RETAIL REAPS BUMPER GAINS

Sector stages smart comeback with 27% rise in total income as premiumisation catches on.

- Urvashi Mishra

INDIA'S RETAIL story shows incredible resilience and potential where premiumisation is harmonising well with the trend of burgeoning middle class. Pre-Covid, it was hard to imagine that brick-and-mortar retail would face doomsday, but in Covid-hit 2020, it was widely assumed that unless retailers hopped on the e-commerce bandwagon, they might sink.

However, retailers proved naysayers wrong, adopting a dual strategy of tapping online as well as physical channels to keep consumers engaged. That has now transformed into an 'omni-channel' strategy. "A number of companies are looking at multichannel expansion. They are opening exclusive outlets, looking at new-age e-commerce models. Quick commerce & social commerce are going to play a large role in FMCG & grocery categories to some extent," says Praveen Govindu, partner at Deloitte (India) Consulting.

This year, 13 companies from retail sector have earned a spot on Fortune India's The Next 500 list. Collectively, these have seen a 27% increase in total income from ₹21,378 crore in FY22 to ₹29,384 crore in FY23. The retail industry as a whole is projected to double revenues by 2030. Revenues were close to $980 billion in 2023.