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Indian consumer product distributors have filed an antitrust complaint against quick commerce platforms such as Zomato, Swiggy, and Zepto, accusing them of using aggressive discounting strategies that harm competition. The complaint, submitted by the All India Consumer Products Distributors Federation (AICPDF) to the Competition Commission of India (CCI), highlights the impact of these practices on local retailers.
According to a report by Reuters, the AICPDF claims that the deep discounts offered by these quick commerce platforms create an unfair pricing environment that local brick-and-mortar stores cannot compete with. The group contends that the practice of predatory pricing undermines the traditional retail sector and leads to distorted market dynamics.
The filing includes a comparison of pricing between online quick commerce platforms and offline retailers for products from major brands like Nestle and Hindustan Unilever. For instance, a variant of Nescafe coffee, which is sold to independent retailers at around 622 rupees, is available for as low as 514 rupees on Zepto, 577 rupees on Swiggy Instamart, and 625 rupees on Blinkit, significantly undercutting the price at which local stores sell it.
Zomato and Swiggy, which price a ₹200 biryani at ₹300 on their apps and then sell it at a 20% discount for ₹240, are facing an antitrust case for predatory pricing
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The antitrust complaint comes at a time when the quick commerce industry is already under scrutiny for its pricing practices. This follows a separate investigation by the CCI into food delivery giants Zomato and Swiggy, which is still ongoing, after it was found that their operations violated competition laws.
The AICPDF, which represents 400,000 distributors across India, supplies products to over 13 million retail stores. The complaint also reflects growing concerns about the broader implications of e-commerce giants, such as Amazon and Flipkart, which have previously been accused of engaging in similar practices that disadvantage smaller sellers.
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