Retailers witness the slowdown first than manufacturing companies. RPG promoted Spencers retail does want to open more stores but with the word of caution. For now the company has freezed new hiring. The company still has really ambitious plans on board for expansion with pumping Rs 1,500 crore to open 325 additional stores. Mr. Sanjiv Goenka said,
You will not see a robust growth as we had expected 6 months ago. There is a slowdown. We have a problem of demand and liquidity.
On the closing of 50+ unviable stores, he added,
We will open new stores in the coming months. We are currently growing at 60% despite shutting down some stores.
RPG has around 400 stores across 60 cities in India. Don’t you think their Rs 1,500 expansion plan within the next 6 months look really ambitious ?
Coimbatore based Royal Classic is also cautious about its expansion because of the external factors influencing the demand. Mr. Sivram ED of Royal Classic said,
Our target customers are those between 20 & 40. A majority of youngsters of this age work in ITeS / BPOs which is in trouble due to uncertainty and job loss and hence we are concerned.
During the first half, the company registered a 60% YoY growth. Diwali season was also better for the company. Royal Classic Loyalty programme has also been quite successful. It has around 40,000 Silver Card members who get a discount of 5% on their purchases. Around 200 Gold Card members who can avail 10% discount and Platinum Card holdrs can avail 15% discount.