Crossword Bookstores, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Shopper’s Stop Ltd, has expanded its presence in Chennai by opening an outlet at Alwarpet. The new store is spread over an area of 9,000 sq.ft and houses books, movies, music and stationery, among other things.
Speaking exclusively to IndiaRetailing, Sivaraman Balakrishnan, manager – marketing, Crossword Bookstores, said, “The new store has been designed with an intention to provide maximum experience to customers with even more seating area, an exclusive events area and larger browsing aisles. The expectation is to keep customers engaged for a much larger duration in the store.”
Talking about the merchandise mix in the store, Balakrishnan said, “The ground level of the store will contain movies, music, stationery and books. The first floor will contain only toys and children’s books. The demarcation is to ensure a separate space for parents and children. Currently, books will occupy 55 per cent of the space and remaining will be divided among other categories.”
The store at Alwarpet will also house a café and a speciality children’s furniture corner and a digital photo studio.
On Crossword’s expansion plans, Balakrishnan said, “We are opening two new stores in Bangalore and Mumbai. The stores will be opened before March 2011. This should take our store count to 70 stores across 15 cities in India, making us the largest lifestyle bookstore chains in the country.”
– Payal Kapoor
