Blinkit
Company History
Blinkit History: Founding, Growth & Key Milestones
Founded 2013 in Gurugram, India
When was Blinkit founded?
Blinkit was founded in 2013 in Gurugram, India by Albinder Dhindsa and Saurabh Kumar, making it 13 years old.
- Founded
- 2013
- Founding place
- Gurugram, India
- Founders
- Albinder Dhindsa and Saurabh Kumar
- Headquarters today
- Gurugram, Haryana, India
- Milestones documented
- 13 (2013–2026)
- Current CEO
- Albinder Dhindsa
- Acquisitions
- 3
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 2013 | Company Founded as Grofers |
| 2015 | $120 Million SoftBank-Led Round |
| 2016 | Layoffs and Push for Break-Even |
| 2021 | Relaunch as Blinkit |
| 2022 | Zomato Completes Acquisition |
| 2024 | Monthly Adjusted EBITDA Break-Even |
| 2024 | Bistro Pilot in Gurugram |
| 2025 | Blinkit Ambulance Launched |
| 2025 | Parent Becomes Eternal; 1,301 Stores |
| 2025 | Switch to Owned Inventory |
| 2025 | First Positive Quarterly Adjusted EBITDA |
| 2026 | 10-Minute Tagline Dropped; Dhindsa Becomes Group CEO |
| 2026 | ₹37,779 Crore FY26 Revenue and 2,443 Stores |
- Where was Blinkit founded?
- Blinkit was founded in Gurugram, India in 2013.
- Who founded Blinkit?
- Blinkit was founded by Albinder Dhindsa and Saurabh Kumar.
- When did Blinkit start?
- Blinkit was founded in 2013.
- How old is Blinkit?
- Blinkit is 13 years old as of 2026.
Founding Story
Albinder Dhindsa and Saurabh Kumar started the company in Gurugram in December 2013 as a hyperlocal service that delivered app orders from neighbourhood kirana stores within a couple of hours, and soon focused it on groceries under the Grofers name. Dhindsa had worked in transportation and logistics consulting at URS and Cambridge Systematics, earned an MBA at Columbia Business School, and ran international operations at Zomato before co-founding the company. Grofers raised large rounds from Sequoia Capital, Tiger Global and SoftBank in 2014-2015, then cut about 10% of its staff in 2016 as funding tightened. Kumar left his executive role in June 2021, months before the business relaunched as Blinkit.
Founders
Albinder Dhindsa
Albinder Singh Dhindsa is the co-founder of Blinkit and, since February 1, 2026, Group CEO of its parent company Eternal Ltd, which also owns Zomato, District and Hyperpure. He co-founded Grofers in Gurugram in 2013 with Saurabh Kumar and led it as CEO through a fast, heavily funded expansion, a painful 2016 cost reset and years of competition with BigBasket. In 2021 he rebuilt the company around dark stores and very fast delivery under the Blinkit name, then agreed its 2022 sale to Zomato for ~$516 million (₹4,447 crore) in stock. Under Zomato ownership he grew Blinkit from 526 stores in March 2024 to 2,243 by March 2026, moved it to an inventory-led model in September 2025 and took it to its first positive adjusted EBITDA in the December 2025 quarter. Deepinder Goyal later said he had twice asked Dhindsa to step down after the acquisition; instead, Dhindsa succeeded Goyal as Group CEO. (Exact birth year remains publicly undisclosed).
Saurabh Kumar
Saurabh Kumar is the co-founder of Grofers, the grocery delivery startup that became Blinkit. He started the company with Albinder Dhindsa in Gurugram in 2013, when it delivered app orders from local shops, and helped steer it through its venture-funded expansion of 2014-2015, when Sequoia Capital, Tiger Global and SoftBank backed the company. He was part of the leadership as Grofers moved from a pure marketplace connecting neighbourhood merchants to a model built on its own warehouses and private-label products, and through the 2016 layoffs that followed the funding slowdown. In June 2021, almost eight years after founding, Kumar left his executive role while remaining a board member and shareholder. His exit came a few months before Grofers relaunched as Blinkit and about a year before Zomato agreed to buy the company. (Exact birth year remains publicly undisclosed).
Key Milestones
Company Founded as Grofers
Albinder Dhindsa and Saurabh Kumar launched a hyperlocal grocery delivery app in Gurugram.
