BigBasket's Meal Express, Meesho's IPO & More

BigBasket Joins The Quick Bite Race

Tata-backed BigBasket is all set to become the latest startup to launch its 10-minute food delivery service across India. The quick commerce company is piloting a new service in Bengaluru and plans to expand it to 40 dark stores by July 2025. They aim to launch this service nationwide by the end of FY26.

Banking On The Tata Name:

Instead of partnering with restaurants, BigBasket plans to build a vertically integrated model that uses its own dark store infrastructure and curated food line-up. What also makes the company’s offering unique is that BigBasket will deliver ready-to-eat snacks and beverages exclusively from Tata-owned brands like Starbucks and Qmin.

In A Turbulent Market:

BigBasket’s entry into the quick food delivery market comes as rivals continue to related to scale, sustainability and consumer retention. While Zepto has pulled back from several tier II and III cities, despite , and ‘Quick’ due to low incremental demand.

What differentiates BigBasket is its in-house brands, which eliminate third-party restaurant costs and allow for competitive pricing. This model also ensures consistent quality and reliable delivery, unlike aggregators dealing with numerous external restaurants.

Eye On The IPO: The new experiment comes at a time when the Tata-owned brand is gearing up for a public listing within the next 18–24 months. Fuelling this ambition is its quick commerce momentum and deeper integration with the broader Tata digital ecosystem.

Nevertheless, with 700 dark stores already in place and plans for 1,200 by the end of 2025, BigBasket’s infrastructure looks solid on paper. But, with rivals consolidating or folding their quick food bets, the question is —

From The Editor’s Desk

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: Wubba Lubba Dub Dub has purchased the creative marketing startup in an all-cash deal to bolster its AI and design capabilities. Imagined offers 3D design, motion graphics and ad creation services, among others, to enterprises.

: The board of the D2C jewellery brand has passed a resolution to issue 1.73 Lakh CCPS at INR 25,947 apiece to raise the capital in a round led by Creaegis. With this, the startup’s valuation jumped a hefty 47% to $374 Mn from $254 Mn last year.

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: The payments solution company has filed a draft letter of offer to raise INR 700 Cr via a rights issue. The proceeds from the fundraise will be utilised to pursue acquisitions and bolster its AI play.

Inc42 Startup Spotlight Can NapTapGo Make Pod Hotels Mainstream In India?

India’s fast-growing travel and gig economy has created a strong need for affordable, hygienic, and flexible accommodation, especially in cities and transit hubs. Yet, the market still lacks privacy-focussed, high-density lodging at scale. Budget travellers, students, solo professionals and pilgrims often struggle to find clean and convenient options within reach.

Making The Transit A Cakewalk: Founded in 2023 by Nitin Malhotra and Himanshu Shukla, NapTapGo is introducing capsule hotels to India — inspired by Japan’s pod hotels. Their compact properties, offering 30 beds in just 300 sq m, demonstrate that low-capex, high-repeat pod stays can work in India.

Not Pricey, But Affordable: NapTapGo’s pricing starts at just INR 500, with an emphasis on privacy, hygiene, and ease of booking. Currently operational in Noida and Amritsar, the startup boasts a customer repeat rate of 35%. It aims to expand its footprint to Mumbai, Gurugram, Udaipur and Varanasi by the end of this year.

With the ambition to carve out a niche in India’s hospitality sector with a new format built for scale,

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