India’s Retail Industry Currently Worth US$295 Billion

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May 12 – India’s retail industry, both organised and unorganised, is worth $295 billion at present, according to accounting firm Deloitte Haskins and Sells. Breaking up annual sales figures Deloitte says that organised retail grew at a scorching pace in 2007, going to 8 per cent of total retail sales from 5 per cent in 2006, reported the Hindustan Times.

New stores, more spending power and access to credit had led to organised retail’s 50 per cent growth in 2007, said Shyamak Tata, partner at Deloitte who did the research.

Deloitte’s estimates suggest that organised retail is still set to explode. Deloitte’s estimates, to be released at a retail conference on Thursday, are pegged to the amount of retail space coming up in the country. Retailers have bought or will buy around 316 million sq. ft of retail space, several times the 68 million sq. ft of space they took up in 2006. For this investment in space to pay off, the industry would have to grow at around 50 per cent or so, Tata said. "If retail continues to grow at this pace, the malls will get used,” he said. “If not, then rentals will get affected."