Kishore Biyani is going ahead with his ambitious plan to sell branded consumer staples such as rice, wheat and pulses to consumers nationwide. Within 18 months, Biyani expects his team to replicate the fashion business value chain strategy (of sourcing, branding, distribution and retailing under private brands) in the food business, according to a media report.
Biyani will initially roll out the Ektaa brand with around 40 stock keeping units (SKUs). Biyani wants to capture a larger share of the margin on sale of commodity products, the report added.
According to the report, Biyani and his team have split their markets into eight major communities: Tamilians, Kannadigas and Telugus in South India, Gujaratis and Marwadis in West India, Bengalis in East India and Punjabis and Baniyas in North India. Their research indicates that every Big Bazaar store has in its target catchment not more than three communities comprising 65 to 75 per cent of its core customers. These customers are the prime target audience for Ektaa.
“We have split India into eight major communities (by) researching what kind of food they eat,” a top Pantaloon Retail (India) official said.
However, this profiling has not been possible in most stores in Mumbai due to the multi-ethnicity of the population. However, one store in Kalyan in Greater Mumbai is patronised by just one community, while few stores in the satellite city of Thane are patronised by two communities. According to a senior Future group official, Ektaa will debut in all Big Bazaar stores either in Ahmedabad or in Kolkata in the next two to three months.
Source: Financial Chronicle
