Retail Facts

The Retail Industry


http://www.ibef.org/industry/retail.aspx

India's vast middle class and its almost untapped retail industry are key attractions for global retail giants wanting to enter newer markets. Driven by changing lifestyles, strong income growth and favourable demographic patterns, Indian retail is expected to grow 25 per cent annually.
Modern retail in India could be worth US$ 175-200 billion by 2016. With the economy booming, competition in the marketplace is fierce. According to 'Retail in India Getting Organised to Drive Growth', a report by AT Kearney and the Confederation of Indian Industry, retail is one of India's fastest growing industries with a 5 per cent compounded annual growth rate and expected revenues of US$ 320 billion in 2007. Rising incomes, increasing consumerism in urban areas and an upswing in rural consumption will fuel this growth to around 7-8 per cent.

KSA-Technopak, a retail consulting and research agency, predicts that by 2010, organised retailing in India will cross the US$ 21.5-billion mark from the current size of US$ 7.5 billion.
Retail space
Retailers in India are the most aggressive in Asia in expanding their businesses, thus creating a huge demand for real estate. Their preferred means of expansion is to increase the number of their outlets in a city, and also expand to other regions, revealed the Jones Lang LaSalle third annual Retailer Sentiment Survey-Asia.
Deutsche Bank's research report on 'Building up India' says India's burgeoning middle class will drive up nominal retail sales through 2010 by 10 per cent per annum. The country may have 600 new shopping centres by 2010.

Food retail
Food dominates the shopping basket in India. The US$ 6.1 billion Indian foods industry, which forms 44 per cent of the entire FMCG sales, is growing at 9 per cent and has set the growth agenda for modern trade formats. Since nearly 60 per cent of the average Indian grocery basket comprises non-branded items, the branded food industry is homing in on converting Indian consumers to branded food.
When it comes to Indian children, retailers are busy bonding--and branding:
• Monalisa, the Versace of kids is coming to India.
• Global lifestyle brand Nautica is bringing Nautica Kids.
• International brand Zapp tied up with Raymond to foray into kids' apparel.
• Disney launched exclusive chains which stock character-based stationery.
• Pantaloon's joint venture with Gini & Jony will set up a retail chain to market kids' apparel.
• Swiss kidswear brand Milou is collaborating with Tirupur-based Sreeja Hosieries.
• Turner International India Pvt Ltd. will launch Cartoon Network Townsville and Planet POGO--two theme parks designed around its channels--in the National Capital Region.
• Sahara One Television has also signed a Memorandum of Understanding to source content from Spacetoon Media Group, Middle East's largest kids' entertainment brand for animation and live action content.
Leading the kids' retail revolution is the apparel business, which accounts for almost 80 per cent of the revenue, with kids' clothing in India following international fashion trends. According to research firm KSA Technopak, the branded segment comprises US$ 701.7 million of the total kids' apparel market-size of over US$ 3 billion.
Industry experts say kids' retailing will touch annual growth of 30-35 per cent. Toys, stationary, sportswear, outerwear, tailored clothing, eyewear, watches, fragrance, footwear, theme parks, TV channels… the segment is growing rapidly at 10 per cent per annum. Margins are in the range of 20-25 per cent (for dealers and distributors), while companies enjoy an average gross margin of about 10 per cent.
International retailers
• The Australian government's National Food Industry Strategy and Austrade initiated a test marketing food retail in India wherein 12 major Australian food producers have tied up with India-based distributor AB Mauri to sell their products directly at retail outlets.
• The largest-ever 150-member British business delegation in India committed investments in the areas of food processing, agri retail and manufacturing. It is also likely to press for the liberalisation of sectors like financial & legal services and retail.
• US-based home delivery and logistics company, Specialised Transportation Inc, will enter the Indian market through a strategic alliance with Patel Retail, a subsidiary of Patel Integrated Logistics.
• Among other big international players, Wal-Mart has announced its plans for India in partnership with Bharti, Tesco is sure to try again, and Carrefour too might finally find the right partner.
Retail reform
The Government regulations allow 100 per cent FDI in cash and carry through automatic route and 51 per cent in single brand. Besides, the franchise route is available for big operators. Now, the Government also proposes further liberalisation in the retail sector allowing 51 per cent FDI in consumer electronics and sports goods.
The retail road ahead
The Indian retail market is estimated at US$ 350 billion. But organised retail is estimated at only US$ 8 billion. However, the opportunity is huge--by 2010, organised retail is expected to grow to US$ 22 billion. With the growth of organised retailing estimated at 40 per cent (CAGR) over the next few years, Indian retailing is clearly at a tipping point. India is currently the ninth largest retail market in the world. And it is names of small towns like Dehradun, Vijayawada, Lucknow and Nasik that will power India up the rankings soon.




http://www.imagesretail.com/updates_jun05.htm#11 http://www.imagesretail.com/

Raj Jain Appointed President of Emerging Markets for Wal-Mart International
Raj Jain has joined as President of Emerging Markets for Wal-Mart International, a position he assumed in May 2006. He is based in Shanghai and is in charge of business development for the emerging markets in the Asia-Pacific region. In his position as President of Emerging Markets for Wal-Mart International, Jain will also play an active role in overseeing the company's business development in India , as will evaluate various opportunities available to the company within existing guidelines.
Wal-Mart recently received approval to open a liaison office to conduct market research in India . "We are currently in the process of setting up this office, which will be staffed by a small team to help our market study activities on the ground. We also continue to focus our efforts on improving our direct sourcing from India through our Global Procurement office in Bangalore," a Wal-Mart Spokesperson told IMAGES Retail.
CALVIN KLEIN, MURJANI GROUP SIGN UP FOR INDIA LAUNCH
Calvin Klein Inc., the clothing design and marketing studio formed in 1968, is to set up a retail operation in India. The clothing empire and Murjani India Ltd. have announced an agreement for the latter to market and distribute the brand's various labels throughout India and open dozens of retail stores planned for the subcontinent.
The agreement authorises Murjani to market the Calvin Klein lineup through exclusive retail outlets and select department stores approved by the company. It includes the original Calvin Klein Jeans line and the unisex ck Calvin Klein label, which the company introduced in the mid-1990s.
Murjani India, a subsidiary of the Murjani Group, focuses on attracting international brands and retail concepts to India. Murjani forged a separate deal with The Warnaco Group, a New York-based apparel company, granting Warnaco exclusive rights to distribute the Calvin Klein Underwear line of products in India and supply Calvin Klein Jeans to Murjani.
The broad plan is to open at least 40 Calvin Klein-branded stores during the first five years of the operation, with construction beginning as early as March 2007.
DISNEY ARTIST STORES TO TAKE OFF IN JAN 2007
The Ravi Jaipuria held company RJ Corp has signed an exclusive master franchise agreement with Disney Consumer Products to source and market Disney character branded cards, stationery, arts, crafts and party products through exclusive Disney Artist stores in India . The first of the stores is to open in Mumbai in January 2007.
Under the Disney Artist brand in India, RJ Corp will sell as vast range of Disney character-led products aimed at the kids and youth category.
“RJ Corp will open five Disney Artist stores in Mumbai and Delhi before expanding to major markets in India . Over the next 12 months, we should have 15 such outlets in place. And by 2011, we will be investing about 100 crore in expanding our presence to 150 stores across India ,” Ravi Jaipuiria, Chairman, RJ Corp announced on October 11.
BRAND FACTORY LAUNCHES IN BANGALORE
Brand Factory is Pantaloon Retail (India) Ltd’s (part of the Future Group) latest value-retailing format. The first Brand Factory outlet was launched at Marathahalli, the factory outlet hub of Bangalore. A second outlet is also coming up at Abids, Hyderabad. This 70,000 sq.ft standalone store is spread across five floors and offers apparel, luggage, footwear, cosmetics, accessories, furnishings and home linen at 20 to 50 percent discounts. Over 120 apparel brands including Levi’s, Indigo Nation, Bossini, Louis Philippe, Allen Solly, Provogue, Reebok, Arrow and John Miller are present at the value-shopping store. The Future Group intends to take this format to all metros and tier-II towns with a population of more than 10,00,000.
TATA SUBSIDIARY LAUNCHES CONSUMER DURABLES CHAIN
Infiniti Retail, a 100-per cent subsidiary of Tata Sons, has launched the first mega store of Croma , India 's first national chain of multi brand outlets for consumer electronics and durable products. Ratan Tata, Chairman, Tata Sons, and Roger Corbett, Independent Consultant, Woolworths, Australia, jointly launched the first Croma mega store in Juhu, Mumbai , amidst a high-tech display of technology and human interface built around the concept of 'See, Touch and Feel'. The sprawling store, spread over 20,000 sq ft of space, has on display more than 6,000 products across eight categories, namely, home entertainment, small appliances, white goods, computers and peripherals, communication, music, imaging and gaming software. The store currently offers more than 180 national and international brands.
Speaking at the launch of Croma, RK Krishna Kumar, director, Tata Sons, said, " The launch of Croma heralds a whole new retail experience for consumers. With the widest range of products, unparalleled customer service and a unique shopping experience, Croma will set new benchmarks in the consumer durables and electronics retailing in India ."
Roger Corbett, Independent Consultant, Woolworths, said, "We are very delighted to partner the Tatas in their foray into consumer electronics and durables. Woolworths is one of the world's largest retail companies with a multitude of formats. Our association with Tatas will ensure a high-end offering to consumers. We are encouraged by the growth in the Indian economy and as an exciting, emerging market for retail."
In an effort to help consumers make informed decisions, 'Croma' will be equipped with trained professionals who are undergoing an extensive training programme that will equip them with in-depth knowledge of the products and brands available at the store, thereby allowing them to provide the right kind of guidance to the customer.



SPINACH TO GROW FROM 10 TO 60 OUTLETS BY THE YEAR END
Wadhawan Food Retail Pvt. Ltd. (WFRL), which operates 10 food retail outlets under the brand name Spinach, has plans to open 60 food and grocery stores in Mumbai and Pune by the end of this year. The company plans to expand further to the Eastern and Northern states in another two years.
WFRPL launched its first store in Mumbai in February this year and targets to cover 1,54,000 sq.ft of retail space by the year end. These stores are mainly in supermarket format and will be rolled out in three sizes -- Spinach Express of about 1,000sq.ft, Spinach Local of 3,000 sq.ft and Spinach Super of 6,000 sq.ft.
“WFRL is projecting a Rs.90-crore turnover in FY 2006-07,” Dippankar S Halder, CEO, WFRPL told IMAGES Retail.
PRESTIGE GROUP PLANS TO INVEST RS.2,500 CRORE
Bangalore based real estate developer; Prestige Group, plans to invest Rs.2,500 crore into the mall development business over the next two to three years. The group has plans to set up malls in Chennai, Hyderabad , Bangalore , Mangalore, etc.
As per company sources, each mall will entail an investment of about Rs.200 to 300 crore and will be designed with the expertise of an in-house team and a set of outscourced architects. The company plans to dedicate three million sq.ft of space across the four cities.
PRIL TO ROLL OUT ‘BRAND FACTORY’ VALUE FORMAT
Pantaloon Retail India Ltd is shortly to unveil another retail format in the value sphere known as Brand Factory. This formats would occupy 60,000-1,00,000 sq.ft., with a ‘fashion at a discount' positioning. The chain will retail known brands at factory pricing. The main revenue drivers are envisaged to be apparel, accessories and footwear.
The first two stores will open in Bangalore and Hyderabad within the next few weeks.



TRINETHRA SUPER RETAIL TO INVEST RS.1 BILLION IN EXPANSION
Trinethra Super Retail Ltd. (TSRL), the Hyderabad-based retail marketing chain, will invest Rs.1 billion over the next two years in order to expand business and open more outlets in South India .
According to reports, the number of retail outlets would be increased to 205 by the end of current fiscal from the existing 170. The number of outlets in Andhra Pradesh would be increased to 90 from the present 73, and 50 would be opened in Karnataka. TSRL will open 40 retail shops in Tamil Nadu and 25 in Kerala by the end of FY`07.
All the stores in Kerala would be opened under the group's 'Fabmall' brand. By September end, there would be nine Fabmall stores, including two supermarkets at Aluva and Kottayam and a supercentre at Kakkanad.
The company, which had a total turnover of Rs.2.4 billion in FY`06, has targetted turnovers of Rs.3.6 billion by March 2007 and Rs.6.5 -7 billion by FY`08.
KAYA SKIN CLINIC TARGETS 55 OUTLETS BY END FY-07
Kaya Skin Clinic, the beauty & wellness services chain from Marico Ltd., plans to open 55 outlets by the end of 2007.
The company is hoping for a tally of 50 such outlets covering a total retail space of 75,000 sq.ft across 18 cities by the end of FY 2006-07. Kaya Skin Clinics – all owned and operated by the company – is targetting to touch a turnover of Rs.65 crore in the current fiscal, growing from Rs.45 crore in the last year.
The chain is also setting up Kaya Skin Zones in malls across India to provide easy access for customers to Kaya range of skin solutions. The company is aiming to establish 15 Kaya skin zones by end-2007.
FNP TO ADD 15 OUTLETS BY 2006-07
New Delhi-based florist Ferns n Petals plans to add 15 more outlets to its existing 55 retail points across 32 cities by the end of the FY 2006-07. The company would be adding 11,000 sq.ft of retail space, with the cumulative total rising to 40,000 sq.ft, through this expansion plan.
Home Solutions Retail (India) Ltd. launches E-ZONE consumer durables store

Home Solutions Retail ( India ) Ltd, a group company of the Future Group (formerly Pantaloon Retail India Ltd.) has launched E-Zone, its first electronics store at Jayanagar in Bangalore .

The outlet covers an area of 8,500 sq.ft zoned across three dedicated areas – the L iberation zone, Experience zone and the Home zone . The liberation zone offers personal products like computers, laptops, handy cams, MP3 players and mobile phones. Entertainment products are on display in the experience zone that offers Plasma / LCD, Flat TVs, top-of-the-line Home Theatre systems, DVD players, Stereo systems etc. And in the home zone segment, one gets to pick his/her choice of Refrigerators, Air Conditioners, Microwave ovens etc.

E-Zone would have a dedicated service support to be able to deliver this on a sustained basis and the required back-end is being implemented. This will be branded as E-Care . Customers can access service and support by calling to this single point contact, instead of the various different company service centers.

V.Rajesh , chief marketing officer, Home Solutions Retail said, “Our differentiator would be providing a complete ‘peace of mind' safety net to the customer's purchase choice. Our brand E- Zone , will represent an excellent shopping experience and most importantly, complete satisfaction and post-purchase peace of mind.”

