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During COVID-19, every single day has been a new lesson for the retail industry. Despite a loss worth crores, the pandemic has taught so many things to the entire retail fraternity. It has made retailers believe that technology and digital transformation is the only way forward and as a result, retailers are transforming the entire shopping ecosystem into multi-channel 24×7 seamless shopper experiences.

Keeping this notion to the fore, IMAGES Group conducted a first of its kind Live on Your Screen digital event – ‘Phygital Retail Convention’ in October. The event was 2020’s most powerful business event for retail and retail support industries. Along with India’s top retail companies and international brands, key decision makers from retail design, technology, retail real estate, logistics & supply chain companies used the virtual medium platform to gather insights, view latest retail innovations and network for emerging business opportunities pan India. The 2-day event received an overwhelming response from both the Retail & Shopping Centre Industries. Readers can visit https://phygitalretailconvention.com/ and view sessions which will be live for one month.

The last five months have been very tough for the Indian Retail Industry both on the business and the manpower front, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While the organised sector can give a count of the number of employees who have lost their jobs or who have been furloughed, and the number of brands which have shut shop, there is no such census for the unorganised side of the sector on which the impact has been drastic, with lakhs of workers left without a job and an equal number of more small stores shutting down.
To counter the devastating impact of the pandemic, several brands in the organised sector are re-strategising their business plans. Whilelay-offs are inevitable and hiring has been frozen in the present crisis, many brands are trying to keep all staff on board with pay cuts, furloughs and leave without pay.
In these testing times, it has been a mammoth task for the HR departments of brands and retailers to keep their employees motivated so as to bring business back on track. Despite the dismal turn of events, HR departments of various brands are launching a slew ofinitiatives to engage their employees gainfully, while keeping their health and safety in mind.

Technology has been an integral part of retail since its inception. What started as a trend in the retail industry has suddenly been thrust into the limelight as an essential, accelerated by the pandemic. Retailers across the globe, who had thus far been using only basic technology to attract consumers have realised that they now need much more to convince the consumer to come to them.
COVID-19, apart from teaching retailers that a casual approach towards technology is no longer enough to ensure sales, has brought with it enormous business opportunities both on digital and technology front. It has literally drawn every brand out of the comfort zone and has forced them to adopt technology in their business structure, in each department.
The cover story of the August e-edition (IMAGES Retail) talks about this l ip side of the pandemic. In what can be seen as a change from surviving to thriving, a step towards how retail businesses will be conducted in the future as well, retailers across the spectrum are investing in technology to provide a safe shopping environment as well as to promote social distancing. The feature showcases technological changes made by Indian retailers to provide a safe and convenient shopping environment for consumers.

The Novel Coronavirus outbreak has hastened the transformation of the global retail industry like never before. COVID-19 has led to a shutdown of retail worldwide, proving to be one of the biggest disruptors the industry has ever seen, catapulting the sector into adopting new technologies.
With a phased re-opening being set into motion in the fourth phase of the lockdown, the Indian Retail Industry is gearing up to adopt new technology, innovative ideas and social distancing measures. With the help of technology, which erstwhile served the purpose of convenience, the retailers are opting for ‘No Contact Commerce’ as the new medium to welcome back consumers and allay the fear of contracting the disease.
The June 2020 e-issue of IMAGES Retail brings to its readers what brands and retailers are doing to welcome back consumers in a safe and hygienic environment – how they are streamlining their products and offerings to adjust to the new ‘no-touch’ normal with the implementation of ‘contactless commerce’.

