Quick Commerce: Transforming Shopping in India

Quick commerce is swiftly becoming a popular shopping trend in India, currently accounting for nearly two-thirds of all online grocery transactions. The industry’s expansion is particularly pronounced in smaller cities, where growth is occurring at a rate of 8–9% annually.

The growth of this sector is highlighted by the fact that quick commerce now represents 45% of festive shopping this year. In response to this transformation, WPP India has introduced a new CPAS (Collaborative Performance Advertising Solutions) Playbook for Retail and Quick Commerce in partnership with Meta. The Playbook illustrates how consumer shopping behaviours are evolving from planned purchases to spontaneous, inspiration-driven buying.

Connecting Discovery to Real Sales

Awareness of quick commerce is extensive, with 91% of internet users recognising these services, and more than half having used them in the week prior to the survey. As shoppers increasingly transition from inspiration to checkout within the same session, traditional commerce metrics are being updated to reflect this trend.

While grocery items continue to dominate the purchase categories, the Playbook identifies rapidly expanding opportunities in sectors like beauty, fashion, health products, and kitchen necessities. For instance, sales of fashion accessories and bags have surpassed ₹40 crore per month, more than doubling within the past six months.

Success with Collaborative Ads (CPAS)

Collaborative Ads (CPAS) is a Meta initiative designed to facilitate partnerships between brands and retail marketplaces for targeted Facebook and Instagram advertising, directing consumers to the retailer’s online platform. This framework has already resulted in a 24% year-on-year enhancement in return on ad spend (ROAS) across Collaborative Ads.

Top brands are observing significant business outcomes:

Coca-Cola utilised CPAS to refine its sugar-free collection by capitalising on retailer-linked catalogue insights. This segment has achieved a “39% improvement in ROAS”, while conversion rates proved to be “2.5x more effective” compared to broader audience strategies.

Britannia implemented a comprehensive CPAS approach in collaboration with partners like Swiggy, Zepto, and Blinkit. The brand realised a “45% decrease in cost per purchase” from one quarter to the next. ROAS improved from “0.6 to 1.0”, with numerous campaigns achieving up to “5x ROAS and 60% lower cost per purchase”.

Commenting on the transition, Ashwin Padmanabhan, COO of South Asia at WPP Media, observed that the rapid ascent of quick commerce has condensed the purchase journey like never before. The CPAS framework enables brands to connect the discovery phase directly to confirmed sales through catalogue integration and real-time optimisation. Some categories are already witnessing ROAS as high as 2x, demonstrating the effectiveness of this approach.

Prasanth Kumar, CEO of South Asia at WPP Media, mentioned that India’s commerce environment is undergoing a monumental shift, transitioning from a linear buying experience to an immediate, intent-driven ecosystem. The CPAS Playbook provides a solid framework for brands to seamlessly integrate brand development with conversion, facilitating accountable and measurable outcomes at scale, thus reshaping the future of retail advertising in India.

Gaurav Jeet Singh, Director of Agencies and VC Partnerships at Meta in India, stated that the country is leading a global transformation where discovery and commerce are merging in real-time. Through CPAS, brands are empowered to engage consumers at their moments of inspiration, leading smoothly to purchase. This Playbook offers marketers a distinct path to create connected, measurable, and scalable commerce experiences on Meta, assisting them in realising growth in a rapidly evolving marketplace.