MUMBAI: British retailer Marks & Spencer aims to make India its
largest international market outside home by more than doubling its
store count by 2016, its global chief executive Marc Bolland said on Monday.
M&S, which operates in the country through a joint venture with Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Retail, plans to increase its store count to 80 from 36 over the next three years. "The company had its first priority market as China, which I changed to India more than two years ago," Bolland, who is here to open the London-headquartered retailer's biggest India store in Mumbai, said.
M&S is betting big on India even as its global sales declined for the ninth consecutive quarter during July-September, putting pressure on Bolland, who joined M&S in 2010.
While M&S is increasing focus on India, the bargain-hunting, cash-squeezed consumers here still largely perceive the brand as pricey, opting for local brands and global fastfashion labels such as Zara and Mango.
Bolland wants to change that thought and he thinks already some of the initial perception about the brand has been altered with mid-priced but high-quality merchandise. Marks & Spencer Reliance Retail reported a 28 per cent increase in its revenues at Rs 374.70 crore in the year ended March through its 29 stores while posting a net loss of Rs 28.10 crore, according to its filing with the Registrar of Companies.
In comparison, Inditex Trent — the joint venture between Zara brand owner Inditex and Tata Group's retail arm Trent — clocked a 56 per cent jump in sales at Rs 405 crore during the same period. That too, with just nine stores. Bolland, 54, however, believes that M&S' focus on quality and style will help it win over India's aspiring consumers.
Also, India for M&S isn't just a retail market. It sources more than one-third of its global merchandise from Asian markets such as India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Within India, over 64 per cent of the merchandise M&S sells is locally sourced.
Before joining hands with Reliance Retail five years ago, M&S operated in the country through local franchise partner Planet Retail between 2001 and 2008. Its stores then, Bolland admitted, had high priced and limited offerings.
ABDUL WAHEED
PGDM 3rd SEM.
M&S, which operates in the country through a joint venture with Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Retail, plans to increase its store count to 80 from 36 over the next three years. "The company had its first priority market as China, which I changed to India more than two years ago," Bolland, who is here to open the London-headquartered retailer's biggest India store in Mumbai, said.
M&S is betting big on India even as its global sales declined for the ninth consecutive quarter during July-September, putting pressure on Bolland, who joined M&S in 2010.
While M&S is increasing focus on India, the bargain-hunting, cash-squeezed consumers here still largely perceive the brand as pricey, opting for local brands and global fastfashion labels such as Zara and Mango.
Bolland wants to change that thought and he thinks already some of the initial perception about the brand has been altered with mid-priced but high-quality merchandise. Marks & Spencer Reliance Retail reported a 28 per cent increase in its revenues at Rs 374.70 crore in the year ended March through its 29 stores while posting a net loss of Rs 28.10 crore, according to its filing with the Registrar of Companies.
In comparison, Inditex Trent — the joint venture between Zara brand owner Inditex and Tata Group's retail arm Trent — clocked a 56 per cent jump in sales at Rs 405 crore during the same period. That too, with just nine stores. Bolland, 54, however, believes that M&S' focus on quality and style will help it win over India's aspiring consumers.
Also, India for M&S isn't just a retail market. It sources more than one-third of its global merchandise from Asian markets such as India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Within India, over 64 per cent of the merchandise M&S sells is locally sourced.
Before joining hands with Reliance Retail five years ago, M&S operated in the country through local franchise partner Planet Retail between 2001 and 2008. Its stores then, Bolland admitted, had high priced and limited offerings.
ABDUL WAHEED
PGDM 3rd SEM.
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