MAM
Zepto zips into 10-minute medicine service
MUMBAI: Zepto is betting that Indians want their paracetamol as fast as their groceries. On 7 August Aadit Palicha, chief executive of the quick-commerce firm, announced the launch of Zepto Pharmacy on LinkedIn.
The service promises to deliver common medicines—from headache tablets like Saridon to antibiotics—within 10 minutes.
But the rollout is cautious. The pharmacy service is live only in select areas of Mumbai, Bengaluru, Delhi NCR and Hyderabad. Palicha said his team has spent 12 months perfecting “the customer experience, supply chain, and compliance at a small scale” before this limited launch.
“Our objective is to keep operational standards extremely high and not scale too rapidly given the complexity of this category,” he explained. The measured approach reflects the regulatory hurdles and safety concerns inherent in medicine delivery—a stark contrast to Zepto’s typically aggressive expansion in groceries.
If executed well, Palicha believes the service could “seriously improve the lives of millions of customers across the country and help make important medicines easier to access when we need them the most.”
The move marks Zepto’s latest attempt to diversify beyond groceries, where it competes fiercely with rivals like Blinkit and Instamart. Whether Indians will embrace ten-minute medicine delivery with the same enthusiasm they have shown for rapid grocery runs remains to be seen.
AD Agencies
Prakash Nair reportedly quits Ogilvy after 23 years
One of the agency’s longest-serving leaders has moved on, with his next destination still unknown
MUMBAI: After more than two decades at one address, Prakash Nair has left the building. The president and head of office, north at Ogilvy has moved on from the agency, according to highly placed industry sources. His next move remains unknown. Ogilvy did not respond to requests for comment.
Nair spent over 23 years at the agency, making him one of its longest-serving senior figures. He was elevated to lead the Gurugram office in April 2022, a role that put him at the helm of Ogilvy’s northern operations at a time of considerable churn across the advertising industry.
Before taking charge in the capital, Nair served as associate president at Ogilvy Mumbai, where he worked on some of the agency’s most prized accounts, including Mondelez, Tata Motors, and BP Castrol. Over the years, he built a reputation for driving modern, integrated, and award-winning work, the kind that wins metals at Cannes and keeps clients from straying.
His departure was marked in style. A farewell gathering was held in Delhi, attended by senior figures from across the advertising fraternity, a signal of the regard in which Nair is held in an industry that does not always pause to say goodbye properly.
Where he goes next is the question the industry is now asking. After 23 years at one of the world’s most storied agencies, the answer, when it comes, will be worth watching.
