Turning the tables: Low cost, e-retail presence key for new furniture firms

Flipkart, Pantaloons and Pidilite are emerging names in furniture retail, keen on making headway in a fragmented market

A new bunch of firms are getting into the organised furniture retail market in India at a time when older players are either reorganising operations or simply scaling down their presence. The Kishore-Biyani-led Future group, for instance, has opted to keep its focus on categories such as food, apparels and fast moving consumer goods, hiving off its home furnishings business into a separate company.

Department store chains Shoppers Stop and Lifestyle, on the other hand, are revamping their home furnishing chains Home Stop and Home Centre respectively in a bid to improve sales. Reliance Retail, the country’s largest organised retailer, hasn’t