India’s Store Wars

As India's middle class grows and disposable incomes rise, "e;modern"e; retail is becoming the next hot sector of the Indian economy. Hundreds of millions of new consumers will join this retail revolution, venturing into supermarkets, department stores and air-conditioned shopping malls for the first time. But instead of just window shopping, many of them will be serious buyers with money to spend. To cater for their needs, established players in the modern retail sector such as Biyani, Raheja and Goenka are being joined by the big names of Indian business - Reliance, Birla, Bharti, Tata etc - who plan to spend billions over the next few years rolling out supermarkets, big-box outlets and specialty stores. At the same time, property developers are getting on with the "e;malling"e; of India, and looking for high profile anchor tenants to lure customers. On the sidelines of this Indian retail revolution are big overseas players such as Wal-Mart, which already has a tie-up with Bharti to provide much-needed back office support. But what Wal-Mart really wants is the right to set up its own stores in India. The same goes for Tesco, Carrefour, Metro and other international players. While the macro outlook appears bright, the problems are astronomical for India retail industry. There is no reliable cold chain, transport logistics are appalling, there is a huge lack of managerial talent, there is no consistency for quality and quantity of supply, there is political opposition from groups such as market middlemen, the mom and pop "e;kirana"e; corner stores have to be catered for, as do the farmers who grow the produce that is integral to a successful retail revolution. How well will these disparate players cope with the various pressures of a dynamic and fast-moving industry?

As India's middle class grows and disposable incomes rise, "modern"retail is becoming the next hot sector of the Indian economy.Hundreds of millions of new consumers will join this retailrevolution, venturing into supermarkets, department stores andair-conditioned shopping malls for the first time. But instead ofjust window shopping, many of them will be serious buyers withmoney to spend. To cater for their needs, established players inthe modern retail sector such as Biyani, Raheja and Goenka arebeing joined by the big names of Indian business - Reliance, BirlaBharti, Tata etc - who plan to spend billions over the next fewyears rolling out supermarkets, big-box outlets and specialtystores. At the same time, property developers are getting on withthe "malling" of India, and looking for high profile anchor tenantsto lure customers.On the sidelines of this Indian retail revolution are bigoverseas players such as Wal-Mart, which already has a tie-up withBharti to provide much-needed "back office" support.But what Wal-Mart really wants is the right to set up its ownstores in India. The same goes for Tesco, Carrefour, Metro andother international players.While the macro outlook appears bright, the problems areastronomical for India retail industry. There is no reliable coldchain, transport logistics are appalling, there is a huge lack ofmanagerial talent, there is no consistency for quality and quantityof supply, there is political opposition from groups such as marketmiddlemen, the mom and pop "kirana" corner stores have to becatered for, as do the farmers who grow the produce that isintegral to a successful retail revolution. How well will thesedisparate players cope with the various pressures of a dynamic andfast-moving industry?

Acknowledgements.Introduction.Chapter 1. The golden bird.Chapter 2. What do consumers want?Chapter 3. The incumbents: Biyani, Raheja, Goenka.Chapter 4. Newcomers: Reliance the Goliath.Chapter 5. Newcomers: Bharti's way with Wal-Mart.Chapter 6. Old houses, new ambitions: Tata and Birla.Chapter 7. Shock of the new: Muscling up in the regions.Chapter 8. Meet you at the mall.Chapter 9. Rural scene: Is there life beyond the metros?Chapter 10. Supply chain dilemma: Horn please, OK?Chapter 11. The search for talent.Chapter 12. Scanning a new horizon.Bibliography.Index.