Maternity Store – Mahindra Retail is letting US- based brand ‘Destination Maternity’, an exclusive maternity store grow beyond its Mom & Me stores in order to tap the growing demand for maternity wear in India.

The firm, which has a master franchisee agreement with the US-based Destination Maternity Corporation, has set up the first ‘Destination Maternity’ store in Gurgaon.

“We have been operating shop-in-shops of ‘Mother Maternity’ brand by the US-based company since 2009 within Mahindra Retail’s Mom & Me stores. Now, we have decided to open exclusive maternity store under ‘Destination Maternity’ brand,” Mahindra Retail CEO Venkataraman told reporters here.

Maternity Store ‘Destination Materinity’ to wed Mahindra

Mahindra Retail will set up and operate ‘Destination Maternity’ stores in India as a master franchisee. At present Mahindra Retail operates a total of 77 Mom & Me stores, with Destination Maternity shop-in-shops.

Going ahead, while the existing maternity store shop-in-shop will continue to function, the two partners will open stores for the US brand at other big locations like Mumbai and Bangalore, he said but did not provide details on the number of stores planned this year.

Destination Maternity Corporation operates around 650 exclusive maternity store ’Destination Maternity’ and over 2,000 shop-in-shops in the US and also has a presence in Canada, Middle East and South Korea.

Commenting on its India plans, Destination Maternity Corporation CEO Edward Krell said: “India offers tremendous growth opportunity. We look forward to opening many more exclusive maternity store in India and have long term plans here.”

Maternity Store ‘Destination Maternity’ houses apparel under three brands

When asked if the two partners were considering expansion into India’s neighbouring markets, Mahindra Retail’s Venkataraman said: “Right now our partnership is for India, but we may explore other markets too.”

A Destination Maternity stores houses maternity apparel under under labels — Motherhood Maternity, Kriti Maternity and A Pea in the Pod.

Besides, Mahindra Retail also has an aggressive plan to expand its own retail chain Mom & Me that sells products and services for mother and child.

“At present we operate 77 Mom & Me stores across India in over 25 cities. The plan is to add around 50 new stores in this fiscal,” Venkataraman said without sharing financial details.

Mahindra Retail, a part of the $ 14.4 billion Mahindra Group, also operates seven exclusive toy stores under ‘Beanstalk’ brand.

“We plan to add another 30-40 Beanstalk stores this year,” Venkataraman added.

Maternity Store

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Retail Chains – “In a business where the other players were among the biggest Indian business houses — the Tatas, Goenkas, Piramals, Rahejas — we were seen as a small-time Marwari bania company trying to reinvent the wheel,” wrote Pantaloon Retail India (PRIL) founder and chairman Kishore Biyani in his book It Happened in India, published in 2007.

He continued: “Unlike other retail chains, we neither had financial muscle nor business experience, or any legacy to boast of. We took large risks, made a number of mistakes, faltered on the way and learned things while doing it.” The same year, debt started piling up for PRIL, India’s retail pioneer, and shrinking cash flows added to Biyani’s woes.

Five years later, last Monday, PRIL agreed to sell its high-margin fashion and apparel business to Aditya Birla Nuvo, part of the $35-billion Aditya Birla Group, a move to cut down its debt by R1,600 crore. Three days later, Biyani raised another R200 crore by issuing shares of his parent company to Bennett Coleman & Company, the publishers of The Times of India daily. Retail chain PRIL had heavy debt of R7,846 crore on its books and its market cap fell 32.5% in the last one year.

Retail Chains Ploughing in cash from other group businesses

Pantaloon, like other retail chains, is a victim of a strategy of expanding the business by debt with a hope that future cash flows will repay it. Unlike the diversified group retail chains from Tata Group, Reliance Industries or Aditya Birla Group, which can plough cash flows from other businesses into retail, Biyani had no such businesses to fall back on. For smaller retail chains, which availed debt to grow, the sale of a high-margin business by Biyani is a wake-up call: Shape up or ship out.

Signs of stress in some of the retail chains are visible. Egged by private equity investors, kidswear makers Gini and Jony and Lilliput Kids have appointed investment bankers to raise money as lenders are cutting down loans to the retail sector.

