Raymond to double number of retail outlets in Uttar Pradesh

By Vipin Agnihotri

Raymond limited is all set to double its retail presence in the most populous state of the country, Uttar Pradesh by targeting customers in tier III and tier IV cities. In an exclusive interview with The India Street, Aniruddha Deshmukh, president retail, Raymond limited said that expansion potential is limited in Lucknow so the company is scouting for unexplored markets outside the city.

“From the current 28 stores we will be opening up at least 56 stores by 2009,” pointed out Deshmukh. It has come into the notice of The India Street that for 85 percent of Raymond stores, they will be taking the franchisee route to further penetrate the market.

“It is the class III, with five lakh to one lakh population and class IV cities, with 50,000 population which has immense unexplored potential. We are aiming at these locations with scaled down version of our stores at present in bigger cities.” Deshmukh added.

All the Raymond stores are custom designed with visual merchandizing concepts by Blocher and Blocher from Germany. Places like Badaun, Muzzafarnagar, Shamli, Gajraula, Dhampur, Nazirbagh, Hapur, Sitapur, Farukhabad, Mainpuri and Etawah among others have unexplored potential.

“We would be spending Rs two to three crore on advertising and promotion in UP,” said Deshmukh adding that expansion also means requirement of staff as selling fabric is not every man’s cake. “You need skill sets, knowledge to sell well at front end. Trained staff is a scarce commodity, as attrition rate is 100 percent within a year,” he said.

Theoretically speaking, Raymond principal activities are carried out through six segments, namely, Textiles, Garment, Denim, Files and Other. It is worthwhile pointing that textile segment manufactures and sells fabric, rugs, blankets, shawls and furnishing fabric. On the other hand, garment segment manufactures and sells readymade garments and designer wear. In addition, garment segment includes files and rasps, H.S.S. twist drills and bars and rods.

Talking about denim segment, denim segment manufactures and sells denim fabric and cotton yarn. The Files and Tools segment of Raymond is engaged in the manufacture and marketing of Steel Files and HSS Cutting Tools, comprising mainly of drills. Last but not the least is the other segment that includes aviation and consumer durables.

With a turnover of around US $500 million, Raymond at present are one of the biggest players in fabrics, designer wear, denim, cosmetics & toiletries, engineering files & tools, prophylactics and air charter services in national and international markets. All the plants of Raymond are ISO certified, leveraging on top-notch technology that satisfy highest quality parameters while also being environment friendly.

Suggested Reading

After Reliance, Aditya Birla group enters the Retail Sector Visit our India Resource Page The Latest India Real Estate Round Up Comprehensive Real Estate Report by India City Pictures: New Chennai Airport