Brands
Indigo Paints brushes off slowdown with steady Q1 despite muted demand
MUMBAI: Even a splash of rain couldn’t wash away Indigo Paints’ colours this quarter though the palette did lose some of its shine. For the quarter ended 30 June 2025, the company’s standalone net revenue from operations inched up 0.3 per cent year-on-year to Rs 94.9 crore, despite muted industry demand. Consolidated revenue, however, dipped 0.7 per cent to Rs 308.9 crore, with management citing early monsoons as a key drag.
Margins showed signs of wear. Standalone gross margin slipped to 46.1 per cent from 47.0 per cent a year earlier, while EBITDA margin narrowed to 14.8 per cent from 15.6 per cent, largely due to higher fixed costs and slower scale-up. PAT margin held nearly flat at 8.8 per cent, with net profit easing just 0.4 per cent to Rs 26.4 crore.
On a consolidated basis, gross margin stood at 45.9 per cent, EBITDA margin at 14.3 per cent, and PAT margin at 8.3 per cent. Net profit fell 2.2 per cent year-on-year to Rs 26.1 crore, while EBITDA excluding other income dropped 6.5 per cent to Rs 44.3 crore.
The results suggest that while the paint maker Indigo Paints is holding its hue in a subdued market, it will need a stronger coat of demand in the coming quarters to restore the gloss.
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.
