Mr. Falguni Nayar said India remains a top priority because of the country’s huge growth potential.
Mumbai: Cosmetics to fashion retailer Nykaa plans to triple the number of brick-and-mortar stores to 300, said founder and CEO Falguni Nayar, building significantly its offline presence in this country.
Nayar declined to give a rollout schedule but said the company is targeting 100 cities, adding to the 84 retail stores it already operates in 40 cities.
“Store expansion has been slowed down by the pandemic (Covid-19) for a year or so,” Nayar said in an interview for the Reuters Next conference broadcast on Wednesday. “But this year, we’ve revived our store rollout.”
While Nykaa largely functions as an e-commerce platform selling everything from global cosmetic brands to jewelry, Nayar said the physical stores, targeting Indian consumers looking to buy perceived product, is an important part of doing business.
Despite the rapid growth of e-commerce and Amazon.com in India’s nearly $900 billion retail market, most shoppers still shop offline.
Nykaa says it’s targeting a sub-segment of that field — the $70 billion fashion, personal care and beauty market.
Like many other retailers, Nykaa has been hit hard by the pandemic as work-from-home rules reduce demand for work clothes, cosmetics and shoes. Last month, the company reported a 96% drop in quarterly profit.
But things are looking brighter as the Covid-19 pandemic eases, and India’s festive and wedding seasons accelerate.
Nayar, a 58-year-old former investment banker, said in a November 25 interview: “There was clearly a resurgence in makeup products before the pandemic.
Nayar gained massive public attention last month when her company made its dazzling stock market debut at a valuation of $14 billion.
Leading private equity firms such as TPG and Fidelity, and Indian Bollywood stars Alia Bhatt and Katrina Kaif, have financed FSN E-Commerce Ventures, which owns the Nykaa brand.
Nykaa, which supplies many products from Europe, is also focusing on increasing exports of its own brands to the UK and the Middle East.
However, Nayar said India remains a priority given the country’s huge growth potential.
Many Indians still “haven’t bought their first watch, first car, first home – I think India is in a very different place compared to other developed economies,” Nayar noted. .”
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and was automatically generated from the feed provided.)
