India retail market seen reaching Rs 210–215 trillion by 2035, resurfacing an April 2026 retail-tech forecast

Resurfacing an April 2026 Financial Express report, the piece highlights Eternal, Nykaa, Delhivery and IndiaMART as retail-tech enablers as India’s retail market is projected to more than double from Rs 90–95 trillion in 2025. Nykaa expanded to 276 stores, while Eternal added more than 200 net stores in Q3 FY26.

— FiledSun, 20 Sept, 2026, 12:02 IST·First seen Sun, 20 Sept, 2026, 12:02 IST·Source Financial Express (via Wayback)

What happened

Eternal (formerly Zomato) · India’s retail market could reach Rs 210-215 trillion by 2035. Eternal, Nykaa, Delhivery and IndiaMART are highlighted as

Key facts

  • India retail market projected at Rs 210-215 trillion by 2035, versus 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%
  • Eternal added over 200 net stores
  • Eternal share price up 13.5% over the past year
  • Nykaa Q3 FY26 revenue: Rs 2,873 crore, up 27%
  • Nykaa Q3 FY26 net profit: Rs 68 crore, up 156%
  • Nykaa gross margin: 45.2%; EBITDA margin: 8.0%
  • Nykaa added 11 stores, reaching 276 stores across 94 cities
  • Nykaa B2B platform serves over 4.8 lakh retailers in 1,100 cities
  • Nykaa share price up 31.7% over the past year
  • Delhivery Q3 FY26 services revenue: about Rs 2,798 crore, up 18% YoY
  • Delhivery net profit: about Rs 110 crore before integration costs and Rs 40 crore after

Why this matters

Strategic buyers should prioritize partnerships or acquisitions in logistics, merchant software, digital commerce, and omnichannel enablement to capture share as India’s retail market more than doubles.

What to watch

  • Same-store sales growth and revenue per active customer/store for Nykaa and other omnichannel retailers.
  • Eternal's net-store additions, quick-commerce order density, contribution margins and evidence of cannibalization between formats.
  • Delhivery shipment growth, parcel yield, utilization and margin progression as e-commerce logistics volumes scale.
  • IndiaMART paid-supplier additions, realized revenue per customer and SME lead-conversion trends.
  • Quick-commerce expansion, delivery-fee changes and discount intensity from major platforms.
  • India consumption indicators: real wage growth, urban discretionary spending, inflation and credit availability.
  • Policy changes affecting e-commerce marketplaces, data use, labor, dark stores, foreign investment or GST compliance.
  • Prioritize fulfillment density and omnichannel inventory visibility over headline store-count expansion.
  • Increase monetization of seller services, advertising, payments, subscriptions and logistics rather than relying only on transaction growth.
  • Use physical stores as acquisition, returns and rapid-fulfillment nodes, with tighter store-level payback thresholds.
  • Expand private labels and exclusive assortments to protect gross margins amid marketplace and quick-commerce price competition.
  • Prepare for a larger formal retail base by targeting MSME digitization, regional-language onboarding and tier-2/3 city supply networks.