Reliance Fresh enters Karnataka

Opens 11 pilot stores in Bangalore.

Reliance Retail Limited inaugurated its chain of food stores -- Reliance Fresh -- in Bangalore today. The company has launched 11 pilot stores in Bangalore.

This will be followed by stores in Mysore, Hubli, Mangalore, Dharwad and Belgaum within this year. The company, however, did not specify the number of stores that would be opened in Karnataka this year.

At present, there are over 80 Reliance Fresh stores in Andhra Pradesh, Jaipur, Chennai, NCR, Delhi and Ranchi. The 11 stores in Bangalore will be about 2,500 sq ft each.

The stores will stock fresh fruits, vegetables, staples, dairy products and Reliance's own brand of products under Reliance Select. The stores will also offer home delivery.

According to a Reliance Retail spokesperson, they are sourcing the products locally, nationally and globally, which will be sold at competitive prices.

The company said their target was to have one store within every 2 km radius. The company is investing Rs 25,000 crore in retail infrastructure and in setting up the supply chain.

The retail market in India is worth around $300 billion, including the organised and unorganised sector. The market is expected to grow 10-15 per cent annually, Reliance Retail President and Chief Executive Gunender Kapur said.

At present, the company has its own label -- Reliance Select -- for staples and plans to launch bread and milk under its own brand. It has also started wholesale stores in Hyderabad to cater to the needs of small retailers.

Reliance Retail, which began hiring a little over an year ago, has over 5,000 employees and company executives say they are hiring in hundreds every day even now, most to meet the requirements for store support.

The company plans to launch its hypermarkets and speciality stores in the first half of the year.