“PRIL was in desperate need of a rejig and strategic investors weren’t interested in his non-core assets,” says Nikhil Vora, managing director, IDFC Securities. “Hence, Biyani had no option but to sell his profitable fashion retail chain venture. Once FDI in multi-brand retail is opened up, PRIL’s wholesale business is also up for grabs,” he adds.

A pile of debt and unsold goods stared at PRIL, while a R12,000-crore turnover failed to generate enough cash for Biyani to service the loans that he availed to grow. He took risks to scale up his business and tried multiple retail formats (Pantaloons, Big Bazaar, Central, HomeTown, Brand Factory, eZone) even as signs of a slowdown were setting in.

Retail Chains did not time

“Biyani pre-empted competition and that did him in,” says an industry observer. “His huge expansion drive came at a wrong time; the economic downturn had just started, consumption had slowed down and there were limited cash flows.”

In one year, between April 2007 and March 2008, he added 4 million square feet and opened 40 large Big Bazaar stores. An economic slowdown in the wake of a global financial crisis plagued him. Retail chain PRIL reported a loss of R7 crore in 2009-10 and Biyani’s debt shot up more than 10 times to R7,656 crore by 2010 from R700 crore in 2006.

Worried over heavy debt, investors started fleeing the counter. Within a year, PRIL shares lost 63% of their value to close at R185 from R505 in June 2010. “Most retail chains realised their mistakes during the downturn and shut down loss-making stores, but Biyani carried on uninhibited and is now learning his lessons the hard way,” says IDFC’s Vora.

Can fresh money end Biyani’s woes? “With negative cash flows, reduced working capital and high interest costs eating into PRIL’s profits, Biyani has to strike many such deals,” says a retail analyst at a foreign brokerage. “The next to go would be his cash-guzzling consumer durables and electronics business, eZone, and the home retailing chain HomeTown,” he says.

Retail Chains expand fast and consolidate later

Consultants say retail companies, like in many developed markets, at early stages expand faster, but consolidate later. “Even in the West, retail sees aggressive expansion followed by some consolidation and once consumer sentiments improve, the expansion and experimentation with formats is back to be followed by another phase of consolidation,” says Abheek Singhi, partner (retail and FMCG), Boston Consulting Group (BCG). “It may not be a massive shakeout with high-value sell-offs, but we’re in for some activity in select formats of retail.”

A consolidation will be driven by domestic players as the government’s policy doesn’t allow foreign direct investment in multi-brand retail chains. “No foreign company is interested in Indian retail until FDI norms are relaxed,” says Anil Talreja, partner at consulting firm Deloitte.

Some say a retail consolidation may be a far-fetched idea as there aren’t enough companies with high profits and scale, but private equity funds may purchase a slice of the India consumption story. “Though Future Group will see some consolidation in the coming months, the industry may not be in for any massive rejig,” says IDFC’s Vora. “There aren’t too many potential buyers in retail as scalability and profitability are big challenges.”

Retail Chains shakeout imminent

He adds: “A shakeout in the lower level, the likes of Subhiksha and Vishal Retail, may happen, but nothing major.”

Private equity funds’ interest may heat up in the sector, primarily in high-margin categories like apparel. “There’s a lot of buzz in the domestic market with many firms conducting due diligence, but there won’t be any big-bang partnerships,” says Deloitte’s Talreja. “Deals may be high in volume but low in value.”

So far, one retail chain has gone under the hammer. Last year, PE funds TPG Capital and the Shriram Group purchased Vishal Retail for R70 crore after it was put on the block by lenders. “Vishal is a standalone case where a retailer was under great pressure,” says Purnendu Kumar, vice-president (retail) at Technopak Advisors. “A complete sellout may not be on the cards for other companies.”

Retail Chains restructuring

Many retail chains are restructuring their businesses. Some have cut down expansion, while others have shut down loss-making stores, and many others plan to exit. Lilliput is looking to exit the retail business altogether. “They just couldn’t get the business model right and no one wants to touch Lilliput now,” says BCG’s Singhi.

