Retail Insight on 9th December 2009

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News

Essar's telco retail arm acquires X-Cite Economic Times Diversified Essar group has entered the Rs 80,000-crore consumer durables and IT products business through the acquisition of X-Cite, the chain of large format electronics stores of Impact Retail, a franchisee of Kuwait's Alghanim Industries.

Alok Retail zeroes in PE firm, to seal deal by Dec-end Business Standard Textile firm Alok Industries' retail venture Alok Retail India is in the last leg of raising finance from private equity players, a top company official said. "We will be signing the agreement by end-this month. The funds will be raised in two tranches. We will announce the exact amount to be raised soon," Alok Retail's Director Varun S Jiwrajka said. Soon after sealing this deal, Alok Retail, the holding company of its retail chain H&A, would be rechristened AlokH&A and it would transform into a pure cash-and-carry business.

Spencer's Retail identifies 13 profitable clusters across India FoodBizDaily.com Spencer's Retail, the retail arm of the RPG Group, has identified 13 profitable clusters across the country and is currently looking at a planned expansion in these regions in the next couple of years.

Subway plans 100 more outlets by end 2010 indiaretailing.com Subway Systems India Pvt Ltd, the QSR chain that specialises in sandwiches and salads, plans to take its total store count to 250 in the year 2010. At present, Subway operates 150 restaurants in 25 cities in the country.

ADAG bites into food business Business Standard Brother Mukesh Ambani might be the king of retail, but Anil Ambani's ADAG is getting ready to make its presence felt in branded food products. The group is all set to launch a food and beverage brand, 'Movie Munchies' and its own mineral water brand, 'Spring', later this month.

Retail Trends

Central authority finalizes license for food retail chains FoodBizDaily.com The Food Safety & Standards Authority of India, the central food regulatory authority in the country, has finalized a license for multinational and Indian food retail chains that operate across various states in the country. Currently, food retail chains obtain licenses either from civic bodies or state governments.

Retail Insight

Who is Minding the Store? How to Identify & Develop the Best Unit-Level ManagersCSP Unit level managers (ULMs) are the unsung heroes who manage a decentralized location of a franchise or corporate chain. Think big- and small-box retailers, restaurants of all kinds, hotels, motels, and convenience, grocery, and drug stores to name a few. ULMs usually report to regional or head office executives and are often thought of as middle management. Nonetheless, they have more clout than the people they report to because, more than any other factor, the quality of the ULM directly affects the ROI of the unit.