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Vol. 2 Issue 4 - April 2007
In this Issue
Featured Product
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International
In the news this month were two international players who have been taking their time with scouting around for partners and drawing up the blueprint for their India foray – Carrefour and Starbucks.
Chillibreeze Research Team
 Carrefour talks with HDFC for retail tie-up
Starbucks makes plans for India launch
Reliance Retail holding talks with international luxury brands
Kmart seeks to enter Indian retail market
French luxury brands keen on potential of India
HR News
The focus this month is on HR with retail majors working hard to create work environments that make employees stay. Bharti and Reliance have agreed on a non-poaching pact – looks like in all the action that’s unfolding, losing staff to each other is one problem they wont have to deal with.
Chillibreeze Research Team
Food Bazaar merchandising head resigns to join AV Birla Group
Pantaloon Retail makes major organizational changes
Bharti and Reliance enter no-poaching pact
Retailers head for agri-universities and specialized institutions
Wal-Mart interesting in employer-branding
Two executives leave Reliance Retail for Wal-Mart
Reliance Retail changes its HR policy once again
Retailers using Esops to retail talent
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Editorial
Its easy to imagine Mumbaikars and Bangaloreans act blasé’ about the swank malls and shops that dot the landscape. Shopping was always good in these cities; it just got better. But picture this - malls and stores, desi and international brands jostling for space in sleepy Pune, idyllic Cochin or frugal Chennai. How would customers at these cities handle this onslaught of retail therapy? These Tier II cities are soon going to take over the development bandwagon. Chennai is already besieged by malls, and Pune’s university crowd attracts some of the best international brands. And there’s more to come.
The other focus this month is all the news on HR activities. Retail majors it would seem have been busy trying to retain talent – some are overhauling their employee policies while others are offering ESOPs. Bharti and Reliance have entered into a non-poaching pact while Wal-Mart wants to portray itself as an employee-friendly organization. These firms realize that it’s more expensive to hire and train new employees (only to lose them later) than offer what it takes (within reason, they assure us) to retain talent they have netted.
 Chillibreeze Research Team
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Big players – Plans and Investments |
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Will yet another Indian group foray into retail – this time it’s the Godrej Group. Meanwhile bigger is indeed better, it would seem, in retail formats, with most retailers planning to roll out hypermarkets and cash-and-carry options.
Chillibreeze Research Team |
Big Players...
 Bharti-Wal-Mart might use different brands
Reliance Retail plans to focus on large format stores
RPG Group makes major retail plans
RIL opts out of Super Bazar
Godrej Group set to enter retail sector
Pantaloon plans to double stores
Reliance Retail plans to turn Adani outlets into specialty stores
Reliance Retail set to push expansion southwards
Disney opens stores in India
Future Group plans cash-and-carry business
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Unique Formats |
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Business-to-consumer or online retail formats are onto their second innings and appear set to succeed. Not only is the customer base more Internet-savvy, but also the technology related to data security have seen significant improvements. With traffic congestion and crowds hounding every mall and store, click-and-purchase seems a very attractive alternative.
Chillibreeze Research Team
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Unique Formats...
Social retailing is here to stay
Subhiksha and vJive tie up
Damas and Flemingo to set up duty-free shops
Feedback
We continue inching forward; always learning more about the sector that has India interested and excited. Our Retail Newsletter, is being downloaded nearly through the month…more importantly, we have an increasing number of readers posting a query on our site India Reports (www.india-reports.com). This is feedback of another kind; it keeps us on the roll, thinking and analyzing as we answer these queries, and prepares us to move on to the next level with new reports and analysis.
You can help us by sending your suggestions … how do we become the preferred newsletter in the Retail space?
Write to us:
epublishing@chillibreeze.com
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General Trends & Information |
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As with outsourcing, so also with retail. There are some parallels we can draw between the growth paths these two very different sectors have taken. The one to spot this time round is the fact that both attracted international interest by being low cost/high returns, but its quality that will retain the interest going forward.
Chillibreeze Research Team |
General Trends & Information...
India and China on top of global retailers agenda
Low cost sourcing not likely to last for long
Not all upbeat in the retail sector
 Buy our Omnibus edition featuring 4 Retail Reports covering the fast growing retail scene in India. >> updated March 2007
Buy our just published reports on the Cheese and Wine Industry in India.
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Strategy |
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In a market like India, its bound to be all about pricing right- and retailers are leaving no stone unturned, from hiring “retail spies” to new ways of offering discounts and price-offs.
Chillibreeze Research Team |
Strategy...
Retail spies on the loose
Retailers trying out newer ways to offer discounted prices
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Regional Trends |
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The retail rush is slowly, but steadily moving to different parts of the country. Surprisingly one report here says that flush-with-funds Kerala has been left out – not for long, we say!
Chillibreeze Research Team |
Regional Trends...
Kerala retail is booming, but where are the large retailers?
UK’s retail major Liberty keen to invest in Rajasthan
Mall rush in Chennai
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FMCG, Food & Grocery |
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Here is some food for thought! After signature restaurants like “Tendulkar’s”, we will soon see some international franchises too – London’s Ministry of Sound has opened shop in Delhi and Manchester United has expressed interest. Closer home, unfazed by the big players, Hyderabad-based Heritage Foods is spreading its wings to nearly Bangalore.
Chillibreeze Research Team |
FMCG, Food & Grocery...
Lavazza buys Barista
Food franchisees on a roll
Dabur plans to launch 400 retail outlets
Café Coffee Day plans domestic and international expansion
Dabur to tie up with kirana stores
Heritage Foods to open 30 stores in Bangalore
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