Infiniti Retail plans Rs 800 crore expansion

The Tata group's retail venture, Infiniti Retail, plans to invest around Rs 800-crore for its consumer electronics and durables stores `Croma' by 2010, a top company official said.

"We plan to invest around Rs 800-crore by 2010. Our plan to have around 100 stores by then," Infiniti Retail CEO and Managing Director Ajit Joshi said on the sidelines of the launch of its 17th store here.

"Presently, we have 17 stores and have invested around Rs 150 crore," he said, adding that by this month end, the company plans to have at least 20 stores.

Expressing concern over the non-availability of proper locations in downtown areas as also the prevailing high real estate prices, Joshi said Croma may come up with a smaller format in the future.

"We are keeping our options open but have not yet decided on the name as it cannot be called Croma mega stores," he said. Typically, a Croma large store is of around 12,000 sq ft to 18,000 sq ft.

"We also plan to foray into new markets such as Chennai, Hyderabad and Kolkata," he said.

In Kolkata, the company will open its first store around October, before the Durga Puja. In Hyderabad and Chennai the company will have its first stores by the next financial year, he said.

Croma's margins are increasing due to increasing sales volume, Joshi said. Our main target consumers are families. Mostly, this is the segment that buys items like washing machines, microwaves, television and such other items, he added.

"Our stores have an average footfall of 22,000 to 28,000 on Saturdays and Sundays while on weekdays, it is around 750-900," Joshi said.