The story of organising retail

Traders are still apprehensive about big retail, but organised players from Reliance Retail to Walmart are eager to forge alliances with them

Almost 10 years ago, traders had their moment when they gathered at Delhi’s Siri Fort Auditorium. It was a full house on February 27, 2014, just weeks before the general election. The keynote speaker was Narendra Modi, then Gujarat chief minister and the prime ministerial candidate for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The celebratory atmosphere that morning had stood out for BJP’s stand on retail — ranging from foreign brands and e-commerce to corner stores or kiranas.

Speaking at the national convention of the Confederation of All India Traders (Cait), Mr Modi had a decade ago highlighted the importance of technology