India’s ecommerce market is projected to reach $400 Bn by 2030, with the next wave of growth coming from Tier II and III cities
Shiprocket provides a unified commerce layer, bundling checkout, logistics, returns, analytics and marketing and removing the need for in-house tech or service providers
It will develop the operating backbone to help Bharat’s entrepreneurs, enabling them to compete locally and globally through AI-led, integrated commerce infrastructure
In a narrow lane in Indore, a local spice brand packs its orders at dawn. By evening, those packets are coursing through sorting centres en route to Mumbai, Kochi, and occasionally, Dubai. A decade ago, such reach would have been beyond the scope of most businesses. But today, it is routine. Though understated, this shift is consequential, reflecting how India is edging towards a $400 Bn ecommerce opportunity by 2030, underpinned by expanding logistics networks.
Tier II and III cities in India are producing their own digital-native brands, often bootstrapped and frequently led by founders with little formal exposure to ecommerce playbooks. Although affordable Internet access and widespread digital payments have lowered entry barriers, running an online business from a smaller city still carries structural disadvantages.
Sellers from those cities often face fragmented logistics access, limited warehousing infrastructure and less exposure to digital commerce best practices, and this is what shiprocket
, an ecommerce enablement platform, is trying to solve.
Shiprocket, originally started as KartRocket in 2012, helped micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) go digital through its B2B SaaS services. In 2017, Saahil Goel, along with Gautam Kapoor, set up Shiprocket as a third-party logistics (3PL) aggregator, streamlining order processing, warehousing and transportation. It has since expanded into an end-to-end ecommerce enablement platform, allowing online merchants to manage logistics, fulfilment and customer experience across India and overseas markets.
The ecommerce unicorn has evolved into an integrated operating system for online sellers, particularly those based outside Tier I cities. The platform bundles shipping, checkout, returns management, analytics and access to working capital into a single system, positioning it to address this service gap for ecommerce startups. For small-town entrepreneurs, it will reduce the need to build an in-house logistics or tech team or to negotiate with multiple service providers separately.
Shiprocket’s idea is simple: let sellers focus on products and customers, while it handles the rails of commerce. According to the platform, it now powers more than 4 Lakh merchants, a large proportion of whom operate outside the top metros. These merchants collectively drive $3 Bn+ in gross merchandise value (GMV) and shipment volumes each year through the platform.
Over the years, Shiprocket’s system has integrated with more than 250 ecosystem partners, including Shopify, WooCommerce, Zoho, and Razorpay, supporting merchants across the ecommerce value chain.
How Shiprocket Empowers Small-Town Sellers
For many entrepreneurs in Tier II and III cities, ambition is not the limiting factor; access to logistics infrastructure, technology capabilities and working capital is. Hence, Shiprocket aims to be the operating backbone that eases these constraints.
The platform acts as a unified commerce enablement layer where sellers gain access to multiple courier partners, automated shipping workflows, checkout optimisation tools, returns management, customer communication and analytics, without building these capabilities internally.
Shiprocket uses AI to route each order to the most suitable courier partner, while automated workflows manage everything, from shipment processing to returns. For businesses without in-house technology teams, the majority in Tier II and III cities, that consolidation is significant. Checkout pages, customer messaging and analytics dashboards are bundled into a single interface, available in vernacular languages.
However, logistics alone cannot address growth constraints. Working capital still remains one of the biggest hurdles for small-town entrepreneurs. And through Shiprocket Capital, the company analyses seller transaction data to extend collateral-free financing for inventory, marketing and expansion.
Additionally, automated COD (cash on delivery) reconciliations and speedy payments help improve cash flow visibility. For many small-town businesses running on thin buffers, predictable payment cycles are as important as steady sales.
Traditional marketing that requires manual intervention also poses a major constraint unless one has a specialised team. Shiprocket’s product philosophy iterates that only automation could democratise market access, with tools for managing customer engagement, performance analytics and post-purchase communication. Shiprocket’s data layer identifies high-demand regions and optimises delivery predictions, functioning as an embedded business analyst. For merchants without dedicated teams, these systems provide functional capability rather than incremental optimisation.
Cross-border operations bring in further complexity. Taking a business global has always been tough due to paperwork, compliance checks and tax calculations. By consolidating these processes into a single workflow, Shiprocket reduces administrative friction for sellers seeking to expand beyond domestic markets.
Some of Shiprocket’s valuable outreach programmes happen offline, though. It conducts Shiprocket Yatra, in-person workshops held across Indian cities and delivered in local languages. These sessions provide hands-on exposure to digital tools and help dispel sellers’ doubts.
To align with India’s evolving digital commerce architecture, Shiprocket joined ONDC (Open Network for Digital Commerce) to function as a logistics app on the network, enabling intercity, intracity and hyperlocal deliveries for businesses across the ecosystem. Apart from this, Shiprocket has also partnered with India Post, DGFT and Startup India to simplify cross-border trade, regulatory compliance and nationwide fulfilment for sellers looking to scale.
The Road Ahead For Bharat’s Ecommerce Ecosystem
Shiprocket positions itself to ride India’s expanding D2C ecommerce opportunity with what it calls a “tech-enabled, asset-light platform” designed to scale efficiently while optimising fixed costs. The company’s strategy now centres on deepening merchant engagement, widening its product stack and expanding into newer logistics corridors.
The logistics company is building operational infrastructure that allows businesses from smaller cities to compete at a national and global scale without the resources, networks and institutional advantages long associated with metropolitan sellers.
For now, that spice brand in Indore continues to pack orders at dawn, shipping to Mumbai and Dubai by evening. After all, what was exceptional just a few years ago is now routine. And platforms like Shiprocket aim to ensure that location no longer determines who participates in India’s digital commerce boom.
