Zomato parent co Eternal's Q1 ad spends up 69% YoY to ₹671 cr

Eternal has posted a 70% year-on-year jump in revenue for the April–June quarter, clocking ₹7,167 crore

by e4m Staff
Published: Jul 21, 2025 5:25 PM | 2 min read

Zomato’s parent company Eternal posted a sharp 70% year-on-year jump in revenue for the April–June quarter, clocking ₹7,167 crore, up from ₹4,206 crore a year ago. The growth was largely driven by Blinkit, its quick-commerce arm, which has continued to expand aggressively across metros and Tier 1 cities.

But while the top line soared, the bottom line took a hammering. Eternal’s consolidated net profit plunged 90% to just ₹25 crore, compared to ₹257 crore in the same quarter last year. The dip was attributed to a surge in operating costs, especially from Blinkit’s rapid expansion, aggressive discounting, and the scaling of its dark-store network.

Total expenses for the company shot up 79% to ₹7,433 crore, overtaking revenue for the quarter and underlining the strain of fuelling growth in India’s intensely competitive q-commerce space. Blinkit is battling it out with Swiggy Instamart, Zepto, BigBasket, and Flipkart in the war for grocery dominance.

A major chunk of this spend came from advertising and promotional expenses, which surged to ₹671 crore in Q1 FY26, up 69% year-on-year. Eternal’s ad outlay for FY25 stood at ₹1,972 crore, marking a 38% increase from the previous year. While the company does not disclose ad revenue as a separate line item, analysts estimate that monetisation through sponsored listings on Zomato and in-app brand promotions on Blinkit is still at a nascent stage. As the platforms scale and deepen brand integrations, this revenue stream is expected to grow, though for now it remains a minor contributor to the topline.

Despite the profit slump, investors cheered the revenue momentum. Eternal’s shares rose as much as 7.5% intraday, touching ₹277 (its highest level in over five months) before closing up 5.6% on the BSE.

The Q1 results highlight a clear trade-off for Eternal: rapid scale versus sustained profitability. Analysts had expected a steep drop in earnings, but the 90% crash still caught some off guard. The company is now under pressure to show a pathway to profits, especially as Blinkit continues to burn cash.

The broader takeaway? Demand for 10-minute deliveries remains strong, but the bill for instant gratification is getting harder to foot. For Eternal, the challenge is no longer growth. It’s making that growth worth something on the balance sheet.