BigBasket vs Blinkit: Founders, CEOs and History
BigBasket was founded in 2011 by Hari Menon, V.S. Sudhakar, Vipul Parekh and is led by Amit Nanda. Blinkit was founded in 2013 by Albinder Dhindsa, Saurabh Kumar and is led by Albinder Dhindsa.
Company facts
Founders
BigBasket
Hari Menon
Hari Menon co-founded Fabmart.com in 1999 and its physical extension Fabmall, a south Indian grocery chain that became part of Aditya Birla Retail's More.
V.S. Sudhakar
V.S. Sudhakar co-founded BigBasket's parent, Supermarket Grocery Supplies, in Bengaluru in December 2011 with Hari Menon, Vipul Parekh, V.S. Ramesh and Abhinay Choudhari.
Vipul Parekh
Vipul Parekh co-founded BigBasket in 2011 and ran its finance and marketing, often acting as its public voice on private labels, which he said made up more than a third of revenue in early 2023.
Abhinay Choudhari
Abhinay Choudhari co-founded BigBasket in December 2011 with Hari Menon, V.S. Sudhakar, Vipul Parekh and V.S. Ramesh.
V.S. Ramesh
V.S. Ramesh co-founded BigBasket in 2011 and oversaw its logistics and supply chain, the warehouse and delivery network that let it hold its own stock instead of picking orders from local shops.
Blinkit
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.
Saurabh Kumar
Saurabh Kumar is the co-founder of Grofers, the grocery delivery startup that became Blinkit.
CEOs and their tenures
BigBasket
- Hari Menon2011–2026
Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Built BigBasket into India's largest online grocer by 2016 and ran it for almost 15 years.
Source - Amit Nanda2026–present
Chief Executive Officer
The first chief executive from outside the founding team. He joined from Amazon India, where he was director of selling partner services, with more than two decades across e-commerce, consumer goods and technology.
Source
Blinkit
- Albinder Dhindsa2013–present
Co-Founder & CEO; Group CEO of Eternal since February 2026
Co-founded Grofers in 2013, led the 2021 rebuild into Blinkit, agreed the 2022 sale to Zomato, and grew the network from 526 stores in March 2024 to 2,443 by June 2026 before taking charge of the whole Eternal group.
Source - Saurabh Kumar2013–2021
Co-Founder
Saurabh Kumar co-founded Grofers in 2013 and was part of its leadership for almost eight years, through the funding boom, the 2016 layoffs and the move to company-run warehouses.
Source
Timeline: BigBasket and Blinkit side by side
1999BigBasket
Founders start Fabmart.com
K. Vaitheeswaran, Hari Menon, V.S. Sudhakar, Vipul Parekh, V.S. Ramesh and others launched Fabmart.com, one of India's first online stores, selling books, toys and groceries.
2011BigBasket
BigBasket founded in Bengaluru
Menon, Sudhakar, Parekh, Ramesh and Abhinay Choudhari set up Supermarket Grocery Supplies in Indiranagar, Bengaluru, in December 2011, with $10 million of initial funding from Ascent Capital.
2013Blinkit
Company Founded as Grofers
Albinder Dhindsa and Saurabh Kumar launched a hyperlocal grocery delivery app in Gurugram.
2015BigBasket
Delyver acquired
BigBasket bought hyperlocal delivery company Delyver in a cash-and-stock deal to build its last-mile delivery network.
2015Blinkit
$120 Million SoftBank-Led Round
Grofers raised its largest early round and acqui-hired SpoonJoy and Townrush in October.
2016BigBasket
India's largest online grocer
By mid-2016 BigBasket operated in eight large Indian cities and had become the country's biggest online grocer.
2016Blinkit
Layoffs and Push for Break-Even
Grofers cut about 10% of staff and withdrew 67 campus offers as funding tightened.
2018BigBasket
Alibaba leads $300 million round
Alibaba Group led a $300 million round in February 2018 that valued BigBasket at about $950 million. It then sold around 18,000 items to eight million customers in 25 cities.
2018BigBasket
BBdaily and BB Instant launched through acquisitions
In October 2018 BigBasket bought milk delivery startups RainCan and Morning Cart outright and a controlling stake in vending machine startup Kwik24, creating its BBdaily subscription service and BB Instant vending machines.
2019BigBasket
Unicorn valuation
A $150 million round led by Mirae Asset-Naver Asia Growth Fund, CDC Group and Alibaba took BigBasket's valuation past $1 billion in May 2019.
2020BigBasket
Data breach of about 20 million users
Cyble reported in November 2020 that details of about 2 crore BigBasket users were on sale on the dark web. The company acknowledged the potential breach and filed a police complaint with the Bengaluru cyber crime cell.
2021BigBasket
Tata Digital takes majority control
Tata Digital bought a 64.3 percent stake in May 2021, adding about $200 million of fresh capital and buying out Alibaba and Actis in a deal reported at about $1.1 billion (₹9,500 crore).
