Evolution of Indian retail Industry:

Indian Retail Industry is standing at its point of inflexion, waiting for the boom to take place. The inception of the retail industry dates back to times where retail stores were found in the village fairs , Melas or in the weekly markets. These stores were highly unorganized. The maturity of the retail sector took place with the establishment of retail stores in the locality for convenience. With the government intervention the retail industry in India took a new shape. Outlets for Public Distribution System, Cooperative stores and Khadi stores were set up. These retail Stores demanded low investments for its establishment. The retail industry in India gathered a new dimension with the setting up of the different International Brand Outlets, Hyper or Super markets, shopping malls and departmental stores. Key Players in the Indian Retail Sector: The untapped scope of retailing has attracted superstores like Wal-Mart into India, leaving behind the kiranas that served us for years. Such companies are basically IT based. The other important participants in the Indian Retail sector are Bata, Big Bazaar, Pantaloons, Archies, Cafe Coffee Day, landmark, Khadims, Crossword, to name a few. Retailing in India: a forecast: Future of organized retail in India looks bright. According to recent researches it is projected to grow at a rate of about 37% in 2007 and at a rate of 42% in 2008. It will capture a share of 10% of the total retailing by the end of 2010. According to the Union Minister of Commerce & Industry, Shri Kamal Nath, the organized retail sector is expected to grow to a value of Rs. 2,00,000 crore (US$45 billion) and may generate 10 to15 million jobs in next 5 years. This can happen in two forms- 2.5 million of these people may be associated directly with retailing and the rest 10 million people may be gainfully employed in related sectors that will be pulled up through the strong forward and backward linkage effects. However to compete in this sector one needs to have up-to-date market information for planing and decision making. The second most important requirement is to manage costs widely in order to earn at least normal profits in face of stiff competition.

The retail industry is responsible for the distribution of finished products to the public. The retail sector comprises of general retailers (managed by individuals/families), departmental stores, specialty stores and discount stores.
The activities of the retail industry can be broadly classified into: Personal goods store retailing

Hard goods: This covers deals in goods such as electronics, electrical appliances, furniture and sporting goods. Soft goods: This includes apparel retailing. Non-store retailing This includes infomercials, catalogue sales, vending machines and ecommerce. Food retailing (restaurants) Automotive services and retailing

Retail Industry: History

The retail industry emerged in the US in the eighteenth century, restricted to general stores. Specialty stores were developed only in those areas that had a population of above 5,000. Supermarkets flourished in the US and Canada with the growth of suburbs after World War II. The modern retail industry is booming across the world. Revenues from retail sales in the US alone stood at $4.48 trillion in 2007, according to a report by the US Census Bureau.

Retail Industry: Demand and Supply Drivers

The major demand drivers of the retail industry are:

Interest rates Population Employment Personal disposable income Individual debt The supply drivers include: Competitors in the industry Size of the market Cost of the factors of production

Retail Industry: Major Players

Of the worlds top ten retail companies in terms of total sales, six are American. Combined sales of the top ten companies, computed by Delloite, were $978.5 billion in 2007. Major retail giants include Wal-Mart, Target, Home Depot and Tesco.

Retail Industry: Statistics

The total sales from store retailers stood at 108,449.8 million in 2007 and the sales value of non-store retailers was 469.9 million. The percent composition of store and non-store retailers in 2007 was: Store Retailers Non-Store Retailers Supermarkets 32.83 Vending 26.60 Small grocery retailers 24.46 Internet retailing 25.93 Hypermarkets 19.09 Home shopping 24.04 Food/beverage/tobacco specialists 15.68 Direct selling 23.43 Discounters 7.57 100 Source: World Retail Data and Statistics 2008/2009 The retail sector is vital to the world economy, as it provides large scale employment to skilled and unskilled labor, minors and casual and part-time workers. Employment in the retail sector in the US and Europe surpassed 32 million in 2007. Others 0.36 Total 100 Total

Contribution of Retail:
What, How and In this report we have analyzed in detail the retail industry in India. We had initially started with the evolution of the retail sector in India, then moved onto its size, distribution and the growth of the retail sector. We have also covered issues like the Foreign Direct Investment in the retail sector, the untapped opportunities that exist in the retail industry in India. We have also discussed about the bottlenecks that the retail industry is facing in India, online retailing in India and the role of Information Technology in the retail sector in India. In this section we have coined down the major findings of our research. Major Findings 1. The Retail Sector in India can be split up into two, the organised and the unorganized. The organized sector whose size is expected to triple by 2010 can be further split up into departmental stores, supermarkets, shopping malls etc. 2. In terms of value the size of the retail sector in India is $300 billion. The organised sector contributes about 4.6% to the total trade.

