Zomato CEO says 10-minute service ‘safe for delivery partners’ amid backlash

In a Twitter thread, Goyal clarified his stance on how 10-minute delivery is as safe as 30-minute standard delivery.  “Hello twitter, good morning. I just want to tell you more about how 10-minute delivery works, and how it is as safe for our delivery partners as 30-minute delivery. This time, please take 2 minutes to read through this (before the outrage),” Goyal tweeted on Tuesday.
He shared a chart wherein a comparison between 10-minute and 30-minute deliveries was mentioned. The table mentions three major factors for deliveries: Kitchen preparation time, average dance traveled, and average time traveled.

According to the chart, it takes at least 2 to 4 minutes of kitchen preparation time for a 10-minute delivery, whereas it takes atleast 15-20 minutes in the case of 30-minute standard delivery. The chart further shows that for a 10-minute delivery service, Zomato is opening stations about 1 to 2 kms closer to customer’s location. And in case of a standard 30-minute delivery the dance is 5 to 7 kms away from customer’s address.
Therefore, delivery partners will take about 3 to 6 minutes at an average speed of 20 kilometer per hour to deliver the food, whereas for standard delivery it takes upto 15 to 20 minutes of time.
According to Goyal, the service “will be for specific near locations, popular and standardised items only.” He further elaborated that Zomato delivery partners are not informed about the promised delivery time for both 10 and 30-minute deliveries.
“No penalties for late deliveries. No incentives for on-time deliveries for both 10- and 30-minute deliveries,” Goyal added in the same Twitter thread. “We are building new food stations to enable to 10-minute service for specific customer locations only.”
He assured that 10-minute deliveries will lead to lesser time spent on the road per order. “We continue to education our delivery partners on road safety, and provide accidental and life insurance as well.”
Zomato Instant will start a pilot with four stations in Gurugram from April. It will house bestseller items – some 20-30 dishes across its finishing stations from the partner restaurants based on the predictability. This development comes as Zomato extends a $150 million loan to quick commerce firm Blinkit, formerly Grofers, that promises delivery within 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, Rivals Zepto and Swiggy Instamart are also offering 10 minute delivery in select cities.