British retailer Marks and Spencer (M&S), which was perceived as a high-end brand, has undertaken a shift in strategy by positioning itself as a mid-premium retailer for India.
“We are a value retailer globally and that is the positioning we want in India as well. Besides this, we are also tweaking our stores to provide a more international experience to our customers,” Venu Nair, Managing Director, Marks and Spencer Reliance India, said.
Industry watchers point that initially many customers who visited M&S stores globally felt that the experience wasn’t the same in India.
M&S operates in India through 51:49 joint venture with Mukesh Ambani-owned Reliance Retail. Earlier, the company had partnership with Planet Retail which had opened much smaller stores compared to the global average of 20,000 sq ft.
However, following its partnership with Reliance Retail, the company has been opening large-format stores with an average area of 20,000 sq ft.
There are 27 company owned company operated stores largely in malls and high-streets. It retails men, women and kids-wear besides lingerie, shape-wear and accessories.
“We will be adding seven new stores by July and most will be rolled out in the new format. They will be easier to navigate and will have larger stock keeping units and sub brands. Gradually, all our stores will adapt the same look and feel,” Nair added.
M&S said it had increased local sourcing of its products to nearly 60 per cent.
“We are having high double digit growth following change in our sourcing strategy,” he added. It faces stiff competition from international brands such as S Oliver, Benetton, Espirit, Zara, Tommy Hifiger, and Mango, who also operate in the same price point.
Asked if the brand is planning to go solo following the Government’s decision to open up FDI in multi-brand retail, Nair said it did not plan to go alone in India venture.
“Reliance has expertise in back end and supply chain. We will continue with our current partnership,” he added.