BIG BRANDS MAKE STRONG FOOTHOLD IN SMALLER CITIES

While walking down the streets in a small town like Ludhiana in Punjab or Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh, it is not unusual to come across branded outlets of apparels, pre-schools, salons etc. During the last few years, mushrooming of big brands in the small cities and towns pan India has witnessed an upward trend. After making a strong base in metros, highstreet fashion brands have all been gearing up for entering the greener pastures in tier III and IV cities

- Abha Garyali Peer

Coming across an Arrow or a Trends outlet in a Tier III town was an unusual sight till a few years ago. However, now not seeing a branded outlet is an unusual thing while travelling across smaller towns. Moreover, according to a recent analysis by the Boston Consulting Group, the retail sector in India is expected to reach a whopping US $ 2 trillion in value by 2032. Our nation is on the way of becoming one of the most promising and developing marketplaces in the world. Nearly 60 shopping malls encompassing a total retail space of 23.25 million square feet are expected to become operational during 2023-25. If these figures are to be believed than these malls would be coming up in small cities and towns as India is on the verge of saturation in terms of malls in metro cities.

According to a report by consulting firm Kearney, released last year, tier-2 and -3 cities are hotbeds for growth, opening up opportunities for retailers to expand. These markets indeed promise lot of opportunities to retailers with growing aspirational value and market base. As the Kearney Research points out, shopping trends in metro cities have influenced the consumer behaviour in tier 2 and 3 cities resulting newer retail formats.

Industry Stalwarts Voice their Opinions on Prominent Brands coming in Tier 2 & 3 

It was earlier believed that big businesses can only be successful if they are located in prime locations. However, in reality, smaller cities and towns hold more potential for business’ growth. Even big brands have moved to smaller cities to expand their businesses. This is due to factors like availability of resources, affordability, costs involved in setting up the business, easy market penetration, etc. Let us find out what the stalwarts of the Retail, Service as well as gifting sectors have to share on this.