The Novel Coronavirus outbreak has hastened the transformation of the global retail industry like never before. COVID-19 has led to a shutdown of retail worldwide, proving to be one of the biggest disruptors the industry has ever seen, catapulting the sector into adopting new technologies.
With a phased re-opening being set into motion in the fourth phase of the lockdown, the Indian Retail Industry is gearing up to adopt new technology, innovative ideas and social distancing measures. With the help of technology, which erstwhile served the purpose of convenience, the retailers are opting for ‘No Contact Commerce’ as the new medium to welcome back consumers and allay the fear of contracting the disease.
The June 2020 e-issue of IMAGES Retail brings to its readers what brands and retailers are doing to welcome back consumers in a safe and hygienic environment – how they are streamlining their products and off erings to adjust to the new ‘no-touch’ normal with the implementation of ‘contactless commerce’.
In this Digital Edition, we bring our readers research, reports, analysis, opinions, roadmaps, recommendations, and solutions from retail experts globally and India.

It has been more than two months since India has been in a state of lockdown, but the number of COVID-19 active cases have been increasing, the retail ecosystem suff ering. The Government of India has announced an economic stimulus package, which is yet to address the emergent issues faced by the retail industry.

With phase 4 of the lockdown opening up some segments of retail aside from essential services has come as relief for the retail industry. As restrictions on movement of people have been lifted to an extent, consumers can now go and shop – for both essential and nonessential products as per convenience and safety norms. However, with malls still not being given the green signal to open, the impact of the lockdown will be bad to severe on the two discretionary retail groups – fashion & lifestyle and consumer goods.

All in all, the retail sector stares at signifi cant challenges of lost sales totalling `2.44 lakh crore and 2.6 million jobs (in direct employment alone) as per an EY study.

These are testing times for everyone. Forced into our homes, under lockdown, the world is battling the COVID-19 pandemic, which has threatened lives and the world economy like never before. And the Global Retail Industry has not been spared either, every brand and retailer from the top to the bottom of the pyramid critically aff ected by the contagion. From top notch retailers, to the small stores in Tier IV towns, from the best of shopping centres to smaller malls in Tier II & III cities, everyone is struggling to stay afl oat, wondering what the future will bring. Despite it being closing time for the fi nancial year, there is no business happening anywhere in the world. Instead of welcoming harvest festivals and going on shopping sprees, consumers are sitting in the safety of their homes, only coming out to buy essentials and then too, wearing masks and gloves and carefully adhering to social distancing. The government has announced a nationwide lockdown forcing non-essential retailers, including malls and cinema halls, into indefi nite closure. The absolutely terrifying part – despite all the precautions being taken to sanitise every inch of the nation, there is no one, absolutely no one in the retail sector, who is in a situation to predict a timeline, pace or nature of recovery. There is no doubt in anyone’s mind that Retail, across 200+ nations, has been one of the most brutally impacted business segments of the world economy. There is a cash crunch, pay cuts and millions of jobs are at risk.

The retail scenario in India has bowed to the mighty shopping centre. The mall industry has moved beyond retail, transforming what were earlier simple shopping hubs into community engagement spaces providing a holistic experience of entertainment, food, shopping, and leisure to the connected consumer of today. People come here to relax and rejuvenate their energies and spend quality time with family and friends. As locations for malls in metros are maturing rapidly, brands and developers hoping to expand are eyeing unexplored territories to capitalise on the growing demand. Uncharted territories like Tier II and beyond – which are plagued by a lack of entertainment options as well as organised retail – are ripe grounds for new malls. IMAGES Retail’s March 2020 Edition studies the expansion graph of malls, noting that the arc extended to towns and cities in Non-Metro India. The issue’s cover story found that non-metros like Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Ludhiana, Indore, Chandigarh, Bhopal, Surat, Amritsar, Nagpur and Lucknow have accommodated a healthy percentage of retail growth and that 31 malls over 13.5 million sq. ft. will come up in these cities by 2022.

The new battleground for retail is undoubtedly ‘Customer Experience’. Irrespective of the segment of retail, consumers expect retailers to deliver them personalised, easy and unified experiences similar to those provided by companies born in the digital age and reshaping consumer expectations like Google, Facebook, Amazon, WhatsApp, Apple.

