COVID-19 IMPACT ON RETAIL SECTOR

OF INDIA  
BBA [Sec. ‘C’]
BY:
• RISHITA MALANI
• PARIDHI DWIVEDI

Submitted to : Dr. Chandra Shekhar Upadhyay

 RETAIL SECTOR

• Retail is the process of selling consumer goods or services to customers

through multiple channels of distribution to earn a profit. Retailers satisfy
demand identified through a supply chain. The term "retailer" is typically
applied where a service provider fills the small orders of many individuals,
who are end-users, rather than large orders of a small number
of wholesale, corporate or government clientele.

• Indian retail industry has emerged as one of the most dynamic and fast-
paced industries due to the entry of several new players. Total consumption
expenditure is expected to reach nearly US$ 3,600 billion by 2020 from US$
1,824 billion in 2017. It accounts for over 10% of the country’s gross
domestic product (GDP) and around eight% of the employment. India is the
world’s fifth-largest global destination in the retail space.

• India is the world’s fifth largest global destination in the retail space. In FDI
Confidence Index, India ranked 16 (after US, Canada, Germany, United
Kingdom, China, Japan, France, Australia, Switzerland, and Italy).
 IMPACT OF COVID ON RETAIL INDUSTRY

• The drastic changes in the external environment caused by COVID-19 have had various
effects on the business of the retail industry. The crisis has created stark contrasts in
business performance between types of business operations.
• Due to the government's request for essential business continuity, retail
businesses that handle food and daily necessities such as supermarkets, drugs stores,
and convenience stores have remained in good condition as consumers wait in long
lines at cash registers to buy products, many of which have even sold out.
• Usage of electronic commerce (EC) by placing orders online for in-store pick-up.
The aim was to disperse in-store customer visits, but the capacity of pre-order systems
was too small to achieve the anticipated outcome.
• Retailers of shopping goods and luxury items deemed nonessential, such as apparel
and home appliances, have stagnated.
• In the first two months of lockdown the organized retail sector has borne losses to the
tune of ₹90,000 crore. 
• Consumers are staying home and from shoes, clothes, to groceries, and
everyday use items, they are replying on E-commerce and brand website to make their
purchase.
RELIANCE RETAIL LIMITED
• Reliance Retail is an Indian retail company, a subsidiary of Reliance Industries Limited.
Founded in 2006, it is the largest retailer in India in terms of revenue. V Subramaniam is the
CEO of the venture. Its retail outlets offer foods, groceries, apparel and footwear, lifestyle and
home improvement products, electronic goods, and farm implements and inputs. The
company's outlets also provide vegetables, fruits, and flowers. It focuses on consumer goods,
and consumer durables.
• Reliance Retail has the distinction of being the largest retailer in the country. Reliance
Retail’s commitment to “bettering the lives” has been embodied in its pursuit to make a
difference on social socio–economic issues in India. The initiative has brought millions of
farmers and small producers to the forefront of the retail revolution by partnering with them for
growth.
• Reliance Retail has adopted a multi-prong strategy and operates chain of neighbourhood
stores, supermarkets, wholesale cash & carry stores, specialty stores and online stores and has
democratized access to a variety of products and services across diverse segments for Indian
consumers.
• Reliance Retail reported a turnover of Rs. 1,30,566 crore for the financial year 2018-19. As
on 30th Sep 2019, Reliance Retail operates 10,901 stores across 6,700+ cities with a retail area
of over 24.5 million sq ft.
• Type - Subsidiary
SUBSIDARIES OF RELIANCE 
 

