JioMart currently serviced by Reliance Smart, Reliance Fresh; no links yet with kiranas, WhatsApp: Analysts

NEW DELHI: JioMart’s recent foray into pan-India online grocery delivery is currently leveraging Reliance Smart and Reliance Fresh’s supply chain network and is not yet integrated with mom-and-pop stores and Whatsapp, industry watchers said.
JioMart, which was piloted in Navi Mumbai, Thane and Kalyan for various products, went live with its grocery offering in 200 cities over the weekend posing competition to the likes of Grofers, BigBasket etc.

“Orders post the national launch are being serviced by Reliance Smart and Fresh stores, Sahakari Bhandar stores (owned by Reliance retail), etc. and is not yet fully leveraging the kirana network (as on-boarding of kirana stores is still ongoing),” brokerage firm Credit Suisse said.

However, initial challenges such as inventory limitation remain for JioMart to fulfill orders across the nation, the brokerage said.

The Mukesh Ambani-led retail arm currently operates 621 Reliance Fresh and Reliance Smart stores and sells over 200 metric tonnes of fruits and over 300 metric tonnes of vegetables every day, as per company data.

Post the development, JioMart lists all the major grocery categories like fruits and vegetables, staples, dairy and bakery, snacks, beverages, personal care, home care and baby care.

“In terms of pricing, Reliance has extended the Smart promise of 'minimum 5% off on MRP' to all products on JioMart. The discount is higher on its private label brands, and is competitive to branded products,” Credit Suisse added.

Brokerage firm CLSA said eventually, it is possible Reliance integrates its entire retail offerings including fashion, lifestyle and consumer electronics, onto one super ecommerce platform and mobile app while recent partnerships with Facebook-owned WhatsApp for JioMart will help in increasing monetisation opportunities.

“This, along with a pan-India extension of partnerships with mom & pop stores after a successful beta test and ramp-up of this new commerce venture is crucial in Reliance’s grand plan of converting Jio’s 400m+ subscribers into customers for its ecommerce and other offerings,” CLSA said in a report.