The retailer has also launched a consumer durable brand called “KORYO”. Speaking about KORYO, Manoj Kumar, chief – consumer durable & electronics, Home Solutions Retail said: “The differentiator would be the pricing of the KORYO Range . For example, the range of KORYO window air conditioner starts at Rs.7 ,990 , which is comparable to air cooler prices. Similarly all KORYO Products would offer the best in the class technology, features and service backup, at unbelievably low prices.”

Pantaloon Retail ( India ) Limited had a turnover of Rs.1 ,084 crore for the financial year ending June 2005.
Marylin Aloysius
©IMAGES Retail
Wal-Mart follows Carrefour, exits South Korea
Wal-Mart Stores has followed French retailer Carrefour, in withdrawing from South Korea on May 30, becoming the latest global brand to fail in an economy characteristed by highly localised tastes and strong loyalty to regional brands. Wal-Mart announced that it had agreed to sell all 16 of its South Korean outlets to Shinsegae , a local retailer, for US$882 million.

Shinsegae , a leading department store and hypermarket chain in South Korea , will operate the Wal-Mart stores under its E- Mart brand. E-Mart is the biggest discount store chain in South Korea , with 79 outlets.

Carrefour sold its 32 South Korean stores to the local fashion retailer E-Land last month for $1.85 billion.

Prior to the Wal-Mart sale, the E-Mart chain of Shinsegae accounted for 30 per cent of the local market, followed by Homeplus , which is owned by the British retailer Tesco , with 17 per cent; and Lotte Mart, owned by Lotte Shopping of South Korea, with 12 per cent.

Wal-Mart and Carrefour, which entered the country in 1996, are believed to have failed due to flawed merchandising mixes – preference for western food items and retailing methods – that allowed chains like E-Mart to race ahead with localised product baskets and more interactive retailing tools to connect with consumers.

Over the years, South Korea has been an impossible terrain for some of the most competitive global brands – Nokia, Nestle and Google – who have found it hard to break the stranglehold regional giants such as Samsung and LG have over the South Korean consumers.
Hyperpanda crosses border into UAE
Saudi Arabia 's hypermarket giant HyperPanda has extended beyond its country of origin to the UAE, with the opening of its first international store in Dubai Festival City on May 30. The retailer occupies 1 ,75,000 sq.ft of space at the centre, Bassem Terkawi at Dubai Festival City told IMAGES Retail.
HyperPanda is operated by the Savola conglomerate, which owns one of the largest retail food chains in the Middle East – the Panda and Azizia supermarkets – as well as fast food restaurants. The group's interests supply Saudi Arabia , the Middle East and North African countries with edible oils, sugar, and fresh dairy products. Savola's expansion strategy for its retail division has led to a property development drive, mainly in malls, to house their hyper- and supermarkets.
Dubai Festival City, the Creekside mixed-use destination being developed by the Al Futtaim Group, staged the opening of its highly anticipated Festival Centre ‘Gateway' in May, the first phase of the development's 2.6 million sq.ft ‘urban retail resort', in time for the Dubai Summer Surprises, which runs from 21st June till September 1st.

Creating a unique shopping precinct which caters for all a customer's household needs, the launch includes, besides the HyperPanda opening, the launch of the largest ACE Hardware & Garden Centre outside of North America and the flagship 50,000 square feet Plug-Ins ElectroniX . These big box retailers will join the 245,00 square feet IKEA ‘destination' store – the largest in the UAE – which has been open at the development since November last year.
ZICOM STORES TO SECURE HOMES, BUSINESSES
Corporate safety and security service provider, Zicom Electronic Security Systems Ltd. (ZESSL) is planning to enter the consumer segment through its new division Zicom consumer service group. Through this division, the company plans to launch 600 Zicom retail stores in 100 cities across the country by 2008-09. The stores would retail ZicomHome home security systems priced between Rs.6,495-12,995 and ZicomBusiness security systems for small and medium enterprises and retail outlets priced from Rs.54,995 to Rs.99,995. In the first phase, the company plans to enter the retail market with 100-125 stores in 24 towns across all directions. Spread in 500-600 sq.ft area, the stores are targetted at high footfall regions. “Expansion will be through franchise route – we plan to invest Rs.10-15 lakh in the set up of each outlet. The cost would include investment in leasing out spaces and doing up the outlet in terms of branding and interiors. The outlets will then be handed over to franchisee for day-to-day operations,” Santanu Choudhury, CEO, Consumer Service Group, ZESSL told IMAGES Retail.

Franchisees would need to invest in stocks while returns will be in the form of margins generated from sales. The retail outlets will also provide add-on services like installation, after sales services, central monitoring etc. to customers.

Launched in 1995, ZESSL reported a turnover of Rs.90 crore in 2005-06 and expects to achieve a turnover of Rs.220 crore by the next financial year (including the consumer service division).
VISHAL MEGA MART LAUNCHES FIRST HYPERMARKET IN UDAIPUR
Vishal Group launched their first hyper market Vishal Mega mart in Udaipur this month. Spread over 25,000 sq.ft, the store offers extensive range of men’s, women’s and kids’ range of fashion clothing. Beside fashion attire, it will also have separate sections and counters for watches, sunglasses, fashion accessories, gifts and novelties, electrical appliances, digital diaries, perfumes, cosmetics and grocery items etc.

Currently, Vishal Mega Mart operates 29 fully integrated and self-owned stores spread over a total shopping area of 5,70,000 sq.ft in 21 cities across India
BOOKS AND BEYOND FROM RPG SOON
RPG Retail is planning to foray into books retail, with the launch its own bookstores “Books and Beyond” by October this year. “Books and Beyond” will follow the Music World strategy for its expansion. The first standalone outlet will be launched in Kolkata before moving ahead with pan-India expansion. “The outlets are to occupy spaces between 15,000-18,000 sq.ft and will also include the concept of a Music World and a café,” Sumantra Banerjee, president and CEO, RPG Retail Group told IMAGES Retail.

Meanwhile, RPG is also planning to expand its retail brand Music World to the Middle East market. The format would primarily target areas with a substantial chunk of Indian population. “For the Middle East market, we are looking at the master franchisee option,” added Banerjee.
Landmark launches in Mumbai

Books and music retailer ‘Landmark' launched its first store in western India at Infiniti Mall, Andheri, Mumbai on April 26. Spread across 18,000 sq. ft Landmark is housed on the 2 nd floor of the mall , with lavish interiors. This is the sixth Landmark store in the country. Landmark so far had five stores – three in Chennai, one each in Kolkata and Bangalore .
Speaking on the launch of Landmark's first store in Mumbai, Hemu Ramaiah , CEO Landmark told IMAGES Retail , “With over 1 ,00,000 plus book titles, 70,000-plus movies, a wide range of stationery, toys, accessories, perfumes, diamond jewellery and an inviting, comfortable environment, Landmark is a category killer in all focus categories. Later this year Landmark plans to open stores in Delhi, Baroda, Pune and one more in Mumbai .”
Talking about their distribution agency ‘ Westland ', she said, “It is a different business model. It is our supply chain to Landmark; we are also distributors to 350 retailers across the country. Our purpose is to augment the market; we don't think competitors eat into our share.”
PROZONE-OMAXE IN RETAIL JV
As part of Prozone's plan to develop India 's largest shopping mall network, Prozone Enterprises, the wholly owned subsidiary of Provogue , signed a JV with Omaxe Group, one of the largest real estate developers in North India , to develop shopping malls in townships owned by the latter.

In the first phase, a SPV promoted by the joint venture will invest Rs.1 ,500 crore to develop 10 malls across north India and in the second phase invest Rs.5,000 crore to develop 30 properties owned by Omaxe .

Omaxe is building 30 townships and 14 malls, has projects worth Rs.12 ,000 crore under implementation and another Rs.10,000 crore under-pipeline projects. At present, Omaxe is developing 4.1 million sq.ft of commercial development, mainly malls. Prozone is developing over 12 million sq.ft . of modern retail space and plans to develop 50 retail malls across the country focused on tier two cities which will come up in two years.

Prozone is putting together a team of world leaders in retail operation, management and design to develop the best planned, designed, managed and maintained shopping environments and will take the lead in providing retail training for all their tenants. Top executives have been headhunted – Kapel Vahi has moved from Trammell Crow Meghraj to head Tenant Relations and Ritesh Munshi , formerly with Inorbit Malls and Kshitij will head Mall Management.

International design expert Stefan Zachary from the UK has signed an exclusive agreement with Prozone and will take charge of all architecture and interior design aspects to launch a new branded mall concept unique to Prozone for the Indian environment. Prozone has also engaged Paul Merrifield from Dubai , CEO, Hot Brands International, to head a dedicated entertainment division.

“The tie-up with Omaxe and the appointments of Stefan Zachary, Kapel Vahi and Ritesh Munshi means that we are right on track with our strategy to be one of India's leading retail infrastructure development houses,” Nikhil Chaturvedi , managing director, Provogue (India) Ltd. told IMAGES Retail.
Big Bazaar Opens in Mangalore
Mangalore got the first Big Bazaar outlet on April 23, 2006, taking the mark at 27 stores all across India. Spread over 32,000 sq ft, it will offer over 1.6 lakh products under one roof at the most competitive prices available in the market. Located at Bharath Mall in Mangalore, Big Bazaar includes a `Food Bazaar', `Furniture Bazaar' and `Electronic Bazaar'
AEREN R ENTERPRISES UNVEILS THEME DESTINATION MALL IN PUNJAB
Aeren R Enterprises today (April 19) announced the launch of The Festival City structure – a 2.0 million sq.ft -plus of covered area as an integrated commercial development. Located in the prosperous industrial city of Ludhiana , Festival City is easily accessible to the people of Ludhiana and affluent visitors from Phagwara , Jalandhar , Moga , Khanna , Amritsar , Chandigarh , Ambala and the entire Doaba and Malwa area. Festival City is positioned as a family destination for shopping, entertainment and leisure activity for the entire region.
“The concept of Mall within Malls will be introduced in Ludhiana for the first time. The 3,00,000 sq.ft dedicated to the Interiorz Mall – a one stop shop to meet all your home and office improvement needs is a great example of a Mall within a Mall. Other Specialty Malls like the Kids, Lifestyle, Fashion, Hospitality, Entertainment and Leisure Malls are an integral part of the development,” Dr. Rajesh Aeren , Vice Chairman, Supervisory Board Aeren R Enterprises told IMAGES Retail.
• Rs 250-crore Festival City to be Punjab 's biggest mall
• India 's first theme destination mall to be designed around essence of Indian Festivals
• “Malls within a Mall” with Kidz Mall, Fashion Mall, Interior Mall, food court, entertainment plaza and a luxury hotel.
• Punjab 's first IMAX Theatre with 7-screen multiplex
Festival City has been designed by Ms. RTKL of London, a leading international architecture and design firm with commercially successful retail and entertainment landmarks like the LaQua at Tokyo, The Entertainment Center at lrvine spectrum, California; The O2, London; and Lalaport Shopping center, Tokyo to their credit.
INDIA TO DRIVE MEDICINE SHOPPE’S GROWTH OUTSIDE US
Medicine Shoppe wants to take advantage of this situation as it sees India along with China driving the growth outside the US and becoming its key markets in the future, Medicine Shoppe® Vice President and International Business Head Bruce Burnett told IMAGES Retail.
Burnett was in India to mark the opening of 100th store of Medicine Shoppe® in the country. Medicine Shoppe India is managed by the Indian master licensee Melrose Trading Co. Pvt. Ltd.
Said Viraj Gandhi , CEO – Medicine Shoppe India : “We aim to become a 200-plus pharmacy chain by the end of this year and cross 700 mark in 2010, by expanding our operations in urban as well as rural India .”
Medicine Shoppe India has also launched a special loyalty card “ ShoppeSelect ”. This is a smart card where customer's medication details are stored in the chip. If a customer needs to access their medication history, all they have to do is enter it into any regular smart card reader and the medication history will pop up without any support of proprietary software. In future the card will be configured to store even the medical records. Besides this, the card also acts as a loyalty card where a customer can collect points for spending money and redeem their points at the Medicine Shoppe.
The Medicine Shoppe India is a global partner and the Indian master franchisee of The Medicine Shoppe International. The Medicine Shoppe India started operations in 1999 and works on Franchised Business Model. All The Medicine Shoppe pharmacies in India are franchisee-owned and operated. Medicine Shoppe® India is currently operational in Maharashtra , Gujarat , Goa , Andhra Pradesh, NCR, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal .



RPG'S RADHAKRISHNAN MAY JOIN RELIANCE RETAIL
The latest retailing honcho likely to join Reliance shortly is K Radhakrishnan , Vice-President (Merchandising), Spencer's Retail of the RPG group, and part of the original team that put FoodWorld operations in place. He is in all probability to head Reliance Retail's hypermarket vertical.

Radhakrishnan , who had quit the RPG group after an over-seven-year stint, a couple of months ago, was to have spearheaded the retail business of diamond trading company Dimexon .
INDORE TO HOUSE NEW PANTALOON FORMATS
Pantaloon Retail's lifestyle electronics format ‘E-Zone' and its lifestyle furniture chain ‘Collection I' are to launch in Indore by the end of April. The stores would come up in the 30,000 sq.ft Treasure Island mall in Indore , Pantaloon Retail India Ltd. North Zone head Mayur Toshniwal today told IMAGES Retail.

E-Zone will have three sections – Personal (mobile phones, iPods etc.), Home (domestic white goods) and Experience (high-end entertainment equipment like plasma screens and home theatres), besides the latest upgrades in consumer electronics. ‘Collection I' will be stocking home furniture stuff and it would be a combination of the branded and other sets of home furniture for all budget categories.
Senior Retail IT, Business Execs Gather At Düsseldorf’s Global Retail Technology Forum

Over 200 industry professionals from more than 25 counties gathered at the 7th Annual Global Retail Technology Forum (February 13-14 ) in Dusseldorf , Germany to share ideas on growing their businesses and brands through customer-centric corporate and IT strategies. For the first time, this year's event was co-located with EuroCIS 2006, Europe 's leading exposition for IT and security in retail.
"220 delegates from more than 25 countries proves that this joint venture between Retail Systems Alert Group and EHI-Retail Network is an excellent setup for a truly global IT event," Michael Gerling, managing director, EHI-Retail Network told IMAGES Retail.
The event kicked off with an opening host country address by Dr. Hans-Joachim Körber , Chairman and CEO, METRO AG. Dr. Körber described how to further enhance the customer orientation with the use of innovative technologies.
One of the event highlights was the opening marquee lecture, entitled, "Mapping the Way to Customer-centricity," given by John Thompson, SVP & GM at BestBuy.com. Thompson detailed the various roads taken on Best Buy's journey to a customer-centric organization. He revealed the lessons learned from and the business and technology integration requirements for such a journey.
Burlent Ergin , Director, Application Development, Casino Guichard-Perrachon S.A., discussed Casino's supply chain and IT systems transformation, initiated chain-wide after years of merger activities. Ergin described how the initiative resulted in improved accuracy, better inventory turnover, increased sales and lower operating costs.
This year's conference also included the IT Directors Debate that brought together top technology officers from major retailer companies including BestBuy.com, Casino Guichard-Perrachon S.A., The Farmers' Trading Company Ltd., and Amazon.com. Moderator Brian Kilcourse , challenged panellists to provide insights into how technologies supporting customer-centric activities can provide the intelligent shopper with a rewarding experience.
The Opening Party, held at the Jever SkiHalle , featured the 6th Annual Global Retail Achievement Awards. These awards applaud both individuals and retail corporations taking a bold leap to develop applications that raise standards in the industry. This year's winners included entertainment UK , Broadway Marketplace, The Campbell Soup Company, and Deutsche Woolworth.

