Swiggy, Zepto waive handling and surge fees in aggressive customer push

Zepto and Swiggy Instamart have waived handling and surge fees amid renewed competition in the quick commerce space.

Aadit Palicha-led Zepto, under its new campaign called the “All New Zepto Experience”, allows customers to pay zero handling, rain, and surge fees on all orders. It also made delivery free for orders above Rs 99, while there will be a Rs 30 delivery fee on orders below Rs 99.

Sriharsha Majety-led Swiggy, per its in-app promotions, has also launched a mega savings festival from October 3 to November 7, under which it will offer zero delivery fees, zero handling fees and zero surge charges.

These heavy customer acquisition efforts come as both players see renewed competition in the quick commerce space. Eternal's Blinkit currently charges Rs 4 handling fee on all orders, along with a delivery and rain fee.

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Zepto's fresh discounting efforts come after a period of heavy rationalisation, which included reorganisation and shuttering of some of its underperforming Zepto Cafe stores. The company later raised $450 million in October in a mix of primary and secondary rounds.

The latest funding round was led by  US-based pension fund California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS). Avra, Lightspeed, Glade Brook and Nexus Venture Partners also participated in the round.

In September, Swiggy spun off Instamart into a wholly owned subsidiary.  The company will transfer all of Instamart’s assets, employees, and contracts to the new entity through a slump sale, effectively moving the business as a single unit onto a separate balance sheet. This QIP would allow this unit to operate as a retailer owning inventory instead of a marketplace, the only way available for firms with majority foreign ownership.