10,000 apparel retail stores to stay shut on Monday

To protest the imposition of 10% excise duty on branded apparels, 10,000 stores will remain closed on Monday, as retailers, including Shoppers Stop, Pantaloons, Westside, Lifestyle, Madura Garments and Arvind Brands, seek a reversal of the decision.

"On Monday 10,000 garment retail stores will remain closed to protest against the 10% excise duty announced in Budget," Retailers Association of India CEO Kumar Rajagopalan said.

He said all the big apparel retailers along with about 4,000 small retailers have decided to stay shut for one day.

According to him about 50,000 apparel brands will be impacted by the announcement made by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee in the Budget for 2011-12.

"Out of a total of estimated Rs 1,00,000 crore apparel business in India annually, Rs 60,000 crore comes from the branded apparels," he said.

The Retailers Association of India (RAI) has members, including Pantaloons, Shoppers Stop, Reliance Retail, Trent Retail (Westside) and Aditya Birla Retail which also has a host of brands.

According to Future Group Director and CEO (Retail) Rakesh Biyani, the excise duty has come as a big jolt not only to the companies but also for consumers.

Besides, RAI even the Clothing Manufacturers Association Of India (CMAI) had called for a one day 'Bandh' on Friday at about 50,000 garment manufacturing units across the main clusters in India.

The CMAI representatives will be meeting Finance Ministry and Textile Ministry officials asking for a rollback of the 10% excise duty.