To cater to the consumer of today who is evolved, well-traveled, connected, and has enough disposable income, brands and retailers are embracing technology in a big way. Towards this, they are higher technology experts – CIOs / CTOs – who drive a seamless user experience in an effort to blend in with the increasingly digital world and provide convenience and benefits to the consumer.

A Happy New Year to you all. It has indeed been a momentous end of 2019 for us, with the successful conclusion of our flagship event, 20th Edition of India Fashion Forum (IFF) in December. We want to thank all those who joined in creating a powerful and collaborative atmosphere at both the events. We hope you are already on your way to creating success stories from the experiences shared at the event. For those who couldn’t make it to the IFF, our January issue of IMAGES Retail magazine encapsulates the event and the awards won by the retailers and brands.

We dedicate the first issue of 2020 to South India Retail. IFF, conducted in Bengaluru, was an icing on the cake which will make this edition of IMAGES Retail more special. The edition does a deep dive into why southern states have the highest retail growth rate in Indiaincluding listing cities which are seeing an exceptional rate of growth – Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Chennai – and how they are doing it. The issue also includes an expert research report on how the emerging cities of Coimbatore, Kochi, Vizag, Vijayawada, Trivandrum,and Madurai are contributing more than US$ 7000 million worth of retail activity to India today.

The other highlights of the edition are the success stories of the popular brands/retailers/malls of South India, including Soch, Cool Colors, Express Avenue, SPR City etc.

As we get set to welcome 2020, it is the time to acknowledge the glorious years which have led to the formation of a golden decade in the Indian retail industry. Each year of this decade contributed to the growth of the retail industry in myriad ways – be it disruption through technology, the coming of age of circularity or the maturing of the concept of experiential retail.

The year 2019 has been no different in terms of contribution. It can be rated as the ‘Year of Trends’ as it witnessed major developments across all industries and verticals. Technology continued to change the rules of the game successfully, despite new and tougher challenges.

Experiential and Multichannel retail, Artificial Intelligence, Augmented and Virtual Reality all emerged winners, raising the bar from the previously implemented tools like Bots, Cloud, Data, Magic Mirrors and Beacons. This was the year when the experience economy boomed, and customers chose to invest in experiences rather than products, flocking to retailers who offered the best in technology, events and activities.

The final edition of the year 2019, the December issue of IMAGES Retail brings its readers a case study of East India and how it is harnessing insights into technology, innovation and consumer engagement to become the next hot retail market in India. The cover story describes the state of transition of this market, how it is witnessing a series of investment and development in retail infrastructure and real estate. The issue also includes research on global consumer trends for the year – an insight into consumers’ changing values and how their behaviour is disrupting the business of retail globally. There is also a forecast 2020 – a look at how technology and sustainability will drive Indian retail in the coming years.

The business of franchising has been referred to as one of the
greatest ever developed. It is a key arrow in the quiver of retail,
with the maximum success guarantee. It is an operating model
which never goes out of fashion, one of the most fruitful motivating
business opportunities that can lead to the foundation of successful
retail empire. When done correctly, franchising allows the retailer
to achieve the expansion of the business and brand through able
franchisee partners in a more systematic way. However, like every
business model, franchising also requires capital, investment and
proper planning and marketing strategy.
IMAGES Retail’s November edition brings its readers the pros
and cons of franchising in retail. It also explains how franchising
model in retail continues to shine despite economic slowdown
in last one year. The issue talks about the investment required,
guidelines and other aspects related to build a successful
franchising empire. Experts and retailers from the industry outline
the challenges they have faced trying to establish a franchise
business and the parameters of choosing the right franchiser and
franchisee.

