👀 The Year At A Glance (Part II)
This year saw some major developments in the business and finance sectors. So, we're here to update you about them before you step into the new year.
We’re back with a recap of this year. Yesterday we talked all things crypto. If you missed it, you can check it out here. But today we're going to focus on a few headlines that changed the face of the economy and business.
Abundant Shortages
As the pandemic hit, Covid was not our only problem. Many other issues like unemployment, lack of finances, and economic downfall hit us one after the other.
But one major issue that still haunts us to date is the supply chain problem.
There was a major shortage of semiconductor chips, ships, containers and labour. People wanted to buy stuff, but there weren’t enough resources to make or transport them. This imbalance snowballed and demands went out of hand.
But one company was unscathed by these issues: Amazon. It had long taken charge of its own supply chain and was prepared for all the challenges that the pandemic presented.
If you want to know more about the supply chain crisis, and how Amazon won it, you can read these articles.
What if China Falls?
Lots happened in China over the past two years. From being blamed for starting the pandemic, to facing massive electricity problems, the country has seen a lot. And we can’t just sit on the sidelines. Because when China sneezes the entire world catches a cold.
A major cause of the supply chain crisis was that China is one of the world's largest exporters and when it closed its ports, the world was deprived of a lot of essential items.
Not just that, the country is also the world's largest importer. So the economy of a lot of countries relies on China buying goods from them.
And that's not all. The country also gives out massive loans to smaller countries to help them develop. But many times these countries are unable to pay back and China takes advantage of the arrangement.
So what would happen if the country's economy faltered? The whole world would be impacted by the domino effect.
But why would it falter? Because China has massive debts. Earlier this year, its debts hit 323% of its GDP! Here's how this happened.
Many countries are now banning Chinese goods and Chinese companies.
But can they really afford to do that? If you want to know the answer to this question and learn more about this topic, you can read our analysis here.
The Great Indian Startup Saga
2021 was a great year for Indian startups. Especially so for everything food, groceries, fintech and edtech. These startups raised funds worth $39 billion and 42 managed to become unicorns!
New companies entering the delivery segment was no big deal. But things got really strange when these companies began the race of “Kaun Karega Fastest Delivery?”.
After Grofers (now BlinkIt) promised to deliver groceries in just 10 minutes, many others like Ola, Swiggy and Zomato and now even Zepto entered the race.
These companies have opened multiple dark stores or warehouses across cities, and are deploying Artificial Intelligence. All of this with the goal of acing the 10-minute delivery game.
Naturally, this has ignited a lot of controversy. Do we even need our groceries within 10 minutes?
If you want to dive deep into the problems caused by this delivery race, you can read our analysis here.
Now, this wasn't the only problem that hit the delivery sector. Food delivery giants Swiggy and Zomato were hit by a complaint from the National Restaurant Association of India for anti-competitive practices.
You see, these food giants charge a lot more money from customers and also take huge commissions from restaurants. Restaurants were also responsible to pay for the discounts that they offered. Small restaurants have no choice but to rely on them for deliveries, especially after the pandemic hit, and they were hit with huge losses.
But wherever there is a problem, there are start-ups to solve it. So, direct delivery platforms like DotPe stepped in to help restaurants. They charge less commission, but they also have a smaller reach.
Swiggy realised this could impact its market share so it also launched Swiggy Direct, with special commission rates and a promise of data sharing for restaurants.
You can read our in-depth analysis of this issue here.
Food Revolution
Cloud Kitchens have really taken off in India because of their potential to revolutionise the food industry. What cloud kitchens do is focus on delivering food rather than serving it to customers at their locations.
Okay, how is this revolutionising the industry?
Many people can't enter the restaurant business because the cost of buying or renting an outlet is too high. But now, all you need is a kitchen to fulfil your dreams of entering the food business.
And one of the first companies to do so was Rebel Foods. It now has over 20 brands in India and abroad and is also a unicorn.
If you want to learn more about Rebel Foods' journey, you can read our piece here.
That's all folks. These were the pieces we thought you needed to visit (or revisit) before the year ended.
See you in 2022. Until then, ReadOn.
Here’s another reminder that you can kickstart 2022 with our calendar of hope.
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