AFL launches India’s first ‘Convenience Services’ retail store
AFL, a leading provider of integrated supply chain services in India , has launched AFL TouchWorld , India 's first ‘ Convenience Services ' retail store in Mumbai . The various services offered at the AFL TouchWorld store include Forex , money transfer, international telephony, international and domestic courier, travel insurance and e-ticketing. It is for the first time in India that such a wide range of ‘convenience services' is being offered under one roof.
The first TouchWorld store is located near Regal Cinema in south Mumbai and the company plans to expand into all major Indian cities in the near future.
The AFL TouchWorld store will be a small format outlet, driven by technology, offering highest levels of customer service in a professional atmosphere. It will be situated at a convenient high street location. Trained counter staff will attend to customers at the store.
The AFL TouchWorld brand will be primarily focussed on attracting footfall from the growing market of People of Indian Origin (PIO) travelling to India, relatives of PIOs in India, Indians travelling abroad and foreign nationals travelling to India who would be able to avail the various services offered at the AFL TouchWorld store to keep in touch with their own world. They can receive money, buy foreign exchange, make international calls at an extremely competitive rate, send gifts by courier, and buy low cost airline tickets for their travel requirements.
Announcing this, Cyrus Guzder, Chairman & Managing Director, AFL , said, “ Over the last six decades, AFL has been providing end-to-end solutions in the area of supply chain management and express services. With the launch of TouchWorld , we are entering a new line of business and we hope to offer the same single-window experience to our retail customers. As the Indian economy continues to grow, more customers will need these ‘Convenience Services'. I am delighted that leading service brands such as Western Union , Air Deccan , and Phonewala have affirmed their faith in AFL by offering their products at the TouchWorld store.”
Commenting on AFL TouchWorld's expansion plans, Manoj Chandra, Head – Market Development & Brand Communications, AFL, said, “ We will now rapidly expand the TouchWorld chain across India in the coming year. We plan to open over 20 AFL TouchWorld outlets in major cities and towns by next year. More ‘Convenience Services' will be added at the store over a period of time. The chain will also be expanded by appointing franchisees and these outlets will be titled ‘ TouchWorld Express'. AFL TouchWorld Express will add around 25 – 50 such franchised outlets every year to its retail network.”

Middle East retail giant LULU to set up first mega mall in Cochin

EMKE group, the biggest retail chain based in the UAE with operations spread across the Middle East is all set to enter the Indian retail sector with mega shopping malls and hypermarkets. The group which has the flagship "LULU" Hypermarkets and department stores chain with 48 branches in all major cities of Gulf, controls 34 per cent market share of the middle east retail sector.

The proposed shopping mall is coming up in Cochin , the commercial capital of Kerala . Apart from this one million sq. ft shopping mall, the project also consists of a 250 room five star hotel and an International standard convention centre which will be set up in the second phase.

Ideally located on the main highway with easy access for the shoppers, the mall will have parking facility for more than 2,500 cars. The anchor store of Lulu Shopping Mall will be Lulu hypermarket -the biggest in India with 180,000 sq. ft. of shopping space. The hypermarket will also have a host of ready to cook as well as ready to eat items from around the world in the most scientifically and hygienically designed environment.

Other features of the mall include more than 160 outlets of the leading fashion and lifestyle brands from all over the world, jewellery centres, 40,000 sq. ft furniture & home decor store, 30,000 sq. ft. sarees , churidars and ethnic wear souk , 12 screen multiplex, a food court with more than 18 outlets, coffee shops, restaurants and 40,000 sq. ft. hi-tech indoor amusement centre; all set in a breathtaking architecture and ambience.

Commenting on his maiden retail project in India , Yusuffali MA, managing director of EMKE Group told IMAGES Retail: "We were looking at spreading our operations to India and now is the right time to enter this market with its booming economy and positive government policies. Apart from Cochin we are also starting similar projects in other major cities of South India like Chennai, Bangalore , Hyderabad , etc."

"With majority of our present customers in the Gulf also being Indians, we already know a great about the Indian consumer's mind set and have done extensive research to provide them with a world class shopping and entertainment facility coupled with international standard services at affordable prices. We will be starting our full fledged leasing process very soon," added Yusuffali .
Dubai based design firm W J ATKINS is executing the project through their Bangalore office. The group plans to complete the project by the third quarter of 2007.

Pantaloon enters healthcare retail
Pantaloon Retail is preparing to enter the healthy & beauty segment with beauty salons and diagnostic healthcare centres. The first retail outlet catering to the Big Bazaar profile customers, “Star and Sitara ”, will open in Bangalore in March. The salon would be spread across 2,500 sq.ft and will offer services for both sexes. Thereafter Pantaloon plans to enter Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Hyderabad , and other cities where the group would have a mall presence through Kshitij .
Currently Pantaloon plans to reach the target customers through malls and shop-in-shop models within the group's other retail formats. “Various tie-ups are being explored; the target is to partner companies with long term vision and high commitment to customer service with a value focus,” Rahul Bhalchandra , head, Wellness Business at Pantaloon Retail told IMAGES Retail.
The diagnostic centres will offer eye, skin, dental treatments and preventive care. They will also include pharmaceuticals, beauty centres and will also provide alternative treatments like ayurveda and homeopathy.

PANTALOON JULY YEAR-ON-YEAR SALES UP 103 PER CENT
Pantaloon Retail ( India ) Ltd's sales in July 2005 rose 103 per cent from a year earlier to 1.3 billion rupees, its best month ever.
Sales in its value retail segment (including hypermarkets and discount grocery and apparel stores -- Big Bazaar, Food Bazaar and Fashion Station) rose 116 per cent to 850 million rupees, while sales at its Pantaloon department stores and the Central mall rose 81 per cent to 450 million rupees.
The company had sales of 1.16 billion rupees in June.



REAL ESTATE MUTUAL FUND PITCH AWAITS MoC NOD
The Ministry of Commerce is likely to call for a second round of discussions regarding the Real Estate Mutual Fund (REMF), the retail finance proposition submitted by the Retailers' Association of India (RAI) in March earlier this year.
Structured on the lines of the Retail Real Estate Investment Trusts (Retail REITs ) in the US that buy develop, manage and sells real estate assets, the REMF concept has been mooted with the principal objective of “enabling retailers to raise funds for expanding their businesses through real estate development,” Gibson Vedamani , President, RAI told IMAGES Retail.
Basically, the proposed REMF will function like any other mutual fund, but, instead of investing in conventional stock or bonds, it would invest directly in property development or in the equity of real estate investment trusts. As per the model formatted by RAI, the fund is proposed to be a close ended or interval fund, which could be open ended once liquidity picks up.
Hermann J Kircher, Founder, Kircher Research Associates Ltd ., a leading Canada-based shopping centre advisory has this to add on the prospects of a successful real estate finance fund in India :
“ REITs grew up in North America , once the real estate sector was relatively mature, with easy and generally accurate projections of future income streams. It also required special legislation, which is complex, but well established by now. Although REIT started in the US , they can now be found in most mature markets.”
“It may be a little early for a successful REIT in India , but it will likely come, once the market is more mature and the 'right' product is available,” he points out.


YEAR 2004 GLOBAL REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT CLOSE TO US$0.5 TRILLION: JLL
Global investment in real estate increased by 12 per cent to US$457 billion in 2004 (on 2003) according to a report published by Jones Lang LaSalle. Of this total, Asia Pacific accounted for 11 per cent at US$48.3 billion. The report, “Global Real Estate Capital – Travelling Further to Return Stronger” also identified that 60 per cent of cross border investment (US$60bn) took place region-to-region, showing that investors seeking international diversification are more likely to do so across continental boundaries rather than within their own region.
In Asia Pacific, the total real estate investment of US$48.3 billion is a 74 per cent increase over 2003. Of this amount, 24 per cent came from cross-border investment, which has grown by over 146 per cent to reach US$11.5 billion. The bulk of the cross-border activity came from North American investors who traded US$5.1 billion of assets and invested a net US$0.7 billion in the Asia Pacific region. Amongst all the real estate sectors, the office market was the most highly traded asset, accounting for 45per cent of all capital market flows in Asia Pacific.

According to Richard Johnson, Managing Director of Asian Capital Markets Group at Jones Lang LaSalle , “As well as Asian sources, there is an unprecedented level of capital from around the world looking for opportunities in all the key Asian locations. Previously, North American and European investors have been the dominant foreign players in Asian markets but we now see increasing interest from Australasian, Middle Eastern and other foreign investors seeking real estate opportunities in this region.”
“In the past, such foreign capital was largely opportunistic in nature and focused primarily on the major locations and core sectors. This has changed. Now, a wide range of capital - opportunistic, development and institutional – is seeking investments in all sectors, in both primary and secondary locations,” he adds.
Says Mridul Upreti , Head, Corporate Finance and Investments, Jones Lang LaSalle India: “ Investment interest in India comes primarily from US opportunity funds, US and UK private equity and venture capital firms, Asian real estate funds and Singapore developers and domestic real estate dedicated private equity funds are expected to be active investors, this increased Institutional investor interest is expected to push the market to higher "efficiency" levels".
“Looking ahead, we expect to see exponential growth in foreign investments across four to five key markets in India . These will be focused on suburban business parks, large residential schemes, city centre mixed-use schemes with hotel/serviced apartment components. There could be further acceleration of investment interest in shopping centre development projects in India , pending the soon-to-be announced easing of foreign investment rules in the Indian retailing industry ,” he states.
Other headline findings highlighted in the report include :
• Approximately 5 per cent of the global investible universe was traded in 2004.
• Cross-border investment totalled US$99 billion, with rapid growth in Asia-Pacific and North America .
• North American investors were the key source of capital in the global investment market, and Europe was the most active location for cross-border investment.
• The office sector accounted for 59 per cent of global capital flows in 2004, due to its size, familiarity and improved performance prospects
• Sales activity by global investors marginally outweighed purchase activity, with investors actively managing international portfolios by trading on the buy- and sell-side.
Trends for the future highlighted in the report include :
• Strong real estate performance over the short to medium term is expected to emerge as market cycles offer upside opportunities and investor demand continues to exert downward pressure on yields
• Capital allocations to global real estate are expected to grow as equity continues to flow from pension funds and low interest rates fuel the debt-driven sector, re info rcing yield compression and positive returns.
• Accordingly , demand from core and value-add investors will grow, with a focus on solid risk-adjusted returns in markets with high transparency and good liquidity
• Given the current weight and expected new sources of capital, the fastest short-term growth in Inter-Regional investment will be in markets where there are significant improvements in transparency and a large stock of institutional quality investible real estate.
• Less mature markets generally require more significant improvements in transparency before rapid growth of global capital flows is seen, particularly from core and value-add investors.


McDONALD'S WEST INDIA TO LAUNCH MEGA TOWNSHIP MALL
Westfield Retail Pvt. Ltd (McDonald's West India Master Franchisee) is currently developing a mammoth retail-cum-amusement property at Kalyan, Maharashtra. The 10 lakh square feet Metro Junction township mall will compose of a two lakh square feet Amusement Park and five lakh square feet of dedicated retail space, Subhash Purohit, marketing manager, Westfield Retail Pvt. Ltd. told IMAGES Retail.
Slated to become operational by end-2006, Metro Junction will house Big Bazaar as the main anchor, with Fame Adlabs (with a 4-screen multiplex), Timezone and McDonald's listed as the other major retailers. Although Purohit declined from revealing exact retail spaces booked by each retailer, he confirmed that the mall would house "the largest Big Bazaar outlet on a single level anywhere in India".

Pantaloon Retail & Liberty Shoes ink MOU on Large Format Footwear Retailing
Pantaloon Retail (India) Limited & Liberty Shoes Limited on September 2, entered into a JV for setting up a chain of stores for footwear retailing and other accessories . PRIL will hold 51% and Liberty 49% stake in the new company; having an authori s ed capital of Rs. 25 crore . The company will set up a chain of large format footwear stores across the country, with each store covering an area of 10,000-15,000 sq. ft. The first store will be rolled out before the end of 2005, company sources said.

The new Company will target a turnover of Rs. 350 crore by year -three with EBDITA (Earnings before Depreciation, Interest, Tax, Amortisation) levels in excess of eight per cent.

The proposed JV will combine the property and retail expertise of Pantaloon with the design sourcing & merchandising expertise of Liberty. This will provide a focused attention to the footwear category, which today commands a sizeable portion of the consumer spending. The MOU is only for retailing and not for manufacturing, it will retail all brands and products sources from all over the world as well as India.

Pantaloon Retail (India) Limited is slated to end this year with a turnover of Rs. 1, 100 crore. The company operates across various formats in the Lifestyle and Value segments and is present in 19 cities with 2.1 million square feet of retail space.

DECCAN CHRONICLE BUYS ODYSSEY
Media group Deccan Chronicle Holdings (DCHL) on September 5 announced that it had acquired South India-based retail chain Odyssey for Rs 61 crore, in an all-cash deal, and upped its revenue and profit targets for this fiscal.

DCHL, which went public earlier this year, said as part of the deal, it has acquired 100 per cent equity of Odyssey, which currently has 50,000 sq.ft of retail space in 12 locations in six cities -- Chennai, Hyderabad, Trichy, Coimbatore, Salem and Varanasi.

Odyssey has lined up major expansion plans, including growth in western and northern India by March 2008. The retail chain sells books, music, toys, greeting cards and FMCG products of leading domestic and international brands, including that of ITC, Cadbury, Duracell, Parker and Penguin.

