Gaurav Choudhury, ,Hindustan Times: It has been more than two years since Rajendra Kumar downed the shutters of his 100-square feet provision store in the bustling Ajmal Khan area of Delhi. Kumar blames the Big Bazaar store at Rajouri Garden for this, as it takes a mere 10 minutes on the Delhi Metro Rail for residents of Ajmal Khan and adjoining Karol Bagh to reach Rajouri Garden and the Big Bazaar therein. Satyendra Kumar
(name changed) starts his day sifting the fruit boxes of apples, plum and mangoes at wholesale fruits and vegetable mandi at Amritsar. As a consolidator for the retail giant Walmart, Kumar’s job is to ensure that he gets the best quality produce which would be sold at the retailer’s cash & carry outlet — Best Price Modern Wholesale at Amritsar. Rajendra Kumar and Satyendra Kumar, perhaps, reflect the two arguments offered in favour
and against opening up foreign direct investment (FDI) in retail in India. The UPA government, possibly galvanised into action by surging protests of policy paralysis, on Thursday allowed foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi - brand retail with a 51% ceiling, brushing aside stiff opposition from
political rivals and allies. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh presided over a two-hour cabinet discussion on allowing FDI in multi-brand retail before giving the go-ahead to the proposal with a slew conditions ending months of hectic political confabulation. This has paved the way for global retailers such as Walmart, Carrefour, Tesco and others to set up large deep discount stores in India — one of the world’s hottest growth economies. What next? Corporate India, expectedly, cheered the move terming it as a “game changer” that will reduce wastage, bring down costs and create millions of jobs. Modern retail business focuses on maximising customer footfalls and capturing rising volume and share of the customer wallet. There are four drivers of modern retail’s “one-stop shopping model”: price, product, service, and ambience, or so the argument goes. Read Full: Documentary Retail India: We are open now - Hindustan Times
