Godrej Lifespace to invest Rs 50 cr in 3 yrs

Company has a market share of 28% in the segment across India.

In a move to consolidate its position in the home appliances market, and to catch up with the retail boom, Godrej Lifespace has targeted to set up at least 100 Lifespace stores by 2010.

The retailing division of Godrej & Boyce, the flagship company of Godrej Group, has also set aside an investment of Rs 50 crore for the next three years.

Godrej Lifespace Store, a retailing concept in home and office improvement, offers a range of home and office furniture, home appliances, locks and security systems, along with home accessories and lifestyle-oriented products. At present, there are 48 such stores across the country, while the company is looking forward to set up 20 more in 2007-08.

The stores, with an average footfall of 30 per day, generated a turnover of Rs 100 crore in 2006-07. "We are expecting a turnover of Rs 150 crore in the present fiscal, and up to Rs 400 crore by 2010," said Shyam Motwani, Vice President and Business Head, Godrej Lifespace.

Apart from its stonghold on appliances, the company is also expecting to do a decent business in the locks and security systems business.

"We did a business of Rs 200 crore last fiscal and expects to do around Rs 250-300 crore in 2007-08," said Motwani, adding that the market for locks and security systems is growing by 30 per cent and 40 per cent, respectively.

Asked about the latest product developments, Motwani said that the company is into R&D and is evaluating various new products to be introduced.

"In home improvement, we will be introducing home decor and props soon. While in home appliances there are many more products to be included but nothing is concrete as of now," he added.

One of the largest manufacturers of refrigerators, Godrej Lifespace boasts of 40 million households using Godrej refrigerators. The company has a market share of 28 per cent in the segment across the country, while the same is 32 per cent in Gujarat.

Looking at Gujarat as a major retail platform, the company is setting up around 10 stores in Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara, Rajkot and Kutch with a total investment of Rs 3-4 crore. By 2010, Godrej Lifespace expects a turnover of over Rs 20 crore from Gujarat.

The company recently launched its second store as well in Ahmedabad. Through its expansion plans, Godrej Lifespace expects to increase its retail space from current 140,000 sq ft in India, to 250,000-300,000 sq ft by 2010.