2021BigBasket
BB Now and the first fresho store
In November 2021 BigBasket launched BB Now, its quick delivery service, and opened its first physical store in Bengaluru under the fresho brand for fruit and vegetables.
2021Blinkit
Relaunch as Blinkit
After Zomato's $100 million investment and Saurabh Kumar's exit, Grofers became Blinkit in December.
2022BigBasket
$200 million at a $3.2 billion valuation
BigBasket raised $200 million from investors including Tata Digital at a $3.2 billion valuation, announced in December 2022, and said it was eyeing a stock market listing by 2025.
2022Blinkit
Zomato Completes Acquisition
The ~$516 million (₹4,447 crore) all-stock deal closed and Blinkit was consolidated from August 10, 2022.
2024BigBasket
Full switch to quick commerce
In August 2024 BigBasket dropped scheduled next-day slots and moved its whole business to 10-to-30-minute delivery, folding BBdaily into the main app.
2024Blinkit
Monthly Adjusted EBITDA Break-Even
Blinkit broke even on adjusted EBITDA in March 2024 with 526 stores.
2024Blinkit
Bistro Pilot in Gurugram
Blinkit launched Bistro, a separate app for snacks and meals delivered in minutes, in December 2024.
2025BigBasket
10-minute food delivery pilot
BigBasket began 10-minute food delivery in Bengaluru in June 2025 with Tata Starbucks and Qmin, the food platform of Indian Hotels Company. Tata Sons also hired Citi and Moelis that year to look for outside investors.
2025Blinkit
Blinkit Ambulance Launched
The first five Blinkit ambulances went into service in Gurugram on January 2, 2025.
2025Blinkit
Parent Becomes Eternal; 1,301 Stores
Zomato renamed itself Eternal Ltd in March 2025, when Blinkit's network reached 1,301 dark stores.
2025Blinkit
Switch to Owned Inventory
From September 1, 2025 Blinkit stopped operating as a marketplace and began buying and selling stock itself.
2025Blinkit
First 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.
2026BigBasket
Amit Nanda becomes CEO
Amazon veteran Amit Nanda replaced co-founder Hari Menon as chief executive on 16 June 2026. Menon and Vipul Parekh moved to board and mentoring roles; BigBasket then ran more than 850 dark stores.
2026BigBasket
Focus narrowed to about 40 cities; FY2026 loss reported
In July 2026 BigBasket cut its focus to about 40 profitable cities from 76 markets. Tata Sons' annual report showed the consumer arm's loss up 66 percent to ~$356 million (₹3,073 crore) on ~$954 million (₹8,223 crore) of revenue.
2026BigBasket
Hari Menon retires from full-time role
Co-founder Hari Menon's last day in full-time employment was 30 September 2026. He remains on the board and mentors the leadership team.
2026Blinkit
10-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.
2026Blinkit
₹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.
Acquisitions
BigBasket
- BigBasket (Supermarket Grocery Supplies), 64.3 percent stake taken by Tata Digital2021$1.2B
- RainCan and Morning Cart2018Undisclosed
- Kwik24 (Savis Retail), controlling stake2018Undisclosed
- Delyver2015Undisclosed
Blinkit
- Blinkit (Blink Commerce Pvt Ltd) acquired by Zomato2022$568M
- SpoonJoy2015Undisclosed
- Townrush2015Undisclosed
Questions about BigBasket vs Blinkit
Who is the CEO of BigBasket and Blinkit?
BigBasket is led by Amit Nanda and Blinkit is led by Albinder Dhindsa. Both serve as the top executive responsible for the company's strategy, operations, and financial performance.
When was BigBasket founded vs Blinkit?
BigBasket was founded in 2011 — 2 years before Blinkit, which was founded in 2013. BigBasket's longer operating history gives it a deeper track record but also potentially more institutional inertia compared to the younger Blinkit.
How many employees does BigBasket have compared to Blinkit?
BigBasket employs approximately 58,000 people. A verified employee count for Blinkit is not currently available.
Where are BigBasket and Blinkit headquartered?
Both BigBasket and Blinkit are headquartered in India, meaning they operate under the same primary regulatory and tax environment.
Who founded BigBasket and Blinkit?
BigBasket was founded by Hari Menon, V.S. Sudhakar, Vipul Parekh, Abhinay Choudhari, V.S. Ramesh. Blinkit was founded by Albinder Dhindsa, Saurabh Kumar.
Which company has a longer operating history — BigBasket or Blinkit?
BigBasket has been operating for approximately 15 years, making it the more established of the two companies. Blinkit has been in operation for around 13 years. A longer operating history often signals greater institutional resilience and brand recognition, though it can also mean slower adaptation to new market conditions.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the BigBasket vs Blinkit overview