Former Dunzo cofounder Kabeer Biswas steps down from leading Flipkart’s quick-commerce unit
He leaves roughly 10 months after joining the company
Flipkart is likely to appoint an internal successor
Former Dunzo cofounder and CEO Kabeer Biswas, who had joined Walmart-owned Flipkart as Vice President to lead its quick commerce arm called ‘Flipkart Minutes’, has resigned from his position, according to a MoneyControl report.
Biswas’ stint at Flipkart Minutes ended in just10 months. He joined the ecommerce giant on January 9. The report stated that Flipkart is expected to officially announce Biswas’ departure in the coming months. The company is likely to choose an internal candidate to succeed Biswas, it added.
“Kabeer Biswas, Vice President, Flipkart Minutes has decided to move on from the company to pursue other opportunities. He has contributed notably to the growth of Flipkart Minutes and strengthening of customer experience,” said sources, as quoted by MC.
Till the new candidate comes in, Flipkart VP Kunal Gupta will lead the company’s quick commerce business for seamless continuation of operations, the report added. Gupta has been serving Flipkart for more than a decade now.
The report also revealed that Biswas may consider joining one of the top quick commerce platforms in near future. However, nothing has been officially confirmed by the companies and Biswa, who had spent over a decade at Dunzo.
Flipkart-Dunzo Ties
Interestingly, the Walmart-backed company once tried to acquire Dunzo amid its financial crunches, though the deal ultimately fell through. The company, however, has now attracted its top talent instead.
However, the discussions had hit roadblocks due to complexities in Dunzo’s ownership structure which has prevented both parties from reaching a consensus.
The challenges for Dunzo didn’t stop there, its largest shareholder Reliance Retail which acquired a 26% stake in the quick commerce company for $200 million in 2022, also didn’t approve the deal. It increased further troubles in the negotiation process.
At that time, neither Flipkart nor Walmart gave any official confirmation about the acquisition discussions. Even Dunzo had stated that the platform did not engage in any discussions regarding the acquisition of their business by any other entity.
Flipkart which was valued at $32 billion at the time of acquisition talks saw potential in specific aspects of Dunzo’s business, especially its business-to-business offerings. However, the Walmart subsidiary remained cautious about the assets it wanted to inherit in acquiring Dunzo, given the start-up’s significant intellectual property ties with India’s largest retail chain Reliance Retail.
