Marks and Spencer India on expansion spree, banks on lingerie segment

Chennai

Mohit Bhayana, Head of Retail, Marks & Spencer India, said, “While all the business units were showing promising outcomes, the women’s lingerie business had exceeded expectations. “This segment has shown 32 pc growth, leading us to launch exclusive lingerie stores,” he said, noting that growth avenue had triggered the focus on this format. Of the 11 such exclusive stores, six to seven were in this fiscal. “We have opened 16 stores this year and six of them have become operational in 48 days,” he said, confident that the same growth will be seen next year too.

On a year-on-year basis, the brand grew 10 per cent last year and its focus on Tier II cities has yielded good results. Such locations contribute one-fifth of the business. Bhayana clarified that the company did not specifically distinguish between Tier I and II markets. There is no reason for slowdown and enough growth opportunities were available, he added. Region-wise business in the south, north and west has been seeing a fast-paced growth, he said, noting that sales from 2014-15, with a 20 per cent increase in footfall, had resulted in retail growing at a compounded annual growth rate of over 16 per cent.

Real estate availability would determine the pace of expansion for M&S. The e-commerce business too has done well. The company covers over 500 cities and services 20,000 pin codes through e-marketplaces such as Amazon, Jabong.

The influence of online purchase has led to changes in the market, Bhayana said, adding a market correction – 20 per cent price revision, two years ago, had boosted sales by over 117 per cent. The company is also banking on ‘Rethink,’ an India-specific campaign to be relevant to the market and offer bespoke services to their customers. Under this, M&S has introduced in-store stylists to aid customers in their fashion decisions.

Retail blitzkrieg

•  Marks & Spencer first store in India set up in 2001 
•  In April 2008, it signed a JV with Reliance Retail to form Marks & Spencer Reliance India Pvt Ltd
•  Has 76 stores across 32 cities including Chennai, Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Kolkata, Kochi
•  Internationally, it trades in 57 markets, with over 400 stores and an online presence in 33 markets

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