Bharti Walmart, the joint venture between Bharti and Walmart Stores Inc, will open six more Best Price Modern wholesale outlets in the country, including two in the State, before the end of the current year.
The joint venture, according to its managing director and CEO Raj Jain, will continue its focus on the Best Price stores even while actively examining modalities for foray into the retail segment following the Centre’s decision to allow 51 per cent foreign direct investments in multi-brand retail.
Mr. Jain formally opened the joint venture’s Best Price Modern Wholesale cash-and-carry store in the city on Wednesday. Spread over 53,000 sq.ft, the new outlet is acclaimed by the company as one-stop business-to-business store that would meet the day to day needs of restaurant owners, hoteliers, caterers, fruit & vegetable resellers, kirana stores and offices and institutions. It will stock over 5,000 items including dry groceries, personal and home care items, apparel, office supplies, hotel and restaurant supplies, electronic goods and other general items.
Mr. Jain said over 50,000 customers had already been signed up for the stores that would offer everything under one roof. “It will ensure transparent pricing giving maximum benefits to small retailers and this will be a big focus area for us,” he said. The big challenge, however, was the real estate price which was at higher end in the State.
Bharti Walmart, for the first time, had launched complete range of 400+ private label brands that would compete with branded ones in quality and priced around 30 per cent lower.
Several of these products were sourced locally and significant investments would be made to strengthen the back-end to integrate with farmers for coming up with products that they could sell in both wholesale and retail markets. The joint venture had invested over US $ 20 million so far in the State with each store estimated at Rs. 40 crore.
