Shadowfax launches real-time serviceability integration for hyperlocal marketplaces to meet variable demand across 13 cities. Based on store and customer location, along with availability of its fleet of 5000+ daily active delivery personnel, Shadowfax provides a real-time estimate of possible delivery time within the next hour, leveraging real-time GPS data from the Shadowfax Rider App.

Shadowfax’s serviceability API is designed for marketplaces with multiple storefronts where customers can choose among different restaurants every time. The API allows such platforms to block stores for which deliveries within the anticipated time frame will not be possible for the current customer. This ensures that the platform takes orders only when a delivery executive is available to complete a delivery within 60 minutes of order placement from the chosen store. This visibility has reduced customer cancellations to an incredible low of under 0.5%.

The said API works simply. Based on the current active orders with the delivery executive and his location, it estimates the areas from which he will be able to pick up an order in the next X minutes, a number configured differently for different online platforms. This data is computed and passed onto the online platform in the form of push APIs.

“This evaluation of any region in a city is being done every time a rider in the vicinity becomes available or busy. Multiple events change the availability of the rider, which includes delivery of an order, allotment of a new order, or when the rider marks himself available/unavailable for service. We are also working on creating a streaming analytics engine that can do server-based geofencing to ensure real-time triggers for important location change events,” explained Dipesh Mittal, an IIT Delhi alumnus, currently spearheading development efforts at Shadowfax, previously an Engineer at PayPal.

The online platforms can gain complete visibility into the stores that are currently serviceable in real-time dashboards to manage and optimize their daily operations. Shadowfax’s Marketplace model has grown substantially month over month in the current year, achieving more than 800% growth since the beginning of 2017.

Shadowfax API has already been successfully integrated with food tech players such as Zomato, a classic case of an online food marketplace. It also has an exclusive integration with Bigbasket’s Specialty service, establishing Shadowfax’s reputation as the provider of choice for this segment.

“At Shadowfax, for allocation of new orders, we also analyse past data points to predict ETA of the riders completing an order nearby. This enables us to pre-empt the serviceability of a region. The entire thing is being done in a real-time engine,” said Yadunath Gupta, an IIT Kharagpur alumnus, spearheading Data Science at Shadowfax, previously a Data Scientist at Opera Solutions.

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About Shadowfax:

Shadowfax is India’s largest crowdsourced delivery platform with presence in 13 cities across India and 5000+ daily active delivery personnel. Shadowfax’s unique app enables the delivery of food, groceries, pharmacy, and e-commerce for businesses and helps them create customer delight using technology. With a relentless focus on engineering pleasant experiences for the customers, Shadowfax envisions becoming the most desirable and trustworthy delivery platform for customers.