Franchising, as we all know, is a technique of doing business and expanding the successful business through its channel partners called franchisees. Franchising is mainly classified into service and product or business format franchising. All the companies who are selling their services are called service franchises where as, the companies who are selling their products via franchise route are called product franchisees. Product franchising is better known as retail franchising. A shop owner having taken up the franchise of any brand that sells manufactured products from a retail store is called retail franchising.
The sectors that fall under service franchising may include F&B, healthcare, beauty services, education, financial services, real estate and so on. The industries that retail franchising covers include apparel, footwear, jewellery, fashion, and lifestyle and so on.
Popularity of retail franchising
Retail franchising has grown tremendously over the years. This growth can be attributed to the emergence of large number of international brands in India and most of them opting to expand via franchising. Besides this, increased brand consciousness, disposable income, working women, and busy lifestyle, the craze to match the international living standards have also contributed to the growth of retail franchising.
Top retail sectors
Considering the remarkable growth of retail franchising, The Franchising World magazine in their latest survey of Top 100 franchise opportunities covered approximately around 25 national and international retail franchise brands. Here we have enlisted the top retail franchise sectors, the various brands that fall under these categories and their opportunities and growth.
Apparel sector: The apparel brands can be considered as the major force behind the success of retail franchising. With customers becoming more and more brand conscious, they prefer buying branded pair of jeans or designer suits as compared to the non-branded clothes. Chhabra 555 (women wear), Planet Fashion (retail venture of Madura Garments), Raymonds (Textile and apparels for men), Spykar (denim and casual wear) are the players who have been into apparel franchising since a long time. The new and the emerging apparel brands like Ashika Fashionwear (ethnic women wear), Hasbro Clothing (men’s apparels), Kathak Fashion Mills and Latin Quarters (fashion apparels) have also helped in the growth of apparel retail sector. The international player like Levi’s (famous for denim wear) can also be considered responsible for the success of apparel industry in India.
Fashion accessories retailing: Fashion accessories like watches and eyewear have also helped towards the progress of retail sector. The customers love to own expensive branded watches and eye-shades. Titan Industries has been positioned as the fifth largest integrated watch manufacturer in the world. The company has brought about a revolution in the Indian watch market with its brands like Titan, Fastrack, Raga, Sonata and the Swiss made XYLYS. Titan industries have also forayed into the eyewear business to make its mark in India’s eyewear industry.
Jewellery retail industry: The jewellery industry has also bucked up the retail sector with brands like Tanishq, Gitanjali (brands namely D’damas, Nakshatra, Asmi, Sangini, Gitanjali Jewels, Giantti, Gili World, Shuddhi, Maya Jewels, Diya, Parineeta, World of Silver and many others under its umbrella) and Nirvana. These brands have made the retail sector glitter with success.
Toys and gifts retail: Retail sector has gained lot of profits on account of toys, gifts, and greeting sector. Archies with its huge portfolio of greeting cards, gift items, stationary, posters, perfumes, fashion jewellery, and accessories has made a prominent place in the Indian retail sector. Another brand namely Hanung Toys and Textiles has accelerated the growth of the Indian retail sector.
Footwear retail: The footwear retail industry has also caught up speed with the arrival of international footwear players like adidas, famous for its footwear, apparels, and accessories.
Bookstore retail: The thought ‘Books are man’s best friends’ has made the bookstores also a part of the retail industry. Crossword Bookstore has made a mark in the retail sector with its 56 franchised outlets.
Moreover, brands like Next, electronic retail with over 500 showrooms pan-India, Amul (food retailing), Pidilite Hobby Ideas (hobby retailing), The Spice Club (specialty store) and Kitsch (luxury retail) have also revolutionised the Indian retail sector. The organised retail sector, which currently accounts for around five per cent of the Indian retail market, is all set to witness maximum number of large format malls and branded retail stores in the next two years. Aspiring franchisees, having a passion for product selling can consider a bright future in Indian retail franchising.
