Swiggy’s quick commerce arm, Instamart, has taken a significant step beyond its app-led delivery model by piloting its first physical experiential retail store in Gurugram. The move marks an early experiment with offline retail as the company explores new ways to deepen consumer engagement alongside its dark store–driven quick commerce operations.
According to media reports and people familiar with the development, the new outlet is located at M3M 65th Avenue, a high-footfall commercial destination in Gurugram. Branded clearly as an Instamart experiential store, the outlet operates independently from Swiggy Instamart’s existing network of dark stores that power its 10–15 minute delivery promise.
Unlike the traditional Instamart model, which is entirely app-based, the physical store allows customers to walk in, browse products, and complete purchases directly at the outlet. This shift introduces a tactile, in-person shopping experience—an element typically absent in quick commerce platforms focused on speed and convenience.
The store carries a curated and limited assortment of approximately 100–200 SKUs, a fraction of the thousands of products available through Instamart’s dark stores. The reduced catalogue reflects the pilot nature of the initiative and a deliberate focus on select product categories rather than scale.
Sources indicate that the product mix is centred on categories where physical inspection plays a crucial role in purchase decisions. These include fresh fruits and vegetables, pulses, select grocery staples, new product launches, and offerings from direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands. By enabling consumers to see, touch, and evaluate products before buying, Instamart aims to address trust and quality considerations that often influence offline shopping behaviour.
The experiential store also serves as a potential testing ground for new brands and product launches, allowing Swiggy and its partners to gather real-time consumer feedback, observe buying patterns, and refine assortments before scaling them across its digital platform. For D2C brands, the space could act as a discovery channel, bridging online reach with offline visibility.
While Swiggy has not officially commented on broader rollout plans, the pilot signals growing interest among quick commerce players in hybrid online-offline strategies. As competition intensifies in India’s quick commerce market, companies are increasingly experimenting with differentiated formats to strengthen brand recall, customer trust, and engagement.
If successful, Instamart’s physical experiential store could open the door to additional locations or category-specific offline formats, complementing its dark store infrastructure rather than replacing it. The initiative highlights Swiggy Instamart’s willingness to innovate beyond speed-led delivery and explore experiential retail as a strategic lever in the evolving commerce landscape.
For now, the Gurugram store remains a focused pilot—but one that could shape the future of how quick commerce brands interact with consumers both online and offline.