There are many factors to success in the world of retail – the right
product, the perfect store design and a seamless supply chain. There
is another element which increases a retailer’s standing among
consumers and that is technology.
Elevating retailers among peers and changing his impression among
consumers are payment, checkout and loyalty programs, factors that
are extremely signifi cant in helping businesses thrive. Retailers today
are working towards fusing loyalty with payments technology to
simplify shopping for the customer.
Over time, customer loyalty programs have evolved and are built
into payment systems, relying more on technology than ever before.
The idea is to give customers more of what they want and reward
them for repeat business, and they will keep coming back. Couple
these with cashier-, queue-less checkouts and retailers have a winning
combination.
The focus issue of IMAGES Retail’s October 2019 issue is the
‘Relevance of Payment, Checkout and Loyalty Programs’. The
magazine brings readers insights into why these are noteworthy
components in the world of retail, and why brands which ignore it do
at their own cost.
Aside from this, the edition delves into the success of two big
brands like Alibaba, Amazon and aLL, analysing how the brands are
successfully making an impact in the world of retail. There is also an
indepth feature on brands and their global expansion plans.
The issue also brings readers the scoop on sustainability, and how
brands are working towards redefi ning the world of fashion retail,
fostering change to both products as well as the entire system towards
greater ecological integrity and social justice.
As always, we hope you fi nd this issue informed and benefi cial.

India’s mall story began in the early 2000s, when there were just
three shopping centres in the country. Our mall culture started
developing when Indian shoppers began to realise the advantages
that a clean, air-conditioned, organised mall had over an unorganised
street. Today, malls are literally mushrooming across the Indian
subcontinent.
Malls have survived it all – the recession of 2007-2008 and the
advent of e-commerce. They’ve grown bigger, brighter. They’ve
evolved the way Indians view traditional brick-and-mortar retail,
selling experiences, wooing shoppers in, making them stay and
spend and converting them into loyalists. With over 600 operational
malls across the country, it’s safe to say that malls are here to stay.
For a mall to achieve scalable success today, the management
needs to be skillful in understanding, forecasting and adapting to
changing consumer needs and expectations. Malls need to keep up
with the constantly evolving ecosystem, stay up to date on trends and
deliver new experiences to increase footfalls and sales.
The cover story of IMAGES Retail’s September issue brings you a
lowdown on some of the best malls in India, the unparalleled retail
experiences they provide and how they are becoming more than just
shopping destinations. The issue includes a research report by JLL
as well as thorough coverage on everything these social hubs have
to off er including brands, customer experiences, experiential retail,
superior technology and more.
The issue also brings a futuristic feature titled ‘Robots in Retail’,
which talks about how as technology advances, a new generation
of robots is graduating from back-end operations and becoming a
reality in retail stores, interacting with humans at store fronts.
As always, I hope you fi nd the issue informative and benefi cial. Do
log on to our website, www.indiaretailing.com to read great features
and analyses on the stage of the global retail industry with an
emphasis on India.

The Indian Retail Industry is vast and continually reinventing itself
amid changing market conditions. In this evolving scenario, to survive
and establish oneself as a brand, a strong and innovative CEO at the
helm is more important than ever.
To set a company up for a prosperous future, a brand requires a
leader who ensures timely innovation, has good knowledge of the
industry and its trends, has a sharp business and marketing mind and
a vision to take the business ahead, even in tough times.
This CXO level person acts as an anchor for the company and takes
the business to the next level year by year.
In our annual edition of IMAGES Retail, we bring you a
comprehensive list of Retail leaders who are successfully leading
the change and making their brands’ presence felt in the sector. In
an exclusive one-on-one interaction, these stalwarts talk about the
company’s growth, vision as well as the future implementation of this
vision, which will determine the position of the brand by 2030.
Aside from this, the issue brings readers a rich analysis of the
trending Phygital format as well as the impact of the ‘Cash on Delivery’
concept in the e-commerce segment and what it means for business
and consumer acquisition.
The edition also delves into the issue of Loss Prevention, a major
pain point for almost every retailer out there – big or small. The feature
talks to brand leaders about the major concerns in the area, while
discussing the steps which retailers are taking both nationally and
globally to cut losses.
Shifting focus, IMAGES Group is busy working towards creating
another success story – the 16th Edition of our fl agship event, IMAGES
Retail Award 2019, to be held on August 26, 2019, at Grand Hyatt,
Mumbai.
In the end, we hope that you fi nd this annual August edition as
informative and insightful as ever and we look forward to seeing you
all at IRA 2019 in large numbers

