Why have superapps failed in India? Let’s try to answer this question
Why have superapps failed in India?: Though the concept of a super-app is not new, the Indian market has yet to perfect the algorithm. A super-app is a mobile or web application that can perform several functions, transforming it into an all-encompassing online commerce and communication platform.
Globally, WeChat in China, Go-Jek in Indonesia, and Kakao in South Korea, to name a few, have broken the formula. But lets see why this formula is not working in our own country. Indian consumers have plenty of options: Because of the quick, deep, and low cost of data penetration, they seek ‘best of breed’ solutions, which are difficult to supply in a single app across categories.
As we already know, Paytm came first in the market and is one the most widely used super-apps in the country. I personaly use Paytm for a lot of things such as payments, booking my bus and flight tickets, booking movie tickets, and so on.
Another solid player is Tata New, which is rather new in the market but has already secured more than 50 million users.
Despite the backing of one of the world’s largest business enterprises, Tata Neu failed to scale. It failed to fulfil its internal objective of becoming the super-app king in the country. It has barely managed to drive even 10% of the sales of Tata Groups biggest e-commerce assets like big basket and 1mg. Many people i talk to say that they would rather use the standalone Big Basket app rather than using Tata Neu.
Sauvik Banerjjee, Tata Neu’s founding member and CTO, quit just four months after the app’s introduction. Post that, Tata Group has continued to pour money into Tata Neu and is increasing the services and products which the company can offer through its superapp.
Tata Neu offers several services from consumer brands of the Tata Group to give a superior experience alogn with fashion, finance, gadgets, grocery, hotels, health, travel etc. It even comes with UPI payment and bill services, going as far as offering loans.
Various firms such as Hike Messenger, Reliance Jio, Amazon, Ola, and others have tried their luck in super-apps throughout the years, but have failed to level up since the space requires improvement. The Indian market must comprehend and discover a hidden customer need that is currently unsatisfied by existing apps.
Digital penetration is great in India however, what the companies have touched so far is but the tip of the Iceberg.
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