“The Tatas and Reliance will keep pumping money into their businesses and are not looking for any stake sales,” says Technopak’s Kumar. “Spencer’s may look for some strategic investor as it is running into losses and is yet to achieve scale.”

Cash-rich groups Aditya Birla and Reliance are experimenting with different formats to get the right one. Birla’s food and grocery chain More plans to go slow in expansion and focus on profit-making.

Mukesh Ambani’s retail chains Reliance Retail is foraying into newer retail segments and experimenting with big-box stores. “Reliance has the balance sheet to support a cash-guzzling retail business,” says IDFC’s Vora.

On the other hand, retail chains like Hypercity, the loss-making hypermarket arm of Shoppers Stop, is downsizing its stores to increase sales per square foot and achieve break-even. “Every business is at a separate stage and the requirements are different for each company,” says Singhi of BCG.

Indian retail chains are yet to find the right model to grow as cyclical ups and downs hit them. One lesson learnt is they have to live with a tight balance sheet and a pile of ready cash. “Retailers and retail chains will operate in very tight balance sheets; there are no cashflows and we may see very limited new store openings,” says Vora of IDFC.

Retail Chains

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Future Group – Life has turned full circle for Kishore Biyani.

He set up a garments company in 1987 that went on to become Pantaloon Retail (India) Ltd (PRIL), the largest listed retail company in India and one of the most profitable operations in the Future Group that he controls. Now, in a deal that was announced on Monday, the Aditya Birla Group will take control of a new company that will own 86 apparel stores and outlets run by Future Group’s PRIL.

Analysts say the agreement will give a “breather” to Biyani as he moves closer to an ambitious goal he has set for himself: to make his company debt-free by March 2013. The deal with Aditya Birla Nuvo Ltd (ABNL) will slice away Rs.1,600 crore of debt from Future Group PRIL’s balance sheet.

Biyani had told The Economic Times newspaper in March that he was working on 18 deals to be closed over the next year. These would help him cut debt from Future Group, though observers point out that working with the diverse partners who will come on board thanks to these deals will pose management challenges for a group that has depended so heavily on the entrepreneurial skills of one man.

Future Group to divest non-core business

The retailer has also been in talks for divesting his non-core businesses, like investment company Future Capital Holdings Ltd and insurer Future Generali India Life Insurance Co. Ltd, for over two years, Mint had reported in March 2010. He had insisted then that he wanted to “run and operate the retail businesses”. Monday’s deal for his flagship brand, in that context, indicates Biyani’s single-mindedness in offloading debt from the company’s books.

“He (Biyani) has been on record about debt restructuring and getting brand new investors in each of the formats,” said Saloni Nangia, president (retail) at retail consultancy firm Technopak Advisory Services Pvt. Ltd.

Future Group PRIL was a comparatively easier sell. “They had so much debt, they had to do it. And it is difficult to strike a deal in loss-making business,” said Rahul Kundnani, a sector analyst with Mumbai-based brokerage firm SBICap Securities Ltd, explaining that the Future Group’s home, furniture and electronics businesses are still struggling to make it big.

There are other potential hurdles as well. One source of fresh capital is uncertain till the government clears foreign direct investment in the multi-brand retailing businesses that Future Group Biyani manages. The timing for deals in the non-retail businesses also remains uncertain. Selling the family silver in that case makes for a “smart move”. “This (Pantaloons format) is a good, profitable business. They could have got a good valuation there. This (deal) is a breather for the company,” added Kundnani.

Future Group under a mountain of debt

The Future Group is weighed down by a mountain of debt, taken on in the boom years to finance rapid expansion that had helped Biyani become one of the most successful retailers in India. According to the latest available yearly data, for June 2011, debt in its retail operations stood at Rs.4,200 crore; on a consolidated basis, including Future Capital, the total debt of the group was Rs.7,846 crore.

The cost of servicing this debt has hurt cash flow. In the quarter ended March, PRIL reported interest costs of Rs.244.1 crore, compared to an operating profit of Rs.355.97 crore. In other words, nearly two out of every three rupees earned from operations were being used to service debt, a huge burden.

A JP Morgan Securities report on 11 April estimated interest payments—described as “a key drag”—to be as much as 54% of FY12’s Ebitda (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization). It also estimated that PRIL would need a capital expenditure of Rs.700-800 crore for FY12 to fund space additions as well as refurbish existing stores.

