The Hindu Business Line : Indian retail and Biyanispeak

You wouldn't expect the father of modern Indian retail, Mr Kishore Biyani, CEO, Future Group, to dismiss his Rs 2,500-crore retail empire and the country's Rs 10 lakh crore retail industry as mere trading activity. But he did declare that "Retail is not rocket science, it's just buying from someone and selling it to someone." Delivering the 26th Annual Ayaz Peerbhoy Memorial Lecture at Bangalore last week, Mr Biyani spoke like his brands: with a simple no-frills, no-nonsense approach. "We never rely on market research for our strategy. We build our own strategy based on our hypothesis," he stated.

Of course, B-school students also got their share of Biyanispeak, "They should be taught to use both sides of their brain. Remember design has a solution to every problem. Case studies are useless in a rapidly changing environment." And "Managers are not managers unless they complicate things."

Emphasising the critical role of design in the Future Group, he said that the company was constantly innovating and finding solutions to all problems through design.

Future Group is the only retail group that has a design firm (Idiom) where 200 designers are constantly working on new ideas, prototypes, store designs and concepts. Last year Idiom successfully implemented 24 of the 26 prototypes they had conceptualised, designed and developed. "And most of the projects are completed within 60-90 days," said Mr Biyani. One of the concepts, the `Sabse Sastha Din' offer which lasted for three days in January created a history of sorts: 60 lakh visitors to the stores, a business of Rs 125 crore, 1.08 lakh bedsheets, 30,000 cell phones and 11,000 pieces of apparel sold. Indian malls cannot be like Western malls. "Unless a customer butts and brushes against other customers, he'll never buy anything," he said describing how Indian shopping habits are different.

Biyani confessed to keenly watching the TV soap, `Kyon Ki Saas Bhi... .' so that he could use themes from this popular soap as concepts in his stores. Viral marketing and relationship collaboration were the strengths of his business. "We have built our business based on partnerships and currently we have partnered with 18 different businesses across the country," he said.

Commenting on the impending entry of the American and European retail biggies like Wal-Mart, Carrefour and Tesco into the country, he said that Future Group was ready with its plans. "We have done our scenario planning for every new brand that's likely to set foot here."

Fielding questions that mildly accused him of nurturing indulgence and consumerism in the younger generation, Biyani said that he was here to help what he called `India Two' to spend. India two, symbolised by Buntys and Bablis, would now get micro-credit to give vent to their desires and aspirations. "They have no guilt of consumption and they drive our business today," he said.

The Future Group's feisty chief said he was born to socialist parents who taught him `not to spend,' but he confessed that he was a democratic parent. "Fortunately, today's children have democratic parents who are more liberal about spending."

Consumption, he said, was the sone ki chidiya that would take India to wherever it was earlier... golden times.