Lucera to spend Rs 85cr on stores

Lucera, the sterling silver jewellery brand of Renaissance Retail Venture Pvt Ltd (RRVPL), has lined up investment of Rs 85 crore till 2010 for setting up 250 outlets, primarily inside shopping malls.

Lucera currently has around 26 outlets in India.

According to R K Menon, CEO of the company, "We have signed up more than 100 properties. Around 60 outlets will be set up on franchisee mode and the remaining will be company-owned. We are looking at primarily shopping malls for setting up outlets as these provide maximum visibility and ensure highest footfall."

Menon claimed the company is looking at tying-up with Cafe Coffee Day, Spykar Jeans and Kingfisher Airlines for cross-promotions in the form of gift vouchers and free gifts.

"We will spend close to Rs 5 crore in branding over the next 18 months. We plan to position the brand as a youth brand and therefore have lined up tie-ups with other brands that are positioned similarly," Menon pointed out.

The Lucera stores sell sterling silver jewellery that range between Rs 500 and Rs 3,000.

It also sells gold and diamond jewellery that start from around Rs 3,500 and go up to Rs 55,000.

According to Menon, its stores witness close to 6,000 customer walk-ins everyday with a conversion ratio of 45 per cent.