E-commerce, which was a decade ago considered an indolent aspect of
the unorganised Indian retail industry, has today become the platform
on which the wheel of the industry runs. In a span of approximately 10
years, e-commerce has played a major role in organising the industry
and also making it more convenient and accessible for the users.
The additional infl uence of the cyberspace has enabled e-commerce
to reach and make an impact even in rural areas as well. Currently,
Indian e-commerce market is expected to grow to US$ 200 billion
by 2026 from US$ 38.5 billion in 2017. By 2021 India is expected to
generate $100 billion online retail revenue out of which $35 billion will
be through fashion e-commerce. Online apparel sales are also set to
grow 4X in the coming years.
The July edition of IMAGES Retail brings its readers the complete
story on why this enormous demand has caused companies to be
more creative in terms of reaching audiences online by introducing
new and innovative technologies. The cover story will go over the
impact of e-commerce, the role of Omnichannel services in luring
modern consumers and how AI, VR and other innovations have
impacted the e-commerce industry.
The issue also brings readers up to speed with the top innovations
by leading brands to add more footfalls and revenue in their respective
stores.
In other news, we have introduced a new ‘Retail Design’ in which
we bring our readers a roundup on how Shoppers Stop has turned its
fortunes by focusing on good visual merchandising. We also take a
look at how retail design aff ects clicks-to-bricks brands and their store
experience learnings.
Finally, the edition brings to its readers a roundup of IMAGES’
fl agship fashion retail event, India Fashion Forum 2019, featuring
sessions on e-commerce, phy-gital retail and technology innovation,
where experts share their experiences from the retail and fashion
perspective.
As always, I hope you fi nd the issue informative and useful.

The June 2019 issue of IMAGES Retail delves on the Indian logistics, supply chain and warehousing industry, which is growing and prospering, largely because of the flourishing retail and e-commerce sectors in the country. The complete package includes research, exclusive interviews and analytical sessions in both fashion and the food industry.

As technology and consumers evolve, the retail sector is racing
against time to keep pace. The industry, today, is all about innovations
– innovating in a way that consumers convert into loyalists. Retail
and technology go hand in hand, retail dependent on technology so
completely that success without it in the fi eld is a tough target to achieve.
And the key to all innovation leading to great consumer experience –
personalisation. Personalisation refers to customising the experience
of buying to the very last detail for the benefi t of the shoppers, keeping
every demand and requirement in mind, serving them exactly what they
want, in the colours, sizes and portions they require. As the boundary
between offl ine and online commerce disappears as retailers focus on
fulfi lling the personalised needs of each customer, a fresh version of retail
is taking place, a retail which is far beyond the scope of Omnichannel
and Phygital. It is ‘New Retail’ and this is the concept the May edition of
IMAGES Retail explores in its lead story. ‘New Retail’ is a concept coined
by retailer extraordinaire, Jack Ma, Alibaba’s Founder. The concept works
on the theory that no two physical consumers are the same and that the
physical world will become a real-time manifestation of users’ implicit
as well as explicit commercial desires – in simpler terms, the supreme
integration of offl ine and online commerce leading to extraordinary
consumer experiences. Ma says, New Retail will transform the industry
beyond imagination.

