Apparel, Specialty ..

Kishore Biyani not to sell stake in Big Bazaar and Food Bazaar Times of India Retail magnate Kishore Biyani said he is not in talks with anybody to sell stake in Big Bazaar and Food Bazaar chains because his Future Group has sorted out its debt crisis after three back-to-back deals in the past one month. "We are not in discussions with anybody. I don't want to divest my core retail business now. I want to run it," Biyani said. "Our debt levels are very comfortable and divestment, if any, will only be in non-core assets," the Future Group Chief said. In recent weeks, the retailindustry has been abuzz with speculation that the Future Group was in talks with India's richest man Mukesh Ambani to sell stake in its flagship Big Bazaar hypermarket network, which contributes almost 65% of revenues of Pantaloon Retail (India) Ltd, the listed entity of Future Group.

Walmart stores to snap ties with companies involved in corrupt practices Economic Times Walmart Stores plans to snap ties with companies that supply products to its stores, if they are involved in any kind of corrupt practices, making it the first retail company to undertake such a stringent initiative in India. Stung by the bribery scandal that surfaced recently in Mexico, the world's largest retailer has recently hired consultancy firm KPMG to conduct due diligence on hundreds of existing vendors as well as potential future suppliers to ensure that they are not involved in any unethical or illegal activity. This is the second such anti-corruption initiative launched by Walmart in India in recent months. Earlier, the world's number one retailer mandated KPMG to educate and create awareness among the staff of Bharti Walmart (the equal wholesale retailing joint venture between the USretail chain and New Delhi-based Bharti Enterprises) staff about anti-corruption practices.

IKEA may open stores in India after policy clarity Irish Times The IKEA Group will consider entering India after policy clarity and open stores in China as it boosts sales outside Europe. The company is watching legislative developments in India to weigh a potential entry, CEO Mikael Ohlsson said in an interview. Expanding in Asia would allow the furniture retailer to reduce its reliance on Europe, where the company gets about 80 percent of revenue. Sales at IKEA have risen every year since 2001, and climbed 6.9 percent to 25.2 billion ($31.4 billion) in the fiscal 12 months ended August 31.

Arisaig Partners hikes stake in Pantaloon Retail to 6.88% Zee News Singapore-based investment management company Arisaig Partners has raised its stake in debt-ridden Future Group firm Pantaloon Retail to 6.88 percent by acquiring an additional 2.38 percent for Rs 76.74 crore. In a filing to the BSE, Pantaloon Retail (India), on Monday said, Arisaig Partners (Asia) Pte Ltd has acquired 51,25,865 shares, representing 2.38 percent stake in the company, through a series of open market transactions on June 6. Post this transaction, Arisaig Partners' holding in the retail firm has increased to 6.88 percent, it added.

Biba targets opening 100 new stores in two years FashionUnited India Growing at a CAGR of 36 percent in the last five years, Biba, has been wooing young girls and women of all ages. Elaborating on the company's future plans, Siddharth Bindra, Managing Director, Biba Apparels said, "Last fiscal, we closed at Rs 270 crores and this year we plan to touch the Rs 375 crores mark. We are planning to open more than 100 new stores in the next two years, taking our total store count to 200." The company has already opened its first six flagship stores in India. For the current year, it plans to open 40 exclusive stores, out of which six will be Biba flagship stores. These will be operational by Diwali.

Globalite sees shoe brand earning Rs 50 cr, launches own brand mydigitalfc.com The master franchisee of Lotto sport shoes in India, Globalite Industries has launched its own brand to tap the mid-segment of the footwear market. By maintaining an efficient retail cost structure and keeping the marketing spends low, Globalite hopes to take on the international brands with "right pricing". The company looks forward to garnering Rs 50 crore turnover from the brand in the first year of operations. In the footwear market, there are mass market brands like Bata or Lakhani and there are international brands, including Reebok, Nike and Lotto. In the mid-segment of Rs 1,000 to Rs 2,000 there are not many brands available.

News - Food, QSR

Cadbury to launch Toblerone in India to take on Ferrero Rocher Times of India Cadbury India will soon launch parent Kraft Foods' legendary triangular Swiss chocolate brand Toblerone to take on Italian brand Ferrero Rocher in the premium chocolate market. The country's largest chocolate maker plans to price Toblerone competitively, market it aggressively and sell it more widely than what different third-party importers presently do, a senior company official said. Toblerone is the world's largest selling chocolate brand in duty-free and travel retail, the official said. The brand accounts for 40% of Switzerland's total chocolate exports.

Domino's or Papa John's: Which offers better investment options in India? Seeking Alpha On several occasions, it has been pointed out that Domino's Pizza has one of the largest global restaurant operations in India. Domino's might provide the investment option into India that Yum Brands provided with China. One thing to remember is that although India provides huge growth opportunities, the economic base is much smaller than China and the US. So could any large US-based retailer actually derive enough sales from India to make a difference?

Trends

CPI-M opposes FDI in multi-brand retail Newstrack India The CPI-M, on Monday came out strongly against the opening up of foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brandretail as well as upping FDI limits in banking and insurance sectors. The party said it opposed "the moves to push through more neo-liberal measures", saying that these were the measures, and not the lack of them, which had led to the present grim financial situation.

Titan eyes the outdoor space exchange4media.com With focus on reinforcing its presence in key markets, Titan Eye Plus, the third consumer-facing business from Titan Industries, has announced the launch of its new showrooms in Bangalore and Kolkata. To promote its new store launches, Titan Eye Plus has rolled out a massive outdoor campaign by capturing 1050 outdoor sites across the country. The outdoor campaign in Mumbai and Kolkata is called 20+ 20, which is based on the 20 percent discount offer that the stores in these markets are offering on all spectacle frames as well as Titan lens products. Simultaneously in Delhi, Hyderabad, Chennai, Lucknow, Kanpur and Indore, the outdoor campaign is based on other strategic discount offers.

