Blinkit Scraps ‘Zero Notice Period’ As Battle For Talent Booms

Amid the intensifying battle of supremacy in the quick commerce space and an equally fierce war to retain talent, Zomato-owned Blinkit has reportedly revamped its employment contract.

As per Moneycontrol, the company has made several of its employees, particularly those in senior positions, to sign an addendum to their contracts, extending their notice period from zero to two months.

“Blinkit’s move is pre-emptive and also is a response to what is happening now. A well-funded competitor like Zepto, or a large rival like Flipkart, can make a handsome offer and easily poach talent from Blinkit. A lot of companies are doing that and Blinkit is taking measures to avoid losing talent,” the report quoted a source as saying.

Inc42 has reached out to the company. The story will be updated based on the responses.

The decision to extend the notice period for Blinkit employees comes as competition in the quick commerce space intensifies. Zomato, which owns Blinkit, introduced this policy in July, according to media reports. Since then, Zepto has raised $340 Mn, Walmart launched and expanded Flipkart Minutes across multiple Indian cities, and Swiggy received approval for its IPO, one of the largest for a new-age company in recent years.

“In certain cases where Blinkit for sure knows an employee is going to a direct competitor, the employee is now sent on a garden leave for two months or is relieved immediately to avoid sensitive information being leaked out of Blinkit to others,” another source told Moneycontrol.

It is pertinent to note that over the last six months, quick commerce players have expanded operations and diversified their catalogue to meet growing consumer demand. Pretty much all platforms including Swiggy Instamart and the new Flipkart Minutes have entered into categories such as electronics, beauty, pet care, toys and smaller household appliances.

In the case of Blinkit, the additions resulted in gross order value (GOV) surging 130% to INR 4,923 Cr in Q1 FY25 from INR 2,140 Cr in the corresponding quarter last year. Sequentially, it increased by 22.2% from INR 4,027 Cr in Q4 FY24.

Currently, Blinkit operates 639 dark stores across the country, with the average daily GOV per store rising to INR 10 Lakh, compared to INR 6 Lakh from 383 stores previously. The company aims to scale the number of dark stores to 2,000 by the end of 2026 while maintaining profitability.

As per analysis by brokerage CLSA, the gross order value of major quick commerce players like Blinkit, Zepto and Swiggy Instamart is expected to reach $10 Bn by the financial year 2025-26 (FY26) thanks to the expansion beyond grocery and into Tier 2 and 3 markets.