Shopping is all about the personal, and varied, choices of every
individual. Everyone wants to look diff erent and therefore people shop
for diverse products to avoid repetition. And retailers are using every
innovative technology possible to off er new ways to shop both online
and in-store.
Improving supply chain effi ciency, reducing costs and personalising
shopping experiences – Artifi cial Intelligence (AI) technologies allow
retailers to better serve their customers in every way possible.
According to an IBM survey in 2019, humans will continue partnering
with AI to improve customer experience and business processes in the
retail industry. Th e survey also says that from supply chain planning (85
percent) and demand forecasting (85 percent), to customer intelligence
(79 percent), AI will work towards revolutionising retail.
Th e bottom line: AI, AR, VR, IoT – this is what the future of retail looks
like. Keeping the future in its sights, IMAGES Retail’s April issue brings
readers an analysis of how the AI approach helps consumers discover
the right products. Th ese technologies focus on how to capture the
shoppers’ intent and convert it into a purchase.

The East Indian Retail Industry is on a growth trajectory. To a market strategist, East is undoubtedly an ideal location for the growth of the retail industry. Besides being the principal retail-and-services market to a vast hinterland, there are cities which can serve as a center of trade and commerce for the region.

East’s proximity to Bangladesh, a country of 13 crore+ consumers, and to the South-East Asian markets is spelling boom time for the region as is its large, aspirational, middle-class population with access to increasing disposable income. This, as well as high-speed Internet, increasing exposure to technology and the shooting popularity of social media has opened unprecedented opportunities for the retail industry in the East.

In the March 2019 issue of IMAGES Retail, we bring you a complete study of this fast emerging as a vibrant business center. The cover story analyses change in consumer income and demographic profile, and the role technological innovations, cultural shifts and social media play in the growing standing of retail in the East on high streets and within malls.

The issue also carries for its readers, a special feature on Blue Yonder, A JDA Company. The article talks about how the company’s innovative AI and ML solutions enable retailers, consumer products and other companies to intelligently transform their operations and make more profitable, automated business decisions that deliver higher profits and optimized customer experiences.

South India is largely recognized as the birthplace of modern retail. The glorious south side of India has given the nation – and the world at large – innovational visionaries, entrepreneurs extraordinaire and exceptional business leaders. The region is a vibrant marketplace which has initiated the genesis of modern retailing in India and businesses based out of South India have always been well ahead of the curve in as far as retailing invention goes.
It is a documented fact that almost 70 percent of India’s rich live in its eight southern states, including in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Th is has greatly contributed to the rising consumerism in the region.
Interestingly, however, despite the increased demand, retail in South Indian is dominated by local players. So, while the region has evolved by adapting to global trends, yet, a homely retail experience, comfort of the native language, along with familiarity with local culture and purchase preferences have been the driving forces for retail growth here.
The February issue of IMAGES Retail is dedicated to the analysis of the greatly evolved South Indian retail industry. The edition does a deep dive into why southern states have the highest retail growth rate in India including listing cities which are seeing an exceptional rate of growth – Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Chennai – and how they are doing it. The issue also includes an expert research report on how the emerging cities of Coimbatore, Kochi, Vizag, Vijayawada, Trivandrum, and Madurai are contributing more than US$ 7000 million worth of retail activity to India.

A Happy New Year to you all. It has indeed been a momentous end
of 2018 for us, with the successful conclusion of North India Retail
Awards (NIRA 2018) and South India Retail Awards (SIRA 2018)
in December. We want to thank all those who joined in creating
a powerful and collaborative atmosphere at both the events. We
hope you are already on your way to creating success stories from
the experiences shared at the event. For those who couldn’t make
it to NIRA and SIRA, our January issue of IMAGES Retail magazine
encapsulates the theme event.
We dedicate the fi rst edition of 2019 to Technology. As we know,
retail technology has been the greatest game-changer of all. Th e
technology footprint leading to decisive impacts in numerous
stages of retail such as enterprise system along with customerfacing
functionalities like payments, customer services and loyalty
programs has been a sure shot success formula for retailers. Th e
issue brings you an overview of the top tech innovations which
came into limelight in 2018 and were quite popular among the
brands/retailers. Th e feature also highlights analysis/views/
opinions from the CIOs and other retail experts from the industry.
We also bring you major technology trends to look out in 2019.
We also bring you a feature on the Who’s Who of the Indian
Retail Industry. Th e story will walk readers through what these
retail leaders are doing diff erently to stay ahead of the curve
and also focusing on the challenges faced, marketing and
Omnichannel strategies, and the expansion plans.
Shifting focus a little, as 2019 dawns, we are busy working
towards creating another success story – the 12th Edition of our
fl agship event, India Food Forum 2019 to be held on February 5-6
at Hotel Renaissance, Mumbai.
We hope that you will fi nd this edition of the year as insightful as
the rest and we hope to see you in large numbers at the India Food
Forum 2019.