Bollywood Fashion Store set to launch in Dubai
Crossover is a new and unique retailing concept brought to international markets from the world's largest film industry – Bollywood. Bringing the movies and fashion together, Crossover-Bollywood Se is an exclusive style lounge, retailing Bollywood-inspired fashion.
The first store is being opened in Khalid Bin Walid Road , Bank Street , Dubai by Meghna Pagrani, Director , Cottony Middle East on October 2, 2005 . This is a venture of Fashion Bollywood Ishtyle Apparels Pvt. Ltd. whose promoters are Suniel Shetty and Prakash Khubchandani, who have also successful ventures like Popcorn Entertainment and Mumbai's only water sports complex, H2O, to their name.
A roll-out plan of 10 stores in the next two years across 10 cities of the world is scheduled for Crossover-Bollywood Se.
Commenting on the launch, Khubchandani told IMAGES Retail , “For each store, Rs.6 crore has been invested. To wear designer clothes is a rage overseas and what better time to launch than during the wedding season.”
Each store will be spread over 4 , 000 sq.ft and the interiors will offer glimpses of the fiction and reality that Bollywood dreams are made of - minimalist props to exotic sets , v ignettes of films and stars, song and dance…everything that Bollywood promises comes alive through fashion at Crossover.
Crossover Bollywood Se will be a one-stop shop for Indian designer clothing abroad. Bollywood and mainstream designers have come together to retail a special line of prêt, diffusion, couture and bridal wear for both sexes . The 20 designers who are making the crossover are Aki Narula, Anita Dongre, Rohit Bal, Vikram Phadnis, Manish Malhotra, Suneet Verma, Shantanu & Nikhil, Falguni & Shane Peacock, Shahid Aamir, Shahbina Khan, Seema Khan, Nisha Sagar, Neeta Lulla, Narendra Kumar Ahmed, Meera Mahadavia, Lascelles Simmons, Khushali Kumar, Deepika Gehani, Azeem Khan and Arjun Khanna.
Suniel Suniel says, “Clothes will be priced above Rs.2000 and most of the designs will be a mix of the designers ' individual styles with what is presented on screen.”
Diamond jewellery from Adora would also be retailed at the store. Accessories exclusively and intricately made inspired by Bollywood are also available as part of the collection. Crossover takes this experience further with Hakim's Aalim salon and a new catering brand called ‘ Chai Coffi ' by Café Basilico.



THE HOME DEPOT TO INVEST IN CHINA
The world's largest home improvement retailer Home Depot will invest US$15.5 million in China to establish a store network, after receiving approval from the Chinese Ministry of Commerce. Confirming this, Jeff Nichols, Real Esta t e Director for the firm told IMAGES R etail that The Home Depot (China) Building Material and Home Improvement Co Ltd is expected to be established in Shanghai.
Established in 1978, The Home Depot's 2004 sales totalled US$73.1 billion, generated from its 1,900 stores across North America – in the US, Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands. Home Depot stores are large, averaging 1,09,000 sq.ft and warehouse-style, stocking a large range of supplies including hardware, paint, paint sundries, janitorial, appliances, communications, electrical, lighting, irrigation, plumbing and other goods.

MALLZ 99 LAUNCHES IN INDIA
The Mallz99 chain of value-retail stores has been launched in India with the opening of the first concept outlet in South Delhi 's Malviya Nagar. The store model has been derived from the US concept of ‘Dollar Stores'.
The 6,500 sq.ft. Mallz99 outlet offers a wide range of products that are priced at Rs.99 and imported from the US, Thailand , China , Taiwan , H ong Kong , Europe and Malaysia .
“We retail about 1,500 products available ranging from gifts, cosmetics, household, plastics, hardware, automotive, fashion accessories and jewellery, artificial flowers, candles, toys, perfumes, electronics, kitchenware, glassware etc.,” Vikas Gulaty, Director, Mallz99 told IMAGES Retail.
“Another 3,000 sq. ft. of retail space will be added next month, to extend the SKUs,” he added.
The second store is to launch within the next few weeks in Gurgaon, housed in a 50,000 sq.ft independent structure, Gulaty info rmed.
The plan is to roll out 200 stores of 2,500-50,000 sq.ft. company-owned and franchised outlets over the next four years as part of the expansion strategy in India .
“We are in the process of appointing master franchisees in all main zones of the country,” he added.
International franchise consultants are being retained to guide the company through the complete franchising route, franchise selection, technical know-how and putting systems in place for effective management of the operations. The company also has plans to take out an IPO by 2008 to fund its future expansion plans.

Cochin Duty Free opens new arrival store
Sales turnover at The Cochin Duty Free (CDF) for the last fiscal increased by over 250 per cent when compared with 2002-03 initial sales. In addition, the Cochin airport recently announced the opening of a swank Arrival Store that retails a range of lifestyle products and necessities, V Suresh Babu, Senior Manager (Commercial) at the Cochin International Airport Limited ( CIAL ) told IMAGES Retail .

With the launch of the new outlet, CDF now incorporates three different stores within the complex, he confirmed.

CDF Retail Offerings •

New 14,000 sq.ft Arrival Duty Free Shop (Ground Floor-7,185 sq.ft; First Floor-6,781 sq.ft.)
• 2,000 sq.ft. Departure – unique traditional collections of Kerala to o ffer an exciting experience for international travellers.
• 200 sq.ft. Last Minute Shop – for travellers who always get to the gate at the final call.

Product mix
• Electronic Goods
• Confectionery
• Perfumes
• Watches & Jewellery
• Toys
• Audio and TV
• Liquor
• Tobacco
• Cameras
• Home Appliances
• Leather Accessories
• Supermarket items
• Souvenirs
The CDF commenced commercial operations from its three outlets in May 2002. Cochin duty free shop is owned and managed by CIAL, which has appointed Alpha Kreol India ltd (AKIL) as the sole and exclusive retail management consultancy provider for an unspecified period. AKIL is a joint venture company established by Alpha Airport Holdings BV. (AAH) and Kreol Trading Est.

Shoppers` Stop to launch new retail brands
Shoppers' Stop would be opening its first home store ‘Home Stop' in Bangalore next month. Apart from this, the hypermarket ‘Hypercity' would also be ready by the end of this financial year.
In Bangalore , Home Stop will open at the former Shoppers' Stop location at Margareth Road , occupying a retail space of approximately 30,000 sq.ft., B S Nagesh, CEO & MD, Shopper's Stop Limited told IMAGES Retail. The outlet will be a one-stop home solutions store and would have products ranging from furnishings to crockery on offer
Hypercity, which will be spread over 1,00,000 square feet of retail space, will open its first store in Mumbai by March/ April 2006, Nagesh confirmed. The company plans to open eight such hypermarkets over the next two years.
Simultaneously, post its exclusive franchise tie-up with British infantwear brand Mothercare, Shoppers' Stop will be opening 40 Mothercare outlets over the next five years. The brand operates 232 stores in the UK and 247 franchised stores in Europe , the Middle East , Dubai and Singapore . Mothercare products will be imported and partly sourced from the British company's partners in India .
“We will open the first Mothercare flagship in Delhi in the first quarter of fiscal 2006-07 ,” Nagesh said.
Earlier this year, Shoppers' Stop entered into a similar tie-up with a cosmetics brand, MAC, to set up the latter's exclusive stores in the country, which gave the former a presence in the high-end beauty and cosmetics market.
“The first store has been very successful, and we will open the second in Delhi in first quarter of next financial year,” he added.
At present, Shopper's Stop, which has Rs 511 crore revenue in 2004-05, has a network of 20 stores across 10 cities in India


SIRI MAHAMART TO ADD TWO MAGNA HYPERMARKETS IN NOVEMBER
Siri Maha Mart Trading Pvt. Ltd hopes to expand its Magna chain of Hypermarkets and supermarkets swiftly, to touch a total retail space of 1.5 lakh sq.ft . by the end of the current fiscal. To achieve this target, the company will be pumping in about Rs.30 crore on opening five Magna outlets in Hyderabad and one in Visakhapatnam , adding to the operational 45,000 sq.ft . outlet in Vijayawada , which opened in August 2005.
The second outlet will open in Hyderabad in the first week of November, followed by Vishakhapatnam in end-November, Sriram Kakkera , CEO, Siri Maha Mart Trading Pvt. Ltd. told IMAGES Retail.
While the Hyderabad store will cover a retail space of 10,000 sq.ft , the latter will encompass 20,000 sq.ft . Both stores will replicate the Vijayawada merchandise mix – Grocery 40 per cent; Apparel 30-35 per cent; the balance split between Consumer Durables and a five-cuisine Food Court called ‘Taste Buds', he said.
The Magna flagship brand that essentially comprises three formats – a hypermarket, a supermarket christened ‘ Foodex ' and the ‘Taste Buds' food court. “While they are components of the hypermarket, we will also be launching stand-alone Foodex and Taste Buds outlets wherever the catchment ensures its viability,” Kakkera added.
A stand-along Foodex outlet opened in Hyderabad on October 19, covering a retail space of 5,000 sq.ft
The operational Vijayawada Magna was set up on a cost of Rs.5 crore and is reported to be raking in Rs.1.5 crore in sales every month.


OSWAL GROUP TARGETS 120 SENSA STORES
Two years after the split of Ludhiana -based yarn manufacturer Oswal Group, a breakaway group led by Ashok Oswal is foraying into retail with major expansion plans for the existing fashion chain stores AO's and Sensa , through Amram Trading Pvt . Ltd.
Sensa , among India 's first multi-brand intimate wear retail chains with about 16 brands, plans to set up 120 stores by the next three years with total investment of Rs.30 crore .
“An average investment of Rs.22 lakh has been set aside for a 1,000 sq.ft Sensa outlet. As for AO's, Rs.12-14 lakh for a 500-700 sq.ft . area will be invested,” Adish Oswal , managing director, Amram Trading Pvt . Ltd. told IMAGES Retail
“As for now we have invested about nine crore rupees. We plan to open about 20 AO's outlets and 15 Sensa outlets by March 2006,” he added.
Discussions are underway to bring in some more international lingerie brands within the Sensa retail operations in the next two months, he confirmed. The group targets to achieve a group turnover of Rs.500 crore by year 2007. As for the retail business, the (2008-09) projection stands at Rs.175 crore


ADIDAS INDIA TO EXPAND RETAIL IN TIER II & III TOWNS
Adidas India is planning to expand its distribution network in North India , targeting the tier II and III towns. To add on to the current 80 exclusive outlets, company plans to open 60 new brand stores. Adidas India is following a franchise model and prefers to be located on high streets and through stand alones.
“For the tier II towns, an investment of Rs.20-40 lakh has been planned for an average retail area of 1,200-2,000 sq.ft . per store. As for the tier III towns, an investment of Rs.8-12 lakh has been envisaged for average store size of 500-1,000 sq.ft ., ” Andreas Gellner , managing director, Adidas India Trading Pvt . Ltd. told IMAGES Retail.
All exclusive outlets will store the brand's complete product range; and the merchandise may be customised for cities and consumers (to match spending power). “A complete product mix is skewed towards the entry of brands with mid price points in the tier II and III cities. But we are considering locations that have an amazing capability to sell premium footwear from Rs.4 ,000 to Rs.8,000 as well,” Gellner added.

Ansal Plaza, Vaishali to be operational by November 15
Ansal Plaza Vaishali , positioned as North India 's first branded factory outlet mall, is to be officially launched by the second week of November. Developed by Ansal Housing and Constructions Ltd. with 2 ,25,000 sq.ft . built-up area, the mall would be 80 per cent operational by the launch period. The anchor at the centre is Vishal Mega Mart, occupying a retail space of 35,000 sq.ft . and operational on two floors.
“Apart from this, a multi brand outlet ‘Mega Store', Arvind Brands, Discount Circuit and an 8,000 sq.ft . Food Court on the ground floor are currently operational,” Vipin Mehta, DGM-Marketing, Ansal Housing & Constructions Ltd. told IMAGES Retail.
Post-launch, the mall expects an average footfall of 7,000-8,000 consumers on weekends. Targetting the catchments of East Delhi , Vaishali , Indirapuram , Kaushambi , Ghaziabad and Noida , the centre facilitates parking for 800 four-wheelers and 100 two wheelers automobiles within the property, Mehta added.

Westside opens at Pacific Mall
Department store chain Westside today (October 22) opened a new outlet at Pacific Mall, Ghaziabad . Occupying a retail space of 25,000 sq.ft , the store is the third anchor at the shopping centre and takes up space on two floors. The outlet is positioned as a one-stop family solutions outlet and retails products ranging from apparel, accessories and furnishing.
Developed by Bansal Group, Pacific Mall began operations on October 15. The mall has a built up area of 5 ,00,000 sq.ft . with other anchor stores being RPG Group's Spencer's and Globus . Among other operational retailers are Ritu Wears and Chunmun .
Speaking to Images Retail, Abhishek Bansal , executive director of Bansal Group said: “Currently, the mall is 35 per cent operational. IMAX and Adlabs occupying a cumulative area of 40,000 sq.ft . will be operational by mid-November.”


US FOOTWEAR MAJOR MARKS 2006 FOR INDIA LAUNCH
The $325-million privately-owned fashion company and US footwear major Global Brand Marketing, Inc. (GBMI) will launch retail operations in India next year, with the opening of exclusive brand stores across the country.
Founded in late 1996, GBMI is the majority owner of Pony International, LLC, owner of the Dry- shoD brand and retail store chain Global Feet and Global Feet Kids, and the authorised global footwear licensee of Diesel, XOXO, Nautica , and Mecca . Based in California , GBMI designs, develops and markets stylish apparel, footwear and accessories for men, women and children, and is distributed in over 130 countries worldwide.
“In India , we are launching PONY, Nautica , Diesel and XOXO first in 2006. We will then launch Dry- shoD , FunFlopps and the other brands that we are in the process of acquiring in late 2006 and early 2007,” Killick Datta , Founder and CEO, GBMI told IMAGES Retail in a telecon from Santa Barbara, California.
GBMI hopes to open some stores next year and is targeting a hundred stores in the next three years. “The outlets will be under the banner ‘GLOBAL FEET', ‘GLOBAL FEET KIDS' and ‘GLOBAL FEET LUXE', and the PONY stores,” Datta added.
Averaging between 1,000 to 2,000 square feet, these stores would be launched in New Delhi , Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore , and Kolkata . The company is looking at both high street and mall locations, subject to availability.
“Just like in China , where GBMI is opening one store every two weeks, we feel India has a huge a potential for all of GBMI's brands,” Datta said.
GBMI currently sources at least 1 ,00,000 pairs of mocassin construction shoes and boat shoes for Nautica and Diesel from Chennai. It also sources kolhapuri sandals for Xoxo . Datta's long-term plans include manufacture of high performance shoes in India , after importing mid soles.