Future Group deal with Aditya Birla

The deal with the Aditya Birla Group will offer some relief—but only some.

“There is a lot of pressure on the group to reduce its debts. The deal (with the Aditya Birla Group) will see its interest outgo reduce by as much as Rs.90-100 crore,” said Abhishek Ranganathan, research analyst (retail and real estate), institutional equity research at MF Global Sify Securities India Pvt. Ltd. However, “the savings will only accrue on the deal completion, which is yet another 8-10 months away”.

Rating agency Credit Analysis and Research Ltd’s (CARE’s) sector expert Milind Gadkari said the Future Group Pantaloon deal has boosted Biyani’s “staying power” as he strives to drive a harder bargain on all the other stake sales or waits for a better valuation. “This starts the process. There was a lot of (restructuring) talk, but this is the first tangible thing that has come through. It puts them in a stronger position to negotiate their successive equity stake sales.”

A Future Group spokesperson said on Monday that the deal was the first in the series of debt-paring announcements that are to come by June.

In a 12 April note, CARE outlined its key concerns on Future Group PRIL, saying its “ratings…continue to be constrained by moderate debt coverage ratios, debt funded expansion leading to higher leverage, working capital intensive nature of the business and…continue to factor in the support PRIL may have to extend to its loss making subsidiaries/joint ventures”.

In terms of profitability, Pantaloons, followed by Central, and the foods and groceries business under Big Bazaar, Food Bazaar and KB Fair Price, are the most profitable, with scalable business models. The home and electronics businesses are still in the red, said Sangeeta Tripathi, a senior equity research analyst at brokerage firm ShareKhan Ltd.

Analysts also point to the flip side of having a pack of partners across the group, some of which could be strong international or domestic entities, implying they will bring their imprint into the businesses, which have largely been run as a one-man show so far. “The deal, as described, gives ABNL more than a 50% stake. It already has a big retail footprint. They are not novices. There will be a definite shift in the fashion side (of the business). The Aditya Birla gene has also to be accounted for,” said Gadkari.

Kundnani of SBICap also pointed to the challenge in aligning culturally if Future Group Biyani is able to cut all the deals he needs, to become debt-free. “It will definitely become more complicated. This will be KB’s (Biyani’s) true test of how he strings together all these partners and grows the business. It (restructuring) will create a completely new DNA for the company,” he said.

Future Group

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Retail Jobs in Retail Industry – The Retail industry registered 5% growth in the demand index during March’12, highlights TimesJobs.com recruitment index, RecruiteX. The index has moved from 106 in February’12 to 113 in March’12. Whereas, other key industries including high-volume sectors such as IT/Telecom, BFSI and ITeS failed to maintain encouraging hiring momentum. “Retail sector always lend a piece of itself to create retail jobs across levels and locations.

By 2018, the total worth of the industry will rise to $520 billion combining organised and unorganised sector”, stated Riju Vashisht, Executive Vice President-Human Resources, Bharti-Walmart in an interaction with TJinsite, research and knowledge arm of TimesJobs.com.

Retail Jobs in plenty

There is a huge demand of store associates and assistants in the sector, claimed Vashisht. To fill these positions, companies are on a look-out for resources that can assist and interact with customers, and should able to maintain stock records in the store.

In RecruiteX Quarterly Report, Kumar Rajagopalan, CEO, Retailers Association of India told that opportunities in front-end operations, accounts & finance, logistics and customer servicing will soar, in coming months. Retail Jobs in merchandising function will significantly rise. In his view, the demand will be driven by expansion plans laid by retail companies in existing and new locations. He also added that employers are also exploring and hiring candidates from cross-industry verticals to maintain high-quality standards.

Commenting on skills required to excel in the challenging and competitive environment of the industry, she said, “More than any educational qualification or prior experience, retail companies are eyeing for candidates equipped with problem-solving approach and should be a team player. He/she should be able to manage group of people and connect with associates”. Hence it is important to recruit resources, with an attitude to service customers and people-oriented. And, there is no pre-qualification for this ability.

