Except the word `change', every object or thing is vulnerable
to change. However, only the time span varies from one to
the other. The face of retail markets in India too, is no
exception. The past decade has witnessed and brought about
many changes in the transaction processes, services and
formats of retail markets. Retailing, which is the last
aspect of distribution of marketing strategy, acting as
a bridge between the mass producers and the final consumers,
has spread in every nook and corner of the globe. Just a
few months ago, while assessing and forecasting the growth
of the Indian retail markets on various fronts by various
competent agencies, it was understood that currency-wise,
market size is speculated to be $180 bn, and employment-wise,
15% of the adults are perhaps the largest contributors to
India's GDP. There are nearly 12 million retail outlets
spread throughout India, occupying a space between 50 sq
ft to 50,000 sq ft plus, on an average. The lion's share
goes to the rural areas, where two-third of the stores are
located. Due to the LPG (Liberalization, Privatization,
Globalization) formula adopted by the Indian government,
potential players throughout the globe, including the giant
Wal-Mart, have an eye on the huge unorganized retail markets.
The concept of retail markets, according to any nomenclature,
like hypermarkets, chain stores, shopping malls or Big Bazaars,
is not a new concept in India. At the beginning of the new
millennium, the size of the retail industry in India is
Rs. 13,000 cr. However, by the turn of the year, the industry is expected
to grow by 40% and touch 50,000 cr. to 55,000 cr. in 2008-2009,
depicting a surge in growth.
Apart
from the above cooperative societies, Public Distribution
System (PDS), canteen stores as well as post offices in India,
are also part and parcel of the retail chain across the country.Various
internationally acclaimed professional organizations like
AT Kearney, Ernst & Young, PWC, Technopak, KPMG, ICICI,
Synovate, Cushman & Wakefield, as well as India Retail
Forum and images F&R Research have stated why Indian retail
markets were a point of discussion.
|