2018 is drawing to a close. Th is is the year which saw Indian retail
emerging as one of the most dynamic and fast-paced industries in
the country due to the entry of several new players. Th e year has been
lively, with the Indian Retail Industry growing at a CAGR of 13 percent
to reach US $950 Billion. Moreover, the industry was at its peak as
far as technology was concerned. Humanoid Intelligence, Artifi cial
Intelligence, Bots, Cloud, Data, Magic Mirrors, Beacons … every day
there are additions to the list of new technologies in the retail industry.
While replacing manpower with technology is not a new concept in
retail, the human touch of the business cannot be completely ignored.
People have always been the appeal of the retail industry. Every shopper
wants special treatment in a store. Th ey want to talk to retail associates
who are attentive and well-informed about the product, while helping
them choose what suits their requirements the most.
Th e cover story of the December issue will walk readers through
creating a balance between technologies and human beings – an
equilibrium which will ultimately help retailers achieve higher levels
of customer satisfaction. Apart from retail expert views, there is also
a detailed report on what companies are doing to ensure friendly HR
policies for their employees to bring down attrition rates.
Th e issue also brings readers a special feature on Retail Employees’


Retailers need to do a lot to succeed in the Indian market. Th ey need to
sell good quality at competitive prices, market their product eff ectively,
all the while growing their business. One way to grow fast is by
franchising.
Franchising is an evergreen module that never goes out of fashion. It is
one of the most fruitful motivating business opportunities that can lead
to the foundation of a successful business empire. Opening a franchise
comes with a set of rules, expectations, and skills completely diff erent
from launching one’s own retail brand. As with any business venture,
franchising is not immune to risk, but if undertaken in the right way, it
can be a vehicle of success for both the franchisor and franchise.
IMAGES Retail’s November edition brings you the pros and cons of
Franchising in Retail. Th e issue covers the topic from both ends - the
retailers who off er franchises of their brand, and from the point of view
of franchise owners. Th e issue talks in depth about major retail players
and the breakup between their own stores and franchises, investment
required, guidelines, revenue and footfall fi gures. Experts and retailers
from the industry outline the challenges they’ve faced trying to establish
a franchise business and detail other important aspects of choosing the
right franchiser and franchise.
Th e edition also brings an exclusive feature on ‘Transit Retail’, a deep
dive into how retail contributes to an airport’s revenue and why airports
are self-sustained shopping enclaves which drive in sales as they create a
unique shopping experience.


Th e retail sector is facing challenges like never before and one of the
major bottlenecks has been attracting and retaining skilled, career staff .
In fact, the retail industry in India is competing with other high growth
sectors for skilled recruits – recruits who won’t simply stand in a store
and sell, but who will also get involved with and contribute towards
taking business forward. Th is demand for highly professional, skilled
and trained employees has made ‘Retail Education’ a necessity in India.
In the October edition of IMAGES Retail, we take a look on the Retail
Education and how it trains the employees for greater success and
productivity.
With retailers demanding skilled workers and retail moving forward
at a fast pace, it is no wonder then that India fascinated with foreign
brands – something which is no secret, but the wheel has now turned a
full circle. With India poised to become the third largest economy in the
world by 2025, it is foreign brands that are chasing Indian consumers,
not the other way around. In a special feature titled ‘Global Retailers in
India: Moves, Leaps & Hurdles’, IMAGES Retail analyses the chief drivers
of growth of all major foreign brands in the country.