Retail Jobs offer excellent remuneration

Elaborating on average salary remuneration Vashisht mentioned, “This is a sector where a candidate can aspire to become a CEO without a fancy MBA degree in hand. Salary packages are decided basis on candidate’s skill-set and attitude.” The fact is also corroborated by a research conducted by, TJinsite, which reflected large disparities in salary packages within an experience level suggests skill directly affects the pay packages in the retail industry.

According to experts, retail industry will continue to grow at phenomenal speed and become one of the major employment drivers of the Indian economy. As mentioned by Rajagopalan, a clearly defined FDI policy will further change the course of recruitments in the industry.

Retail Jobs

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Online retail is being eyed by American retail giant Walmart in India. It was in talks with some leading e-commerce companies in India for partnership possibilities, sources close to the development said.

Walmart, however, said the information was “completely speculative”. The world’s largest retail company, with global revenue of $400 billion, is currently trying to strengthen its online retail operations in the US and other international markets, sensing competition from online competitors, including Amazon. In recent months, Walmart has been acquiring web-related companies internationally, including in China.

Online Retail is a lucrative route

The online retail space has turned active in India, with several serious entities in the game. Amazon has also entered but through the aggregator route, by launching jungle.com. Amazon opted for the indirect entry due to the restrictions on foreign direct investment (FDI) in the retail sector.

Explaining why a foreign retailer would be keen to join the online segment here, Saloni Nangia, president of Technopak, a retail consultancy, said online retail had very strong business potential here. The factors influencing the growth of e-commerce are dearth of real estate, the average Indian consumer becoming time-deficient, exponential growth in internet connectivity, smart phones and tablets.

Online retail will need to follow same norms

“As modern retail is still a very small share of the market and India is a growing economy, a multi-channel presence will help build a stronger presence in the market,” she said. The annual retail business in India is pegged at an estimated $500-billion (Rs 25 lakh crore); 0.1 per cent of this is online retail.

The existing foreign investment restrictions in domestic trading would be applicable to online retail, too. Such companies would engage only in business to business (B2B) e-commerce and not in retail trading, the policy states. In the brick and mortar segment, the rules permit 100 per cent FDI in cash and carry or wholesale trade.

In single-brand retail, too, FDI up to 100 per cent has been allowed, from the 51 per cent earlier, though with several riders. In multi-brand retail, however, FDI is not allowed at all. The Union cabinet had cleared FDI in multi-brand retail last November but then held it back, due to an adverse political reaction.

In India, Walmart has a 50:50 joint venture with Bharti Enterprises for operating cash and carry (wholesale) stores. In 2009, it launched the first cash and carry outlet in India, and now has 17 of these across the country. Walmart and Bharti want to extend the partnership to the front-end multi-brand category once FDI is permitted there. Walmart gets around $1 billion (about Rs 5,000 crore) in annual revenue from its India operations.

online retail

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Appliance retailers and manufacturers have an ongoing tug-of-war over margins again. Samsung, the consumer durables maker, is looking to rationalize payouts to channel partners by as much as six to seven percentage points, in a bid to reduce the price differential between retailers of home appliances.

The Korean giant has been looking at ways to get all its trade partners and appliance retailers — small retailers, large-format stores, regional and national chains — under one pricing structure. That is, the margins it is willing to pass on would be uniform for all. The categories where it is targeting a uniform pricing structure include air conditioners, washing machines, refrigerators and microwaves. Audio-visual products, information technology and mobile phones are not part of this move.

Samsung is keen to bring margins to 17-18 per cent across formats. This has not gone down well with appliance retailers regional and national chains, since these enjoy margins of about 24 per cent. A small retailer’s margins are 12-14 per cent; a large-format store, basically a large neighborhood electronics showroom, enjoys margins of 16-17 per cent.

Appliance Retailers restive

Rajan Malhotra, the Future Group’s president, retail strategy, who also heads eZone, the group’s consumer durables and electronics retail format, confirmed it was talking to Samsung on the issue. “We are not willing to bring down our margins,” said Malhotra. “Samsung is a strategic brand and we continue to stock their products, but we have not agreed to a price revision in home appliances.”

