From the Editors Desk

Colors are expressing human emotions for years. From pink for romantic moments in Shakespear's love story to white for peace negotiation between the armies on the battlefield, different color got its place as a symbol for communication. The relationship of color with religion is so strong that it embedded in the beliefs of the people. Color as a symbol of religion is quite common in every country. Generally Green is a color that symbolizes nature and the natural world but the same color in Arabian countries symbolizes Allah. On the other hand orange represents Bhagavan in Hindu religion and in Roman countries the color of god is red.

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Week At a Glance  News - Headlines, Apparel, Specialty.. Zara opens first store in South India Carlyle wins PE investment race for Fabindia Retail veterans launch India's first online school retail store Liberty Shoes to raise Rs 500 crore for expansion over three years Retail chains tie-up with non-competing retailers to retain customers Largest Louis Philippe store opens in Chennai Furniture giant Natuzzi to open 11 more stores Reebok plays rebate game to gain share F-Mart convenient stores to open in Dubai soon HUL launches 'POPeye' to enable staff to flag products shortage in any store News - Food, QSR .. Kitchen essentials now just a click away Carrefour finalising deals in India Rajdhani fever spreads to South India as Mirah Hospitality plans expansion Amul seeks partner for North America Jammu & Kashmir gets first Bharti Walmart store Wholesale-retail price gap widens Cane juice retailing turns a cool biz as health consciousness grows Rajdhani expansion plans faces setback Starbucks buys juice company, starts new chain InterGlobe, Dufry tie up to bring 'Hudson News Cafe' to India Trends Companies like Essar, Reliance Trends and others crack down on internal theft Court summons Shoppers Stop for using plastic bags Around 60-80 lakh retail jobs will be created in the next five years US wants India to open FDI in multi-brand in retail Retail sales force as vital as products: Atanu Chakraborty, Spencer's Retail Industree: Connecting rural artisans with urban markets Retailers tutor staff, raise salaries to tackle attrition Multi-product retail will improve supply chain: Economic advisor Click and dial: A new path for Indian retail Marks & Spencer to expand into India, bolster online offering Insight Organized retail in India: Drivers facilitator and SWOT analysis Consumer Demand Creates Opportunities for New Brands Uncovering Revenue Opportunities: 10 Ways to Give Your Retail Program a Boost Shopping Centres, Retail Parks, Hybrids, Value Retail: Do they indicate a progress in the development of retail formats? Retail Industry: Executive Survey   News - Headlines, Apparel, Specialty ..  Zara opens first store in South India Franchiseindia.com Zara, the fashion concept owned by Inditex Group, recently opened its first store in South India at Bangalore.With the launch of this store in Bangalore, the presence of Zara has gone up to seven stores in India. For its expansion in India, Inditex has formed a joint venture with Trent Limited, the retail arm part of the Tata Group, one of the country's top industrial conglomerates. Carlyle wins PE investment race for Fabindia Economic Times Global private equity major Carlyle has outbid rival firms to close an equity investment in ethnic wear chain Fabindia. The deal values the company at Rs 1,400 crore, according to a person with direct knowledge of the transaction. Top private equity firms, including Bain Capital, Everstone Capital, KKR, New Silk Route, Premji Invest, Sequoia and Temasek, were vying to pick up a stake in Fabindia, which mainly sources its products from villages. Retail veterans launch India's first online school retail store Education Sun Two retail and ecommerce veterans Manoj Chandra and Ankur Garg have announced the launch of India's first online school retail store AllSchoolStuff.com. The online store is an exciting online destination for students, parents, teachers and schools. It is a one stop shop solution offering school text books, stationery, note books, art and craft materials, school bags, water bottles, school uniform, school shoes, sports items, music instruments, science projects, exam guides, fancy dress costumes, science kits and other such educational products. Liberty Shoes to raise Rs 500 crore for expansion over three years Economic Times Footwear company Liberty Shoes plans to raise Rs 500 crore for expansion projects. "We are planning to raise capital to the tune of Rs 500 crore for various projects within the ambit of the shoe industry. We are looking at large expansion of our retail stores, apart from modernising infrastructure in terms of distribution and warehousing over the next three years," Liberty Shoes Chief Executive Adesh Gupta said. He refused to disclose investment details, saying, "This investment that we plan to raise can be in the form of private equity, or debt, or even from the capital markets." Retail chains tie-up with non-competing retailers to retain customers Economic Times With