Pantaloons to open new formats, add categories

Last year, Aditya Birla Nuvo acquired controlling stake in Pantaloons, fashion format of Future group, in a Rs 1,600 crore deal

After being acquired by Aditya Birla Nuvo last year, department store chain Pantaloons today said it was looking to open new formats and enter new cities as part of its growth strategy.

Pantaloons Fashion & Retail, part of Aditya Birla Group, runs 95 stores with a total area of 1.7 million sq ft in the country now.

"We are constantly growing our domestic market. We intend to enhance our customer base through increasing our presence in various cities in India. We intend to increase our share in consumer spending by launcing new formats or by adding new categories," Pantaloons said in an annoucement to its shareholders today.

Last year, Aditya Birla Nuvo acquired the controlling stake in Pantaloons, the fashion format of Future group, in a Rs 1,600 crore deal. Pantaloons was demerged from Pantaloon Retail (now known as Future Retail) and transferred to Peter England Fashions and Retail, a unit of Aditya Birla Nuvo.

The company has changed the objects of the company to include all kinds of goods, materials and items, and services.

Name of the company was changed from Peter England Fashions and Retail to Pantaloons Fashion and Retail after April 23,2013.

"The demerger of demerged entity to the company will expand the variety of offerings in the market and complement existing portfolio," it said.

Pantaloons posted a loss of Rs 68.89 crore on a income of Rs 1,285.14 crore in financial year 2013.

The company owns 8 private brands which contribute 22% of sales.