3. The retail sector in India contributes 10% to the Gross Domestic Product and 8% to the employment of the country. 4. In terms of growth the FMCG retail sector is the fastest growing unit and the retail relating to household care, confectionery etc, have lagged behind . 5. The foreign retail giants were initially restricted from making investments in India. But now FDI of 51% is permitted in India only through single branded retail outlets. Multi brand outlets are still beyond their reach. Again they can only enter the market through franchisees,. This was how Wal-Mart had entered joining hands with Bharati Enterprises. 6. On line retailing is still to leave a mark on the customers due to lacunae that we have already mentioned.
In a nutshell we may conclude that the retail industry in India has a very bright future prospect. It is expected to enrich the Indian Economy in terms of income and employment generation.

E-retailing, most commonly known as e-tailing is nothing but shopping through the Internet and other media forms. There are many things that are common between direct retail stores and online retail stores. Both have the process of billing of the customers and have to maintain a relationship with the suppliers.
Bottlenecks Faced By E-Retailing in India Problems with the Payment System People in India are not used to the online shopping system and moreover the online payment system through the credit card is also totally alien to them. Most of them do not avail of the transaction facilities offered by the credit cards. They are also dubious regarding the online payment system through the credit cards. Hence different payment options should be made available to them like the credit card, cash on delivery and net banking to give them further assurance. Problems with Shipping The customers using the online shopping channel should be assured that the products that they have ordered would reach them in due time. For this the retail companies have resorted to private guaranteed courier services as compared to postal services. Offline presence The customers should be assured that the online retailers are not only available online but offline as well. This gives them the psychological comfort that these companies can be relied upon. Products offered at discounted rates The online retailers save on the cost of building and employee salaries. Some part of this benefit should also be enjoyed by the online customers by a reduction in the price of the product. The customers should be conveyed this message that they are getting the products at a discounted price. Language Problem Most internet retail shops use English as their mode of communication. English may not be comprehensible to the majority of the Indian population . To increase the customer base, content in the online retail shops should be provided in local language. Another reason why the concept of e- retailing or online retailing has not gained prominence in India is that the Indians prefer to touch the products physically before buying them. This facility is provided through the multi-brand outlets, not available online. Studies have revealed the preferences of the customers towards the traditional shopping methods. Hence the retailer online should first make it a point to spot the potential customers and accordingly plan out the product. If the customers are more open to online shopping, then nothing can be more beneficial. They save the time and effort to visit, departmental stores, shopping malls, etc. products can be delivered by a click of the mouse. Another problem is that the retail industry is standing on its point of inflexion and considering its infant stage, it would take time for the new concept of e-retailing to take off. Some online retailing sites in India E Bay is heading the race of online retailers. In this race it has become very difficult to determine the online retail store that makes the products available at convenient and cheap rates. From this very difficulty has cropped up comparison sites. Comparison is done on the basis of an index which is constructed from the data available from different shopping sites. The bechna.com and the ultop.com are such sites though many more sites are entering this zone. The comparison sites not only help to choose the online sites that would be providing the best deal but also offline as well. Sites like Rediffproductsearch, Compare India.com have constructed the data that is taken from the conventional local retai;ers. These sites help the customer in finding out the local retail store that will best suit his purpose. Future of E-retailing in India

There are divergent views on the future of e-retailing in India. Some experts are of the opinion that the giant, big brand retailers would dominate the small ones due to their wider investment capacities. It would be next to impossible for the small retailers and the kiranas to prove their existence in the battlefield of online retailing. Another viewpoint is that there would be an exponential growth in the online retailing business in India

