Reliance Retail to focus on value

Reliance Retail in India is looking to position itself as a value retailer as part of a strategy to drive up footfall in the wake of the current economic turmoil. The company is focusing on pricing whilst setting a six month target to improve its bottom line. Reliance Retail will be promoting its hypermarkets, supermarkets and convenience store formats as discount destinations. K Radhakrishnan, the CEO of Reliance Hypermarkets will now be responsible for buying, logistics, marketing and distribution for all three formats while Bhavdeep Singh will oversee all store operations at the front end. Head of Reliance Fresh, Gunender Kapur, will now oversee the company’s private labels. The group believes that combined sourcing for each format will help Reliance obtain better prices from its suppliers, while a more effective utilisation of manpower, logistics and other resources should minimise costs. Commenting on the strategy, a Reliance Retail spokesperson said: "Each of our formats has a distinct identity and continues to operate with its management teams. There has been no strategic shift in operational strategy or format design. The supply chain management team continues to strive to offer products at the most attractive prices and expand product offerings in line with market demand."

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