another slowdown staring hard at the economy, retail chains are tying up with non-competing retailers and service providers to make their customer loyalty programmes more appealing. Retailers such as Shoppers Stop, Landmark Group, Future Group and Spencer's Retail are pursuing strategic initiatives around their shopper loyalty programmes to enable customers to redeem their points across a wide spectrum. So, a customer can soon redeem her Future Group loyalty points to book an Air India ticket or fill fuel from an HPCL pump. A Spencer's Retail loyalty cardholder may soon be able to use it for a coffee at Cafe Coffee Day. "It's all about earning and burning," says India's largest retailer Future Group CEO, Kishore Biyani. Largest Louis Philippe store opens in Chennai Hindu Business Line Madura Fashion and Lifestyle has opened the largest Louis Philippe flagship store in the country at Chennai. The 10,000-sq ft store showcases all brands and sub-brands under the Louis Philippe umbrella, including footwear and accessories. The signature look at the store has been conceptualised by ThincTank, a team of designers from New York. The company hopes to set up more large-format stores in major cities in the coming years. Louis Philippe clocked a retail turnover of Rs 650 crore in the last financial year. Furniture giant Natuzzi to open 11 more stores City Journal.in The $1bn Italian furniture giant Natuzzi will open 11 stores across India by year-end, a company official said yesterday. "The premium segment of the furniture market in India is growing by 25% to 30% annually. In view of the growth rate, the company will be opening 11 stores by the year end to consolidate our presence here," Nitin Bahl, country manager of Natuzzi, said. The company, which deals in leather upholstery and living room accessories, caters to premium level and mid level costumers. It has retail chains across 123 countries; in India it already operates eight stores. Reebok plays rebate game to gain share mydigitalfc.com Reebok India, the leader in the branded sports footwear industry is heavily discounting its merchandise such as watches and apparel, as it attempts to increase its market share in India. The heavy discounting could be a major challenge to its brand positioning, said industry experts. According to Sajid Shamim, Brand Director, Reebok India, the company generally liquidates old merchandise. F-Mart convenient stores to be opened in Dubai by Indian supermarket chain Emirates 24/7 F-Mart, a new chain of high-end convenient stores will be established by an Indian supermarket chain. The first such outlet on a 3,000 square feet shopping space is coming up near Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest tower. Mohammed Soopy E, chairman and managing director of Families Group, which runs a chain of supermarkets in different parts of the UAE said that the group will invest Dh2 million in each F-Mart store. "This will be like a convenient store at Emarat petrol stations... We will have a range of products catering to European, American and Asian expatriates. We will have a chain of 15 such stores in Dubai Marina, Burj Khalifa and other posh locations," said Younus Mohammed, Chief Executive Officer. HUL launches 'POPeye' to enable staff to flag products shortage in any store Economic Times Hindustan Unilever has launched an initiative that allows employees across departments to flag product shortage in any store in the country, a move that can help the country's largest consumer goods maker stem loss of clients to rival brands. Under the programme, termed 'POPeye', employee feedback on stocks lands at a call centre or a dedicated portal, which then validates at the backend on a real-time basis before alerting the sales department. In its pilot project launched in Bangalore six months ago, HUL received 230 calls from 100 outlets, which were converted into action points for the sales team. Last month, the company extended it to Chennai and Baddi plant in Himachal Pradesh.   News - Food, QSR ..  Kitchen essentials now just a click away Daily News & Analysis The e-retail concept, which was reserved for high-end products like electronics or designer wear, is slowly inching towards more commonplace items like grocery and household products. With websites like freshndaily.com, aaramshop.com and groceryshop.com offering fresh produce and kitchen items like grains and pulses, net-savvy people are opting for the services on offer However, there are a few issues that need to be addressed in e-shopping, such as exchange or refund policy on damaged or spoilt goods. Carrefour finalising deals in India Business Standard Carrefour is preparing to break its nearly year-long silence in the India market. The French retail chain, the world's second largest with revenues topping EUR 90 billion, is finalising lease deals across 10 to 12 sites in India to open cash-and-carry (wholesale) outlets, according to market intelligence. It was in December last year that Paris-based Carrefour launched its first India store - a cash-and-carry outlet - in the national capital. Carrefour did not expand in the country thereafter. Of late, though, the