I was almost shocked to know some days ago about the unexpected shut down of PepperTap’s on-demand grocery business. What was the cause? Reading the official blog of the company has certainly given me some insights. But, there is always something beyond the official statement! Innovation is always welcome in today’s Indian market. Investors are always eager to grab the funding opportunities in the start-ups that seem promising and profit-delivering. However, the increasing count of start-ups and the limited presence of investors have made the things a little worrisome. Only investment cannot make a business grow. It needs to have competence in the terms of infrastructure, technology, manpower and the flexibility to expand its reach. Lack of these things might hamper the business and even force it to shut down the operations. The sources confirm tacitly that PepperTap had given in to the demands of the investors to expand its operations in different cities. It lacked the facilities; it had the fund, and things did not work.
Navneet Singh, the CEO of PepperTap has conveyed in his official statement that the lack of coordination with the stores (local) and increasing demands of the consumers were the problems that resulted in this decision. You must remember that in February 2016, the company has closed its operations in 6 larger cities of India, including Ahmedabad, Chandigarh, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, and Jaipur. At that time, the official statement by the CEO conveyed that the company was focusing on ‘depth’ rather than ‘breadth’. And also that they are planning something long-term. However, all the promises that the company made to itself came to an end in April 2016. They had to close the operations of PepperTap completely. The company will get back to its business of logistics and the employees are also offered to join the parent company – Nuvo Logistics.