The Indian Mallscape: A Retail Experience Like No Other. The cover story of IMAGES Retail’s September issue brings you a lowdown on some of the best malls in India, the unparalleled retail experiences they provide and how they are becoming more than just shopping destinations. Read research reports by CBRE which brings a thorough coverage of everything these social hubs have to offer including brands, customer experiences, experiential retail, superior technology and more.
 
The issue also brings to you, two specially researched reports on the richest retail firms in India. The reports walk readers through what these retail firms are doing right in order to climb to the billionaire club.  Apart from this, there are features on some of the finest retailers in the country including the newest entrant in the Indian retail market – IKEA. We also bring you a dash of technology in the form of an authored piece from Arvind Internet’s Mukul Bafna, as well as a pinch of frozen food.

IMAGES Retail August 2018 takes a sneak peak into the journeys of regional retailers , who are a huge hit in Tier II and III towns. The issue talks about how they are raking in the big bucks and taking the national retail by storm. The edition also brings an overview of retail companies with the best Supply Chain Management in retail in India. Along with that, an exclusive interaction with Rajiv Suri, CEO & MD, Shoppers Stop is another highlight for the readers.  

Launched in 2003, IMAGES Retail took on the task of analysing the emerging industry of organised retail, at a time when industry itself had little data to work on.Since then, the magazine has grown in tandem with the business of retail in India, and its broad-based research now covers the gamut of Indian and international movements in technology, logistics, formats, store design, retail real estate , franchising and human resource, besides reporting on significant directions within India's sunrise industry.

IMAGES Retail June 2018 brings its readers a detailed analysis into why ‘the store of the future is Phy-gital’. We tell you the best Phy-gital experiences both Indian and international brands have to offer, and we bring you a roundup of the most popular in-store technologies in India and a special best practices section for CEOs. We also bring you a complete lowdown on the importance of Visual Merchandising in retail businesses, with emphasis on why they matter to when it comes to engaging and inspiring shoppers, and how they help in increasing ROI.

In the May 2018 issue of IMAGES Retail May, we bring you an in-depth analysis into why successful e-commerce portals are opening physical stores. We tell you why pure-play e-commerce companies now have an offline strategy and are rushing into the traditional retail space. The feature analyzes the market, the challenges, as well as the approach of the big players of the Indian e-commerce industry along with their expansion plan while bringing you a roundup of the revenue and footfalls the O2O method has managed to rake in.


Featured articles:
My Thoughts- Amit Chaudhary, Co-Founder & COO, Lenskart, who  gives a detailed account of why the firm took the offline route after becoming the number one online player in the Indian eyewear market.
Exclusive - Gunjan Soni, Head of Jabong and Chief Marketing Officer at Myntra, talks about the big trends of the online fashion industry and how technology has played a major role in revamping it.
Front Desk- An article on Front Desk Retail executives and how they can help increase sales
Market Dynamics- Danish footwear Brand 'hummel' looks to gain strong foothold in India.

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Launched in 2003, IMAGES Retail magazine took on the task of analysing the emerging organised retail industry at a time when the industry itself had little data to work on. The magazine covers the gamut of Indian and International movements in retail technology, logistics and supply chain, store formats, store design, retail real estate, franchising and human resource, besides reporting on significant directions within India’s sunrise industry. 

The magazine is widely acknowledged India’s leading retail intelligence publication for decades now, providing news, insights, research & analysis, intelligence and data covering retail operations across all Indian markets.

The mission of the monthly B2B magazine – published exclusively for the retail industry – is to bring industry leaders and brand owners up to date with the latest in retail technology & innovations, provide them with in-depth research, studies and analytical, insightful features which help them grow their businesses in India. The magazine aims to spark ideas and shape agendas for decision makers in India’s competitive retail industry.

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Images Retail - November 2011

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