Bata India expects positive growth by June 2021

Footwear major Bata India is expecting growth to resume towards the end of Q1FY22 (June 2021) as consumer spending picks up.

Consumer spending is currently at 75-80 per cent of pre-Covid levels and Bata is witnessing sales at similar levels with some variations being observed across geographies and channels.

For instance, footfalls in malls are relatively low, whereas online sales (which include various digital sales initiatives taken up by the company) have “more than doubled than pre-Covid levels.”

According to Ashwani Windlass, Chairman, Bata India, “more movement is happening” and keeping the macro trends in mind, the footwear major is expecting “further pick up” in the next couple of months.

“By the end of Q1 of the next fiscal (April-June 2021), we are expecting growth to be back in the positive,” he told BusinessLine .

Company-owned and company-operated store expansion has been put on hold specifically in large cities. However, Bata has gone ahead with the “franchisee model” to expand into smaller towns.

Consumer trends

Incidentally, consumer trends, too, have changed according to the requirements of the “new normal”.

While in the initial days post-unlocking, there was a strong demand for open and washable footwear — sandals, chappals and so on — the next few months saw demand for sports and active-wear. As offices opened up, there has been a rise in sales of formal footwear, too. However, school shoe sales continue to be slow.

“In the last 8-12 weeks, demand has been more broad-based towards shoes, sneakers and fashion items. Initially, it was open footwear; followed by active and sportswear demand. Even now, demand for open footwear and active and sportswear continue to be at higher than pre-Covid levels,” said Sandeep Kataria, Global CEO, Bata Brands.

According to him, the company is “agile enough to listen to consumers” and accordingly ramp up production to cater to changing demand. Future demand is likely to be skewed towards fashion and casual wear with sportswear and active-wear doing well.

Digital initiatives

According to Kataria, Bata will continue to up its ante through digital initiatives.

Post-unlocking, omni-channel presence has been ramped up with “digitally-assisted shopping” and “Whatsapp call and catalogue-based selling”. Bata has also reached out to consumers by going to residential societies and doorsteps with offerings. Technology across its own website, bata.in, has also been ramped up.

Presence across e-tailing sites such as Amazon and Flipkart have been upped, and the company has refrained from deep discounting, thereby keeping prices at par between online and offline channels.

“There has been a maturing of e-commerce sales and people seem to be comfortable with online shopping now. Even price parity across online and offline channels has been accepted with not many people looking at deep discounting,” he added.

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