Major Brands (India) Pvt. Ltd, which retails brands such as Bath and Body Works, Aldo, Charles and Keith, La Senza and New Balance, is stepping up its expansion plans to open more doors and grow its online presence, said a senior company executive.
The premier international fashion apparel, accessories and beauty brands retailer, which has been in India since 2001 with 180 stores now, plans to have over 500 stores in the next 3-3.5 years.
Online revenue is expected to grow from less than 5% currently to over 25-30% of overall revenue in this period, Tushar Ved, president, Major Brands, told Mint.
The planned expansion comes on the back of new malls being opened by specialist shopping centre operators, said Ved.
Moreover, the online retail market has matured in the last seven years.
However, he added: “We have to make sure they don’t discount. It is a challenge that we are working on.”
Major Brands could also soon bring lingerie brands Victoria’s Secret and Pink to India.
The company has been adding a new brand almost every year to its portfolio.
Three years ago, the company launched shoes and accessories brand Call it Spring and two years ago sports shoes and apparel brand New Balance.
Earlier this month, the retailer announced the launch of personal care brand Bath and Body Works, the second brand from its partner company, the US-based L Brands, whose portfolio includes lingerie brands La Senza, Victoria’s Secret and Pink.
“Our first preference is to work with existing partners,” said Ved without giving a specific time frame for bringing Victoria’s Secret and Pink to India.
“Over the last three years, retail mall development has consolidated with a handful of specialist shopping centres operators, who among themselves had close to 10 properties. These mall developers have strong financial partners or funds backing them up and are now opening about 40-50 new properties in the next five years,” said Shubrangshu Pani, managing director (MD), retail, JLL India, a property consultancy firm.
For instance, private equity firm Blackstone Group Lp set up its India subsidiary Nexus Malls in 2016 to own and manage the malls here.
Between 2017 and now, Nexus Malls has increased its portfolio from 2.8 million sq. ft to 5 million sq. ft across eight malls in cities such as Pune and Chandigarh, according to a Mint report.
Likewise, The Phoenix Mills Ltd, which operates six malls now, plans to double its retail portfolio, according to a CNBC report.
“Store openings depend on mall launches and mall expansion has definitely picked up,” said Ved.