Retail Insight on January 29th 2010

January 29, 2010

News for the retail industry

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News

Starbucks brews a fresh strategy for India entry Economic Times Starbucks, the world's largest retailer of coffee, has revived its plans for India and has begun talks with Shyam and Hari Bhartia-controlled Jubilant Group for a possible alliance. Starbucks, famous for making coffee drinking fashionable in the US, had tried to enter India by striking an alliance with Kishore Biyani's Future Group three years ago, but these plans were rejected by the Foreign Investment Promotion Board, or FIPB, the government body that regulates inflow of foreign money into India's factories, shops and mines.

Gitanjali to set up 35 new outlets Business Standard Gitanjali Jewellery Retail Private Limited, a unit of Gitanjali Group, has decided to expand its business aggressively with opening of exclusive brand outlets in all major towns of the country. At least, 35 such show rooms will be launched during this calendar year.

Daniel Hechter debuts in Delhi indiaretailing.com One of the leading French pret-a-porter brands, Daniel Hechter has launched its first showroom at Select City Walk, New Delhi. The exclusive stores have also opened in Mumbai, Bangalore and Gurgoan.

Gitanjali Gems Acquires Morellato Stake In JV VC Circle IMumbai-based jewellery major Gitanjali Gems Ltd has strategically acquired the remaining 50% stake in its Indian joint venture company Morellato India Pvt Ltd for an undisclosed sum. Morellato India was a 50:50 JV between Gitanjali Gems and Morellato & Sector Group of Italy.

Essar Hypermart to expand retail network in Andhra Pradesh India PRwire (press release) Essar Steel has announced that it seeks to expand its retail distribution network in Andhra Pradesh by 50% over the next one year. Essar Hypermart currently has 5 Hypermarts and 21 Expressmarts in the state which will be increased to 6 Hypermarts and 35 Expressmarts by 2010.

Oracle unveils business process integration for retailers indiaretailing.com To help retailers improve financial control over merchandising operations and derive greater value from their business, Oracle has announced end-to-end business process integration for retailers using the Oracle Retail Merchandising Suite and Oracle Financials.

India's first bicycle mall opens in Pune South Asia Mail India's first mall exclusively for bicycles was inaugurated this Wednesday. The 6,000-square feet building houses over 200 models of the top bicycles from all over the country and the world.

Now your kids can wear designer labels Times of India It is the time to dress your kids in the creations of Ritu Kumar, Malini Ramani, Gaurav Gupta and Gauri and Nainika, as Kidology, a ready-to-wear designer labels line, has brought these designers together.

Retail Trends

'All big retailers regard India as their future' Rediff With a 10-acre built-in area, Express Avenue is going to be the largest mall in South India when it opens in April 2010. It will also be the first mall in Chennai that will house a shopping centre, a business centre, a hotel and a multiplex. Kim Culley, who has more than 30 years of experiences in shopping centre operations, is the chief operations officer of Express Avenue. In an interview with rediff.com, Culley talks about the future of malls and retail sector in India.

Van Heusen etching out a bigger canvas Economic Times Uncertain times present their share of opportunities and India's largest apparel maker Madura Garments' premium formal wear brand Van Heusen's Shital Kumar Mehta , COO, Van Heusen growth stands as evidence to this. The wedding segment, which was earlier not on the corporate-centric brand's radar, is now emerging as a key vertical. At a turnover of around Rs 400 crore, growing at 25%, the brand is etching out a bigger canvas for itself. Van Heusen COO Shital Kumar Mehta in an interview says that the brand is set to expand youth offerings by spinning off its clubwear line V Dot through stand-alone stores.

Indian retail sector all set to witness accelerated growth, says PwC-RAI study MBAUniverse.com India's robust macro and microeconomic fundamentals such as its GDP growth, higher income levels, increasing personal consumption, etc will accelerate the growth of the retail sector, according to a joint thought leadership study by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and Retailers Association of India (RAI) titled "Strategic Issues for Retail CEOs". The study looks at top-of-mind issues affecting retail CEOs.

Retail Insight

The Secrets of Applying Lean to Distribution Operations Fortna Typically, companies that implement lean in their distribution centers (DCs) can expect to see a 10 to 20 percent increase in productivity. Improvements as high as 30 to 50 percent are not unusual with a comprehensive labor management program that includes lean, engineered labor standards, labor management software and incentives.