While the number of store openings increased, February saw a drop in fundraises
IndiaRetailing Insights: Retail store expansion picked up momentum in February with the number of store openings rising by 23% to over 76 new stores, including shop-in-shops compared to the previous month, as per the data compiled by IndiaRetailing Insights, a retail intelligence unit.
This has been the highest number of store additions in the last three months with December witnessing over 48 new stores and January seeing 62.
Region-wise
Like the previous two months, North India fared better than the rest of India in February as well with 24 new stores followed by South and West with 23 stores each. New stores in the East remained in the range of 1-5, although the retail scene in the North East steadily heated up.
The newly-opened stores are in Surat, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Noida, Kozhikode, Kolkata, New Delhi, Jodhpur, Murthal, Vashi, Pune, Latur, Nashik, Mumbai, Gurugram, Visakhapatnam, Jaipur, Guwahati, Ahmedabad and Lakhimpur.
Geographically, Bengaluru led the numbers with almost 12 new stores followed by Mumbai with nine, Delhi with eight, Pune and Hyderabad with seven each and the Delhi-NCR region with six new stores.
Active brands
The brands that opened outlets in February include Wow! Momo, Lenskart, Yousta, Honasa Consumer, Birkenstock, The Souled Store, Chaigram, Plaka by Chef Ajay Chopra, Tira, Nars Cosmetics, Starbucks, LoveChild by Masaba, H&M, H&M Home, Intune, Karigari, Guess, Hamleys, Good Flippin’ Burgers, Avantra By Trends, Nykaa, Puma, Relaxo, Gargi By PN Gadgil & Sons, Asus, Adidas, Satya Paul, IGP, Chumbak, Caprese, Gokyo, Victoria’s Secret, Stovekraft, Bombay Shirt Company, Zara, Jimmy Choo, Flyrobe, Rangita, SS Beauty, Shoppers Stop, Max Fashion, Nature’s Basket, Nothing Before Coffee, Tweak Salon, MillerKnoll, US Polo Assn., Kate & Oscar, Zudio, Wooden street, Marks & Spencer, Malabar Gold, R&B, Fresh Signature, Turtle, Foodhall out, Le Marche, Snitch, Tim Hortons, Michael Kors, Barbeque Nation, Blackberrys.
An analysis of the data revealed that key players fared well in February 2024. For instance, the fashion and lifestyle brand Intune by Shoppers Stop opened five new stores in February. Mumbai-based food chain Good Flippin’ Burgers, fashion & lifestyle brand Gargi by P N Gadgil & Sons and consumer electronics brand Asus, opened three new stores each.
Others include fashion brand LoveChild by Masaba, a Mumbai-based personal care brand; Coffee chain Starbucks; fashion brands Victoria’s Secret, Rangita and Foodhall Out, Le Marche, a high-end supermarket chain with two stores each.
International expansions
The total number of stores by Indian companies outside India in February stood at over five.
Lenksart continued its Middle East expansion with over two new stores in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) region. Other Indian retailers that opened stores outside India include Malabar Gold & Diamonds in Australia, restaurant chain Moti Mahal in Europe, ABFRL’s Louise Phillipie and Peter England in Mauritius and its other brand Jaypore in the US. This also includes small brands like Chalu Aapna Chinese, Adil Qadri and many others planning to enter different global markets.
Key Developments
In addition to store launches, the country also saw the entry of some global brands enter India. These include Fenty Beauty by Rihanna which entered the country through Nykaa, French brand Kiabi in collaboration with Myntra and Swedish brand Gaston Luga with Maison ID8 Brands.
American casual wear brand Dockers too re-entered India in the month.
Other key developments included Reliance Retail’s plan to acquire Kiko Milano’s India beauty business and Swedish furniture retailer Ikea shutting down its Mumbai RCity Store.
On the shopping centres side, Bharti Realty, the real estate arm of Bharti Enterprises plans to develop a large business district near Delhi’s airport spread across 17 million sq. ft. of commercial area and Global retail design experts Benoy plans to design Gurugram’s first luxury mall.
Fundraises
Fundraising in the month was subdued with the monies raised in the month totalling Rs 290 crore compared to Rs 450 crore in January. The brands that successfully got investment include hair-care startup Iluvia, Jewellery brand Kushal, D2C brand Koparo, and Fashion brand Beyoung with some investments undisclosed to the media.
Account of loss and gain
Several companies announced their results for the third quarter (Q3) of the financial year (FY) 2023-24 in February. The companies that reported positive results in the quarter included Timex Group, Honasa Consumer Ltd, V-Mart Retail, Nykaa, Trent, Arvind Fashions and Raymond.
The companies that reported loss or did not perform well include the multiplex chains, ABFRL, Jubilant Foodworks, Dabur, Bata India etc.
Quarterly overview
In Q3 of FY2024, around 150 new stores were opened from leading retailers and these numbers are expected to increase in this quarter with already 138 new stores opened in January and February.
The analysis is based on the data compiled basis IndiaRetailing reports, company information via press releases and social media and other information shared by retail experts and officials.
