Reliance juggernaut moves on into the most populous state of the country, Uttar Pradesh. While ten Reliance ‘Fresh’ stores are going on stream in Lucknow today, 14 more are slated to open in Varanasi on the 27 August, 2007. Not surprisingly, this move of Reliance Retail, the retail arm of Mukesh Ambani owned Reliance Group, like in other states (notably Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh), has also earned wrath of the Samajwadi party affiliated local traders, who ransacked two of its outlets in Lucknow and Varanasi.
Notwithstanding the protests of small traders in different parts of the country, this expansion takes the tally of Reliance ‘Fresh,’ a neighbourhood, convenience, format stores of the group, to 265 with an estimated occupied floor space of around seven lakh (0.7 million) square feet. A typical ‘Fresh’ store, which remains open between 8 AM and PM, occupies an average floor space of over 2,500 sq.ft., and depending on availability of ‘fresh’ items in a given season, offers over 3,000 products of daily needs to its consumers, under different categories, including fruits and vegetables, dairy products, grocery and staples. Reliance has also introduced a few staple products under private label called “Reliance Select.”
Reliance has also opened a large format specialty store for consumer electronics and durable products called “Reliance Digital,” which operates from Gaziabad in Uttar Pradesh.
http://www.indiaretailbiz.com/blog/2007/08/23/reliance-unveils-26-fresh-...
