Brands
From first job to fast-track: Jubilant Skilling 5,000 youth for QSR careers
Noida: Serving futures, not just fast food. Jubilant Bhartia Foundation and Jubilant FoodWorks Limited are marking a milestone in youth skilling as their specialised QSR training initiative, JFARM, completes three years, having enabled career pathways for more than 5,000 young people across India.
JFARM, short for Jubilant FoodWorks Academy for Restaurant Operations and Management, is a CSR-led skill development programme designed to prepare youth for the fast-growing quick service restaurant sector. Since its launch in 2023, the programme has focused on equipping candidates with industry-ready skills that translate directly into employment, rather than just issuing certificates.
Over 70 per cent of JFARM alumni are currently employed with QSR organisations nationwide, a figure that reflects the programme’s emphasis on practical training, local placements and long-term employability. To mark the anniversary, the Foundation brought together several alumni, described as “agents of transformation, to share their journeys and inspire others to follow similar paths.
Senior Vice President for Analytics, Innovation, Chief Analytics Officer and CSR at Jubilant FoodWorks Limited, Rahul Bharde, said the programme was built with sustainability in mind. “When skill development is approached with long-term intent, it creates systems that endure. Our focus has been on building practical, industry-linked models where training, employability and continuity come together to deliver real outcomes for young people entering the workforce.”
Senior Vice President and Head of the Jubilant Bhartia Foundation, Vivek Prakash, said the success stories emerging from JFARM go beyond jobs alone. “It fills us with immense pride to see young professionals trained through our programme securing promising careers with QSR brands across the country. By sharing their journeys of resilience and growth, they inspire countless others to dream bigger and pursue brighter futures.”
The JFARM QSR Skill Development Programme has been implemented across 12 states, with special focus on the North-East and Tier-2 cities. Training centres are strategically located near operational hubs, helping smooth the transition from classroom learning to on-the-job roles and improving workforce retention. Many alumni remain in the QSR sector, underscoring the programme’s commitment to sustainable livelihoods rather than short-term placements.
Open to candidates with a minimum qualification of Class 10, the five-week programme blends classroom learning, hands-on training, on-the-job monitoring, and structured placement support. Its accessible design aligns closely with national priorities around youth employability and workforce readiness.
Through initiatives such as JFARM, Jubilant Bhartia Foundation continues to strengthen community capacity and respond to real workforce needs, proving that with the right skills on the menu, young people can build careers that last well beyond their first shift.
Brands
Ekart expands IKEA partnership with EV deliveries in Chennai
3PL to handle 600 plus products with 48 hour delivery via EV fleet.
MUMBAI: Flatpacks are going electric and your sofa might now arrive with a smaller carbon footprint. Ekart has expanded its partnership with IKEA to power last-mile deliveries in Chennai, doubling down on speed, scale and sustainability in one of India’s key urban markets. Under the collaboration, Ekart will manage end-to-end large-format deliveries for IKEA across the city using a 100 per cent dedicated electric vehicle fleet. The move makes Chennai the second major market after NCR-Delhi where Ekart handles IKEA’s last-mile logistics, signalling a broader rollout of EV-led supply chains.
The mandate is no small load. Ekart will oversee deliveries for over 600 products from IKEA’s catalogue, ranging from furniture to home décor—categories that demand specialised handling and precision logistics.
Backed by its technology-driven fulfilment network, Ekart is targeting deliveries within a 48-hour window, offering real-time tracking and end-to-end visibility from warehouse to doorstep. The focus is clear: faster turnarounds without compromising on control or customer experience.
The EV-first model also aligns with both companies’ sustainability goals, as urban logistics increasingly shifts towards zero-emission solutions. For IKEA, which continues to expand its omnichannel presence in India, reliable and eco-conscious last-mile delivery is becoming central to scale.
For Ekart, the partnership reinforces its positioning as an enterprise-grade logistics player in large-format commerce. The company already supports over 1,800 retail, D2C and enterprise brands, spanning last-mile delivery, part-truckload services and warehousing.
As India’s logistics ecosystem evolves, this collaboration highlights a growing trend: delivery is no longer just about distance, it’s about efficiency, experience and increasingly, emissions.
