Retail outfit Landmark, is said to have sold to its joint venture partner its 50 per cent stake in the Emami Landmark Store Private Ltd. This is after the acquisition of stakes in Landmark by Trent in 2006.
Sources in the company have said that the decision was taken since the future of the joint venture was not certain after Trent’s acquisition. It is believed that the Emami group will use this store to enter the retail sector on a national scale. The sources added that the name of the new company would be Emami Retail Pvt. Ltd., depending on statutory approvals, whereas the brand that is going to replace the Landmark brand is `Starmark’.
According to the future plans of the Emami group, the investment of approximately Rs. 50-75 crore has been decided to rollout about ten stores by mid-2008 in the eastern region. This expansion would be followed by opening of stores in cities like Chennai, Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad and Bangalore. The company would concentrate only on goods like toys, stationery, books, music and gift as of now.
