Eternal’s quick-commerce business reached breakeven as Q3 revenue rose 202%, resurfacing a January 2026 report
Resurfacing figures from late January 2026, Eternal, formerly Zomato, reported Q3 FY26 revenue of ₹16,315 crore and added more than 200 net quick-commerce stores. Sequential contribution margin improved by about 90 basis points, while quick-commerce EBITDA margin expanded around 130 basis points.
What happened
Eternal (formerly Zomato) · India’s retail market could reach Rs 210-215 trillion by 2035. Eternal reported strong Q3 FY26 growth, with quick commerce reaching
Key facts
- India retail market projected at Rs 210-215 trillion by 2035, from Rs 90-95 trillion in 2025
- Eternal Q3 FY26 revenue: Rs 16,315 crore, up 201.9% YoY
- Eternal Q3 FY26 net profit: Rs 102 crore, up 102.9% YoY
- Quick-commerce contribution margin expanded about 90 basis points sequentially
- Quick-commerce EBITDA margin improved about 130 basis points sequentially
- Over 200 net stores added in Q3 FY26
- Going-out business breakeven expected in four to six quarters
- Eternal share price up 13.5% over one year
Why this matters
Eternal’s breakeven milestone and accelerating store network raise the competitive bar for quick-commerce rivals, making differentiated local supply, logistics density, or strategic partnerships more valuable.
What to watch
- Quarterly quick-commerce EBITDA margin and whether it remains positive after new-store opening costs.
- Net dark-store additions, mature-store sales productivity and payback periods.
- Growth in monthly transacting customers, order frequency, average order value and customer retention.
- Competitive response from Zepto, Swiggy Instamart, BigBasket and ecommerce marketplaces, especially discount intensity.
- Advertising, private-label and sourcing revenue contribution to gross margins.
- Consolidated cash flow and capital expenditure relative to the pace of store expansion.
- Management guidance on whether breakeven is sustainable at the expanded store base.
- Prioritize dark-store additions in high-order-density micro-markets before expanding into less mature cities.
- Use breakeven credibility to selectively increase assortment, private-label penetration and high-margin advertising inventory.
- Defend share through localized pricing and loyalty benefits rather than broad-based discounting.
- Tighten new-store hurdle rates and disclose cohort-level payback, contribution margin and mature-store productivity metrics.
- Cross-sell food-delivery customers into quick commerce to lower customer-acquisition costs and raise order frequency.