Mumbai Dabbawalas Case

1.

Why were Mumbai Dabbawalas successful?

The main reason for the success of Mumbai dabbawala is the need of the customer they are
fulfilling. The middle income earning group in Mumbai city is their target customers. Being the
commercial capital of India, this category of people was there from the days of industrial revolution.
As time progresses their number got increased. Their need to have homely cooked food for lunch is
the business opportunity for Dabbawala. However with the growing population density of Mumbai,
transportation was becoming a big problem. This was solved by the suburban rail network. In this
business model, more than anything else the dedication required is very high. In an Indian scenario
we can expect this from people who possess basic education qualification. In any business the
salary earned by its employees should be more than sufficient to meet their needs. Dabbawalas
were happy with the Rs.5000/- monthly salary. This is only because this is being operated in
Mumbai. Mumbai is the only metro where all category of people can have a decent living according
to their earning potential. And finally the origin of the Dabbawala from a place called Mavla, which is
very crucial. Only the geographical similarity is important but the economy prevailing in that region is
definitely catering to the overall success of Dabbawalas.
2.

Why was the model not duplicated/ applied anywhere in India?

Mumbai is the commercial capital of India from time immemorial. Compared to any other place in
India this city has the largest middle income earning group. All generations of this category of
people always love to have home cooked food for lunch. This is not because of the cost benefit but
mainly because it is homely cooked. Considering the population density in Mumbai, it is impractical
for a person belonging to this group to have homely food without the help of a third person, who is
crucial in transporting the food from home to office. The role of the third person is being acted by the
Dabbawalas. The Mumbai suburban rail network helps dabbawalas to complete the role with
perfection in this chain. We cannot find all this factors getting converged in any other place in India.
That is why the model not got duplicated anywhere in India.
3.

Is it scalable?

Yes, the model is scalable to a certain extent. The structure of the organization is based on
parameters such as low cost delivery and reliability. However, the success is again pegged to
decentralization, availability of longitudinal geography and the low cost transport infrastructure. Such
environmental factors may be available in other cities too. Scalability is also possible into other areas
such as hyper local delivery services where the existing infrastructure and model may be tweaked for
city local deliveries.

4.

How to solve various problems faced by Mumbai Dabbawalas?

Some of the main issues faced by the Dabbawalas are:

Shrinking Customer base and customer loyalty

o The reduction of workforce and customer base have historically (Mumbai textile mills
closure) affected the business of the Dabbawalas. The system has since evolved
built-in mechanisms to accommodate fluctuations in demand. They have also
expanded to reach out to new segments such as school lunch deliveries and delivery
of lunch from caterers etc.

Lifestyle changes
o Double income families meant both husband and wife working and homemade food
not being the preferred option with a shift to convenience food and ticket restaurants.
Dabbawalas say the shift is trivial and home cooked is still the preferred choice.
Deliveries from caterers have also increased in the recent years helping them regain
some of the business lost from double income families.

Workforce management
o The current generation, children of Dabbawalas (and their parents) prefer to get into
other occupations and leave the family tradition for brighter and classier pastures.
However, to fill the void, there is constant influx of workforce from the villages to
replace the Dabbawalas retiring and to meet increase in demand.

Submitted by :
Pillai

Karthik S

Kurien Joseph
Reju Verghese
Muhammad Mishel
P