Hindustan Unilever doubling down on quick commerce channel amid strong demand
The maker of Surf detergent is seeing early signs of growth recovery following last year's GST cuts and sees growth in FY27 to be better than FY26
- Feb 12, 2026,
- Updated Feb 12, 2026 6:03 PM IST
Hindustan Unilever, the largest consumer goods maker in the country, is “obsessed” with growing volumes and is doubling down on quick commerce, a channel that has been rapidly growing in recent years.
“India is really becoming an omni-channel market, and different channels are becoming significant across India. For us, quick commerce has been doubling quarter-on-quarter. Quick commerce today is already 3 per cent of the total HUL revenue,” Priya Nair, the MD and CEO of HUL, said on Thursday.
She pointed out that the company has created a dedicated organisation for quick commerce, as a part of a broader strategy to create dedicated systems and processes for different channels so that they are serving consumers from whichever channel they buy.
“This is not just an investment in people, but it’s also an investment in technology, systems and processes, whether it is in customer development or in supply chain. And, therefore, end-to-end, we are investing to double down behind these channels,” said Nair.
In the last few years, quick commerce has become a major growth channel across India’s retail and consumer goods landscape, with more and more people ordering everything from groceries to even readymade garments and electronics accessories on platforms like Swiggy Instamart, Blinkit and Zepto, where products are delivered in minutes.
India’s quick commerce market is estimated to have reached Rs 64,000 crore in the financial year ending March 2025 and is expected to triple to around Rs 2 lakh crore by the financial year 2028, according to a study by ratings agency CareEdge last year.
The huge growth being seen is driving other consumer goods makers to increase their focus on quick commerce as well.
“In the quick commerce today, because there is instant gratification, occasion-led consumption, which is happening, there is a very clear acceleration, which is happening on the indulgence and impulse side,” Vipin Kataria, the chief commercial officer of biscuits maker Britannia, said in a post-earnings call on Wednesday.
He said the company intended to launch many digital-first brands, which will add to the overall profitability story of e-commerce.
HUL on Thursday reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 6,603 crore in the October-December quarter, a 121 per cent jump from a year ago. It's worth noting that the profit for the latest third quarter included an exceptional gain of Rs 4,516 crore from discontinued operations, following the demerger of its ice-cream business. Excluding exceptional items, the profit after tax was up 1 per cent at Rs 2,562 crore.
The revenue for the quarter was up 6 per cent from a year ago to Rs 16,235 crore, with volumes growing 4 per cent.
Last September, the Goods and Services Tax was overhauled, with the GST on most daily use items being slashed from 12 per cent and 18 per cent to 5 per cent. There have been early signs of recovery in growth, according to company officials.
“Looking ahead, we expect the operating environment to remain conducive for a sustained recovery in consumption aided by several factors,” said Niranjan Gupta, chief financial officer at HUL. He expects growth in the financial year 2027 to be better than in the financial year 2026
“We have been very clear that we will be obsessed with volume-led revenue growth,” stressed Nair separately.
Hindustan Unilever, the largest consumer goods maker in the country, is “obsessed” with growing volumes and is doubling down on quick commerce, a channel that has been rapidly growing in recent years.
“India is really becoming an omni-channel market, and different channels are becoming significant across India. For us, quick commerce has been doubling quarter-on-quarter. Quick commerce today is already 3 per cent of the total HUL revenue,” Priya Nair, the MD and CEO of HUL, said on Thursday.
She pointed out that the company has created a dedicated organisation for quick commerce, as a part of a broader strategy to create dedicated systems and processes for different channels so that they are serving consumers from whichever channel they buy.
“This is not just an investment in people, but it’s also an investment in technology, systems and processes, whether it is in customer development or in supply chain. And, therefore, end-to-end, we are investing to double down behind these channels,” said Nair.
In the last few years, quick commerce has become a major growth channel across India’s retail and consumer goods landscape, with more and more people ordering everything from groceries to even readymade garments and electronics accessories on platforms like Swiggy Instamart, Blinkit and Zepto, where products are delivered in minutes.
India’s quick commerce market is estimated to have reached Rs 64,000 crore in the financial year ending March 2025 and is expected to triple to around Rs 2 lakh crore by the financial year 2028, according to a study by ratings agency CareEdge last year.
The huge growth being seen is driving other consumer goods makers to increase their focus on quick commerce as well.
“In the quick commerce today, because there is instant gratification, occasion-led consumption, which is happening, there is a very clear acceleration, which is happening on the indulgence and impulse side,” Vipin Kataria, the chief commercial officer of biscuits maker Britannia, said in a post-earnings call on Wednesday.
He said the company intended to launch many digital-first brands, which will add to the overall profitability story of e-commerce.
HUL on Thursday reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 6,603 crore in the October-December quarter, a 121 per cent jump from a year ago. It's worth noting that the profit for the latest third quarter included an exceptional gain of Rs 4,516 crore from discontinued operations, following the demerger of its ice-cream business. Excluding exceptional items, the profit after tax was up 1 per cent at Rs 2,562 crore.
The revenue for the quarter was up 6 per cent from a year ago to Rs 16,235 crore, with volumes growing 4 per cent.
Last September, the Goods and Services Tax was overhauled, with the GST on most daily use items being slashed from 12 per cent and 18 per cent to 5 per cent. There have been early signs of recovery in growth, according to company officials.
“Looking ahead, we expect the operating environment to remain conducive for a sustained recovery in consumption aided by several factors,” said Niranjan Gupta, chief financial officer at HUL. He expects growth in the financial year 2027 to be better than in the financial year 2026
“We have been very clear that we will be obsessed with volume-led revenue growth,” stressed Nair separately.