Talking to various Chief Ministers on FDI in retail: Anand Sharma Economic Times Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma has said that he is reaching out to the State Chief Ministers to build a consensus on opening up multi-brand retail sector for foreign investment. Following widespread opposition, including from its own allies, the government suspended its decision to allow 51 percent foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail on November 24, 2011. "I have spoken to the government in Punjab and have written to the chief minister of Bengal. I had another meeting with Mamata Banerjee. She has her reservations which I respect, but at the same time there are states who want it. I did go to Bhubaneswar to talk to Naveen Patnaik. It is their call and we will respect what the states want," Sharma said.

Reliance Brands, Brooks Brothers ink pact Times of India Reliance Brands, a unit of Reliance Industries, is bringing the oldest American men's clothier chain Brooks Brothers to India as it looks to create a strong portfolio of foreign labels in the fashion space. Brooks Brothers is privately owned by Italian billionaire Claudio Del Vecchio, son of the founder of Luxottica, the world's largest eyewear company whose brands include Ray-Ban and Oakley. It will hold a 51% stake in the new entity with the rest being held by Reliance Brands. This partnership, which was in the works for nearly 15 months, will be Reliance's fifth joint venture after Iconix, Paul & Shark, Diesel and Ermenegildo Zegna. The venture would, to begin with, open stores in large metros.

Pantaloon Retail to benefit from deal between Warburg Pincus and Future Capital Times of India US private equity giant Warburg Pincus will expand its presence in the country's financial services sector by buying a majority stake in Future Capital, the troubled finance arm of one of India's Future Group. The deal will help Pantaloon Retail, the group's listed flagship company, which holds the majority stake in Future group, to cut debt and improve cash flows and address investor criticism of reckless expansion. The deal will probably mark the successful end to Future Group founder Kishore Biyani's efforts to extricate Pantaloon from a morass of high debt and poor cash flows.

Lotto India head floats own shoe brand Daily News & Analysis Lalit Kishore, MD of Lotto India Sports Lifestyle (LISLPL), the master franchisee of the Lotto Sport brand in India, has soft-launched his own sports and lifestyle shoe brand Globalite to fill what he perceives as a void between international and local brands. The Globalite brand will target middle segment urban youth who aspire for international brands but are not yet able to afford them, he said. Middle-income consumers in India, Kishore said, will lead future growth in consumption. To cater to this segment, his new venture, Globalite Industries (GI), will be run as a separate entity. There will be "no conflicts" in the two businesses, he said.

Champion Agro to invest 100 cr in expansion in three years Economic Times Champion Agro Ltd, a farm products maker and retailer, plans to invest Rs 100 crore to open 400 agro-malls across India in the next three years. The company operates 40 agri one-stop shops in Gujarat and has recently forayed into northern markets as part of its strategy to expand business pan-India. "Champion Agro plans to open 400 agro-malls across India in the next three years. We are planning to invest Rs 100 crore in this expansion drive and is also hiring qualified people to ensure that their goals are achieved," the company said in an e-mail response.

Rajiv Gandhi International Airport expands shopping arena Times of India The GMR Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) is fast becoming a high-street shopping arcade. Expanding its already sprawling retail zone by another 150%, the airport has now made way for close to a dozen top-notch retailbrands, both from the city and outside. An additional 5,000 square feet has been earmarked to house multi-cuisine restaurants apart from fast food joints. From books and stationery chains to apparel and jewellery outlets, the airport has roped in a range of stores to enhance its commercial space. GMR officials believe that the retailfocus will improve the profitability of Shamshabad airport. In fact, over the next few months as many as 22 retailoutlets and gaming and entertainment zones will be accommodated in the domestic terminal.

Buyers of luxury goods cagey as outlook remains cloudy Livemint In the past 12 months, the rupee has fallen around 24 percent against the dollar. Besides the slump in the currency, the latest growth numbers don't leave much room for optimism either. High inflation, global uncertainties and an increase in excise duty have also cast a pall of gloom. "The luxury sector thrives on sentiment, and the feel-good factor is going away. This impacts the sector," said Darshan Mehta, chief executive officer, Reliance Brands Ltd, the retail unit of Reliance Industries Ltd. It sells brands such as the century-old Italian menswear luxury brand Ermenegildo Zegna.

News - Food, QSR

Haagen-Dazs opens its fifth Indian outlet; forays into Karnataka market fnbnews.com Haagen-Dazs, the super premium ice cream major, has now entered Karnataka with the launch of its flagship lounge at 1 M G Road Mall in Bengaluru. The lounge is spread over an area of 1,050 sq ft. The ice cream major entered India through General Mills, one of the world's leading food companies. "After exclusive lounges in New Delhi, Mumbai and Pune, it is now time for Bengaluru to savour the signature Haagen-Dazs experience," said Arindam Haldar, Director, Premium Foods, General MillsIndia. This is the brand's fifth outlet in India, after the ones at Oberoi Mall, Goregaon (East), Mumbai; Select Citywalk Mall in Saket and Terminal 3, Indira Gandhi International Airport (both in New Delhi) and Amanora Town Centre, Hadapsar, Pune.

Navis in talks to sell fast-food chain Nirula's Livemint Malaysia-based private equity firm Navis Capital Partners is in talks with a Mumbai-based hotelier to sell Nirula's Corner House Pvt. Ltd, the fast-food chain it acquired in 2006. This is Navis' third attempt at selling the chain, which it bought for nearly Rs. 90 crore. It is in talks to sell Nirula's for Rs. 150 crore. "The two parties are seriously involved in talks for the sale," says an inside source.