There are over 45 subsidiaries and divisions of Reliance Retail. Following is

the list of major divisions:
• Reliance fresh -Retail outlets of fruits, vegetables and groceries.
• Reliance smart- Smart Reliance Smart offers a one-stop shopping
experience by offering fresh produce, bakery, dairy products, home, and
personal care products, general merchandise, fruits, vegetables, and
groceries.
• Reliance digital-Consumer electronics retail stores. 
• Jio mart -JioMart is the e-commerce venture of Reliance Retail that
provides grocery delivery from neighbourhood Kirana stores. It operates in
200 cities in India and was started as a joint venture between Reliance Retail
and Jio.
• Hamleys -Hamleys, one of the oldest and largest toy retailers in the world,
was acquired by Reliance Retail in 2019. Reliance LYF- LYF, also known as
Reliance LYF, is an Indian smartphone manufacturer company,
headquartered in Mumbai, India. It manufactures 4G-enabled VoLTE
smartphones which run on Android.
MAJOR COMPETITORS
The major competitors of Reliance
Retail are:

• Future retail limited

• Avenue Supermarts Ltd
• Aditya Birla Fashion & Retail
Ltd
• Shoppers stop 
• Trent limited 
• V-mart retail limited
• Infiniti Retail Ltd
NOTABLE STRATERGIES
Reliance Retail Marketing Mix (7Ps) Strategy

Marketing Mix of Reliance Retail analyses the brand/company which covers 7Ps – 

Product
Price 
Place
Promotion
People
Process
Physical evidence
 
Explains the Reliance Retail marketing strategy. There are several marketing strategies like product/service
innovation, marketing investment, customer experience etc. which have helped the brand grow.

Marketing strategy helps companies achieve business goals & objectives, and marketing mix (7Ps) is the
widely used framework to define the strategies.
FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE
OVERALL CONTRIBUTION OF RELIANCE
LTD. IN RETAIL SECTOR
INDIAN RETAILING 
Indian retailing is a rapidly growing industry, amounting to nearly 10% of
the overall GDP. It has a potential market of nearly a trillion dollars. The
point really is on the share of unorganized sector in Indian retailing, nearly
90% of the market. Nevertheless, the trend is shifting more towards the
‘Organized Retail’ and ‘E-commerce’. 

RELIANCE RETAIL
The Mukesh Ambani led ‘Reliance Retail’ is the largest retailer in
India with a pan-India presence. There are 10,644 stores across 6700 towns
and cities in India. Reliance Retail is looking to expand to tier-3 and tier-4
markets. Reliance Retail has adopted a multi-prong strategy and operates a
chain of neighbourhood stores, supermarkets, wholesale cash & carry
stores, specialty stores, and online stores and has democratized access to a
variety of products and services across diverse segments for Indian
consumers. It has started its operations in 2006 and branched into various
divisions of the consumer space.
SOLUTIONS AND METHODS TO COPE UP

These are challenging times indeed and retailers need to take these actions immediately to navigate
through this unprecedented situation:

• Adopt a flexible and agile retail model

• Shift from Business Continuity to Crisis Management
• Manage the supply constraints
• Deal with the decline in consumer confidence and try to infuse confidence
• Cope with staff shortages and drop in demand
• Plan for the long haul
• This pandemic should act as a trigger for the retail sector to focus on building flexible and agile
business and operational models that can counter such disruptions in the future. 
MAJOR LEARNINGS AND CONCLUSION

• This pandemic has changed the consumer behavior. Health concerns have compelled people to live
differently, think differently and in many ways buy differently.  
• Consumers are looking at products and brands through a new lens. The factors that influence brand
decisions are also changing as “Buy Local” trend accelerates. 
• In fashion category, there will be a surge in online sales which is already evident from the current
situation. Online adoption will continue to accelerate beyond the crisis as well. 
• Health and safety concerns are predominant in consumers mind leading to a boom in online
marketing and e -commerce activities. 
• Further to support local for vocal – you have to engage with local suppliers and manufacturers, partner
with them to fulfil your business requirements along with educating and developing them to achieve
fast, cost effective and best quality output. 
• To deal with the crisis, you have to take good care of customer health concerns while following all
desired safety measures which will boost customers confidence.