Having embarked on its shop-in-shop (SIS) format around 15 years ago, Gili – the diamond jewellery brand of Gitanjali Group – is set to open 50 exclusive brand outlets (EBOs) by the end of this year. The EBOs, known as Gili World, have two formats – COCO stores (company owned and company operated) and FOFO stores (franchisee owned and franchisee operated) – and will be launched in tier II cities across India.
"EBOs are a new territory and in the branded jewellery segment, there is immense growth potential in this format. Having said that, it is also known that Gili is a pioneer in the category and enjoys a big chunk of the market share – about 46 per cent in SIS. So, the next logical step for expansion and growth is to capitalise on the EBO format," underlines Rahul Vira, CEO, Gili India Ltd.
Stressing that there is a lot of potential in tier II cities, Vira says, “Through Gili World, we are aspiring to create a great shopping experience for customers. While we increase the number of touch points, we also give a wider range of jewellery to choose from and go an extra mile to create customer delight.”
On why the company is upbeat on the franchise route, the CEO of Gili India says, "There is a lot of entrepreneurial calibre in India. When we choose our partners, we hope to capitalise on that skill. All our partners have strong local networks and knowledge of the catchments, making the entire business more personalised. Penetrating in tier II cities based on their experience gives us an opportunity to reach a wider customer base and make available premium products to jewellery buyers."
Gili currently has a pan-India presence through 16 operational EBOs and about 350 outlets spanning over 45 cities across country. It has SIS with major retailers such as Shoppers Stop, Lifestyle, Westside, Central, Pantaloons, Just In Vogue, Landmark etc.
Gili’s existing COCO stores are located at Select Citywalk, Delhi; The Great India Place, Noida; Mantri Square and Garuda Mall, Bangalore, and R-City and Inorbit, Mumbai. Its FOFO stores are present at Hisar, Jaipur, Coimbatore, Nagpur and Satna.
The company is exploring new locations and potential markets and has zeroed in on locations such as Aurangabad, Pune, Nagpur and Bangalore for its upcoming stores. The investment is facilitated through internal accruals.
– IndiaRetailing Bureau