SIRI MAHAMART TO ADD TWO HYPERMARKETS IN NOVEMBER
Siri Maha Mart Trading Pvt. Ltd hopes to expand its Magna chain of Hypermarkets and supermarkets swiftly, to touch a total retail space of 1.5 lakh sq.ft . by the end of the current fiscal. To achieve this target, the company will be pumping in about Rs.30 crore on opening five Magna outlets in Hyderabad and one in Visakhapatnam , adding to the operational 45,000 sq.ft . outlet in Vijayawada , which opened in August 2005.
The second outlet will open in Hyderabad in the first week of November, followed by Vishakhapatnam in end-November, Sriram Kakkera , CEO, Siri Maha Mart Trading Pvt. Ltd. told IMAGES Retail.
While the Hyderabad store will cover a retail space of 10,000 sq.ft , the latter will encompass 20,000 sq.ft . Both stores will replicate the Vijayawada merchandise mix – Grocery 40 per cent; Apparel 30-35 per cent; the balance split between Consumer Durables and a five-cuisine Food Court called ‘Taste Buds', he said.
The Magna flagship brand that essentially comprises three formats – a hypermarket, a supermarket christened ‘ Foodex ' and the ‘Taste Buds' food court. “While they are components of the hypermarket, we will also be launching stand-alone Foodex and Taste Buds outlets wherever the catchment ensures its viability,” Kakkera added.
A stand-along Foodex outlet opened in Hyderabad on October 19, covering a retail space of 5,000 sq.ft.
The operational Vijayawada Magna was set up on a cost of Rs.5 crore and is reported to be raking in Rs.1.5 crore in sales every month.

Derby Clothing to open Colombo shop-in-shop
Chennai-based apparel retailer Derby Clothing Pvt. Ltd is to open a shop-in-shop in Colombo , Sri Lanka on November 15. The outlet is a new venture of DSI group Samson & Sons Ltd. – the largest footwear brand in Sri Lanka . The launch is part of the current fiscal's expansion targets for the company, which hopes to set up 12 more stores this year.
“The new outlets will see Derby expanding into Gujarat (one more store in Ahmedabad , one each in Baroda and Surat ), Kolkata , and more stores in Bangalore and Chennai,” Vijay Kapoor , MD, Derby Clothing Pvt. Ltd. told IMAGES Retail.
The stores would be located on either high streets or malls, depending majorly on viabilities and visibilities, Kapoor added.
Derby Clothing currently has 14 exclusive stores, eight of which are company-owned and six are franchised. The existing stores are spread over Tamil Nadu , Andhra Pradesh, Kerala , Karnataka and Gujarat (one store at Ahmedabad ). With typical store size of around 800 sq.ft. and median shop-in-shop space of about 150 sq.ft., average investment per store is around Rs.25 lakh , Kapoor info rmed.
The “ Derby ” menswear brand offers shirts priced between Rs.545 and Rs.895 and trousers ranging between Rs.649 and Rs.1 ,499 , in styles encompassing corporate formals, business casuals, prints and club wear.
”We are talking about a projected turnover of Rs.18 crore for this fiscal,” Kapoor said.
The company is also setting up two new manufacturing units at Chennai, to buttress its current production capacity of 20,000 shirts and 9,000 trousers, he added.

http://www.imagesretail.com/cover_story_mar07.htm




The International Special
India a very special market

The state of the Indian market for lifestyle and fashion products is extremely good – from the impression that I have gathered, knowledge of the Indian consumer about these fashion and lifestyle products is quite impressive. The country has a large young population and these youngsters are very much globally connected, and therefore aware of the global trends – and they relish in expressing themselves freely. Much like their counterparts in the western world, they too are bold and take pride in setting fashion trends.

Live Connections

As the success of online retailing continues to expand across the globe, there is growing recognition that a physical brand presence needs to create an offer that encourages consumers to get away from their computer screens and back onto the shop floor. Therefore we believe that the leading brands of the future will be those that have a positive impact on their consumer's lives and this is an impact that will continue when their customer leaves their store.

The Enigma of Ethnic Expectations

Sarees predominantly displayed in Kolkata's western fashion boutiques, ubiquitous natya on Chennai's television commercials, emerging “event” centres along the Mall Mile in the outskirts of Delhi – more and more every day, India's retail market faces the challenges brought about by the country's cultural and regional differences. As investors, developers, architects and international retailers move from one sub-market to the next, it seems an opportune time to understand these differences and the impact they have on the retail strategies being implemented in the shopping centre industry.

Lessons from East and West

Is the world of retail being threatened by too much of the same? Why is there not greater integration of social, leisure and retail activities to satisfy the needs of the consumer? Are we taking to heart the lessons to be gained from the growing popularity of mixed commercial/retail/residential use?

Retail Theft and Crime

The war against crime and loss is a war of constant attrition where the enemy is constantly probing to find weaknesses: the retailer needs to get right many small things rather than implement one or two major policies.

Aqua Architecture

The demand for animated water features is growing by the year as property owners and municipal authorities get wise to the draw that these create among the public. This is especially evident in the middle east, as developers in the region race to outdo each other in providing more and more stunning leisure features to raise consumer time spent in the area's spectacular shopping and entertainment centres.

Creation of Brand Standpoints, Provision of Proof

Establishing the standpoint of a brand means affirming its difference with a "tailor-made" approach to reflect its values.

The Power of International Brands

As the effect of globalisation continues to ripple across the corporate world, a new wave of aggressive, high intensity competition has been brought with it.

The Middle East & North Africa Overview

Predictably enough, dubai will continue to comprise the single most dense conglomeration of shopping ‘footage' in the region, making up a quarter of the total and more than 50 per cent for the whole of the uae.

Oman's Deep Strides

The sultanate of oman's retail sector, largely fragmented thus far, is getting organised and corporatised at a fast clip. The nation's retail industry is valued at approximately us$1.8 billion, though the largest chunk of this is concentrated in muscat and neighbouring areas – around 60 per cent of the sales across categories come from the capital
http://www.imagesretail.com/articles_june.htm

creating "my kind of store”

As retailers shift from mass marketing to targeting specific groups of consumers, they're becoming increasingly innovative. Leveraging demographic segmentation has become quite common, so retailers are taking it a step further and identifying ever-more specific markets to better position their strategies.
the alladdin genie that will stay with us forever

If technology in retail was like a genie in the fabled lamp of Alladdin, then we as consumers would never be able to ask it to go back into the lamp, because we are so dependent on it as retailers and consumers. Just how automated is retail likely to become? In the first part of a projection, Sanjay Sachdeva tries to look into the retail crystal ball...
To read more...
- transforming the supply chain in retail

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology has been in use for decades, initially in military applications, such as tracking material in rugged and fast-moving situations, where barcodes could not be used. Only within the past few years has this technology been considered as a complement for barcode technology in the retail industry. What does its evolution mean for the Indian retail industry?
retail and bar coding
Starting from the point of manufacturing to warehousing to distribution and finally to the point of sales (POS), the organised retail business today is essentially driven by an efficient Supply Chain which in turn is dependent on the availability of accurate and reliable data/ information in real time. The Automated Identification and Data Capture (AIDC) Technologies i.e. Barcoding/RFID combined with Mobile Computing and Wireless LAN technologies empowers the retailing business to meet these critical needs of collection of quality data at all the points of activity across the complete supply chain.
To read more...

functional differentiation in retail presentation

One undeniable, truth in our world village is that today's cutting edge idea or product is tomorrow's accepted Norm. The miniaturisation of the mobile phone, the calculator becoming the computer, and many more are all examples of rapid progression and the rapid dissemination of exclusivity. But, how does a retail proposition lend itself to exclusivity?
To read more...
the science of shopping

Paco Underhill is a tall man, partly bald, with a neatly trimmed beard and an engaging, almost goofy manner. He wears baggy khakis and shirts open at the collar, and generally looks like the academic he might have been if he hadn't been captivated, 20 years ago, by the ideas of the urban anthropologist William Whyte, who pioneered the use of time-lapse photography as a tool of urban planning, putting cameras in parks and the plazas in front of office buildings in Manhattan, in order to determine what distinguished a public space that worked from one that didn't.






























http://www.imagesretail.com/events_sep05.htm

benchmarking shopping centre developments critical: ICSC-India
a
a

“It will be important to benchmark terms in retail and shopping centre developments in India as per the global standards and best practices if India wishes to invite foreign participation to accelerate its retail growth,” stated Charles Grossman, Chairman, International Council of Shopping Centers, Inc. (ICSC) as he inaugurated the 2nd annual ICSC-India Shopping Center and Retail Conference held in Mumbai on August 29th and 30th, 2005.
His comment effectively launched serious debates among the 200-plus delegates representing the cream of Indian shopping centre and retail businesses at the conference, while attempting to define the parameters of the ongoing mall developments in India.

Grossman, who is also the Managing Director of ING Clarion Partners, remarked that typically in the US, a development with over half a million sq. ft. dedicated for retail, entertainment & food with adequate parking and public services would be termed "mall" . Then there are of course shopping centres of various sizes and formats that are referred to as neighbourhood centres, lifestyle centres etc. based on their tenant mixes and propositions. While in India, a landlord of a building with 15 stores also would label himself a mall owner!

Talking about investments and returns from real estate across the globe he said that retail malls held most value than other property types and large sum of money was being invested. “Malls are most wealth generating property medium, so why sell it? Keep the ownership and have control over tenancy,” advised the Chairman.

V Vaidyanathan, Country Head-Retail Banking of ICICI deliberated on his Indian experience on the subject. Booking by investors is a serious issue to worry about, a good option would be to have an integrated management, he remarked.

Focusing on the theme “The Art and Science of Successful Shopping Centres”, the Conference addressed key issues of retail and shopping centres' growth in the context of recent and the proposed developments in India and saw almost cent per cent attendance of key developers from across the country.

“Shopping centre development activity in India continues in a most haphazard manner, seemingly without a care what so ever! Traffic, infrastructure and ecological issues come to the fore only after the situation becomes intolerable and unmanageable,” said Amitabh Taneja, Director-ICSC India.
"I wonder what kind of future our industry can expect if developers and retailers fail to be more conscientious of the boundaries beyond their shopping centres or stores!"

Further, having realised the concerns and limitations of the public authorities and local corporations, planning a shopping center requires a much more comprehensive view of development, Taneja added. The subject was aggressively debated at the ICSC session ”The Future is Now” with Neel Raheja, MD, K Raheja Group and Shrirang Sarda, MD, City Center, Nashik as panelists.

"Revenue sharing is the success mantra for mall developers to partner with the tenants in building a viable proposition," said Raheja

"We need to look at smaller towns and cities and not just concentrate on metros. It is places like Nashik where bigger markets lie and not just metros, moreover there is no competition," Sarda said while laying out his thoughts on untapped retailing opportunities.

The key to a successful shopping centre development ultimately depends on attracting people to visit and spend. While the developer with careful site selection, good design and effective marketing can do much ensure this outcome, the real determining factor to success is recruiting the right tenants and working in concert with them. The developer will fail if he views the stores in his project solely as rent-paying tenants. The stores must be viewed as partners whose input should be sought well-before ground is broken and whose input should be sought and heeded continuously. Creating this “partnership for profit” requires constant consultation and tremendous trust.

Yogesh Samat, CEO, Inorbit Mall anchored the session “Partners in Profit” with global experts.
Having heard the problems between the developers and tenants, Ian Watt, Director of South Africa based Old Mutual Properties, observed that the occupancy cost was a concern area for retail. Besides the stores have to come up with some unique concepts to pull crowd to the mall, remarked Timothy Hardy, Director of International Franchising, Build-A-Bear Workshop. Citing examples of his chain that has opened about 200 stores in US, he explained how involving concepts can appeal to the kids. “The visitors here enjoy the experience, buy goods from the shop as well as get to take home something,” he remarked.

Winnie Nazareth, Vice President, Marketing and Entertainment, Businesses, Ayala Land Inc. from Philippines spoke on ''Succeeding in a Competitive Marketplace: Winning Formulas for Positioning, Tenant Mix, Marketing & Management''. Anchoring the session, Anshuman Magazine, MD, CB Richard Ellis-South Asia explained how the aggressive expansion of the modern retail real estate market in India had created confusion in the minds of brands & retailers as they were not able to decide where they should take up space as most malls looked the same and had similar offering. To succeed in a situation like this it was vital to spell out a clear differentiation in positioning, tenant mix and have an excellent marketing & management strategy in place.

According to Nazareth, foreign concepts should serve as an inspiration and should not be copied. "Retail is still a local business. What is celebrated as a marketing success in one country can be a flop in another. Most Asia Pacific countries like the Philippines, Singapore and Malaysia have made malls, committed mistakes and are now rectifying, but as India started late, it had better get it right the first time itself!"

"It is important to know what your competitor is coming up with to take the necessary steps for your mall,” she said.

The conference also deliberated on the subject of the role played by international property consultants (IPCs), other advisors and local agents in the context of retail real estate development, marketing and management in India. Leading the session on ''The Art of Marketing Retail Mall Space'', Pranay Sinha, CEO, Select Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd., who earlier headed retail consulting for JLL, said that the marketing of space began right from the conceptualising of the concept and much of the success and failure of the developments in India depend upon the advise given by the consultants.

In the absence of any market data, the contribution of IPCs indeed have been significant in conducting research for various size and formats of developments, however since there were not many large size projects, they got involved with all kinds of developers to make quick money, observed global experts present at the meet.

Anuj Puri, MD of Chesterton Meghraj talked about the changing mindset and the need for developing long term vision among the developers. “Select the right city, local perceptions, conceptualise the format, have a target audience in mind, have the knowledge of the local laws and have a strategic planning between retailer, developer and IPCs for successful marketing of the retail space," advised I S Narula, President & CEO of Ishanya, the speciality mall developer from Pune.

“Look at everything from the customer's point of view. Get into the DNA of the business you are trying to offer,” came the advice from Ajoy Veer Kapoor, a fund manager. Shishir Baijal, Joint MD, PFH Investment Advisory Co. Ltd. emphasised on studying the psychographic and demographic mix of the customers before taking up any projects.

Talking on the subject of ''Creating Space for Luxury Retailing'', Radha Chadha, CEO, Chadha Strategy Consulting, Hong Kong said that with many more five and seven star hotels and premium malls coming up all over the country and even middle class consumers longing for luxury products and brands the scope in this category was huge. By developing hi-streets around heritage buildings, India has the potential for developing an ambience for luxury brands, commented Devyani Raman, Director, Business Development & Membership, World Luxury Council.

