Retail Insight on January 28th 2010

January 28, 2010

News for the retail industry

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News

Sold 40K cameras, 7K laptops, 9K LCD TVs: Kishore Biyani Moneycontrol.com Retail tycoon Kishore Biyani is all smiles as customers flock to his outlets to take part in the Republic Day sale. In an exclusive interview, the Chairman of the Future Group says lifestyle and value formats have seen strong sales.

Cocoberry to invest Rs. 120 cr, aims to health-foods market The Hindu Delhi-based restaurant chain Cocoberry on Wednesday said it will invest up to Rs 120 crore over the next two years in order to expand in metros and Tier I cities in the country. The chain, which specialises in frozen fresh yogurt and fruit dessert items, said it will also be looking out for franchise partners to help in expansion.

Dior to open first Mumbai store at Taj Economic Times "Let's say the engagement with Dior is done, only the marriage needs to take place," said Birgit Zorniger, deputy general manager, Taj Mumbai

Ethos Swiss Watch Studios plots Indian airport expansion MoodieReport Ethos Swiss Watch Studios, a leading Indian retailer of Swiss watches, is eyeing expansion across India's airport network after recently opening an outlet at Delhi Indira Gandhi International Airport Terminal 2. The company's first airport store opened in 2008 at the new Bengaluru International Airport, followed in October last year by a store at Delhi T1, Domestic Departures.

We're an affordable luxury brand: Andre J Hoffman, President, Apac, L'Occitane Economic Times French luxury skin care and beauty brand L'Occitane has lined up major plans for India. L'Occitane Asia Pacific president, Andre J Hoffman , outlines the company's long-term plans and India's expanding luxury market.

Tesco Hindustan Centre emerges as hub of innovation Chai Samosa As retail companies cut costs, slashed headcount and learned to cope with weakening demand during the recession, software engineers at Tesco Hindustan Centre (HSC) were busy developing innovative solutions that helped Tesco generate millions of dollars through efficiencies in supply chain and other functions. With a solution architected by the Indian engineers in Bangalore, the retailer could save around $300 million annually by making its stock replenishment system more efficient.

Cummins India enters retail, power genset market Business Standard Diesel and natural gas engines manufacturers Cummins India today announced its entry into the retail and consumer market by introducing small power generator sets of 7.5 kVA and 10 kVA.

Soon, food items at discount from govt outlets Indian Express To tackle the inflation in food prices, the Delhi government plans to begin selling 15 essential food items at discounted rates from over 500 government-run stores.

Retail Trends

Lessons from Carrefour Business Standard What will Carrefour, which had a turnover of 92 billion euros (Rs 6.25 lakh crore), over half of which came from international operations; bring to the table when it starts its retail operations in India? What makes the brand tick in 35 countries all over the world? A lot, really, say retail experts.

India's organised retail story has just begun Economic Times The Kellogg's-Big Bazaar fracas indicates that the working relationship between retailers and brands will remain a stormy affair. Both parties will test each other to assess the strain one can take in this battle for shelf space.

Small brands go big with ethnic wear Economic Times A recent study on average trading density (sales per sq ft per month) across organised retail formats ranks traditional ethnic fashion almost double that of western fashion brands. According to the study by retail planning consultancy Asipac Projects, new generation ethnic fashion brands such as Biba, W and Global Desi have an average trading density of Rs 1, 600 psfm compared to Rs 900 psfpm for national western fashion brands and Rs 850 psfpm for international labels.

Adding footfalls mydigitalfc.com No more setting up a mall and renting it out to the retailers for a fixed amount of rent. Developers are getting more and more involved with the day-to-day activity of the malls, especially after the sector saw a slowdown last year. Whether it is getting into revenue-sharing agreements with the retailers or initiating efforts to drive footfalls, developers are taking no chances to make a mall profitable.

Retail Insight

Retail Asset Management: Enhancing The Value of Shopping Centers JLLM As we look forward to embrace new opportunities in a new decade, we should review the learnings of the past ten years. Broadly, we would all agree that the past decade had been extremely eventful for Indian real estate as well as the retail industry. We saw unprecedented growth, thanks to a booming economy and relaxed Government regulations with regard to Foreign Direct Investment. Not only did the development patterns, size and ownership structures change in real estate, but retail formats also transformed considerably - bringing a better shopping experience and greater value to Indian consumers.