In February, Spencer’s Retail, a chain of retail stores promoted by RP-Goenka Group had declared its plans to venture into the online retail world in 2015. True to its word, the company entered the online channel through an acquisition in December.
The retail giant recently acquired online grocery store, Mera Grocer. The 100% merger will make MeraGrocer a subsidiary of Spencer’s. The retailer also plans to acquire more hyperlocal start-ups.
“With the acquisition we will be able to enter the online channel for Spencer’s soon. However, this does not stop us from tying with other hyper local delivery start-ups. Currently we will be in Gurgaon and Delhi as the acquired company is present in these markets. By April-June quarter of 2016, we will launch the service in Kolkata,” said Shashwat Goenka from Spencer’s.
Goenka shared, “We are eyeing Rs 500 crore gross merchandise value from e-commerce in five years, while total sales of Spencer’s is targeted at Rs 5,000 crore. This will become an omni-channel front for us. The acquisition will help us to break-even faster. Loss at Spencer’s Retail is already down to Rs 2 crore per month in the second quarter as compared to Rs 9.5 crore per month five years back.”
Whether it is India or US, the contribution of online retail industry is still small compared to the total retail sales as only 1-2% of transactions take place online. Yet, retailers can visualize the big picture where ecommerce will determine who will be the biggest winner of the retail industry.
Internet penetration, popularity of m-commerce, flow of funds by national and foreign investors and the steady growth of online shopping in general are reasons enough that ecommerce is only going to get bigger from here on. This is why retail giants from across the world, be it Walmart, Tesco, Bed Bath & Beyond and even closer to home, Shoppers Stop, Lifestyle, Spencer’s and Future Group are investing in building their omni-channel network and increasing their online presence.
Editor team is specialized in introducing the marketplace content targeting the Indian online sellers. They plan and coordinate to bring the appealing content for the small businesses on how to partner with the e-commerce sites like Amazon and Flipkart and strategies for improving their online business.
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