Grofers has been censured online by several quarters for “exploiting” their workforce, who are expected to deliver orders within 10 minutes of being placed online.
Albinder Dhindsa, founder of Grofers, has released a statement in response to the “hate” that his company has been receiving for delivering groceries in 10 minutes. The online grocery delivery service has been censured online by several quarters for “exploiting” their workforce, who are expected to deliver orders within 10 minutes of being placed online.
In response to the criticism, Albinder Dhindsa, in his statement, said, “Hello India – I want to chime in about the hate we are getting for delivering groceries in 10 minutes,” and furthermore explained his point by issuing a clarification.
“Some people think that we are pushing our riders to drive fast and break traffic rules to deliver groceries in 10 minutes, that we are an inhuman valuation seeking corporation which puts lives at risk to deliver groceries in 10 minutes,” the statement reads.
Thereafter, Albinder Dhindsa elaborated, “I want to clarify how we deliver groceries in 10 minutes.”
Albinder Dhindsa explained that the 10-minute grocery delivery is possible by Grofers since the company has partner stores located within two kilometers of their customers. Also, their in-store planning is quite efficient, so much so, that the staff is able to pack most orders under 2.5 minutes.
“Our partner stores are located within 2 kilometers of our customers. We have 60+ stores in Delhi, and 30+ stores in Gurgaon already! Our stores are so densely located that we can deliver 90% of the orders within 15 minutes even if our riders drove under 10kmph! Our in-store planning and tech is now so good that we pack most orders under 2.5 minutes! Our riders are not (dis)incentivized to deliver orders fast. They do it at their own pace and rhythm. We’ve had zero reported rider accidents in the last two months since we launched 10 minute grocery delivery,” the statement said.
To conclude, Albinder Dhindsa said, “Last but not the least, not all companies are built on the back of exploitation of the poor. There are companies which are built by creating large swathes of employment, and generating tremendous amounts of value for all stakeholders. We are and want to continue to be one of these companies.”
“Also, it breaks my heart that instead of celebrating innovations (and startup success) coming from India, some of us stay cynical envious of people who are trying to break the status quo. We need more people who dare, and less of those who pull them down.”
Read the post here:
The backlash started online after a social media user exclaimed that his order from Grofers was delivered in 13 minutes. To which, Albinder Dhindsa said, “That’s 3 minutes too long. We will work harder in the future.” The social media user’s tweet, however, has been deleted but Albinder Dhindsa’s response is still available on his timeline.
His tweet enraged netizens who lashed out at Grofers in angry tweets.
Grofers was founded in 2013 and is based out of Gurgaon.
