Reliance Retail's footprint widens by 39% since pandemic

New Delhi: Reliance Retail - which grew its retail footprint by 39 per cent (in square feet) since the pandemic, added multiple brands and expanded its digital commerce - will further swell its network with the addition of Future Retail stores that came under its fold after the owner couldn't pay lease rent, analysts said. Bernstein in a report said Reliance Retail is India's largest organised retailer both in terms of revenue and store network. It has 14,412 stores in India spread over 40 million square feet.

Its revenue has grown 5x in the last five years. Core retail revenue of $18 billion is greater than competitors combined, it said adding a 40 per cent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) has been best in class. "The company has built an end-to-end retail strategy across 'new commerce', offline retail and e-commerce," Bernstein said. It is 3x of the nearest competition and has delivered consistent growth across categories.

"Grocery grew at double digit, apparel and electronics up 2x year-on-year. Digital/new commerce account for 20 per cent of core retail." Core retail categories including grocery, consumer electronics and apparel have continued to scale strongly.