The Hindu Business Line : Wadhawan Food Retail looking at hypermarkets, cash & carry formats

Wadhawan Food Retail Ltd (WFRL), which runs the Spinach brand of convenience stores, is planning to launch hypermarkets and cash & carry formats under new retail brands. Exploring options of becoming franchisees or forging joint ventures with international retailers, the Mumbai-based retailer is now looking at having larger formats in the retail space.

Mr Kapil Wadhawan, Vice-Chairman and Managing Director, DHFL (Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Ltd), the flagship company of the Wadhawan Group, said, “We are exploring hypermarket and cash & carry formats and evaluating options to forge joint ventures. There are plans on the drawing board as we are committed to our retailing business.”

Having acquired a couple of family-owned stores in the North and South recently, Wadhawan Retail intends converting these small retail brands to its own Spinach brand of convenient stores across the country. For instance, it acquired Sabka Bazaar in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh with its chain of 35 stores, while in Bangalore it gained access to SMart and its 14 stores, all of which subsequently will get branded under Spinach.

Home Store brand

Besides, it has also made a foray into furnishings and fixtures by acquiring the Home Store brand in the North with its six stores, marking its entry into a new retailing category. However, Home Store would continue under its own brand with plans of extending it to 50 stores. Besides, its Sangam Direct brand acquired from HUL will also operate in the B2B space, whereby it would supply to restaurants and food chains and large consumers of food and grocery. “Sangam would serve as our back-end brand and would continue with its direct to home model,” added Mr Wadhwan.

Meanwhile, the board of directors of DHFL, has announced raising its stake in WFRL to 19.90 per cent. .

Added Mr Wadhawan, “The food and grocery segment accounts for 63 per cent of retail expenditure. Out of this, 11 per cent is organised retailing. This represents a big opportunity for us to invest in WFRL, which has huge expansion plans of opening 1,500 stores in the next four to five years”.

“Drawing synergies from its group company,” Mr Wadhawan said, “DHFL will be able to increase its points of presence through the locations where WFRL will open its stores.”