Dubai-based Landmark group led Lifestyle International is relocating some of its Lifestyle retail stores to avail benefits of larger shopping and parking space besides better infrastructure in the wake of rising demand.
The new Lifestyle stores in India will now be 20-30 per cent bigger in size and space than the existing stores to serve the growing demand for apparels, footwear and accessories, the company’s managing director Kabir Lumba said.
“As we tie-up with new brands, we are moving up towards a more updated format. It is unavoidable at a time when awareness for brands among consumers is rising and as they look for a convenient shopping experience,” Lumba said.
Lifestyle is a large format departmental store and brings together five concepts under one roof – apparel, footwear, children’s wear and toys, furniture and home furnishings and personal grooming. Typically, a Lifestyle store is spread across an area of 20,000-60,000 sq feet.
In Delhi, the company recently relocated its outlet within City Square Mall at Rajouri Garden to Tagore Garden-based Pacific Mall, which is three times the size of the former. The Lifestyle store in City Square Mall was set up four years ago and occupied an area of close to 50,000 sq feet. After relocation, the store space has increased almost 20 per cent.
“Although the location was apt, parking was a big constraint at City Square Mall. It was a major reason behind shifting the store to a new location. Besides, with rising consumerism we are looking at bigger formats now,” Lumba said. The availability of more shopping space is expected to double footfalls at the new location to almost 10,000 persons a day going ahead, he added.
Another store, which is being relocated, is the one situated on SG Road in Ahemdabad. The outlet will be moved to a mall in Vastrapur, the same place where Indian Institute of Management is located.
In all, the company is looking to increase the count of Lifestyle stores to 45 in the next two years across India from 28 currently. It entered places such as Jalandhar, Kanpur, Cimbatore and Mangalore last year and is now eyeing Amritsar, Lucknow, Cochin and Kolkata. It will continue to expand its chain of outlets at existing locations such as Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore.
“Retail sector is looking up due to increase in disposable income. Lifestyle here has an advantage as it offers multiple brands under one roof,” Lumba said.
Lifestyle store largely sells branded apparels, which is nearly 75 per cent of the stock. The balance 25 per cent stock comprise private labels. The store offers consumers, the choice of more than 350 national and international brands including Louis Philippe, Van Heusen, Arrow, Park Avenue, Benetton, Nike, Adidas, Allen Solly , Levis, Tommy Hilfiger , Swatch, Tissot and Tag Heuer.
Lifestyle International comprises Lifestyle stores, Home Centre and Max (value fashion chain) along with international fashion apparel brands Splash and Bossini. The company posted revenue of close to Rs 2,000 crore in 2010-11, of which Rs 1,600 crore was contributed by Lifestyle stores alone.
Source : Economic Times