Number of Vadilal's Happinezz Parlours could cross 200-mark by end-2013 fnbnews.com Vadilal Industries Limited, one of the country's leading ice cream and frozen dessert players, has chalked out an expansion plan to increase its retail reach through its Happinezz Parlour outlets. In addition to the current 176 outlets, the company plans to add 50 more Happinezz Parlours by the end of the financial year 2013. While expansion through the franchisee route will continue and constitute a large part of the total number of Happinezz outlets, the company-owned outlets too will be ramped up in a big way. Vadilal has always focused on tapping the customer preferences and likewise innovating with our products and services to offer our consumers maximum happiness with affordability. Its Happinezz Parlours have not only been the USP, but also acted as an important link to the customers.

Trends

India Inc: Fast track FDI, new tax regime MSN India Spooked by the sharp dip in fourth quarter GDP growth to 5.3 percent, India Inc has asked for strong and decisive action on reforms from the Government to regain the growth momentum. The CII President, Mr Adi Godrej, said the reforms process needs to be urgently revived. "Opening up foreign direct investment in critical sectors such as civil aviation and Defence, and allowing FDI in multi-brand retail will go a long way in improving sentiments. GST alone will add 2 percentage points to GDP. This particular reform has been delayed for three years now," he said, adding that although single brand has opened up, the norm of 25 percent sourcing from small and medium enterprise should be tweaked to accommodate any Indian manufacturer.

India cosmetic queen Shahnaz Husain shows no sign of abdicating Economic Times Shahnaz Husain was a bored Indian housewife when she spotted a gap in the beauty-treatment market and single-handedly set about building a global corporate empire. More than 40 years on, Husain presides over a private company selling more than 250 products in 60 countries and is feted as one of India's leading business gurus and a rare example of female success in its commercial sector. "It's not what you want, but how much you want it," is her advice to budding entrepreneurs.

Insight

Apparels: Domestic Demand & Export Diversification Will Be The Key To Success CARE Research The Indian apparel industry is estimated to be worth Rs 1,876 billion in FY11 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 8.7 percent till FY '16. The growth would primarily be driven by the surge in demand for readymade apparels in rural areas, rising income levels and youth population and increasing preference for branded apparels. The growth in exports can be attributed to shifting of the apparel manufacturing base from the developed countries like the US and the EU to the low cost countries like China, Vietnam, India, Bangladesh and many others.

Digital tools offer new clues into Shopper behaviour (Premium) - View Free Sample Shoppers have long put effort into researching high-involvement and expensive purchases like cars and electronics before heading to the store. Suddenly, because of technology, it is now also worth the "effort" to research toothpaste, canned tomatoes and laundry detergent. According to the Wall Street Journal, more than one-fifth of shoppers research food and beverages online, nearly one-third research pet products and 39 percent research baby products. Almost two-thirds (62%) say they search for deals online before at least half of their shopping trips. Ryan Partnership's multi-year study of digital shopping confirms the widespread -- and still growing -- use of digital tools to gather information, select retailers and make brand decisions well before the shopper ever sees a product on the shelf. In fact, this past month, 58 percent of the 5,000 shoppers in our survey told us they are more likely than a year ago to "typically" decide what they want before visiting a store. To do this, their usage of all kinds of digital shopping tools is growing.

Tenant tenant in the mall- who is the fairest of them all (Premium) - View Free Sample There was a giant mall...and it had several small and big tenants. One of the tenants wasn't happy and decided to talk to the mall. To his surprise several others joined in who were afraid to speak their mind... An honest feedback can make a significant difference to improve the way the shopping centre business happens in India. Shopping Centre News is taking the initiative to connect the most important shopping centre stakeholders on a common platform where tenants show the mirror to their malls. In the first of our series, we look at the performance of three of the operational Phoenix Market City properties - in Mumbai, Bangalore and Pune - launched in the year 2011. Is there a success formula to do a shopping centre 'inIndia'? Putting a multi-crore investment at stake could well be tough for new developers and first timers in the shopping centre development and operations business. But can we say that the seasoned players with iconic credentials in India's shopping centre space have got it right with their subsequent retail real estate ventures?.

The Frozen Desserts Category- Will Modern Trade take it more seriously (Premium) - View Free Sample Frozen desserts are on an upswing, and manufacturers are hoping that modern trade will begin to take the category more seriously. In recent times, the frozen dessert category has been registering good growth. With new products like frozen fruit yogurts, sorbets and gelatos adding more variety and value to it, this category has gone beyond just ice creams. But how receptive are modern store chains to frozen desserts? Why, despite becoming popular, are these products still under-leveraged by modern store retailers? What concerns and issues are hampering their expansion at the stores?.

E-commerce- A Dream or a Logistics Nightmare (Premium) - View Free Sample The e-commerce industry seems to be getting ready for a consolidation. It should play safe to avoid another fallout like the 2000 dot-com bust. For an invention that is rated among the top 10 discoveries in the history of mankind, the internet keeps taking us back in time regularly. It is 2012 but once again looks like 2000.So what does the closure of a few companies mean? Actually nothing. In a nascent but fastgrowing industry, this is expected. Many entrepreneurs will jump in, but just a few will scale and succeed. The others will shut down or get acquired, such consolidation is the order of any early stage industry.