Retail Leadership Summit: Physical retail to succeed in e-com era

27 Apr '22

3 min read

A glimpse of the opening of Retail Leadership Summit - 2022. Pic: Fibre2Fashion/RAI

The physical retail sector is back in full swing in India after nearly two years of COVID-19 pandemic, participants heard at the ongoing two-day Retail Leadership Summit – 2022. There will be a balance between the online and physical retail sector in the time to come, but physical retail sector will have to adopt a better strategy to attract customers.

In the keynote address at the Summit, Ashwin Khasgiwala, director of Reliance Brands Limited and chief operating officer of Reliance Retails Limited, expressed hope that the physical retail sector can expect grand success in tier-e and tier-4 cities and towns of the country.

The two-day summit, organised by the Retailers Association of India (RAI), is a major sector event happening in India after a two-year long hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Experts and industry leaders at the event are discussing new era of physical retail sector.

During the first session of the event Khasgiwala said that a new era is beginning for India’s physical retail sector, which has made a comeback after the pandemic. “The need-based shopping by customers has changed the dynamics of the entire retail sector.”

He expressed confidence that a balance will be established between online and physical retail but added that physical retailers will have to make a sharp and focused strategy. He said that distance from the customer is an important element for retail sector which can give advantage to physical retail. He also mentioned that home delivery has an important role to play, and cutting-edge technology is important for payments system. He said that retailers need to get themselves prepared on both the fronts.

Further, modernisation of retail stores and creating an environment that provides pleasant customer experience are very important. Though customers all over the country have started coming to the retail stores for shopping, smaller cities are showing more potential, he said.

At the opening of the event, RAI chairman Bijou Kurien spoke on the current scenario of physical retail sector and the importance of the event. He said that physical retail may grow rapidly in the coming years. However, this area is changing rapidly and businesses will have to adopt an effective strategy.

Kumar Rajagopalan, CEO of RAI informed about the details of the event. Dr. Hitesh Bhatt, director (Marketing & Communications), RAI presented the Curtain Raiser for the Retail Leadership Summit – 2022. The events to be held on 27th and 28th April will see panel discussions and round table debates on various topics related to the retail sector.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (KUL)

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