hypermarket giant is positive on the expansion plans in India, according to an industry insider. "I have already leased several sites in the country. For some others, they are in advanced talks," he said. "These will be operational in a staggered timeline." Rajdhani fever spreads to South India as Mirah Hospitality plans expansion fnbnews.com Fine-dining restaurant chain, Khandani Rajdhani is on an expansion spree. After having launched an outlet at the newly built Phoenix Mall in Pune, it is all set to explore other cities, especially in South India, according to Aji Nair, Assistant Vice President, F&B division, Mirah Hospitality and Food Solutions Pvt. Ltd. He said that the original plan was to start around 65 outlets by the end of this year, but due to the lack of availability of locations, the number of restaurants had been curtailed to 24, out of which three have already been launched. The launch cities planned include Mumbai, Bangalore, Delhi, Pune, Kolkata, Chennai and Coimbatore. At least six outlets have been planned for Mumbai and five for Bangalore. Amul seeks partner for North America Hindustan Times Dairy cooperative dairy Amul is seeking American partners as part of a bid to meet overseas demand for its products. Despite its massive domestic market, where there are still many opportunities, Amul sees a good future abroad. Amul dairy, part of Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF), registered total sales of Rs 9,774 crore during 2010-11, of which exports contributed a tiny Rs 100 crore, this despite a government ban on the export of milk powder since early 2011. Amul is aiming to double exports in the next one year. Jammu & Kashmir gets first Bharti Walmart store Economic Times Bharti Walmart, the joint venture between Bharti Enterprises and Walmart Stores, has opened its first cash-and-carry store in Jammu & Kashmir. Launching the first Bharti Walmart store in the state and the thirteenth in the country, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said, "Jammu and Kashmir is now on the Walmart map of the world." Spread over 53,000 square feet, the store in Jammu is situated at in Top Sher Khanian, near BSF Camp on Akhnoor road and offers the best fixed and fair prices with unmatched convenience. Wholesale-retail price gap widens Business Standard For consumers reeling from runaway inflation, there is a sting in the trail - the widening gap between wholesale and retail prices of most everyday use food items. Blame it on high transaction cost, triggered by a rise in transportation, labour charges and commission, retail prices of most everyday use food items are rising sharply compared to their wholesale prices. Cane juice retailing turns a cool biz as health consciousness grows Daily News & Analysis Branded cane juice outlets are springing up in quick succession, cashing in on growing health consciousness and the ability to spend Rs.10-12 for a glass of juice, churned out from a five to six feet tall machine that comes with an in-built filter and cooler. The concept of branded cane juice outlets took off four to five years ago when a clear demand was seen for hygienic juice against what was sold by local vendors, says Prakash Baliga, Senior Manager, Cane O La, which has 15 outlets in Bangalore and Mysore in Karnataka and Kadapa in Andhra Pradesh. Rajdhani expansion plans faces setback HospitalityBizIndia Mumbai-based Mirah Hospitality, part of the Mirah Group which had earlier announced its plans to open 24 Rajdhani outlets across eight cities in India, managed to open only three outlets thus far. The selected eight cities included Delhi, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Mumbai, Pune, Kolkata and Coimbatore. Out of these, only Delhi and Pune have each seen the launch of Rajdhani outlets. Said Aji Nair, Assistant Vice President, Mirah Hospitality, "There has been a delay in two aspects, one being site identification. Identifying the correct sites took longer than we expected when we were at a planning stage. The second reason is that a few of the malls we are in talks with are still waiting for required licenses to open." He, however, clarified that the group plans to open a minimum of 18 of the planned 24 outlets by the end of 2011. Starbucks buys juice company, starts new chain Reuters India Starbucks Corp said it plans to open a health and wellness-focused chain next year after its acquisition of Evolution Fresh, a California-based premium juice maker, for $30 million. The announcements come as the world's biggest coffee chain seeks to increase sales by expanding into the $50 billion U.S. health and wellness category that is driving robust growth for retailers including Whole Foods Market Inc. The Seattle-based company has been expanding the number of products it sells through grocery stores and other retail outlets and recently removed the word "coffee" from its logo to signal its move into broader categories. InterGlobe, Dufry tie up to bring 'Hudson News Cafe' to India Economic Times Aviation group InterGlobe has tied up with Switzerland-based Dufry International to establish and operate retail outlets under the brand Hudson News Cafe at various transportation nodes like airports, metro and train stations in the country. InterGlobe Retail, a wholly-owned subsidiary of travel and aviation service provider InterGlobe Enterprises, and Swiss retail chain Dufry International AG have signed an agreement to this effect, the companies said in a joint statement. As part of the country's first set of Hudson News Cafes, 48 retail outlets would be rolled out across all six existing lines of the Delhi Metro.   