India-based e-commerce companies like Zomato, Swiggy and Amazon have all introduced platform fees — and are slowly cranking them up — but there’s one company that says it’ll always buck the trend.
In a recent interview, Meesho CEO Vidit Aatrey made his stance crystal clear: the company will not introduce a platform fee, even though the math suggests it could add hundreds of crores straight to the bottom line. When pressed on why Meesho wouldn’t charge even a nominal ₹1 platform fee — which could translate to ₹280 crore in additional EBITDA given the company’s order volume — Aatrey’s response revealed a philosophical approach that sets Meesho apart in India’s increasingly fee-heavy e-commerce landscape.
The Question of Easy Money
Interviewer Mangalam Maloo laid out the mathematics plainly: “Last year you did close to 183 crore orders that were placed. This year, first half, you’ve done nearly 125. You annualize that closer to 280 thereabouts. Even if you charge a Rs. 1 platform fee, that’s straight Rs. 280 crore to the EBITDA. Why are you so opposed to that?”
Aatrey’s response was immediate and unequivocal. “We are actually, and I would say we’ve been a very, very customer-focused company from the beginning. And we believe it takes a lot of effort to earn the trust of your customers. And anything which basically goes against some of those principles we will not do. There could be many ways of making a lot of money in the short term, but if it trades off with some of our principles, we actually don’t want to take that.”
It’s About Trust, Not Just Fees
When Maloo pushed back, arguing that a platform fee isn’t profiteering but rather a legitimate charge for services provided, Aatrey doubled down on his position, highlighting a concern that many consumers have experienced: “If you introduce something at the end to a customer, and they come onto your platform, they look at a particular price and they suddenly get a surprise at the end… that’s the thing, right? It’s the trust. You can’t put a number to the trust. At what number do you break the trust and at what number do you not break the trust? I think some of this comes less from AB experiments. It comes a lot from principles that you believe in.”
The CEO then connected this stance to Meesho’s broader track record: “For the longest time, people always believed that at some point in time we will get rid of zero commission. They said, ‘Hey, why don’t you make some X percentage?’ And we never did it, right? And the same thing holds true here. I think it takes a lot of effort to earn the trust of your ecosystem. And we want to make sure that trust is right, because that’s the only way you will create value in the long term.”
Swimming Against the Tide
Aatrey’s comments come at a time when platform fees have become ubiquitous across India’s digital economy. Zomato and Swiggy have both introduced and subsequently raised their platform fees multiple times, with charges now ranging from ₹3 to ₹12.5 per order depending on the city and service. Amazon India introduced a platform fee of ₹5 for orders below ₹500 earlier this year. Even horizontal e-commerce players have explored various fee structures as they chase profitability.
Meesho’s position is particularly noteworthy given the company’s focus on Tier 2 and Tier 3 markets, where price sensitivity is extremely high. The platform, which enables individual resellers and small businesses to reach consumers directly, has built its brand around accessibility and affordability. For a customer base that often scrutinizes every rupee, the introduction of surprise fees at checkout could prove especially damaging to trust.
The CEO’s emphasis on principles over short-term profits also reflects a longer-term bet: that in India’s price-conscious market, the company that maintains transparent pricing and avoids nickel-and-diming customers might ultimately win greater loyalty and market share, even if it means leaving immediate revenue on the table. Whether this approach can sustain Meesho through its path to profitability remains to be seen, but Aatrey’s comments make clear that the company is willing to find out — without platform fees.