Indian Retailer

Moving forward on its retail expansion plan, Dabur India retail subsidiary H&B Stores, today announced the opening of its fourth `newu` outlet in the Delhi-NCR region. The opening of this new outlet at the Ambience Mall also marked newu`s entry into Gurgaon and expands the brand`s presence to eleven outlets spread across North and South India.

Spread over 800 sq. feet space, the newu Ambience mall outlet offers the discerning consumer a wide selection of brands in categories as diverse as cosmetics, skin care, hair care, fragrances, herbal care, beauty implements and accessories, gifts and confectionery, men and children toiletries, health foods and Ayurvedic products.

The company plans to add 12 new stores to its growing network over the next one year to further expand its footprint in the beauty, health & wellness retail market across the country. H&B Stores Ltd has added four new stores to the newu network since January this year, and continues to move forward on the expansion path with a vision to provide smart retail options to its customers.

The store will also offer a range of beauty and fashion accessories under the newu private label, besides exclusive brands like Rasasi and Ajmal fragrances and Iha soaps.

For the 4th time in 5 years, AT Kearney rated India the most attractive destination for retail investment. India tops a list of 30 countries with a rating of 68, followed by Russia (60), China (56), UAE (56) and Saudi Arabia (56). The GDRI helps retailers prioritize their global development strategies by ranking the retail expansion attractiveness of emerging countries on a set of 25 variables including economic and political risks, retail market attractiveness and the difference between GDP growth and retail growth. In 2008, Vietnam toppled India to become the 'most attractive' retail market but tables changed as recession swept through continents.

Keeping with the up trending stock market, Indian retail is showing buoyancy. With companies as Mahindra Retail, Bharti Wal-Mart, Aditya Birla Retail, resuming hiring. These same companies had stopped hiring on account of recession and had in fact undergone massive retrenchments and layoffs.