Ride-hailing platform Rapido is in advanced talks with restaurants and industry associations across four major metro cities to challenge the dominance of Swiggy and Zomato, which together command an estimated 95% market share. The move comes at a time when restaurants have been voicing growing concerns over high commission rates and potential conflicts of interest following the launch of Swiggy’s ‘Snacc’ and Zomato’s ‘Bistro,’ both of which promise ultra-fast 15-minute deliveries.
The Bengaluru-based startup, which recently claimed to be the largest ride-hailing platform with over 3 million daily rides, is exploring two distinct models to break into the food delivery market. The first approach involves integrating restaurants into the Rapido app while charging significantly lower commissions compared to the 25-35% levied by Swiggy and Zomato. Seller-side platforms on the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), such as GrowthFalcon, typically charge 8-10%, while buyer-side platforms like Magicpin take a 10-15% cut. Rapido aims to offer restaurants an even more competitive alternative.
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The second approach is a subscription-based SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) model that eliminates commissions entirely. Restaurants would instead pay a fixed monthly fee to use Rapido’s ordering technology and delivery fleet. This model mirrors Rapido’s successful transition to a subscription-based system for ride-hailing drivers in late 2023.
“Any segment where affordability for consumers and earnings for driver partners can be improved represents a potential opportunity for Rapido,” co-founder Pavan Guntupalli had said in an earlier interaction with FE. However, the company declined to comment on its food delivery strategy.
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Challenging the Swiggy-Zomato duopoly has proven difficult in the past. Mumbai-based Thrive, backed by Jubilant FoodWorks (35% stake) and Coca-Cola India (15% stake), shut down in December after struggling to compete despite raising $2.5 million.
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