Officials from Tata Group’s Chroma and Videocon’s Next Retail, also into consumer durables retailing, were not available for comment on the issue. Regional chains have, however, confirmed the issue has been a live one between them and Samsung. An official at Mumbai-based Vijay Sales said they were not doing business with Samsung at the moment. “We are not stocking their products,” he said, citing issues over Samsung’s attempts to lower margins. “The matter has to be resolved first.”

K Mulchandani, director, Snehanjali, another Mumbai-based consumer durables and electronics chain, also said it was talking to Samsung on margins. “They are a key brand and we continue to stock their products, but we are hoping this issue will be resolved soon,” he said.

B A Kodandarama Setty, chairman of Chennai-based Viveks Ltd, confirmed Samsung’s intention to lower margins in home appliances and the resulting tension. “We are talking to them and they have assured us that they will look into the matter,” he said.

Appliance Retailers Issues

Samsung’s Mahesh Krishnan, vice-president, home appliances, said the company continued to have a healthy relationship with retailers. “We continue to have a healthy business relationship with our appliance retailers, even as we work together to strengthen and grow in the country,” he said. “All key channel partners continue to maintain healthy stocks of Samsung products.”

Persons in the know say Samsung’s attempts to trim margins is being watched closely by rivals. Says the chief executive of a consumer durables company, who declined to be named, “The question is who blinks first, the retailers or Samsung. If Samsung does manage to get its way, it would be a worthy effort at bringing some sanity in the pricing structure.”

But big appliance retailers argue a price differential is a must, given the volume of business they generate over smaller appliance retailers. “You cannot bunch us in the same bracket as a small retailer,” argues Mulchandani. “We have a chain of stores and the effort we put in to drive sales is far more than what a small retailer would do.”

The percentage of consumer goods sales coming out of modern trade in India is eight to nine per cent for a manufacturer, while traditional trade (basically small stores) contributes the lion’s share at 87 per cent. The balance four to five per cent comes from company-owned outlets.

Appliance Retailers

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Retail software is a critical purchase for a small retail business running a retail shop. Choosing retail software wisely can increase the amount of sales made, make your business more efficient and also make your customers happier. Whereas selecting poorly can have a negative effect, restricting how many sales are made, slowing down processes and frustrating your customers (not to mention your staff). Here are few of the essential factors to consider when your selecting your retail software

Retail Software – Web Based or On-premise?

The first thing to think about is whether you would like to have the software on-premise or hosted in the cloud so you can log in via an internet browser. Having it on-site gives you the advantage of immediate access if something were to go wrong with the software so you can fix it yourself. However, you will need the IT skills to be able to repair it yourself, or else have to employ someone to do it for you. You will also need to buy hardware for the software to run on, as well as a backup system in case the hardware fails. You will be responsible for the systems security too, and need to complete any software upgrades that might be necessary.

Generally, when you choose to host software in the cloud you will sign up for a SaaS (software as a service) model. You pay for your software on a month-by-month basis as opposed to having to fork out a lot of money upfront as you would with an on-premise solution. Getting web based retail software means that you would not need to buy hardware or be responsible for system security, backups and software upgrades. All this is done for you by the software vendor. The one thing you are reliant on though is the internet, as without connectivity you will not be able to access your software, so you will need to make sure you have budgeted for a high quality connection if you opt for this type of solution.

Retail Software - CRM, Accounts and Inventory considerations

You will need to work out which different areas of your business need to share data when selecting your retail software.  The main systems to think about are CRM, accounts and inventory. Each area has information about the products you are selling, such as what products have been sold (inventory), how much were they sold for (accounts) and who did you sell them too (CRM). By making sure this data is distributed across all these system you will start to be more efficient and make more sales.

All-in-one software solutions are a great way to get these systems working in harmony as they integrate them in a single piece of retail software. This eliminates the need for lengthy data transfers between software programs that may not even be in the same format. You save a lot of time with this type of solution and the other advantage is that all your systems will updated simultaneously rather than waiting for the data to synchronize so everything is available in real time.

