Nukkad network: Combo of GPS and mobile Internet

Think of it as ‘Prahalad meets Schumacher’. Germany-born economist E.F. Schumacher first suggested the mantra: ‘Small is Beautiful’ in the mid-1970s. Thirty years later management guru C.K. Prahalad edited a seminal book that suggested that there was a “Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid”.

These two ideas have morphed at the hands of innovative Indians who have done jugaad to create an exciting new take on Internet-based services. Call it a Mobile Mohalla or a Nukkad Network — it’s a cool tool to tap the micro-sized products and services in your immediate locality.

Hike, the popular Indian messaging and chat app has just announced the integration of Hoppr, a location-based service that aims to build the hyper local commerce ecosystem: Consumers get to explore rewards and offers available with brands and merchants in their vicinity.

Another launch this month, is Cityscape, a local social network, specifically designed for users to participate & connect with your local community, started by Vishal Shah, who quit his job as Director of engineering (Mobile & Platforms) position at Ask.com to create a global hyperlocal platform. It has features to share photographs with those around as well as share local news and events. The app is available on Android and will soon be launched on IOS and Windows.

Search for service ends here: LocalOye is a new app that currently functions in Bengaluru, Mumbai and Gurgaon. It promises to connect you to local service professionals — housekeeping, pest control, home repairs... even astrologers, yoga and and belly-dancing classes! Once the requirements have been posted, the vendors are notified and the user details like budget, location, timing etc are sent to them. After a service provider accepts the lead, LocalOye connects the vendor and the customer. You are guaranteed that the person  who attends is qualified and trustworthy.

Toost is the digital equivalent of word-of-mouth, an Android  application from Noida-based Phone Warrior, that  helps in finding trusted local service providers used by your friends: a carpenter, doctor, electrician or a driver. The app is driven by friends’ recommendations based on their personal experiences and level of connection with the business and has already chalked up 1.2 million installs. This is the new social face of local search!

A  slightly different model comes from Grofers, a pure delivery platform where you can now search products across all stores in your neighbourhood.  Coupled with a GPS phone, the Grofers app lets you drill down to a specific shop in some 12 cities. Grofers is a glimpse into the future where every shop and service around your home is just a phone tap away. And if we need any testimony that this is the way of the future, look at Amazon. It has recently started its own hyper-local platform called Kirana Now  promising 2-4 hour deliveries. As they say, if you can’t fight ‘em, join ‘em!

Now, grocery at your door: Super markets have been among the first local enterprises in India to go online. BigBasket started in 2011. With over 14,000 products from over 1,000 brands Bigbasket.com is currently present in Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, Delhi-NCR, and Mysore. It is already a popular app at GooglePlay. It has competitors like ZopNow, who tap nearby supermarket chains and cut the delivery time from overnight to a couple of hours. ZopNow also dates back to 2011 and operates in Bangalore, Mumbai, Pune, Gurgaon  and Hyderabad. PepperTap, too, has a similar offering, currently available in Delhi NCR, Pune, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chandigarh, Jaipur and Chennai.

— IndiaTechOnline