India Organised Retail can Grow up to $ 450 bn by 2015

December 23, 2009	(Be the first to rate this story!)  Loading ...
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Organised or modern retail in India need not be apprehensive or bearish with the industry set to grow to $450 billion in 2015 from the present $350 billion. Speaking at a three-day International Conference on Retail Excellence - ICRE’09, organised by the SRM School of Management at the SRM University campus near Chennai today, Mr Atul Takle, Head, Corporate Communications, Pantaloon Retail India Ltd, said the retail trade market in India was poised for recalibrated growth as those in the business were well aware of the needs of the customers.

“There is no reason to be bearish. The industry should be optimistic as the opportunities are huge. The consumer space in modern retail is going to grow by 15 per cent, which means that there are huge opportunities still waiting,'’ he added. There were different categories within the retail industry space such as food, beverages, consumer durables, fashion and lifestyle, among others. “There is lot of opportunity for organised retail players in India. The propensity of the middle class to spend puts the organised retail industry in a bullish mode as people realise the value that modern retail offers,” Mr Takle said.

Compared to the 2008 scenario when the industry was affected due to a recession and the global economic slowdown, he cited the example of the real estate industry and said the demand before 2008 was high and the prices went through the roof. “The prices are controlled by the real estate developers because of the high demand. Post-2008, things have changed a lot. The demand is not that high and the developers are looking at different revenue models since the capital expenditure costs are under control,” he said.

Stating that the recession has given a significant learning experience, Mr Takle said as India was a diverse country; local factors play a huge role in the pricing of goods in the retail industry. He said the lack of a trained work force was one of the challenges faced by the industry. Noting that Chennai was the base for the retail industry, he said the Saravana chain of stores was the precursor to today’s large-format stores such as Big Bazaar. Mr Takle said the industry was still in infancy with several mountains to climb in the future.

The SRM University Chancellor and SRM Group of Institutions Founder, Mr T.R. Pachamuthu, said big players while entering the retail space should take the small players along with them to ensure their sustenance. Profit-making alone should not be the goal of the retail players, he said, and called for inclusive growth to meet the challenges. Exhorting students to become entrepreneurs by utilising the job opportunities in the retail industry, Mr Pachamuthu said India needs good administrators to lead the country in a right way.

News Published Under:   Retail Market in India |

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