How to seduce your customers? How to develop a clear concept with which today's customer can identify with? How to develop a brand with a strong global lifestyle element? Mariana Carvalho, Partner, Whitaker International, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil spoke on “The Essence of Retailing” anchored by Darshan Mehta, President, Arvind Brands Ltd. “With today's globalisation, mall managers and developers have to go much further than demographics and observe consumer behaviour closely. The best approach is by conducting qualitative and quantitative study. This way the mall managers can learn where the mall is lacking and introduce the right brands in the mall,” Carvalho said. Giving ideas for differentiation, she discussed success stories from across the globe.

Designers and architects must balance a shopping centre's clients' (both consumers and retail tenants) desire for something familiar with a yearning for something new and different. How can creative design enhance the shopping experience in a qualitative as well as a quantitative way? What lessons can be drawn for the Indian shopping centre industry? John Ward, Principal, 505 Design, Boulder, Colorado talked about ''Creating Innovative Spaces for Shopping & Leisure'' anchored by Harshvardhan Neotia, MD, Bengal Ambuja Housing Development Limited.

“Innovation for innovation's sake may not automatically lead to great sales. Creativity and innovation starts with asking the right questions to the right people. It is important to connect with people, the local place and culture to create the right design for the mall,” said Ward.

The media and retailers report that too much socialising is happening in Indian malls but no sales. “Have we failed to create places that attract meaningful social gatherings?” was the question put to Raymond Lee Chen, MD, C+L Global Archicom from Singapore. With a theatrical presentation on “How to Create a Social Place and then Converting Socialising into Sales”, Chen said: “Learn the customer's buying strategy and create experiences in the mall as this will socially and emotionally connect people to the mall.”

Indian developers seem to have an inexhaustible supply of words to describe their projects. Creating a Common Language and Identity for the Indian Shopping Centre Industry is must. A panel discussion on the subject was anchored by none other than by Michael Baker, the director of research for ICSC. He is also the National Retail Advisor for Urbis JHD, Melbourne, Australia, and has been responsible for compiling and developing a glossary of terms for shopping centre businesses for the ICSC. Developers like Rahul Saraf, Director, Sunsam Properties, Kishore Biyani, MD, Pantaloon Retail India Ltd., Dharmesh Jain, Chairman & MD, Nirmal Group, and Suresh Singaravelu, Chief Executive, Prestige Estates Projects (Forum Bangalore) featured in the animated discussion.

Transparency in deals and clear communication is vital to gain confidence of all stakeholders – consumers or equity holders, commented Kishore Biyani.

"Developers and retailers need to establish Confidence Building Measures in terms of sharing sales and traffic data. We, as a retailer, are absolutely open to sharing our sales data with all of the malls we are tenants in," he emphatically said.

The second annual ICSC India conference ended with closing comments from Scott Harris, Staff Vice President, ICSC, “A good conference is the one that raises more questions than it answers.”

india set to be engine for retail bandwagon
a
a

Foreign direct investment (FDI) is necessary for the growth of the organised retailing sector in India, said L Mansingh, Secretary, Department of Consumer Affairs, Government of India, at the symposium on “Indian Retail Bandwagon - Are You On”. IMAGES Retail was the official media partner of the conference.

He allayed fears that the entry of organised retailers such as Walmart would render jobless those employed in the Indian retail sector, dominated by small and medium shops. “If FDI is allowed gradually, this is unlikely to happen,” said Mansingh. Further, the entry of major retail chains was likely to boost exports from India as they would source their goods locally.

Sounding a note of caution, Mansingh said several constraints needed to be removed – these included overhaul of antiquated laws such as the Essential Commodities Act and the Weights and Measures Act at the Central Government level. “The inspector raj is also detrimental to the growth of organised retailing,” he added.

Delivering the keynote address, Vikram Bakshi, Managing Director, Connaught Place Restaurants Pvt. Ltd., said retailing was the world's largest commercial activity, but in India, organised retailing constitutes just two per cent of the total retail market, though this is growing at 40 per cent per annum.
He said there were 12 million retail outlets in India, comprising mostly small and medium neighbourhood stores. Retail would growth 100 per cent in the next five years to clock Rs.70,000 crore by 2010, he said.

He said quality real estate had become available with the construction of malls. Over the next 12 - 24 months, more than 300 malls with 40 million sq.ft of space would come up in all classes of towns. “Organised retailing is set to grow fastest in Tier 2 towns,” said Bakshi.

Earlier, in his address, Prabir Sengupta, Director-General, IIFT, said international retail was marked by globalisation and a multilateral trade regime. As India globalises its economy, the retail boom is inevitable. The top 20 per cent of the country's population earned 40 per cent of the gross national income. “The organised retail sector has to tap the enormous purchasing power of Indians and tap the largely unexplored rural market.”

Speaking on the latent opportunities in rural retailing, Seshu Kumar, Head-Rural Retail Business, ITC Limited said: “In 2001/02, LIC sold 55 per cent of its policies in rural India; out of two million BSNL mobile connections, 50 per cent are in rural India; billing per mobile in small towns in AP is higher than in Hyderabad; the 24 million Kisan Credit Cards (KCC) issued in rural exceed 18 million credit-plus-debit cards issued in urban Rs.64,000 crore disbursed under KCC; and out of 20 million Rediffmail signups, 60 per cent are from small towns.”

“ITC's Choupal Sagar project includes multi-purpose hubs handling procurement of agricultural commodities and sale through rural hypermarkets. other facilities include a petrol pump, large parking area for tractors, cafeteria, insurance & banking facilities etc.,” he added.

The Choupal Sagar store format includes multi category hypermarket, with grocery & household needs, fabrics, apparel & footwear, consumer durables, electrical items, agri-inputs and agri-equipment, cycles, mobikes, he informed.

"Give customers what they want, not what we have. don't sell atta, but sell chakki machines to enable atta preparation at homes," he opined.

Delivering the vote of thanks, Jayant Davar, Chairman, Haryana State Council of CII (Northern Region), said retailing needed to be given the status of an industry. “This would help it to move forward.”

Among other important speakers and delegates at the Symposium were Siddharth Patankar, Special Correspondent, NDTV, N P Bhargava, Managing Director, Jumbo International, Bhuwan Singh, Director-Client Service, AC Nielsen, Dr. Pinaki Dasgupta, Associate Professor, Indian Institute of Foreign Trade and Amit Saha, General Manager, Coca Cola India.





































http://www.imagesretail.com/events_aug05.htm

retail 2005: unveiling the east india opportunity
a
a

The one-day Retail 2005 conference organised by CII and held at Taj Bengal, Kolkata on July 14, witnessed comprehensive attendance from heads and managers of retail businesses encompassing several retail categories from across India. Among the highlights was the highly invigorating presence of guest speaker Paco Underhill, the famed international retail anthropologist and acclaimed author of such retail bibles as “Why We Buy” and “The Science of Shopping”.
The platform also functioned as a launch pad for the much awaited IMAGES-CII report on “East India Retail: 2010 and Beyond”. The 300-page hardbound volume was released by Shri Ashok Bhattacharya, Hon. Minister (Incharge) of the Department of Municipal Affairs and Urban Development, Govt. of West Bengal, after Amitabh Taneja (Editor-in-Chief, IMAGES Multimedia) delivered a brief introduction to the Book as the first ever documentation of the burgeoning retail marketplace of East India.

Exploring in painstaking detail, the consumer shopping, retail and real estate developments in Kolkata, Bhubaneshwar, Guwahati, Siliguri, Durgapur, among other regions, East India Retail: 2010 and Beyond carries visions and directions from company heads across Fashion, Lifestyle, Health & Beauty, Telecom, Fuel Retailing, Catering Services, Leisure & Entertainment sectors, besides region-wise consumer spend analysis and brand recall amongst consumers in East India.

The welcome address at Retail 2005 was delivered by Ravi Poddar (Chairman CII-Eastern Region), who welcomed Paco Underhill (CEO, Envirosell), all dignitaries and delegates.

He cited the example of Kishore Biyani (MD, Pantaloon Retail India Ltd) whose Pantaloon Retail had its early roots in Kolkata. Poddar said until a few years ago, Kolkata had witnessed the closing down of big departmental stores like Bengal Stores. "Now, however, the entire scenario of organised retailing has changed in the city," he said.

Kurush Grant (Chairman - Services Sector Sub Committee) delivered the theme address. He gave a brief overview of the history of retailing in India from the time of the great Afghan ruler Sher Shah Suri.
"Modern retailing in India emerged even before Independence. For example, New Market (Kolkata), Connaught Place (Delhi) and so forth. However, in India the largest retailer is not any private player, but the Ministry of Civil Supplies with a large network of ration shops through out the country," he opined.
Grant mentioned that organised retailing had extended to small towns and semiurban cities. According to him the factors that have influenced the retail growth are: increased organisation of the Indian retailers, rising disposable income of Indian consumers, rural retailing initiative (ITCs e-choupal), supply of good quality land, good transportation facilities, emergence of different models in retailing and so forth.

Sanjeev Goenka (Past President-CII) delivered the keynote address. He explained the macro fundamentals of organised retailing in India in the backdrop of the following four scenarios:

• Changing demographics of the Indian family
• Large number of young working professionals in India
• The boom in consumer finance and credit card business
• Changing pattern in the oral consumption

He promised that organised retail would emerge as an aggressive force in the coming years.
"Indian retailers can realise their full potential if they are allowed to operate their stores in the 24/7/365 model," Goenka remarked.

Goenka strongly opposed the government's moves towards allowing foreign direct investment in retailing in India.

"Indian retailers need to gear up to face the competition and challenges of international retailers before the markets are opened up for FDI," he suggested.

The Industry address was delivered by Kishore Biyani (Chairman, CII National Committee on Retailing).
"The tremendous interest in retail business in the country can be felt by the rising share prices of the Indian retail companies in the stock markets. The rising payscales of retail professionals in the country has attracted the best talents to the business," he said.

Echoing Goenka's thoughts, he too opposed the idea of FDI in retailing in India, questioning whether it was at all necessary to have foreign investment in the retail sector.

The introductory address was delivered by invited speaker Underhill Underhill (CEO, Envirosell), who clearly enthralled the audience by the power of his communication skills.

"The world over, consumption patterns have never been as good as they are currently. Globally the retail business is booming but underneath all this, there is great chaos. Merchants and marketers are nervous and concerned about the fast developments in the world of retailing. The tools of marketing applicable in the 20th century are no longer relevant now," he remarked.

Another phenomenon which Underhill laid stress on was that globally the retail business is dominated by men when a greater percentage of the shoppers are women.

"The culture in a region is a major influencer of consumer behaviour," he observed.
Taking Stock of Consumer and Consumption Environment in India, Rama Bijapurkar presented some facts about the Indian retail business. She pointed out that in the next ten years India's per capita income would equal China's current statistics.

"In India, 37 per cent of the entire FMCG consumption is among the rural poor while the urban rich account for 20 per cent of the entire consumption. Interestingly, there has been an equal growth in urban and rural incomes," she said.

She noted that there are basically four heterogeneous economic groups existing in the Indian society today. The first is the IT economy which is dependent on the developments in the US. The second group comprises government employees who form the government economy. The third group is the monsoon dependent agri-economy and the last is a small group comprising industrialists which she referred to as the "Industrial economy". All the four groups are co-existing, acting as accelerators and speed breakers for each other, she said.

Globally the shopping habits of consumers are undergoing a rapid change. The bulk of the shoppers are from the middle class and they indulge in unplanned buying in most cases. Therefore the shopping process needs to be studied systematically, in greater detail and understanding the science behind all these processes. This was the central theme of the talk delivered by Underhill.

"Consumer budgets are changing rapidly. Food and apparel have lost the majority share of the customer's wallet to technology products such as mobile phones, internet, computer accessories etc. In a time-pressurized world, consumers are also asking for more convenience in shopping, and have become extremely value conscious," he pointed out

"In the 21st century, most of the growth for every consumer product company would come from the emerging markets. Indian retailers should stop looking for ideas from their counterparts in US and Europe. Modern retailers should sell the entire idea and not just the commodity," he added.

"Mall developers should move from their current role as landlords and undertake more responsibility as "place makers" or facilitators. The health of a mall is about programming, progressive design, good public spaces, merchant education and owning the complete experience," he said.

"Retailers should promote their in-house brands to gain higher profit margins and also counter the influence of large manufacturers. For instance, look at Tesco whose 20 per cent of the total sales comes from its own private label brands. The era of private labels has begun and it is here to stay."
Special Plenary

The special plenary was attended by Shri Ashok Bhattacharya, Hon. Minister (Incharge) of the Department of Municipal Affairs and Urban Development, Govt. of West Bengal. Mr. Ravi Poddar (Chairman-CII Eastern Region) delivered the welcome address followed by a brief introduction of the IMAGES-CII East India Retail Report. The minister then released the first copy of the l Report.
In his address, Shri. Bhattacharya remarked that Kolkata had been a major forerunner in organised retailing in the country.

"Rapid developments are taking place because the state government has initiated several infrastructure development projects and allocated large amount of funds for the development of other smaller towns like Haldia, Siliguri and Asansol apart from Kolkata. The annual retail transaction in the rural sector in West Bengal accounted for an excess of Rs.19,000 crore," he said.

The vote of thanks for the Special Plenary Session was delivered by Rahul Saraf (Convener, Core Group on Retail, CII- ER).

On July 15, Paco Undergill made a special appearance at the Oxford Bookstore on Park Street to sign copies of the "East India Retail: 2010 and Beyond" book. In the midst of heads of many of East India's leading fashion, lifestyle and retail brands, Underhill reiterated the need for Indian Retail businesses to modernise and become consumer-driven.

retail tech solutions at rite2005
a
a

Barcode printers with antibacterial covers, POS systems with sophisticated Windows-based software to track inventories, stainless-steel framed LCD display panels, and solutions for automatic GST refunds would be some of the innovations to be seen at Retail IT 2005, the technology showcase of RITE 2005.

In its fourth year now, RITE is the International Supermarket Product Retail Equipment, Display, Storage and Technology Exhibition & Conference, organised by Singapore Exhibition Services Pte Ltd. It will run from September 21-23, at the Suntec Singapore exhibition and convention venue.

Held alongside RetailIT at RITE2005 are two other sub-shows: FMCG2005 (for fast-moving consumer goods) and ShopFit2005. An estimated 300 exhibiting companies are expected at RITE2005.
Compared with last year’s RITE event where 5,142 visitors were registered, a total of 8,000 trade visitors is expected this year, of which 30 per cent would be from overseas.

