The Hindu Business Line : Trinethra enters Kerala with Kochi outlet

Trinethra Super Retail Ltd (TSRL), the fast-growing food and grocery retail chain in South India, has entered the Kerala market with the launch of its first outlet - Fabmall - in Fort Cochin. Over the next few days, the group will open five more stores in various suburban areas of Kochi.

"We have aggressive plans to launch 25 stores in Kerala over the next six months, which will make us the largest retail chain in the State, Mr Pranab Barua, CEO, TSRL, said at a press meet. The outlets will be increased to 60 by next year including a hypermarket in Kochi, he said. Apart from the supermarket format, the group also intends to open stores in the quickshop and super centre formats, he added.

Expansion in south

With a vision to become the market leader in the grocery retailing business in the country, Trinethra is expanding rapidly and expects to reach a number of 200 outlets in Andhra Pradesh, Bangalore, Chennai and Kerala by March 2007. The group currently has 130 outlets and is in the process of expanding exponentially to an estimated 90 stores in AP, 35 in Chennai and 50 stores in Karnataka, he said.

Considering the growth in the retail market segment, the group plans to enter different retail format while increasing its number of stores and close 2006-07 at an annualised sale of Rs 360 crore.

The group today has an annualised sale of over Rs 240 crore and plans to invest Rs 100 crore over two yeas, he said. Starting with a modest turnover of Rs 15.8 crore in 1986, the company has recorded strong growth and a turnover of Rs 170 crore by March this year.

Trinethra's value proposition of quality, affordability and convenience combined with enjoyable ambience and customer service has made it the destination of choice for many consumers.

The size of the retail market in the country is estimated at Rs 930 crore, which is expected to touch Rs 1,395 crore by 2010. "As the market continues to grow, we will leverage our experience in grocery retail to experiment with various format and grow our business significantly", Mr Barua said.

Regarding distribution centres and logistics, he said the group has warehouses in Hyderabad, Vizag, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala covering a total space of 50,000 sq ft at each centre to serve its in store requirements.

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