Grocery shopping is almost always a tedious affair, and quite often you need more than just groceries, maybe some food items and snacks, everyday essentials, clothes or more. And we all have wished if we could grab whatever we need under one single roof, this is successfully executed by various department stores or supermarkets that have started mushrooming all around in India.

Departmental store in India has a wide selection of anything and everything you will need for your household. Furniture, decoration items, groceries, kitchen items, tools and equipment’s, clothes and shoes and whatnot. They are one-stop-shops for all essentials. And this is the reason for these franchises to have picked up so well in recent years. Supermarkets make shopping less time consuming and more efficient.

Statistics and Market size for such franchises:

The Indian retail industry is one of the fastest growing in the world. The retail industry in India is expected to grow to US$ 1,200 billion by 2021 from US$ 795 billion in 2017. One of the most dynamic sectors of the Indian economy, it contributes to 10% of the GDP and is accountable for 8% of the employment at this given point. We are among the highest in the world in terms of per capita retail store availability.

Globally, India is the sixth-largest grocery market and has a humongous potential for growth due to the rising population as well as disposable incomes. The Indian grocery market, which accounts for 69% of India's total retail market, offers plenty of opportunities to retailers.

India’s retail sector is experiencing exponential growth, with retail development taking place not just in major cities and metros, but also in Tier-II and Tier-III cities. Factors such as healthy economic growth, changing demographic profile, increasing disposable incomes, urbanisation, changing consumer tastes and preferences are what are responsible for driving this sector's revenue through the sky.

Statistics show that a department store of an average size of 2000sq.ft sees a daily profit of about 3000 rupees, a profit margin of about 7% on sales of about Rs.40,000. Eventually, this adds up to about 60 to 90 thousand in profits every month. Setting up a store such as this will require an initial investment of about 10 to 30 lakh rupees. Joining an already established departmental store franchise in India would typically require an investment of about 20 lakhs, for a basic store size of 1000sq.ft, or could even cost less than the above mentioned 10 lakh investment in case the store is spaced below an area coverage of 500sq.ft.

How to start a department store franchise:

1. Understand Investment and Capital: Initiating such a franchise would need an investment that could range anywhere between 10 Lakh to 2 crores depending on the size of your establishment and the location you have selected.

2. Location: Selecting the right location for your store can be done in two ways, this can either be done based on the customers in an area and the specific type of crowd present there, or by providing customers in an area with the options and needs that your competitors are lacking.

3. Registering the business: Get legal advice and ensure you refer to resources that provide an objective and accurate opinion and get your establishment registered and recognized by the government or the concerned authorities to avoid future discrepancies.

4. Products Offered: You will have to decide what your store will be selling, organic products, international brand products, food and vegetables or a mix of all. This should best be done on the basis of the spending power of that the locality and the customer base you focus to cater to.

5. Store Design and Fixture:  Atmospheric factors like light, colour, music and scent and the aesthetic factors, not only make sure that you improve sales performance but also enable you to stand out from your competition. It also helps build a customer experience that is unforgettable, and give customers the comfort the will be loyal to.

For more details and help, or too look through other small retail franchise opportunities, visit the FranchiseBazar website and get in touch with us, you will be running your very own department store franchise in no time! Get franchising!