Title: The Indian retail lifestyle sector hyped or hyper: a case on Khadim's

Authors: Sudip Kundu, Ashutosh Kar

Addresses: NSHM College of Management Technology, 60(124) B.L Saha Road, Kolkata 700 053, West Bengal, India. ' NSHM College of Management Technology, 60(124) B.L Saha Road, Kolkata 700 053, West Bengal, India

Abstract: On 9 May 2007, a well acclaimed name in the Indian footwear industry, Khadim|s, decided its entry to enhance lifestyle retail. The group gained self-reliance owing to their strong brand recall, knowledgeable and capable management line-up. The self-assurance to capture the brand auxiliary lied on efficient diversification which rest on the support foundation of loyal customers. Finally, the company announced the launch of their departmental store at Bhowanipore named |Egaro| and yet another in Howrah Maidan. The group at all times enjoyed proficient distribution arrangements, tough manpower resources and promoted the unique selling point of one-stop shopping objective, advertising products cuisine to lifestyle specifications. Combinations of soaring rental, dipping spends and downward economy growth resulted in a failure of Rs. 7 crores. Inside two years of its initiation, |Egaro| at Bhowanipore closed down in April 2009. Kolkata is not developing as a good retail hub. An equation unsolved?

Keywords: organised retail chains; departmental lifestyle retailing; lease rent agreements; real estate issues; brand loyalty; consumer buying behaviour; diversification strategy; economic downturn; small business; India.

DOI: 10.1504/IJGSB.2011.042251

International Journal of Globalisation and Small Business, 2011 Vol.4 No.2, pp.170 - 177

Published online: 01 Sep 2011 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article