Walmart in India

Walmart in India

It has recently been a day after the American multinational retail organization Walmart reported obtaining of 77 percent of stake in Flipkart, yet the organization isn’t ceasing just there. On Thursday, The organization genuinely accepting and demonstrating how important India as a market was for them, announced that they will open 50 new stores in the following four to five years.

Walmart works on a wholesale cash-and-carry business model and currently has 21 stores in the country. “We currently have 21 stores and plan to open 50 stores in 4 to 5 years. Plans are on track,” Walmart India President and CEO Krish Iyer told PTI. This in a way is giving competition to brands such as Metro Cash and Carry and also at the same time, making sure it does not lose out on the omnichannel experience it can offer, with its strong capabilities in the retail space.

“We have a pipeline of 20 stores and we expect to open 5 stores in the current year and then pick up the pace,” Iyer added.

On Wednesday, the Walmart chief executive officer, Doug McMillon who was in India said that Flipkart will continue to operate as a separate entity. Kalyan Krishnamurthy will continue to be the CEO of the company, while co-founder Binny Bansal will be the Group CEO of Flipkart. Sachin Bansal, the other co-founder had quit the company.

Walmart bought 77 percent of Flipkart from existing shareholders, including SoftBank, for USD 16 billion along which included fresh investment USD 2 billion of fresh equity. This has marked inroads into the e-commerce space of Indian market, giving competition to global rival Amazon.

NEW DELHI:

“Global business and India share a symbiotic relationship and the country is the most attractive market in present times when there is a slowdown in many parts of the world,” said Krish Iyer, president, Walmart India, adding that global companies like Walmart bring good technology and best practices to the country.




“As we expand our footprint in India sourcing (from farmers and small and medium enterprises) will be an important area of focus… Our major focus at this time is not profitability but building foundations for future growth, having partners who can run their business responsibly,” Iyer said at CII’s Annual Session 2018 on “Do global businesses need India?” He added that the intent of the government to increase the ease of doing business in the last four years has definitely helped in boosting this attractiveness. This is witnessed in the opening up of 21 sectors for foreign direct investment.

During the session, Nisha Biswal, president, US — India Business Council, said India is a bright spot for the US owing to its rapid growth, expanding the middle-class population, and a vibrant startup ecosystem. “It is believed that 80% of India’s infrastructure is yet to be built. This presents a big opportunity for partnership between India and the US. To finance the massive boom, India needs the infusion of global capital and global technology,” she added.