TURTU to help local stores fight quick-comm giants

Bengaluru

As ultra-fast grocery delivery giants dominate the headlines, local neighborhood stores are fighting an uphill battle to retain their loyal customer base. Enter TURTU, a neighborhood commerce platform that is bridging the gap between traditional mom-and-pop stores and modern consumer demands. News Trail caught up with Anil Chavan, the CEO of TURTU, to discuss the startup’s journey from a phone-call-based delivery service in Belagavi to a tech-driven platform looking to reshape local commerce across Karnataka

There are several delivery startups in the market today. What inspired you to build TURTU, and what gap does it fill?
Anil Chavan: The core issue isn't a lack of delivery options; it’s a massive shift in customer behavior. Today's consumers want everything instantly, and they want to browse catalogs online. If local stores don't have a digital presence, customers will instinctively turn to "dark stores" and big tech platforms. For a local business, building and maintaining an independent app is financially unviable. Even if they join major food or grocery aggregators, they are hit with massive commission rates—sometimes up to 50%—and they lose access to their own customer data. TURTU solves this. We provide a platform for these local businesses to go online affordably, allowing customers to digitally shop from the neighborhood stores they have trusted for years.

Take us through the timeline of TURTU. When did you officially launch?
Anil Chavan: We officially started on June 7, 2022, in Belagavi. For the first few years, we operated strictly over phone calls, handling about 250 to 300 orders daily. However, it was chaotic and unscalable. We took a step back to focus on building robust technology. We applied for the Government of Karnataka's Elevate 2025 competition and won a Rs 30 Lakh grant, which funded our tech development. Two months ago, we officially launched our dedicated app on both Android and iOS.

How many businesses have you onboarded so far on the new app?
Anil Chavan: In just two months, we have onboarded around 70 members representing over 50 stores in Belagavi. This includes 35 restaurants, 9 grocery stores, pharmacies, and local retail shops. A vertical we are particularly proud of is our "Home-made" section. We currently have 9 women entrepreneurs selling home-cooked food like rotis and traditional snacks. It is a great step toward women empowerment, allowing them to monetize their skills from their kitchens.

High commissions are a pain point for vendors on other platforms. What is TURTU’s revenue model?
Anil Chavan: We deliberately stayed away from the high-commission model. Instead, we offer a flat subscription model. Vendors pay roughly Rs 3,500 per month, which allows them unlimited business on the app without any per-order commission cuts.

What about the customer side? What delivery times are you promising, and do you have any unique features?
Anil Chavan: We don't believe in making false promises of 10-minute deliveries. We give our customers a realistic window of 20 to 25 minutes. We operate our own trained fleet of 15 riders. Beyond standard orders, we offer a "Buy Anything" feature where users can drop a pin anywhere in the city and ask a rider to pick up a specific item. We have also integrated a "Bus Parcel" feature. If you have an intercity parcel arriving at the local bus stand, our riders will collect it and bring it directly to your doorstep.

What are your expansion plans?
Anil Chavan: The government grant gave us a massive push. Now that the app is live and the pilot in Belagavi is successful, we are targeting a seed funding round of $1 to $2 Million. In the next few months, we are expanding to Hubballi, Davanagere, Kalaburagi, Mysuru, and Manaluru.