Trends  Companies like Essar, Reliance Trends and others crack down on internal theft Economic Times When Himanshu Chakrawarti took over as the chief executive of The Mobile Store in April, one of the biggest challenges he faced was the 'shrinkage' rate. In retail parlance, shrinkage refers to the reduction in inventory due to employee theft, shoplifting or accounting error. "Chances of customer theft can be handled easily with proper vigilance and ensuring not too many handsets are displayed at the same time. But internal shrinkage is a bigger cause for concern," says Chakrawarti, adding that he has today managed to reduce shrinkage to negligible levels of 0.15% of sales with strategic initiatives. Court summons Shoppers Stop for using plastic bags Times of India Popular retail chain Shoppers Stop Ltd has been summoned through its representative by a court, for allegedly using plastic carry bags which is banned in the national capital. The sessions court upheld the order of the magistrate's court which had issued the order of summons on March 6, 2010, to the Shoppers Stop Ltd on the criminal case lodged against it under the Environment Protection Act. Around 60-80 lakh retail jobs will be created in the next five years Daily News & Analysis Hotel Management graduate from IHM-Aurangabad, Aman Minocha has worked as an F&B manager in the food and beverage department in various cities during his 12-year stint with the Taj Group of Hotels. In June, 2007, Minocha joined the Berggruen Education to set up UEI Global. He is currently heading the operations and managing all the 14 UEI Global Institutes at the pan India level. Minocha spoke about the lucrative career options in the fast growing retail industry of India. Excerpts: US wants India to open FDI in multi-brand in retail Economic Times Impressing on India to open multi-brand retail to foreign investment, the US on Monday said that its companies are willing to help the Indian agriculture sector and strenghen its supply chain. "Foreign direct investment will create jobs, often bring innovation. I think it (opening of FDI by India) will be a win:win situation for India and the US," Under Secretary of International Trade Francisco Sanchez said. Sanchez, who is leading a high level US business delegation, said," some of our MNC retailers are prepared to work with Indian companies, particularly in agriculture sector to make it more profitable, more efficient in terms of cold chain supplies." Retail sales force as vital as products: Atanu Chakraborty, Spencer's Retail Hindu Business Line What makes the retail industry unique is that the people who sell are as important to the businesses as the products, according to Mr Atanu Chakraborty, National Head, Business Learning, Spencer's Retail Ltd. A step at a time is the only way to learn the ropes in this industry, making experience more valuable than theory, he said. Though only 6 per cent of Indian retail is organised, it is expected to achieve $804.06 billion in sales by 2015 from $411.28 billion in 2011. Industree: Connecting rural artisans with urban markets Moneycontrol.com Neelam Chibber launched the Industree initiative in 1994. The venture finds it roots in connecting rural artisans of the country to urban markets, which helps them earn better returns for their goods. Neelam's retail brand is called Mother Earth. Today, it showcases the work of over 10,000 artisans across eight stores in India. The venture has done revenues of Rs 16 crore just this year. The story of Industree and Neelam Chibber... Retailers tutor staff, raise salaries to tackle attrition Financial Express Grappling with shop-floor employee exits, retail chains are setting up schools to train them in selling goods, besides ensuring a better work culture with higher pay and promotions. "Front-end jobs are majorly affected because of the nature of duty," says Ajit Joshi, CEO, Tata's Infiniti Retail, which runs the electronics chain Croma. "A shop-floor employee has to work even on public holidays, during which we see maximum footfalls." Roughly 40-50 out of 100 shop floor employees, who have a direct connect with the customer, exit retail chains annually. Multi-product retail will improve supply chain: Economic advisor TwoCircles.net The Indian government's Chief Economic Advisor Kaushik Basu Friday batted for allowing big multi-product retail companies to enter India's market to improve the supply chain to control high food prices. "I do believe that you need modern systems of products being bought at the level of farmers and being made available to the consumers through modern chains management techniques, which means opening India's door to multi-product retail