Indian retail industry is expected to showcase a promising year-on-year growth of 6 per cent to reach US $ 865 billion by 2023 from the current US $ 490 billion and the share of apparel in this overall industry is 8 per cent, corresponding to a value of over US $ 40 billion. The second largest contributor in the retail segment, apparel category is continuously growing on the back of factors like increasing disposable income, inclination of unified taxation under GST, entry of international brands, among other growth drivers including changing consumer behaviour, value consciousness, brand awareness, large young consuming population in the country, etc. |
Even as the global retail market is undergoing a meltdown of sorts with almost 6,000 store closures announced so far in 2019, India is still heading for growth. According to Coresight Research, a total of 6,986 store closures were announced in the US alone as of June 21, 2019. Also, over the last year, Gap, Tommy Hilfiger, Lord & Taylor and Polo Ralph Lauren have closed their flagship stores at Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue. Others, meanwhile, are reimagining the flagship concept instead of abandoning them altogether; for instance, Nike and Levi Strauss & Co are adding additional features in their stores to remain relevant in a falling market. The ones still clinging to the old concept are facing harder times, like Barneys, New York which is the latest in the list to declare bankruptcy. |
While the developed markets of the US, Europe and Japan are reeling under the ongoing retail apocalypse, India is proving to have an edge over them with a GDP growth rate of 7 per cent. A number of investors are attracted to this growing market because of its favourable trade policies and increased penetration of organised retail besides other positive factors. The potential of the Indian market is proved by developments as impressive as the immense interest shown and investments made by e-commerce giant Amazon and retail major Walmart in the country. |
While Walmart closed around 17 stores in US, it is continuously expanding its business areas in India after the acquisition of online firm Flipkart. Walmart is also planning to set up a depot in Vizianagaram akin to the one in Visakhapatnam and is further planning to set up 15 units across the state, especially targeting Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities. Swedish home furnishing giant IKEA too is setting up locations to have a countrywide presence in India. Not to forget Amazon’s endeavour to have an expansive presence in the country for which it has recently opened its largest delivery station in Pune city of Maharashtra to facilitate last mile delivery. Amazon has cracked the code for success in the country and India is set to be one of the major contributors to its international sales beating Brazil, Mexico, Turkey and Australia in the next four years. The sales will generate a gross estimate of US $ 32 billion by 2023, contributing 13 per cent of Amazon’s international sales and 4 per cent of total sales in the stipulated time period. |
Furthermore, British swimwear brand Speedo forayed into the footwear category the previous month and is now planning to actively venture into online retail in India. Japanese fashion brand Uniqlo, which expects India to outpace China and its home country in about a decade to become its largest market, is set to open its three stores in Delhi in October. A slew of fashion brands entered the Indian market this year and the year gone by and there are many more planning to set their foot in the country after the Government relaxed local sourcing norms for single-brand retailers with FDI and allowed them to sell online even before setting up bricks-and-mortar stores. A number of retailers of the likes of H&M, IKEA and Uniqlo have welcomes this move even as others are planning to utilise this prolific opportunity. French lingerie brand Aubade, Korean brand Mumuso, Replay, Under Armour, have already marked their presence in this region of retail boom. |
It must be noted here that home-grown apparel retailers too are not behind in showing phenomenal results and are growing at an admirable rate. Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited (ABFRL) witnessed a six fold jump in its net profit to reach Rs.39 crore in its first quarter ended June; Reliance Industries Limited also registered a Q1 net profit up by 7 per cent at Rs.10,104 crore with its retail segment boosting revenues by 22 per cent; Kewal Kiran Clothing Limited registered its profit after tax higher by 1.62 per cent at Rs.14.14 crore. |
Moving away from the big fishes, value retail majors like V-Mart, V-Bazaar and V2 Retail are on their way to leverage on the increased spending by the consumers to cement their position as the top players in the segment. While V-Mart is targeting to register a revenue worth Rs.2,500 crore by 2020, V-Bazaar is eyeing a revenue worth Rs.750 crore by 2021 even as V2 Retail is all set to start its own state-of-the-art manufacturing unit with 1,000 machines in Noida. |
Keeping in line with these developments across the country, Apparel Sourcing Week 2020 is coming back with another extensive show in order to create an even larger platform for the retail and manufacturing fraternity to exclusively meet and interact with the Indian market leaders and strategise their next move forward in the Indian retail industry. The first-of-its-kind in India, ASW had already received huge response from retailers and brands in its last season and is set to make its presence even bigger in the coming year with its second edition. |
Apparel Sourcing Week 2023, a three-day Sourcing Show not only provides the Asian manufacturers a platform to showcase their products & manufacturing capabilities to the Brands & Retailers from all over the world including India, but also extends them a chance to attend the multiple seminars (headed by industry experts), workshops, open-house discussions and networking opportunities organised during these three days, which would help the manufacturers get a better understanding of Indian and International Retail and evolving dynamics of sourcing in various markets and retail formats.
Apparel Resources is well known for its benchmark publications – Apparel Online, FashTech Journal and Resource Guide published from India, Bangladesh and Vietnam. These publications have been around in the industry for over 35 years, supporting, guiding and standing by garment exporters and the retail industry globally, providing them a platform to source better