Easy way to distribute meat on Eid

Distributing meat to family and friends on Eid-ul-Azha can be a bit of a chore, but thanks to an ingenious e-commerce company it will be an easy exercise this year for residents of Dhaka's certain neighbourhoods.

eCourier, a web-based delivery company, will collect from and deliver meat to addresses in Gulshan, Banani, Baridhara, Dhanmondi and Uttara on the day of Eid and the day after.

“This service is a first-of-its-kind in Bangladesh. There is huge potential in this segment,” said Biplob Ghosh Rahul, chief executive officer of eCourier, the country's first bicycle-based courier company.

The company started taking meat-delivery orders yesterday. It will accept orders online at www.ecourier.com.bd/eid until September 9.

Customers can also place orders by phone at 09612332212 from 9:00am to 7:00pm until the second day of Eid.

eCourier received four orders on the dedicated portal within the first two hours of it going live, Rahul said.

On September 10 and 11, the company will drop boxes and polythene bags to pack the meat in and collect delivery charges.

To deliver two kilogrammes of meat, it will charge customers Tk 250; for 3 kgs Tk 350 and for 6 kgs Tk 400 irrespective of the distances.

On the Eid day, eCourier delivery men will arrive between 11:00am and 3:00pm to collect meat and deliver the parcels between 3:00pm and 8:00pm.

The delivery service will be available after Eid as well.

The company has already received hundreds of queries over phone.

“I think most orders will come on September 7-8,” Rahul said.

Initially, the service will be available in the capital's five neighbourhoods only.

“From our research we found that most people in other areas of the capital, such as Mirpur, Mohammadpur, Badda or Malibagh leave town for Eid. That's why we selected those five residential areas for our maiden Eid delivery service,” Rahul said. 

Depending on the response this year, eCourier will expand its service to other parts of the capital next year. It has also plans to take the service to Chittagong as well, he said.

The company's current clients include mobile phone operator Grameenphone and leading e-commerce companies bagdoom, ajkerdeal and ekhanei.