Jibran Gulzar had planned to move to London in 2019 to complete his master’s degree.
On August 3 of that year, he arrived in his hometown of Srinagar to renew his passport before applying for a visa. He never expected he’d end up stuck there for a year, missing out on a chance to go to London, and founding a food-delivery app that worked with limited internet connectivity in a region notorious for government-ordered internet shutdowns.
Gulzar is the founder and CEO of Gatoes, the largest restaurant discovery and food delivery app in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir, the epicenter of the world’s most dangerous territorial dispute between India, Pakistan and China for the past 70 years.
Ghatoz has been a pioneer in food delivery in hilly and remote areas of Jammu and Kashmir and has held its own even as bigger rivals like Swiggy and Zomato move in. The company has been expanding beyond its home turf this year, having already launched in neighbouring Himachal Pradesh and Leh, with plans to enter Delhi, Haryana and Punjab soon.
“when [Gatoes] “In the early days, there were hardly any startups in Jammu and Kashmir,” said Iltif Lone, a former senior official at the state-run Jammu and Kashmir Institute for Entrepreneurship Development. The rest of the world. “They launched a startup and quickly became the go-to solution for restaurants looking for delivery services.”
On August 5, 2019, two days after Gulzar had come to Srinagar to renew his passport, the Indian government revoked Article 370, a law that gave special rights to land, work, and residence to residents of Jammu and Kashmir. To avoid a backlash against the decision, a night curfew was imposed in the region and the internet was cut off. The curfew was lifted about a month later, but restrictions on movement continued for much longer. Jammu and Kashmir was without internet service until December 2019, the longest power outage in the democratic state up to that point. In January 2020, 2G internet services were partially allowed.
Stuck at home with nothing to do, Garzar started thinking about what to do next, and that’s when he came up with the idea for Gatoz.
“I had lost hope of getting a passport and was thinking of other ideas to continue my activities,” he said. Other countries“I was feeling down at home. I needed something to get me out of that and the idea of starting Gatoes gave me hope.”
Once the curfew was eased, Gulzar left Kashmir and travelled to Chandigarh and Delhi to discuss the idea with several software developers.
“We kept internet disruptions in mind and built an app that works perfectly even at 2G internet speeds,” Gulzar said. “We had a tough time negotiating because we didn’t have money, but we managed to build the app in a few months.”
In early 2020, Gulzar borrowed money from a friend to buy the domain name, and in July of that year, he hired his classmate Danish Majeed as Gatoz’s first employee.
“Taking internet interruptions into consideration, we’ve created an app that works perfectly even at 2G internet speeds.”
The app was launched in August 2020 with just two delivery staff.
“Initially I had Rs 10 lakh. [$1,190]We gave it directly to the developers. As soon as the revenue started coming in, we put it into marketing,” Garzar said. “We kept spending that money. [we earned] I worked on the app and didn’t get paid for the first few months.”
With the resumption of 4G internet services in Jammu and Kashmir in early 2021, Ghatoz expanded rapidly to several cities including Bandipora, Rajouri, Handwara, Kathua and Kupwara, as well as hilly and remote areas, Gulzar said.
Lawn said this is the first time app-based food delivery services have been available in these locations.
In May 2021, Gatoz became the first startup in Jammu and Kashmir to hit $1 million in gross merchandise volume, and while Gulzar declined to disclose the exact figure, he said that figure has more than doubled since then.
Gatoz now delivers to more than 45,000 customers a month, according to Majeed, who serves as the company’s chief financial officer. The app receives about 1,600 orders a day and features more than 1,200 restaurants and cafes in Jammu and Kashmir. The company partners with more than 200 delivery drivers in the region and has 50 full-time employees.
“Now we are growing [our revenue] At 35 per cent rate,” Majeed said. Other countriesGatoz said the company is also developing a separate delivery app that can run offline.
Funding in a conflict-ridden region is a big challenge, Gulzar said. Besides the initial investment, Gatoz has received funding from an angel investor, whose identity the company did not want to disclose. “Currently, we are mainly funded by a Kashmiri man living abroad, who has been kind enough to mentor us and help us financially,” Gulzar said.
Building an app-based business in an area with extremely limited connectivity also means that founders need to be very actively involved in the business.
Last month, Majeed received a call on his mobile phone from a man in his 60s who lives in Srinagar’s Nishat area. He asked Majeed how to order his favourite shawarma using Ghatoos. “I walked him through all the steps over the phone. [Google] “I directed him to the Play Store and even placed the order,” Majeed said. The call lasted for nearly 30 minutes. “He said I was helping him like a son and gave me loads of blessings.
As the internet environment in Jammu and Kashmir has stabilized over the past two years, other food delivery services have entered the region: Swiggy launched its services in the region in 2022, followed by Zomato in 2023.
But Gatoz’s availability in smaller cities and towns has given it an edge over the competition, Majeed said.
“We were worried that we would lose business soon, but the people of Kashmir supported us,” he said. “Once they entered the market, more people became aware of our presence, so it worked to our advantage.” He said the increased competition has prompted his team to “be more strategic, monitor their approach, and figure out how Gato’s can differentiate.”
Swiggy is currently available in Srinagar, Baramulla and Sopore, said Peerzada Uzair, the company’s fleet operations manager. The rest of the world. The company claims to have partnered with over 600 restaurants in Jammu and Kashmir.
Zomato said the app is currently available in six cities in Jammu and Kashmir. The company did not respond to a request for comment. The rest of the world.
“When Gatoz started, they were the only food delivery startup in Jammu and Kashmir. That’s when they captured the market. But now with the arrival of Swiggy and Zomato, it’s not easy for Gatoz to scale,” Lone said..
Gatoz is now preparing to compete with the two giants in other markets: It launched in Himachal Pradesh in January and Leh five months later, and also plans to expand to the northern Indian states of Delhi, Punjab and Haryana by mid-2025, Mr. Gulzar said.
“Gatos should have expanded much earlier but it’s good that they have done so now,” Lone said. “It is commendable that they are now taking on Swiggy and Zomato in other states. As far as I can see, their team has the tenacity. Remaining in the market for four years despite stiff competition is a remarkable achievement.”