RITE2005 is supported by the major trade bodies such as the China Chain Store & Franchise Association, the Indonesian Retail Merchants Association, the Malaysia Retailers Association, the New Zealand Retailers Association, the Taiwan Chain Stores & Franchise Association and the Thai Retailers Association. Supporting organisations are the Singapore Manufacturers’ Federation, Spring Singapore, Singapore Retailer Association, and The Singapore Association of Shopping Centres.










































http://www.imagesretail.com/cover_story_jan07.htm


January 2007

Indian Cooperatives
What Relevance in Modern Retail?
• By Kajal Dhawan

a
a

Going by the history of mixed fortunes for state-run cooperatives in India, it is perhaps time to review the policies and laws that define the cooperative governance in India so that the cooperatives can, with or without the help of the Government, revive and sustain growth and meet the challenges ahead.


Worldwide, Cooperatives have played a significant role in economic development, providing social and economic sustenance to society, especially the low-income groups by allowing a means for easy access to various goods and services otherwise out-of-reach, like easy credit & financial services through Cooperative Banks, affordable housing through Cooperative Housing Societies, fair-priced consumer goods through Cooperative Stores. The advent of the Industrial Revolution impacted deeply the lives of workers engaged in cottage industries and led to the setting up of the earliest cooperatives. Some of the first few cooperatives were: in Scotland (Fenwick, 1761; Govan, 1777), in France (Lyons, 1835), in England (Rochdale, 1844) and in Germany (Chemnitz, 1845).
The consumer cooperative movement was led by the Rochdale Pioneers who set up the first consumer cooperative store in North England, and took this movement of economic enterprise through mutual cooperation, forward.

International Cooperative Alliance (ICA)

ICA is an independent, non-governmental association which unites, represents and serves cooperatives worldwide. Founded in 1895, ICA has 230 member organisations from 92 countries, representing more than 800 million individuals worldwide.
The philosophy of cooperation was formalised by the ICA into seven principles of cooperation that act as guidelines for the cooperatives to put their values into practice. These are:

1. Voluntary and Open Membership

Cooperatives are voluntary organisations, open to all persons able to use their services and willing to accept the responsibilities of membership, without gender, social, racial, political or religious discrimination.

2. Democratic Member Control

Cooperatives are democratic organisations controlled by their members, who actively participate in setting their policies and making decisions. Men and women serving as elected representatives are accountable to the membership. In primary cooperatives members have equal voting rights (one member, one vote) and cooperatives at other levels are also organised in a democratic manner.

3. Member Economic Participation

Members contribute equitably to and democratically control the capital of their cooperative. At least part of that capital is usually common property. Members usually receive limited compensation, if any, on capital subscribed as a condition of membership. Members allocate surpluses for developing their co-operative, possibly by setting up reserves, part of which at least would be indivisible, benefiting members in proportion to their transactions with the cooperative; and supporting other activities approved by the members.

4. Autonomy and Independence

Cooperatives are autonomous, self-help organisations controlled by their members. If they enter into agreements with other organisations, including governments, or raise capital from external sources, they do so on terms that ensure democratic control by their members and maintain their co-operative autonomy.

5. Education, Training and Information

Cooperatives provide education and training for their members, elected representatives, managers and employees so they can contribute effectively to the development of their cooperatives. They inform the general public – particularly young people and opinion leaders – about the nature and benefits of cooperation.

6. Cooperation among Cooperatives

Cooperatives serve their members most effectively and strengthen the co-operative movement by working together through local, regional, national and international structures.

7. Concern for Community

Cooperatives work for the sustainable development of their communities through policies approved by their members.

Cooperatives around the world – A Democratic Business Enterprise

A cooperative is essentially a business enterprise, but it differs greatly from a sole-proprietorship, partnership or a corporate by way of its ownership, its purpose and its objective as a business. Cooperatives are owned, controlled and democratically run by their members. A group of minimum ten people having common economic interest or goal can get together to form a cooperative society. Profits are necessary for any business to be self-sustainable, but unlike an investor-owned enterprise whose whole purpose of existence is to make profit for the investors, the main purpose of a cooperative enterprise is to provide benefits to its members, its primary objective being, to meet the needs of its members.
A cooperative normally runs on the system of 'one member, one vote', based on the democratic principle that it is an institution of the members, for the members and by the members.

Cooperatives in India A Socio-Economic Enterprise

Cooperatives in India have been a part of the scheme of planned development of the Government from the very start. They have been one of the central aims of its National policy, as an effective means of promoting, both social and economic, upliftment of the weaker sections of our society.

When cooperation was first introduced under the Cooperative Credit Societies Act, 1904, it was confined to the organisation of cooperative credit societies in urban and rural areas. But in 1912, the Cooperative Societies Act permitted the formation of other societies like the marketing, processing, production, consumer, labour and construction cooperatives.

Says Dr Kurian: "Cooperation is first and foremost a philosophy. It is a faith that human beings are capable of transcending narrow self interest to work together to achieve a common and higher goal. However, the magic of cooperation is seen when this philosophy is translated into business and economic success."

The Indian Cooperative Movement has seen both successes and failures since its inception. Some Cooperatives like the GCMMF's Amul have gained global recognition, while others like Delhi's Super Bazar have gone into liquidation after meeting with initial success.

Some important National Institutions associated with the growth of the Cooperative sector:

• The National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) was set up in 1963, by an Act of Parliament, as a statutory Corporation under the Ministry of Agriculture, with the prime objective of promoting the cooperative movement in India.

• To establish an effective marketing network for selling of fertilizers, modern farming technology, etc across the states, the Indian Farmers Fertilizer Cooperative Ltd (IFFCO) was set up in 1967, and today has grown into a 30,000-member organisation.

• The apex body of 5,000 marketing societies, the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation (NAFED), was set up in 1958, to provide farmers from different states, a means to market their produce cost effectively, with payment assurance, through locally positioned wholesale markets.

• To facilitate the disbursement of agro-rural production credit, the National Bank for Agricultural and Rural Development (NABARD), was established in 1981.

• The National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) was established in 1965. Headquartered in Anand, Gujarat, it initiated the 'Operation Flood' program of the Government to establish self-sufficiency in milk production across the nation, by replicating the 'Anand pattern' of cooperative structure and management.

• With an objective to provide the common public easy access to quality consumer goods especially essential commodities at fair prices and at all times, National Cooperative Consumers Federation of India Ltd (NCCF) was set up in 1965, as the apex body to facilitate the opening of consumer cooperative wholesale and primary stores across the country.

Different types of Cooperatives

Basic principles remaining the same, Cooperatives can be classified into various categories on the basis of the activities they perform, the prominent ones being the Consumers' Cooperative, Producers' Cooperative, Marketing Cooperative, Farmers' Cooperative, Housing Cooperative and Urban credit cooperative.

Cooperatives in Retail – Indian Consumer Cooperatives

The growth of consumer cooperatives in urban areas gained impetus post the national emergency of 1962.

India, being an agricultural economy, vagaries of the weather would give opportunity to unscrupulous traders, wholesalers and retailers, to create artificial shortages for personal gain. This led the government to support the growth of consumer cooperatives in the framework of distributive trade for providing essential consumer articles to the vulnerable sections of society at reasonable prices and eliminating the middlemen from the distribution chain. As a National Policy, consumer cooperatives were to be developed as self-reliant, democratic institutions, owned, managed and controlled by their members.

With prime objectives:

• To protect the interests of its consumers

• To keep intermediaries away from the distribution channel

• To make available, essential consumer goods at fair prices, to rural and remote inaccessible areas

• To keep malpractices in check in times of crises arising from shortages, artificial & natural

• To keep a check on unreasonable price- rise

• To be a means of providing employment to young, educated and literate persons

• To add income through sales to the Centre and State/UTs in the form of Income Tax, Sales Tax, etc

For several decades, with encouragement and support from the Indian Government in the form of Share Capital participation, Working Capital loans as well as subsidies for development, the consumer cooperative movement experienced growth, and profits grew reasonably to sustain the movement. Stores like Super Bazar, Kendriya Bhandar, Apna Bazar, Sahakari Bhandar opened in different parts of the country, some even in remotest of areas, and India saw the emergence of its first supermarket self-service chains. The common man got his first exposure to modern retailing techniques such as pre-packing, price marking, price display and self-service system.

However, since the 1990s, with advent of liberalisation came reduction in Government support for cooperatives. And the consumer cooperative movement started to languish due to neglect caused by shortage of funds, trade malpractices and corruption within, with some stores like the Super Bazar chain eventually closing down in 2002.

The NCCF

NCCF is the National Level Apex Consumer Cooperative Federation functioning under the Multi State Cooperative Societies Act & Rules 2002. It was set up on 15 October, 1965 with the main objectives:

• To enhance the growth of consumer cooperatives in India

• To support the distribution agencies that were set up for the distribution of consumer goods at fair prices

• To render technical assistance to the consumer cooperatives through its R & D department

• To be the spokesperson for the consumer cooperative movement in India

Headquartered at Delhi, NCCF has 34 branches/sub-branches located strategically in the State capitals and other business centres of importance. With a dal processing unit at Bhiwani, it also runs two retail counters, one at Dak Tar Bhawan, Parliament Street, New Delhi and the other at Nehru Place. NCCF is managed by a Board of Directors and has staff strength of 566.

Main Activities of NCCF

• The NCCF provides an important link between the producers/manufacturers, the wholesalers/retailers and the consumers.

• It is primarily engaged in wholesale distributing trade.

• It is involved with the procurement and marketing of various consumer goods like different varieties of pulses, food grains, textiles, tea and other manufactured items in bulk.

• It also makes arrangement for supply of items like different varieties of pulses, iodised salt and tea in consumer packs as well as toilet soap, detergent powder etc. all over the country.

• It has retail outlets at Nehru Place, Dak Bhawan Annexe, Parliament Street, New Delhi as also at Noida, to cater to the needs of local people, keeping its margins very low.

• It ensures availability of essential consumer goods to the State distributing agencies as also to the consumers at competitive prices (taking due care in ensuring quality of the goods and their regular availability).

• Distribution of coal to tiny and small consumers in the country is done through selected branches of NCCF.

• NCCF is the nominated approved agency for the supply of stationery and other office use articles to all Ministry, Central Govt. Departments and their and subordinate offices.

The NCCF is a member of the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA) and is an active member of the ICA Asia & Pacific, regional office. Technical services provided by its R & D department to the consumer cooperatives include:

• Assistance in improving accounting, budgeting and management reporting

• Improvement in retailing techniques

• Architectural service, for setting up of modern department /stores, self service counters, building designs, lay-out plan, furniture design and display etc.

• Assistance in inventory control and strengthening of purchase procedures

• Conducting of Training programs related to various aspects of retailing

• Survey/ Study concerning the operational aspects of the Consumer Cooperatives including the State Federations

• Rehabilitation Study, preparation of Project Report and technical assistance for improving the working of the sick stores from rehabilitation angles

• Formulation of efficiency norms and evaluation of business efficiencies

State Consumer Cooperative Organisations

These are apex societies to all the affiliated Wholesale and Primary Consumer Cooperative societies and Students' Cooperative society etc in their respective States. Some of the State Consumer Co-operatives are Maharashtra State Cooperative Consumers Federation Ltd., The Gujarat State Cooperative Consumers Federation Ltd., Karnataka Cooperative Consumers Federation Ltd, and The Pondicherry State Cooperative Consumers Federation Ltd. (CONFED).

Main functions and objectives of these societies are:

• To make bulk procurement of consumer goods from within the state and other states mainly for sale and supply to affiliated societies and arrange for storage, packaging, grading, and transport of such goods.

• To function as agent of Government in Public, Private and Cooperative Sectors for the distribution of controlled and other consumer goods; to import consumer goods from abroad in suitable circumstances on behalf of the affiliated societies and other cooperatives.

• To establish and run manufacturing and processing units for the production of consumer goods in collaboration with other cooperatives or directly by itself.

• To render advice, training, technical guidance and assistance to affiliated societies in order to improve and increase their operational and managerial efficiency

In some States, where the central/wholesale stores and the primary stores have not made much headway, the State Federation has taken initiative in cooperative retailing and has set up some super markets. By this process, Madhya Pradesh Federation, Assam Federation, Karnataka Federation, Rajasthan and Goa Federations have set up model super markets and they are the top retailers in their States. Janata Bazar of Karnataka Federation at Kempegowda Circle, with an annual sale of Rs. 10 crores is a big retailer of Karnataka. Similarly, Priyadarshani Super Market, of M.P. Federation at Bhopal with an annual turnover of nearly Rs. 5 crores, is one of the biggest retailers' of Madhya Pradesh.

Overview of Some Consumer Cooperatives

• Super Bazar, Delhi
• Kendriya Bhandar, Delhi
• Apna Bazar, Mumbai
• Sahakari Bhandar, Mumbai

In words of Dr Kurien, visionary leader and pioneer of the dairy cooperative movement of India, “For a cooperative to deliver value, it needs to remain true to its values, be clear in its mission and run as a highly competitive business. It should be able to create and seize opportunities, to react decisively to events, to anticipate and act to take advantage of future trends. To serve its members - which is the reason why cooperatives exist - every cooperative must have obtained the maximum advantage from procurement, processing and most importantly, marketing and branding. Every cooperative needs to strengthen its core competencies because unlike in the private corporate and the public sectors, they cannot be outsourced without risks.”




























http://www.imagesretail.com/cover_story_dec06.htm


a
a

The hard-sell began at the India Everywhere-themed World Economic Forum in Davos in January. Lobbyist group India Brand Equity Fund spent an estimated $4 million on its Brand India campaign, getting global business leaders – modelling block-print turbans, ethnic silks and luxurious pashminas – to grin into media cameras, chew on Indian chaats, butter chickens, pani puris and club to Bollywood's noisy remixes. City buses wore Indian colours, bus shelters displayed Indian advertisements, and bars, pubs and hotels in the city laid out desi savouries and Indian wines and beer. In short, India Everywhere. Brand India back here, though, was a different story...


One that began at, literally, the store window – the Arrivals in Indira Gandhi International Airport in the Capital. Shoddy infrastructure, indifferent staff, dispirited-looking lounges, dreary cafes serving equally deadened beverages – in fact, more or less the general atmosphere at all of India's international airports.

But, someone has decided to change all that and in effect, give the 'Incredible India' fantasy a real-time flight plan. Starting with the point of entry – its international airports. Launched with a firm eye on the 2010 Commonwealth Games perhaps, Indian airport restructuring should nevertheless make arriving in and departing from India truly incredible experiences, ones that position India in a world-class fashion, with a strong flavour of its incredible culture, incredible diversity, incredible people and incredible shopping.

But, the airport rehauls are not just an India marketing drive, the plans are driven by sound business projections as well. Because, airport retail is big business worldwide.

