As the SoftBank-backed company aims to get rid of nonviable business verticals, food delivery firm Swiggy has sold its cloud kitchen unit to Kitchens@.

Under a share exchange agreement wherein Swiggy becomes a stakeholder in Kitchens@, cloud kitchen operator Kitchens@ purchased Swiggy's Access Kitchens division.

With a public listing on the horizon, Swiggy has been focussing on improving unit economics and profitability. In January, the business closed the Meat marketplace and fired 380 workers.

It's interesting to note that Zomato discontinued its cloud-kitchen program Zomato Infrastructure Services (ZIS) in 2018 and made an exclusive investment in Kitchens@'s parent company, Loyal Hospitality. Zomato left the business, nevertheless, after only two years.

Swiggy launched Swiggy Access in 2017 as its first foray into the cloud kitchen industry. To increase diversity and speed up delivery times for customers, the program permitted restaurant partners to set up kitchens in areas where they do not currently operate.

With its meal delivery service experiencing poor growth and a financial shortage brought on by macroeconomic issues, Swiggy has been reducing costs.

Also, the company recently restricted multiple logins to two devices and tightened its password-sharing policy for Swiggy One users.

Users of Swiggy One are entitled to free deliveries and other promotions at the company's several businesses, including Instamart and DineOut.

Recently, Swiggy introduced a number of new businesses, including the luxury grocery delivery service Handpicked, the direct-to-consumer e-commerce platform Minis, and the service for booking restaurant tables, DineOut.

"The addition of Swiggy's Access kitchens will bolster the reach and operations of Kitchens@ in four cities across 52 locations and 700+ kitchens, providing customers with more convenient and efficient food delivery options," says Junaiz Kizhakkayil, Founder and CEO of Kitchens@.