Coronavirus impact: Flipkart partners with Meru to deliver everyday essentials, groceries to consumers

Flipkart, homegrown e-commerce marketplace, and Meru, the app-based ride-hailing cab operator in which Mahindra & Mahindra holds a majority stake, have partnered to provide people access to grocery and essential items as people stay indoors supporting ‘social distancing during the ongoing lockdown.This partnership will help deliver grocery and essential items to Flipkart customers at their doorstep across Bengaluru, Delhi NCR and Hyderabad through the safe and sanitized supply chain, according to a company statement.[caption id="attachment_7311851" align="alignleft" width="380"] Representational image. Reuters.[/caption]Kalyan Krishnamurthy, CEO, Flipkart Group, said, “This partnership with Meru is a result of our teams exploring new, innovative ways to drive value for our ecosystem of sellers, brands, partners, and customers to ensure the safe and swift availability of grocery and essential goods. We have a very secure and safe supply chain where we follow SOPs diligently.”Speaking on the partnership, Neeraj Gupta, Founder and CEO at Meru Mobility Tech Pvt. Ltd. said, “This is a unique initiative which we are undertaking with Flipkart which will benefit consumers immensely."Meru will use its fleet to ensure the timely and safe delivery of essentials to Flipkart’s large customer base in a hassle-free manner. This service will also offer our driver-partners an additional earning opportunity during this challenging time.”In line with the government guidelines, Meru is providing its Ozone Sanitized fleet to help Flipkart with their deliveries. The dispatch hubs have been installed with ‘Ozone Air Purifier’, encouraging all driver-partners to sanitize their cabs, thus maintaining high standards of hygiene, the company said.Meru driver-partners will undergo Flipkart’s training module for a better understanding of its processes for safe and timely delivery of the grocery items, while Meru is educating and updating its driver-partners on various preventive measures like using alcohol-based sanitizers and wearing face masks to curb the spread of the virus, the company said.