Pantaloon, Big Bazaar enter Saurashtra

After Adani and V-Mart, biggies like Big Bazaar, Food Bazaar and Pantaloon have made their foray in Saurashtra region by opening super malls at Iscon Mall on Kalawad Road, in Rajkot redefining the retailing experience in the city.

While speaking to Business Standard, Sadashiv Naik, western region head, Big Bazaar & Pantaloon Retail (India), said, "Rajkot is our second destination in Gujarat after Ahmedabad for Big Bazaar. We have launched our brands here as the availability of property was as per our expectation and choice."

"However, we are targeting our presence aggressively in the cities having a population of 5 lakh and above," he further added.

"Our aim is to reach out to our customers in each and every corner of the country and we are moving fast towards it," Naik said while adding that this was the 29th Big Bazaar which is spread at over 35,000 sq ft.

"We are offering a wide range of 1,60,000 products which would be made available at prices lower than the MRP," he said.

"With such outlets, we also empower the employment opportunities, as almost 90 to 95 per cent of the staff employed at Big Bazaar is from the local domain," he added.

Pantaloon also launched its operations on Saturday.

While talking to Business Standard, Sanjeev Agarwal, marketing head, said, "This is the 21st outlet in the country and 4th in the state. We realised that people of Rajkot have taste for high-end brands. Pantaloon products are 15 to 20 per cent economical in comparison to other brands offered in the market."

With the in-house expertise to cope with the demands of fast moving fashion requirements and also providing aesthetics for the products tagged under our brand, we have entered the city with an objective to cater to the requirement of all age-group, Agarwal said.

However, both denied to speak on the financial year projections and break-even details as far as the retail marketing business in Rajkot was concerned.