Reliance Industries Ltd’s retail division, Reliance Retail, has initiated a pilot project on the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), facilitated by Fynd, an omnichannel retail platform that has investments from Reliance.
According to a report from ET, a Reliance Retail-owned store, Shri Kannan Departmental Store, located in Madurai, Tamil Nadu, is operational on the ONDC’s seller side via Fynd.
“This is being done as a pilot. A few more stores in Tamil Nadu are in the pipeline. They are testing it out. If it works, then Reliance Retail will scale it up to five stores and then to 100 stores on ONDC. Gradually all brands owned by Reliance Retail will go live on ONDC,” a source informed ET.
In December 2021, Reliance Retail took over Shri Kannan Departmental Store at a purchase price of INR 152.5 Cr.
Another venture associated with Reliance Retail, the quick-commerce company Dunzo, became operational on ONDC during its preliminary launch in Bengaluru in September 2022. However, as of April this year, Dunzo has ceased its activities as a logistics provider on this network, the report noted.
Fynd, established in 2012 by Farooq Adam, Harsh Shah, and Sreeraman MG, operates as an omnichannel fashion marketplace selling a diverse range of products such as clothing, footwear, jewellery, and accessories from well-known brands nationwide.
This Mumbai-based enterprise supports small to medium-sized businesses in transitioning online by facilitating their inventory listing on various e-commerce platforms, including Amazon and Nykaa, among others. Fynd also assists these businesses with last-mile logistics. The startup enhances delivery efficiency by sourcing products from the closest outlets to the customer.