Varghese to head Birla's textile business mydigitalfc.com Thomas Varghese, the erstwhile head of Aditya BirlaRetail (ABRL), is all set to be made the global head of the $35 billion group's textile operations. Vikram Rao, who looks after the international textile portfolio, will retire later this year, paving the way for Varghese to take over responsibility for this business in India and overseas, according to at least three company officials. The move clearly indicates the group's trust in Varghese, known as AV Birla group's turnaround man, said analysts.

Standard & Poor gets it wrong on multi-brand retailrules Times of India Standard & Poor's on Monday strongly criticised the policy paralysis that has hurt India's growth. But the ratings agency did not seem to get the facts right when it talked about multi-brand retail rules. "Strong opposition within the Congress party-led ruling coalition, as well as from opposition parties, recently forced the government to reverse its decision to raise the cap on foreign direct investment (FDI) in multibrand retail to 49% of total ownership from 26%," the agency said in its report. The government rules on multi-brand retail is different. In fact, FDI in multi-brand retail was prohibited until the government decided to allow FDI up to 51%. It also allowed 100% FDI in single-brand retail from 51% when the Cabinet approved the changes in November.

Key facts on India's retail sector Business Standard Supermarket chains are looking for funding in a tough business environment, with foreign partners closed off for now after last year's indefinite suspension of a move to open the $450 billion retail market to giants such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc. The government had hoped the major reform would boost investment in Asia's third biggest economy, but it quickly backtracked when it came up against fierce opposition from across the political spectrum and from traders' unions. A run through of the key facts in India's retail sector:

Insight

Issues With FDI In Multi-Brand Retail For Indian Agrarian Community Organic Farming Association of India The Organic Farming Association of India (OFAI) supportsretail reforms through improving supply chain and infrastructure to provide economic security for farmers in the country, but it does not endorse the current proposal of 51% FDI in multi brand retail. The Indian government and states can easily access funds available by removing unrequired subsidies to the tune of USD 20 billion a year through removal of fertilizer subsidy. Arguments and assumptions for this proposal, have farmers stating that this will help them in the long run, and additionally, will help tackle national inflation and create new jobs and infrastructure. The evidence, however, is to the contrary.

Interview-Sumant Bhargava-Stargaze Entertainment (Premium) - View Free Sample Stargaze Entertainment runs a chain of multiplexes under the brand name of Glitz cinemas. it has a unique strategy of focussing only on small towns and avoiding the Founder and MD of Stargaze Entertainment, talks to sanjay choudhry about the potential the tier ii and iii cities offer for a multiplex chain and the challenges faced by the operators .

Headphone zone- Asias first exclusive headphonesretail brand (Premium) - View Free Sample Leveraging on its audiovideo accessories distribution business, the Chennai-based Ferrari Video has opened aretail chain specialising in headphones and is planning to establish presence in all major metros by the end of this year. The Chennai-based Headphone Zone is billed as Asia's first exclusive headphones retail brand. It is founded by 24-year-old Raghav Somani whose family runs Ferrari Video, an importer and distributor of audiovideo accessories. Headphone Zone since September 2011 has opened four outlets. While it runs full-fledged stores at the Garuda Mall (190-200 sq.ft.) and the Royal Meenakshi Mall (400 sq.ft.) in Bangalore, the Mantri Square (Bangalore) and the Express Avenue (Chennai) malls only host kiosks. The company is planning 20 stores all overIndia by this year end through expanding into prime malls in tier I cities such as Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Delhi, and Kolkata to leverage on its pre-existing distribution business in these locations. Each store generally entails an investment of `20-25 lacs. Upon his return from Singapore a few years ago to take over the family business, Somani discovered that retailers in Indiahad no idea how to sell headphones.

Growth Drivers of Modern Retail (Premium) - View Free Sample The overall Indian retail market is estimated to be around $428 bn, but modern retail accounts for only 8 percent of it. This, more than anything else, underlines the tremendous scope for growth in modern retailing in the country in the years to come. There are a host of factors that are propelling the expansion of modern retail in India, including the improving infrastructure, a move away from the socialistic pattern of economy, better educational opportunities, and rising consumerism. Over the last couple of decades, much has been written in the Indian media about modern retailing, but the term has never been defined. Of late, FMCG companies have begun to use the words "modern trade" to describe the industry. Here again, there is confusion. While a stand-alone supermarket chain in Mumbai gets treated as modern trade, supermarkets with monthly sales of Rs.200 crore in Jalgaon or Jalna do not. Numerous such examples are found throughout India. To the common man, this distinction may matter little, except that modern trade sells things a little cheaper and offers many discounts and schemes, but it falsifies national data about the true extent of modern retail in the country.

Grooming Future CEOs (Premium) - View Free Sample The most important part of building any industry is the creation of capability as well as capacity. retailers in Indianeed to introduce management development programmes to groom entry-level employees to rise through the ranks. Indian modern retail has remained in its infancy for a long period now. The industry has grown in volume and value sales, but the contribution of modern retail to the overallretail hovers in the 5 percent range. The hard truth is that modern retail has not surpassed our country's consumption growth in a big way. At the same time, traditional retailers are expanding and modernising themselves. Modern retail has attracted a large share of media space as well as mindspace in the consulting practices - after all, nobody can deny its benefits and positive contribution to the India growth story. Unfortunately, the politicians and the beaurocratic set-up of the country have not understood the impact modernretail can have on the Indian consumers and the economy. For strange reasons, modern retail in popular imagination has got associated with the FDI issue.