Apparel September 2019 Apparel September 2019 issue | Page 26

MARKET WATCH
Reliance Retail is the
Preferred Partner
for Brands
Reliance Retail is the preferred partner for several
marquee brands coming to India. Its aim is to be
among the world’s top 20 retailers. Over the last
five years, it has witnessed a three-fold rise in its
per-store productivity. Reliance Retail served 15
crore customers last year and registered over 500
million footfalls, becoming one of India’s most
preferred shopping destinations.
It has expanded at a rate of eight stores a
day, opening a total of 3,000 stores this year.
The stores cover all corners of the country, with
a presence in nearly 7,000 towns and cities.
Over two-thirds of the 10,415 stores are in Tier
II, Tier III, and Tier IV towns that are connected
to a modern supply chain capable of delivering
products from distribution centres spread across
the country.
Miniso is forging partnerships with manufacturers
to make India one of its supply hubs. In the two
years since its launch in India, the Japanese value
retailer has opened 110 stores across 41 cities.
Its plan is to open about 70 stores this year. India
will be the second biggest purchase country for
Miniso. It has already started exporting some
makeup and textile products to other countries,
albeit on a small scale.
Miniso is known for low-cost products such as
mobile phone accessories, handbags, storage
boxes, stationery, perfumes, etc. It updates its
products every seven days and targets intelligent
consumer product chains. Worldwide, Miniso has
some 2,600 stores across 60 countries including
India, Indonesia, South Korea, Hong Kong, the
Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, and the United
States. It treats product structure optimisation
and product management as its priorities, with
designs from Japan, Korea, Sweden, Denmark,
Singapore, Malaysia, and China.
New Brands Queer the Pitch for Unorganised Players
The ethnic wear market is largely ruled by unorganised players across India. Each region has strong players but at the
same time, few brands have managed to build a strong presence in the country on the basis of ethnic wear alone. It is
believed that a large chunk of consumption in the ethnic wear market will be driven by the movement from unbranded to
branded wear and that there is enough space for different brands, retailers, and designers to thrive.
Although India’s fashion industry is rapidly growing and gaining world recognition, there is scope for improvement. For
consumers, product quality and affordability are of great importance along with the brand name. Making consumers shift
from the unorganised sector to the organised sector is the real challenge. Bigger brands are now relying on high-quality
products with good finishes to build consumer trust.
Growth in the women’s ethnic wear market has been precise and steady. As per a Technopak study, India’s ethnic
wear industry is currently pegged at over R82,200 crore and is expected to rise to R1,26,210 crore by this year.
There is no competition from global brands in this segment, however there are other challenges. Siddhaarth Oberoi,
MD, Sanskriti, a leading ethnic wear manufacturer, opines, “In the past five years of the Modi government, a lot has
changed in the Indian market. Especially with GST coming in, we all have witnessed the retail market being affected. In
the premium segment, everyone wants a piece of the cake that is already too small. Everyone is facing a shortfall in sales
across segments. It is a matter of survival of the fittest. The buying capacity in general has decreased so now, one can
only survive by having unique, value-for-money products.”
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I APPAREL I
September 2019
@Shutterstock.com
Miniso Makes India a
Supply Hub