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company to get Government approval to open 100 per cent foreign-owned stores in India.
Sourcing from India, Bangladesh, Turkey and some other countries, these brands make an offering which is difficult for Indian brands to emulate. Among the new entrants, H & M has already achieved a turnover of US $ 75 million in its first year; starting with only 12 stores, it now looks to set up its first warehousing hub in India, as it expects to open another 50 stores in next two years. Zara is at about US $ 140 million, M & S is at about US $ 120 million and seems to be changing strategies to achieve a better growth like H & M. Even GAP is looking at opening 50 more stores in the next two years.
Other talked-about activities include the tie-up of Gap Inc with Arvind Group’ s fashion portal NNNow. com to sell its products online, which will help the retailer expand its presence beyond metros and Tier-1 cities. Adidas India Private Limited has outlined plans of opening around 30-40 big flagship stores across Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore, by 2020.
In this invigorating environment, retail experts are predicting that in the next three years, over 50 more fashion retailers will be in India. Some of the brands that are looking at India are Evisu Genes, a Japanese designer clothing company that specialises in producing denimwear; Massimo Dutti, a premium fashion brand from Spain offering sophisticated womenswear, menswear, footwear and accessories and New York-based designer brand Kate Spade, to be launched in India soon, which specialises in womenswear like dresses, tops and even athleisure.
Only recently Uniqlo announced its first store to open in Delhi in 2019. Aeropostale, an American teen fashion retailer, has chosen to enter India over China, and expects India to be among its top three markets over the next four years with a revenue target of Rs. 500 crore( US $ 74.12 million). Ikea has just opened its first store in the city of Hyderabad in the Spring of 2018 and its future stores are planned
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in Mumbai, Delhi-NCR, Bangalore, Pune, Surat, and Ahmedabad, apart from plans for a robust e-commerce platform.
In fact, the list of investments announced by foreign companies is impressive. Women’ secret and Springfield are coming to India through Tablez India, franchise partner for Grupo Cortefiel in India and Sri Lanka. Grupo Cortefiel India’ s expansion plans will take the brands across major metros of India. Later in the year, six more stores for both the brands will open in the country – two in Bangalore, two in Mumbai and two in Chennai. On the same lines, by 2018, Springfield will open nine stores and Women’ secret will open 12 stores in India with presence in Bangalore, Mumbai and Delhi. By 2021, the projection is to open 75 stores for both brands.
Selected Homme has been brought in India by Selected and Bestseller Retail India Pvt. Ltd. The brand offers a subtle and interesting addition to the premium menswear segment with its impeccable tailoring. The products include outerwear, blazers, cardigans, jumpers, tailoring, shirts, t-shirts, pants, shoes, jeans, accessories, shorts, sweatshirts, and undergarments.
Apparel retailer Max Fashion is mulling to double its turnover to Rs. 5,000 crore by expanding the footprint of its retail store network to 400 outlets in 120 cities. The retailer will invest almost Rs. 400 crore to open new stores over the next four years. Additionally, Max is also planning to expand store numbers
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ESSENTIALS
The FDI norms relaxation for single brand retail in the country, including relaxation of mandatory local sourcing requirement of 30 per cent, will also be a major boost for fastfashion majors to set up shops in India. Further, India’ s improved performance on the World Bank’ s‘ Ease of Doing Business’ ranking – moving up 30 places to rank 100th out of 190 countries – will further boost foreign investment in the country.
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of its value apparel retail format Easybuy. The company will clock a turnover of Rs. 2,400 crore as against Rs. 1,800 crore in the prior fiscal, with an aim to be a Rs. 5,000 crore company by fiscal 2021. Max Fashion, which is owned by the Dubai based Landmark Group, currently operates 190 stores in 75 Indian cities.
Unfolding a new chapter in the Indian fashion milieu, British designer, Simon Carter marks his Indian entry with the launch of‘ Simon Carter’ menswear brand. Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail had signed an exclusive deal with the brand for the same. The Simon Carter menswear collection is a playful mix of prints and colours, tailored fit for the modern men to give them a sense of exuberance and style.
In the Luxury market, from Armani to Chanel and Ermenegildo Zegna to Versace, each has created establishments in the country. Neil Barrett, one of the leading Italian fashion brands, has forayed into the Indian market by establishing its retail presence through an exclusive partnership with Fervour, a multi-brand boutique that stocks international designer brands. Textile major Arvind Limited has announced a partnership with Sephora, owned by LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton, a French luxury conglomerate, in order to enter into the beauty and cosmetics segment. Additionally, the already existing brands such as Gucci, Armani, Hugo Boss, Louis Vuitton, Hermes, Jimmy Choo, etc., are eyeing the Indian market with renewed, country-specific, localised strategies.
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