Sharleen D'Souza & Shivani Shinde, Business Standard June 8, 2023 Why are companies finding it difficult to sustain the supply-chain business? Experts point out that gross margins in supplying fast-moving consumer goods (FMCGs) are very low. While it does look attractive because it is the largest part of the consumption market, the last-mile supply chain and retailer are not making money. “FMCG brands have ensured high margins for their businesses by streamlining and smoothing their supply chains over decades and making them cost-efficient,” said Anshuman Singh, founder and managing director, Stellar Value Chain Solutions. Singh said in rural markets, the…
By Pavan Lall, Fortune India Jun 9, 2023 For fashion designer Tarun Tahiliani, getting funding from a corporate house was incidental. It happened through a high-profile customer, none other than Aditya Birla Group chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla. Birla had been a customer of Tahiliani’s Ensemble some three decades ago when he was getting engaged. They stayed in touch over the years and at one stage discussed the need for an Indian fashion brand focused on scale and accessibility. “It came out of a conversation and was a two-year ambling route. I had asked if they were expanding their designer brand…
M. Sriram and Aditya Kalra, Reuters (MUMBAI/NEW DELHI) June 7, 2023 Starbucks is revamping its strategy to lure Indians, including children, with smaller, cheaper beverages as it looks to expand in small towns amid a fierce challenge from domestic startups in one of its fastest-growing markets. Among the first foreign coffee brands to enter tea-loving India, the U.S. giant has taken almost 11 years to open 343 stores, in contrast with private equity-backed chains Third Wave and Blue Tokai that opened about 150 in the last three years. "As you grow in size, you need to get new consumers," said…
Viveat Susan Pinto, Financial Express June 5, 2023 A lot has happened at the Cafe Coffee Day (CCD) since its founder VG Siddhartha tragically passed away on July 29, 2019. Once India’s largest cafe chain, with a peak store count of 1,752 outlets in FY19, the company, part of Coffee Day Enterprises (CDEL), has now slashed its footprint by over two-thirds to 469 outlets in FY23, its latest results show. The need to manage group debt and ensure that the business is profitable, say experts, has led to CCD shuttering stores over the last few years. The company was not…
Chloe Cornish in Mumbai and Eleanor Olcott in Hong Kong, Financial Times May 26 2023 India’s biggest company Reliance Industries is seeking to dominate the country’s $10bn online domestic fashion market, striking a deal with Shein that will allow the rapidly growing Chinese retailer to return to the world’s most populous nation. The retail unit of billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s petrol-to-telecoms conglomerate will tie up with Shein three years after India banned the online retailer’s app in its attempt to freeze Chinese companies out of the local market in retaliation for border clashes that had left at least 20 Indian soldiers…
Geopolitical friction has again sparked renewed concerns over inflation and rising input costs for FMCG companies as @itmeansjustice @whysnavi write. @devangshu commented.
