Pantaloon launches Big Bazaar in Pune

Pantaloon Retail India Ltd has opened its first hypermarket store, Big Bazaar in Pune on Saturday. It is the 23rd Big Bazaar in the country and Maharshtra's eighth.

Elaborating on the retail giant's aggressive growth plans nation wide, Sanjeev Agrawal, president (marketing), Pantaloon Retail India, said the company will be opening its 24th Big Bazaar in Indore next week.

''In the last year alone the company has opened 12 Big Bazaars across the country. The 25th Big Bazaar will be in opened in Mumbai soon. Currently there are eight Big Bazaars in Maharashtra, by 2006 we will have 12 Big Bazaars in the state. As for Pune, the city will be home to two more Big Bazaars," he said.

"Currently we have a total of 2.1 million square feet (sq ft) of retail space and this will increase to three million sq ft by June 2006. Where ever we find the right opportunity and space we will open our shop there'', he added. But he refused to comment on the capital outlay or details of upcoming projects.

"We have grown at the rate of 100 per cent the last year and will keep this momentum next few years as well." And we hope to double our revenue from Rs 1,000 crore in 2005 to Rs 2,000 crore in 2006," he said.