In a recent attempt to experience life as a food delivery agent, Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal faced the kind of challenges that delivery partners deal with daily. While picking up an order from Haldiram's at Ambience Mall in Gurugram, Goyal was refused entry through the main door and had to wait on the stairs—underscoring the difficulties delivery workers regularly encounter.
Goyal, alongside his wife Grecia Munoz (who recently changed her name to Gia Goyal), spent a day working as Zomato delivery agents in Gurgaon to better understand the on-ground realities of the job. The couple, clad in Zomato uniforms, zipped around the city on a delivery bike, navigating through the streets and interacting with customers.
While on this delivery journey, Goyal encountered a major roadblock at Ambience Mall. Dressed as a regular Zomato delivery agent, Goyal arrived to pick up an order from Haldiram's but was immediately stopped by mall security. Rather than allowing him to use the main entrance, security guards directed him to the service stairs—an area typically reserved for delivery personnel.
When Goyal enquired about a lift, he was sent back to the stairs. After climbing three flights, he reached Haldiram’s only to face another hurdle: delivery partners, including Goyal, were forced to wait at the stairs and weren’t allowed inside the restaurant to collect their orders.
While waiting with other delivery workers, Goyal used the opportunity to gather feedback from them about their working conditions. He described the situation in a post on X (formerly Twitter), highlighting how frustrating it was to be barred from entry, just as many delivery agents experience daily. He eventually managed to pick up the order, but only after the security guard took a break.
Goyal took to social media to share his experience, he claimed the food delivery platform will have to work with malls and restaurants to improve the treatment of delivery partners. He noted that these workers often face similar struggles, calling for malls to adopt a more humane approach towards them.
“During my second order, I realised that we need to work with malls more closely to improve working conditions for all delivery partners. And malls also need to be more humane to delivery partners,” Goyal tweeted.
Goyal’s initiative garnered significant attention on social media, with some users praising the hands-on approach, while others expressed hope that the experience would lead to meaningful improvements for delivery workers.