Bata India plans to open 65-70 new stores this year and renovate another 30 existing stores. The shoe major is close to completing its restructuring exercise. Bata now has no loss-making store within its pan-India retail network, chairman PM Sinha said after the annual general meeting on May 26 in Kolkata.
“We have either closed loss-making stores or revived them with fresh investment. All our 1,250 outlets are doing well now,” Sinha said.
Bata enjoys a 33 per cent share in the organised shoe market. The company has been able to increase sales and improve margins despite the adverse economic conditions.
In 2008, it increased gross margins by 3 per cent by cutting costs. Bata will try to improve margins by 0.5-1 per cent this year too, director – finance, Shaibal Sinha said.
The chairman further said the company would want to tap the growing rural market. “We will create an appropriate retail platform for that,” he added.
In major cities, Bata has introduced a management model at the shop level to boost sales. The company also plans to enter the defence and paramilitary segment and has put in place a dedicated team to secure contracts for this segment.
Source: The Telegraph
