliance's dominance in India's consumption ecosystem.

In the fourth quarter alone, transactions jumped 62% year-on-year to 585 million, while 1,564 new stores were added during FY26, further strengthening its physical backbone for rapid fulfilment.

Financially, Reliance Retail posted annual revenue of ₹3.70 lakh crore, up 11.8% year-on-year, with EBITDA rising 7.9% to ₹27,033 crore and profit after tax increasing 11.7% to ₹13,838 crore. Quarterly gross revenue stood at ₹98,232 crore, while quarterly PAT came in at ₹3,563 crore.

However, margins showed some pressure as the company ramped up investments in its hyperlocal and supply chain infrastructure. EBITDA margin for the year stood at 8.3%, compared to 8.6% a year earlier, while quarterly margin eased to 7.9% from 8.5% a year ago.

Executives said hyperlocal commerce is central to the next phase of growth, with rapid delivery now extending beyond groceries into electronics and fashion, putting Reliance more directly in competition with quick commerce platforms.

“This is a uniquely Indian platform, built on a uniquely Reliance scale-advantage,” Ambani said, pointing to the integration of physical retail and digital ordering as a key driver of frequency and engagement.

Mukesh D. Ambani also highlighted the expanding FMCG vertical within retail, noting that the segment is gaining traction under a more focused organisational structure. With scale, supply chains, and storefronts already in place, Reliance's pivot suggests the next phase of India's retail battle will hinge less on store expansion and more on delivery speed — how quickly goods move from shelf to doorstep.