The India retail industry: who's who

The Indian retail sector has been a euphoria over the last five years. India topped the A.T. Kearney's Global Retail Development Index for two consecutive years and this has infatuated Indian as well as foreign retail players to go gaga on the merchandising track. According to geographical expansion, Delhi/NCR and Mumbai are the felicitated regions as the top companies have rated the spending potential of consumers in the vicinity of the national capital and the financial capital as excellent. Other metros such as Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad and Bangalore have caught the sight of investors but their fortunes are yet to be illuminated. Companies like The Future Group, Reliance, BhartiWalmart, DLF etc. have shown the way for other to enter. The country is expecting a surge in the growth sprint and let's hope for the best. Top Companies: An analysis Big Bazaar- Big Bazaar is a chain of department stores owned by the Pantaloon Group (Future Group)and headed by Kishore Biyani and headquartered at Mumbai. It offers all types of household items such as home furnishing, utensils, fashion products etc. It has a grocery department and vegetable section known as the Food Bazaar and its online shopping site is known as FutureBazaar.com. The real estate fund management company promoted by the Future Group expects to develop more than 50 projects across India covering a combined area of more than 16 million sq. ft. On April 1 2007, Big Bazaar had to shut its outlets in Mumbai as the 120 retrenched employees called a strike with the support of Bhartiya Kamgar Sena (the trade Union wing of Shiv Sena). Later the management agreed to reinstate the sacked workers. Bharti Retail-, a wholly owned subsidiary of Bharti Enterprises. has announced two joint ventures (JV)with the international retailing behemoth, Wal-Mart. The first JV ensures cash and carry business, in which 100 percent FDI is permitted and it can sell only to retailers and distributors. The second JV concerns the franchise arrangement. Sunil Mittal, Chairman of the Bharti Group assured that the ventures will use low prices every day and best practices for the satisfaction of the customer. Processed foods and vegetables will be delivered by Bharti Field Fresh, Bharti's JV with Rothschild. Bharti Retail aims to foray every city with a population exceeding 1 million. It has plans to come up with an investment of more than $2 billion in convenience stores, supermarkets and hypermarkets spread over an aggregate 10 million sq. ft. The expansion drive looks ambitious but analysts are worried that Bharti may face stiff competition from Pantaloon and Reliance as they too have sanguine plans to flood the markets with thousands of retail outlets in the coming five years. Bharti Telecom also has plans to offer all its fixed and mobile telecom products and services from a single window to the SMB (Small and Medium Business) enterprises under the Bharti Infotel division.. Reliance Retail- Reliance claimed last year to start a retail chain that will be unique in size and spread, will lead to the welfare of one and all ranging from Indian farmers, manufacturers and ultimately consumers. It is known as Reliance Retail Ltd.(RRL) and is a 100 percent subsidiary of Reliance industries Ltd.(RIL). Soon after the Bharti-Wal Mart tie up, there was the news that RIL (Reliance Industries Ltd.) Chairman Mukesh Ambani met Commerce Minister Kamal Nath to discuss the apprehension of cheap imports from China. Reliance Retail has plans to open 4,000 outlets across 1,500 towns for an investment of $5.6 billion. Reliance is not away from agro-business. According to Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, Chief Minister of West Bengal, Reliance will hold demonstration farming, produce good quality seeds and give inputs to farmers. Its most significant participation has been in the food procurement business in Madhya Pradesh and Punjab. This has in fact compelled the government to import wheat this year. Reliance Retail has also been reported to have entered into an agreement with footwear manufacturer Bata India Ltd. so that they will involve in selling each other's products. DLF Shopping Malls- DLF Retail Developers Ltd. is one of the troikas of the DLF Group. Besides being India's largest real estate developer, DLF is also of the leaders in innovating shopping malls in India. It caught public eye when it launched the 2,50,000 sq ft. shopping mall in Gurgaon. It has brought a dramatic change in the lifestyles and entertainment with its City Centres and DT Cinemas. DLF has plans to invest Rs. 2000-3000 crore in all the emerging areas from metros to A class cities in the next two years. Till last year the company was involved in building 18 malls out of which 10 were in the NCR region. Future plans of DLF involve opening up of 100 malls(speciality malls, big box retailing and integrated malls) across 60 cities in next 8-10 years. They are slowly transforming into 'lease' and 'revenue share' models. Local players like ITC, the A.V. Birla Group and Tatas have given the hints to enter organised retail. Frances Carrefour SA and Britains Tesco too were recently in news for their future plans to explore the Indian retail market.