Retail Software - Staff considerations

The people who will use the retail software to make sales are your staff.  So when you’re making a choice about retail software make sure you bear them in mind. Select software that will make their lives easier and they will be more likely to provide a good service to your customers. Higher customer satisfaction will ultimately result in more sales and more repeat business.

Speak to your staff members about what they think would improve their working day. They are doing these things every day and may have some useful insight into the processes that could be made more efficient. This will help you to assess the features that would really benefit them and what type of system will best fit their needs.

It’s not all about the staff though; you must make the choice based on what suits your business as well. You need to make sure that you are able to limit the amount of access your staff has to your back-end systems appropriately. Whilst you might want them to be able to see stock levels, you probably won’t want them to have free rein over your accounts. Select retail software that works for you both.

Retail Software - What hardware will you need to accompany it?

You will need to buy some hardware to go with any retail software you buy. On-premise solutions will require a server, a backup system and a firewall as well a secure cabinet for this equipment to be stored in. Web-based solutions do not need this much equipment, but both solutions will entail the purchase of some additional hardware. A central cash till for cash payments and credit receipts is essential, and you need to connect this to your retail software so the till is triggered to automatically open when a sale is made.

Having a barcode scanner will allow you to quickly scan products in so they are automatically picked up by your retail software. If you have  multiple staff members working at once that it will be worthwhile to invest in a few of these scanners so multiple sales can be made at the same time. You will also need to produce a receipt once a sale has been made so make your that the retail software you select can be hooked up to a thermal printer that allows you to print these automatically.

Retail Software – Your company, your decision

No two companies are the same so make sure have thoroughly assessed what functionality it is that you need. Identify your requirements and research the market properly so you can find the best retail software for your business. All in all it is your company, so make sure the decision you make is the best one for you.

Brightpearl’s business management software for small and medium businesses is designed specifically to save time, increase sales and make customers happier. It’s multi-channel retail software solution that integrates your inventory, accounts, CRM, order management and more with your online web store, POS and online marketplace listings.

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Reliance Fresh – Reliance Retail Ltd, an arm of India’s most-valued company Reliance Industries Ltd, has integrated nine of its loss-making subsidiaries with Reliance Fresh Ltd, under a scheme of arrangement proposed to the Bombay high court.

The structure was approved by the court on 26 December and came into effect on 30 December, when the court order was submitted to the Registrar of Companies.

The integration will allow the company to “exclusively focus on one area of business and also have a greater capacity to raise finance and expand operations,” Reliance says in its proposal, a copy of which Mint has reviewed.

The nine companies merged with Reliance Fresh are: Reliance Agri Products Distribution Ltd, Reliance Food Processing Solutions Ltd, Reliance Home Store Ltd, Reliance Hypermart Ltd, Reliance Integrated Agri Solutions Ltd, Reliance Lifestyle Holdings Ltd, Reliance Supply Chain Solutions Ltd, Reliance Wellness Ltd and Reliance Concepts and Services India Ltd.

Reliance Fresh and others incurred a combined loss of Rs.360.47 cr

These companies, including Reliance Fresh, incurred a combined loss of Rs.360.47 crore on a revenue of Rs. 3,380.16 crore in fiscal 2011, according to data culled from RIL’s 2011 annual report.

Other than Reliance Fresh, the retail business includes Reliance Digital, Reliance Trends and Reliance Brands. None of these are listed on BSE Ltd.

An email sent to RIL on Thursday remained unanswered.

An RIL official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the restructuring was contemplated during a phase of consolidation at Reliance Retail on the basis that companies with similar operations should be merged into one.

Reliance Fresh to be flagship

According to the scheme of arrangement, the holding company decided to restructure the operations to “segregate similar trading and related operations and to house the same in a single company Reliance Fresh Ltd, instead of several companies carrying on the same business.”

It added that “the demerger would also achieve synergies and economies of scale by reducing duplication of costs and improving administrative and operational efficiency.”

Financial Express reported about the merger on 16 September and CNBC TV18 on 5 March.

India’s largest listed retailer by revenues, Pantaloons Retail India Ltd, executed a similar restructuring two years ago by bringing brands like Big Bazaar and Food Bazaar under a single entity Future Value Retail Ltd, thus separating the lifestyle and apparel retail arms as it looked to raise money and expand the business.