Because today, besides the well-heeled and the business execs, more women travel on business and more families opt for a plane ride rather than trying a dusty drive to a family vacation. And with changes in airport security, passengers are now required to arrive early, consequently finding themselves with an average of two hours' time to kill before departing. In a sense, they are a captive audience and one with real spending power as well. Airport shoppers are being recognised as a lucrative market and airport retailing is evolving to meet that market.

Selling to this captive audience is highly lucratieve – in 2005, the global duty-free and travel retail market added eight per cent over year 2004 to touch US$ 27 billion, according to the Duty Free World Council.

This growth figure is about three percentage points higher than the 5-6 per cent growth rate recorded for the number of international tourist arrivals, suggesting that 'sales per passenger' actually increased in 2005 as compared to 2004.

Gone are the days when a few duty-free shops and newsstands dominated the small amount of commercial space provided in airports. Serious efforts are being made to design new airport facilities around the goal of incorporating substantial amounts of retail space. And efforts just as intense are being undertaken by retailers to tenant that space. Everyone from developers, to retailers, to airport officials are excited about this new trend for a variety of reasons and most of them have to do with that universally accepted endeavour making money. Developers and retailers are realising that retail sales at airports bring in an average of $1,137 per sq.ft. This is due to the unique market that airport shoppers provide, ranging from guilty parents who forgot to buy something for their kids to vacationers who want to bring home souvenirs of their trips to just the aspirational types who want a piece of global lifestyle brands at subsidised prices.

In retail revenue terms, Heathrow, Incheon and Dubai are the top three airports of the world – in that order.

Retail sales through Heathrow Airport in the UK – estimated about US$900 for 2005 – are already higher than those through the UK city centres of Nottingham, Manchester or Birmingham. The combined terminals of Heathrow have a retail turnover approaching that of Bluewater, arguably Europe's premier shopping mall. Schiphol, Singapore and others are pursuing similar development paths, so airport retailing is already big business.

At Dubai International airport – the third largest in the world – Dubai Duty Free's (DDF) retail operation announced a record annual 2005 sales of over Dhs2.1 billion (over US$590 million), representing a 19 per cent increase over 2004. The statistics behind reflect the phenomenal level of business undertaken at Dubai Duty Free: in 2005 the total number of sales transactions was close to 13 million, which represents an average of 35,600 sales transactions undertaken every 24 hours, 365 days of the year.

Dubai represents the extraordinary development of tourism and traffic in the Middle East. Fifteen years ago, the region barely registered on airport duty and tax-free sales charts. Last year, it accounted for five per cent of the retail sales at the world's airport duty frees.

As far as the five core categories of duty free merchandise – perfumes & cosmetics, luxury goods, wines & spirits, tobacco goods, and confectionery and fine foods – go, the first was the largest sales contributor at 35.8 per cent or valued at US$ 5,042.3 million last year. In fact, perfumes and cosmetics sales at duty and tax-free stores in airports comprised as much as 66.5 per cent of global sales of these items last year! Tobacco sales – at US$ 1,457 million – formed just over 10 per cent of airport sales and over 54 per cent of total tobacco goods sales across the world.

Traffic Patterns

Gavin Lipsith, editor of Duty-Free News International magazine says: “Duty-free sales (including airport, border, ferry and downtown duty-free stores) are likely to exceed $30 billion in 2006 – reflecting an 11 per cent lift.”

Growth in airport retail is correlated directly to growth in travel – and in some measure, tourism – and the outlook is positive across the board. In the long-term, until 2020, international passenger traffic is anticipated to grow by 6 per cent. The International Air Transport Association's (IATA) short-term projections (year 2005-2009) give a growth projection of 5.6 per cent p.a., with the strongest growth expected for Asia and the Middle East in line with strong regional economic growth in these regions.
“Besides India, the other rapidly growing airport retail markets are China, for similar reasons as India, the Middle East, eastern Europe, Russia and the former CIS states,” states Lipsith.

Immediate Past Influences

One current factor that is affecting airport retail across the world is the new security regime introduced following the foiled UK terror plot of August 10 and the emergence of the liquid explosives threat to airlines. The European Union has implemented strict restrictions on what and how much liquids passengers can carry with them while flying. In EU airports, small quantities of liquid can be taken through security checks in sealed, tamper-proof bags, and liquor and perfume sales are allowed as normal.

“The problem is for passengers transferring through EU airports. Any liquids they bring through EU airports will be confiscated during the transfer. For instance, if a passenger flies from Delhi to Los Angeles through Frankfurt, if he buys a bottle of liquor or a perfume at Delhi, it will be confiscated at Frankfurt. This situation is naturally having a severe effect on sales at some non-EU airports, and will continue to do so until security regulations are harmonised at airports worldwide – which may take several months,” Lipsith points out.

This is no overstatement. Passenger traffic at BAA's seven UK airports reached 14.3 million in August, an increase of 0.3 per cent on the previous year. However, numbers were down five per cent against forecast as a result of the tightening of security following the terror alert of August 10. BAA incurred estimated losses of US$24.5 million during the month as traffic at BAA's biggest airport – London Heathrow – fell by 2.2 per cent.

Global adoption of the security standards imposed at EU airports since November 6 will mean that the problem of liquid sales to transfer passengers will get worse before it improves, industry lobbyists have warned. The statement follows the International Civil Aviation Organization's decision to recommend the implementation of the EU restrictions worldwide.

Passengers flying from non-EU countries transferring within or through the EU have had liquids over 100ml confiscated at transfer airports since November 6, and lobbyists warned that without mutual recognition of security standards all transfer passengers worldwide could have their liquid purchases confiscated.

Which is perhaps why operators such as the Alpha-Pantaloon consortium are beginning with an Arrivals store in New Delhi and holding the launch of a Departures outlet until later. (See box: DIAL)
Or perhaps they agree with some analysts who are absolutely convinced on the superior viabilities of Arrivals stores.

“When I first began adding international airport retail planning consulting to our practice Arrivals Duty-Free stores were almost unheard of. Most airports had no retail in Arrivals and, as a result, often told me 'no one ever buys anything at arrivals!',” says Richard Talbot, president & CEO, Talbot Consultants Ltd., a Toronto-based firm that has done extensive work on designing airport retail formats.

“However, I have always been a very strong advocate for Arrivals Duty-Free stores – they simplify the carry-on problem for passengers and, more importantly, recapture revenues at the client airport.”

The key is the correct placement of the store (or stores), store design and the correct merchandising mix, he points out.

“Perhaps our greatest success in these areas has been Manila where arrivals duty-free sales now average around US$500 per arriving passenger! In our Dubai International Airport retail planning study we recommended doubling the size of the existing Arrivals store. In the first quarter of 2006 sales in the new Dubai Arrivals Duty Free store rose to Dh49 million (US$14 million), reflecting a 25 per cent increase in sales. Given the current security problems. we expect that trend to continue,” he says.

a
a

INDIA: A ROUGH TERRAIN

The world of duty-free retailing in India is virgin territory. Everything that can be done still needs to be done.
“Retail at Indian airports is not a pleasure. The physical quality of the outlets, the service quality as well as the category mix needs substantial improvement. With new private airport operators in India attracting professional retailers, I am sure that the retail offer at Indian Airports will drastically improve over the next years. We have exciting years ahead in Indian travel retail,” says Stephan Widrig, chief commercial officer, Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL).

“Clearly the markets that will benefit most from the growth in travel retail are those where growth in travel is strongest. That puts India near the top of the table, with the growth of the Indian middle classes, privatisation of Indian airports and the increasing accessibility of air travel – all driving a boom in international travel to and from India,” says Gavin Lipsith.

“The key here is that the existing offerings have been so abysmal that any improvement will result in dramatic increases. In order to do so, these regulations need to be simplified so that each Indian airport can compete on a “level playing field”. Although emphasis must be placed on tourism it must be remembered that India itself is a vast market and more and more Indians are now flying internationally. It is this Indian market (as for Indian shopping centres) that needs to be the prime target," adds Talbot.

"From my own observations I believe that few Indians today spend any money any Indian airports simply because there is nothing of quality or value to buy or eat,” he says.

As a result of precisely this atmosphere the potential retail and food and beverage revenues to Indian airports are being totally lost to either overseas competing airports or in-flight duty-free. There is no question that the Indian air traveller has time and money to spend but he will keep his rupees in his pocket and continue to spend them at his overseas destination until India's airports can offer a competitive mix of retail and food & beverage.

But, finally there is light to be seen on the horizon. Homegrown retail heavyweights like Shoppers' Stop and Pantaloon Retail are pushing ahead via partnerships with international specialists like the Swiss operator Nuance Group and UK-based Alpha Airports Group respectively to vie for operating stores in India's newly privatised airports – at New Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore.

Of the three, Delhi and Mumbai account for almost 65 per cent of India's annual international traffic of 19 million passengers. However, both airports may need $3.5 billion of investment in the next 10 years as passenger traffic rises by an annual 25 percent until 2010 in the nation of 1.1 billion people.
Earlier this year, the Nuance Group teamed up with Shopper's Stop Ltd. in a joint venture designed to enter the Indian airport retail market. The JV company is equally owned by both partners and plans to offer a comprehensive range of services, from operating master concessions to distribution for international brands.

The objective of the joint venture is to offer a wide range of services for Indian airport retail both on the duty free side and the domestic side as per applicable regulations, from the operation of master concessions, duty-free, and food & beverage concessions to the franchise of concepts developed by Nuance or third parties as well as distribution of international brands of wine and liquor to hotels and other wholesalers as may be permitted by Foreign Direct Investment Regulations.

The Shoppers' Stop-Nuance consortium has in fact, just been selected to operate the Retail & Duty Free packages in the International Departure at the upcoming Bangalore International airport. BIAL has also selected Shopper's Stop Ltd for the Retail package in the Domestic Departure. (See box: BIAL)

Clearly, the market holds much potential. “The reason the airport retailers are taking partnerships with Indian operators – and not just Indian retailers, French group Aelia is partnering Bird Group, for example – is because India is a difficult market for foreign companies to operate in without local knowledge, experience, infrastructure and connections,” points out Lipsith.

French travel retailer Aelia and leading Indian travel services provider Bird Group recently signed a MOU to create a Special Purpose Vehicle to bid together for duty-free retail contracts in India. The moves pairs one of the world's most innovative travel retailers with one of the fastest growing conglomerates in India, where Bird owns 13 companies across the travel and IT sectors.
Specialist Ops and logistics?

Analysts believe that some pure-play retailers can and do run successful airport and high street operations, although by and large, security issues and the space limitations can queer the pitch.
"In the UK, electronics chain Dixons performs strongly at airports, and news and books retailer WH Smith also does well – in fact, its airport outlets consistently produce better profits than its traditional high street stores. It is difficult for high street retailers to move into the airport market though – very high rents and tight space constraints are two factors faced by airport retailers, as well as security issues, tough staffing requirements and the logistical problems of servicing outlets where stock moves very fast,” says Lipsith.

Turbulence Ahead?

The two biggest threats to airport retail – and indeed, air travel itself – are fuel prices and terrorism, assuming natural disasters such as the 2004 Asian tsunami, which severely impacted Asian
tourism for months, will not be a common occurence.
However, Lipsith at Duty Free News International observes that there are other difficulties retailers will have to overcome in India. For one, India's Customs handbook currently has no rules specific to duty-free retailing, meaning regulations guiding airport retail are highly subjective and open to interpretation.

"This lack of consistency has caused several problems for existing Indian airport retailers. Other issues such as sales taxes differing from state to state are also problematic for retailers at Indian airports, and will need to be resolved quickly if Indian airport retail is to become the huge business many believe it can," he says.

“Yes, a structured Duty Free regulation as in most other countries would be very much needed,” nods Stephan Widrig at BIAL.

Besides these logistical issues, what remains at the core of future of Indian airport retailing is what we began this article with – the airport's role as an entry and exit point for the world. These are virtually our store fronts and they offer spaces that can market the much-touted 'Incredible India' ad copy much better than a million-dollar advertising spend can.

Just plastering digitally-enhanced and computer-cleaned images of our country's many sights and sounds on Times Square billboards and London's double-decker buses is not enough. Destination Merchandise offered in truly world-class environments and coupled with flawless infrastructure can achieve what the big purpose of this entire aviation restructure is – to position India up there and everywhere, and to tap millions of dollars in retail revenues from an international audience.
While it is clearly too early to either promise or dismiss the possibility of glamourous airport lounges as has been predicted by the operators, it is perhaps not too late for the Ministry of Tourism and Ministry of Civil Aviation to sit down and work out the vital architecture between their two constituencies – tourism and travel.

Meanwhile, in the next section, Richard Talbot explains the architecture of successful airport retailing, using the instance of the stunning Tom Bradley International Terminal at the Los Angeles Airport, USA.

















http://www.imagesretail.com/cover_story_nov06.htm

November 2006

Reliance Rolls Out Pilot Stores

By Manish Pareek

a
a

The much-awaited entry of Reliance Industries into retail has finally happened – with the opening of the first set of its pilot Reliance Fresh stores (11 in all) in Hyderabad on October 30th. Company sources told IMAGES Retail that a whopping 22 lakh rupees of sales was generated on opening day through the 'friendly neighbourhood' outlets.
Fresh, in the name Reliance Fresh, not just denotes the quality of products but also signifies the benefits that its consumers will derive from the varied range of durables. Reliance Fresh brand colours – red, green and blue – have distinct and significant values. The green stands for life, vibrancy and freshness, the colour red denotes optimism, power and dynamism, among other things. The traditional Reliance blue is to carry forward the familiar reliability of the Reliance brand.
"This is the first small step in our attempt to build strong bonds with millions of farmers and transform our relationship with consumers," said Mukesh Ambani, chairman and managing director, RIL as his mega retail plan kicked off.

Even as Hyderabad welcomed the arrival of Reliance Fresh, the company announced that Ahmedabad would be the next destination with an opening scheduled for December 28 to mark the birth anniversary of RIL founder Dhirubhai Ambani. Expansion into West Bengal and Punjab will shortly follow, with twin openings in Delhi and Mumbai

Along with the retail stores opening, Reliance also launched Reliance Select – its private label for packaged staple foods.

“The store areas range from 2,000 to 5,000 square feet, allowing customers free movement and good access to a varied range of food products with a world class ambience” Gunender Kapur, president - foods business, RIL, told mediapersons at the launch.

The main strategy that will be followed by Reliance is to open Reliance Fresh outlets within a radius of three to four kilometres in order to serve larger sections of the population. That means an average of at least 35 stores in all major metros. Aggressive pricing will also be one of the major strategies followed by Reliance in order to compete effectively against traditional mom-n-pop outfits.
The company is working to implement its pilot programme in a phased manner over the next few months. These will be spread across several geographies and will span multiple formats.