Home International Argos to enter India through a joint venture

Argos to enter India through a joint venture

Mumbai: British retail major Argos has announced plans to enter India later this year after signing a franchise agreement with a joint venture company owned by Shopper's Stop and Hypercity Retail India. Shopper’s Stop Ltd. and HyperCITY Retail (India) Pvt Ltd. has jointly signed a Memorandum of Understanding today, to develop the Argos retail format of catalogue stores in India, with exclusive franchise from the Home Retail Group of the U.K. Argos is among the leading general merchandise retailers in the UK and Ireland which operates a unique format of catalogue stores, along with home shopping and online retail. ET on January 23 had reported that K Raheja group was close to signing the deal with Argos. The stores and the catalogue shall be branded HyperCITY-Argos and shall be operated by an SPV jointly owned by Shoppers’ Stop and HyperCITY Retail. The business would be initially launched in the Mumbai region and will be rolled out nationally in the long term. B.S. Nagesh, Managing Director, Shopper’s Stop Ltd., commented: “This unique retail format of Argos is particularly suited to the urban, densely populated areas, where retail space is expensive and limited in supply. Home Retail Group has developed the capability to manage this unique and highly successful retail format very efficiently and through the franchise arrangement we shall jointly adapt this capability to the Indian environment.” Andrew Levermore, CEO, HyperCITY Retail (India) Pvt Ltd., commented: “The franchise will enable HyperCITY to deliver its core proposition of unrivalled customer choice at attractive prices now with additional multi-channel convenience.” Home Retail Group CEO Terry Duddy said, “We are always looking for opportunities that allow us to leverage our skills, sourcing scale and capabilities. We are therefore delighted to announce this tie-up that will enable us to evaluate the appeal of the Argos proposition to consumers in the emerging market of India.” Argos is a catalogue retailer and sells general merchandise and products for the home from over 670 stores throughout the UK and Republic of Ireland, online and over the telephone. In the last financial year, Argos sales topped £3.8 billion. Argos serves over 130 million customers a year through its stores and takes 4 million orders either online or over the phone. Argos, which is owned by the Home Retail Group, is one among the many retailers in the UK who are eyeing the fast-growing Indian retail market. Currently, dominated by small chains and family-run stores, the retail market in India is estimated to be worth more than $300 billion.

 

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