Source: en.wikipedia.org$120 Million SoftBank-Led Round
Grofers raised its largest early round and acqui-hired SpoonJoy and Townrush in October.
Source: livemint.comLayoffs and Push for Break-Even
Grofers cut about 10% of staff and withdrew 67 campus offers as funding tightened.
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.comRelaunch as Blinkit
After Zomato's $100 million investment and Saurabh Kumar's exit, Grofers became Blinkit in December.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgZomato Completes Acquisition
The ~$516 million (₹4,447 crore) all-stock deal closed and Blinkit was consolidated from August 10, 2022.
Source: bseindia.comMonthly Adjusted EBITDA Break-Even
Blinkit broke even on adjusted EBITDA in March 2024 with 526 stores.
Source: economictimes.indiatimes.comBistro Pilot in Gurugram
Blinkit launched Bistro, a separate app for snacks and meals delivered in minutes, in December 2024.
Source: economictimes.indiatimes.comBlinkit Ambulance Launched
The first five Blinkit ambulances went into service in Gurugram on January 2, 2025.
Source: economictimes.indiatimes.comParent Becomes Eternal; 1,301 Stores
Zomato renamed itself Eternal Ltd in March 2025, when Blinkit's network reached 1,301 dark stores.
Source: angelone.inSwitch to Owned Inventory
From September 1, 2025 Blinkit stopped operating as a marketplace and began buying and selling stock itself.
Source: economictimes.indiatimes.comFirst Positive Quarterly Adjusted EBITDA
Blinkit earned ~$464,000 (₹4 crore) of adjusted EBITDA in the October-December 2025 quarter and ended it with 2,027 stores.
Source: livemint.com10-Minute Tagline Dropped; Dhindsa Becomes Group CEO
Blinkit removed its 10-minute claim in January, and Albinder Dhindsa took over as Eternal Group CEO on February 1.
Source: economictimes.indiatimes.com₹37,779 Crore FY26 Revenue and 2,443 Stores
Blinkit closed FY26 with ~$4.38 billion (₹37,779 crore) of revenue and reached 2,443 stores by June 30, 2026.
Source: inc42.comMajor Acquisitions
SpoonJoy
2015Grofers acqui-hired the Bengaluru food-ordering startup in October 2015 to add engineering and operations talent during its multi-city expansion.
Townrush
2015Grofers bought the B2B hyperlocal logistics startup in October 2015, its second acquisition that week, to strengthen last-mile delivery operations.
MyGreenBox
2015Grocery delivery startup to expand early operations.
Keep researching Blinkit
Blinkit Company History FAQ
When was Blinkit founded and by whom?
Blinkit was founded in Gurugram in December 2013 by Albinder Dhindsa and Saurabh Kumar. It operated as Grofers, a grocery delivery app, until December 2021.
When did Grofers become Blinkit?
Grofers renamed itself Blinkit in December 2021, after rebuilding the business around dark stores and very fast delivery. Co-founder Saurabh Kumar had left his executive role in June 2021, the same month Zomato invested $100 million for a 9.3% stake.
When did Zomato buy Blinkit?
Zomato's board approved the purchase in June 2022 in an all-stock deal valued at ₹4,447 crore (about $568 million). Zomato consolidated Blinkit from August 10, 2022, and renamed itself Eternal Ltd in March 2025.
How fast has Blinkit's dark-store network grown?
Blinkit had 526 dark stores in March 2024, 1,301 in March 2025, 2,027 in December 2025, 2,243 in March 2026 and 2,443 at June 30, 2026.
What changed at Blinkit in 2025?
Blinkit launched an ambulance service in Gurugram in January 2025, its parent Zomato became Eternal in March, and from September 1, 2025 Blinkit switched from a marketplace to owning and selling its own inventory.
What happened at Blinkit in 2026?
In January 2026 Blinkit dropped its 10-minute delivery claim after labour ministry intervention. On February 1 Albinder Dhindsa became Group CEO of Eternal. Blinkit closed FY26 with ~$4.38 billion (₹37,779 crore) of revenue and reached 2,443 stores by June 30, 2026.
Was Blinkit originally called Grofers?
Yes, the company was founded in 2013 as Grofers, an early grocery delivery startup. In 2021, facing massive competitive pressure, they rebranded to "Blinkit" to signify their hyper-aggressive pivot to 10-minute delivery.
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