“The procurement requirements for many of the formats is the same,” said the same Reliance official. “Also, some of the entities that were merged used to provide back-end logistical support. So there were operational synergies.”

“Aligning formats with needs of business into one structure would help rationalise costs and give economies of scale as companies look at profitability,” said Rajan Divekar, senior director, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu India Pvt. Ltd.

After forming Reliance Fresh, Reliance Retail passed a special resolution for an investment of Rs. 4,500 crore on 31 December at its annual general meeting.

The restructuring follows the induction in July of top executives—Rob Cissell, former chief operating officer of WalMart China as chief executive-value formats, and Shawn Gray, former vice-president, Walmart China, as chief operations officer—to turnaround the retail business.

“The management changes and the restructuring signal a commitment of the parent to the retail business,” said Arvind Singhal, chairman of retail advisory firm Technopak India Pvt. LtdRIL expects integration to give the company greater capacity to raise finance and expand operations.

He added, though, that it was too early to decide whether such moves will result in any operational efficiencies as Reliance’s retail business is still young.

Reliance Retail Reliance Fresh

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Online Retail in India – The total size of business of selling retail goods on the internet, commonly known as online retail, is set to touch USD 70 billion mark by 2020 in India, according to estimates of consulting firm Technopak.

Online retail, which is around 6 per cent of the total e- commerce, is estimated to be around USD 0.6 billion in 2011 and growing at a CAGR of 70 per cent, it said.

Online Retail market in India is approx USD 10 bn

The total e-commerce business in India, including other products and services such as travel and financial services, is estimated to be USD 10 billion at present and is expected to touch USD 200 billion mark by 2020.

“The coming years will see emergence of totally new sets of retailers in all formats, including hypermarkets, department stores, supermarkets, cash and carry, and specialty stores. However, these retailers shall be ‘virtual’ ones rather than physical ones,” Technopak said.

Online retail in India is at a nascent stage

Advanced market in developed countries accounted for about 85 per cent of the internet economy in 2005, but their share is estimated to have fallen to 70 per cent in 2010.

“It is estimated that emerging countries will account for more than half of the online retail by 2020,” it added.

The potential is huge and retailers and opportunists alike have just started waking up to it. With a huge population base that is just getting onto the internet bandwagon, market potential and growth in oneline retail will come in triple digits for the first few years.

Amazon has just got in with a tieup to bring amazon sold products in India. Online retail, which is around 6 per cent of the total e- commerce, is estimated to be around USD 0.6 billion in 2011 and growing at a CAGR of 70 per cent

online retail

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Global online shopping giant Amazon.com today launched a new service for Indian consumers, claiming to offer 1.2 crore products from both local and international retailers.

“We are announcing a new online shopping service for consumers in India. It is an aggregation service that offers 1.2 crore products along with product information, reviews, pricing and shipping time details that help consumers to make purchase decisions,” Amazon.com Vice-President Amit Agarwal said.

Amazon.com ties up with Junglee.com

He said the service will be offered under the brand Junglee.com, which will also provide a platform to Indian sellers to list and showcase their products and services and also generate traffic.

“With the new service, consumers in India will find it easier to find what they are looking for. When a customer decides to make a purchase, he or she will be directed to either amazon.com or to the website of a seller. The ultimate purchase will happen on the seller’s website,” he added.

Junglee.com will offer products from other online retailers including Amazon.com

Agarwal, however, did not comment on initial customer target and the investment made by the company on the launch of this service.

The company claimed that Junglee.com will offer options from hundreds of online and offline retailers, including Homeshop18, Hidesign, Gitanjali, Fabindia, Bata India, Dabur, Microsoft India Store, Reebok, and Amazon.com.

It will have more than 90 lakh books and 30 lakh products from more than 14,000 Indian and global brands across more than 25 product categories, including mobile phones, cameras, toys and games, baby products, books, music, movies and TV, clothing, and jewellery, it said.

With the new service, consumers in India will find it easier to find what they are looking for. When a customer decides to make a purchase, he or she will be directed to either amazon.com or to the website of a seller. The ultimate purchase will happen on the seller’s website

amazon.com

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