big companies," Basu said during a programme organised by the Heritage Group of institutions in Kolkatta. He said allowing foreign companies to handle multi-product retail will lead to farmers getting better prices for their products and consumers will have to pay lower prices. He, however, said the country should have a regulatory system to ensure that the big foreign companies will not have a monopoly in the market. Click and dial: A new path for Indian retail Business Standard The Internet and the phone are revolutionising the way retailers connect with their customers worldwide. In India, these distance channels can become a major breakthrough for retailers striving to expand the reach of their business, and offer a new shopping experience to the emerging consumer class. To reach more customers, Indian retailers have so far relied overwhelmingly on the development of brick and mortar channels. Additional stores have increased the retailers' reach but they have also been the source of tremendous inefficiencies. Marks & Spencer to expand into India, bolster online offering Bloomberg Marks & Spencer Group Plc, U.K.'s largest clothing retailer, reported first-half profit that beat analysts' estimates and said costs will rise less than forecast as it addresses a "challenging environment." Chief Executive Officer Marc Bolland is seeking to increase efficiency at the retailer as profitability is squeezed by rising commodity costs and a need to keep prices down. Bolland aims to increase the retailer's sales to as much as 12.5 billion pounds by 2014 as it expands into France, China and India and bolsters online offering.   Insight  Organized retail in India: Drivers facilitator and SWOT analysis Asian Journal of Management Research The Indian retail sector is witnessing tremendous growth with the changing demographics and an increase in the quality of life of urban people. With a growing economy, improving income dynamics, rising awareness, and a youth-heavy customer base, India is well on its way to become one of the most prospective markets for the domestic and global retailers. The main objective of this paper is to strategically analyze the Indian retail Industry. It identifies the drivers which affect the growth of the Indian retail market, looks at the major factors affecting the retail business and carries out a SWOT analysis of organized retail in India. Consumer Demand Creates Opportunities for New Brands Planet Retail Consumers from small cities are more willing to pay for quality than those in large cities, reflecting not only a lack of quality products and greater demand for quality, but an opportunity for brands and labels in those areas. Uncovering Revenue Opportunities: 10 Ways to Give Your Retail Program a Boost emailciti.com In today's crowded, ultra-competitive marketplace, savvy retailers are looking for new opportunities to build loyalty and drive dramatic increases in revenue. While perpetual optimization is a habit all marketers should adopt, the real breakthroughs are most likely to come from a few key areas that can yield incremental revenue opportunities, which many retailers may overlook. This paper outlines ten ways a retailer can stand out from the plethora of unwanted promotional messages piling up in inboxes and instead communicate with customers through highly relevant messaging that will help increase revenue. Shopping Centres, Retail Parks, Hybrids, Value Retail: Do they indicate a progress in the development of retail formats? Colliers The retail park format is a well-established retailing format in western and southern Europe and looks to be located on easily accessible major roads outside of the city centre, offering large free surface level car parks. It is anchored by a large hypermarket or DIY operators such as Tesco, Real, Carrefour, OBI, Castorama, Praktiker or Leroy Merlin, with a single level complimentary food shopping mall in front and large adjoining retail units ranging in size. These retailers are true destination operators attracting customers who will specifically visit their store with the intention of making a major food or non-food purchase rather than the more regular and often impulse driven nature of the shopping centre customer. Retail Industry: Executive Survey KPMG KPMG LLP, the audit, tax and advisory firm, surveyed C-suite and other top-level executives in the retail industry during the second quarter of 2011. Participants were asked about business conditions in their sector, the most significant revenue growth areas, and factors that would impede or support their sector's recovery. They were also asked to provide insights into their capital spending and investing plans as well as any challenges or opportunities that may lie ahead. This year's survey found that industry leaders expect modest revenue growth and profitability improvement over the next year. Executives indicated that the biggest drivers of revenue growth over the next one to three years will be the retention and addition of customers, innovative merchandising strategies, market expansion, and increased consumer spending.

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