Shoppers' Stop sees net profit

NEW DELHI: After three years of being on a weak wicket, Shoppers’ Stop is likely to close this fiscal on a firm footing. The retail chain, which had closed 2001-02 with a minor cash profit of Rs 14 lakh and had been in the red for two years before that, is expecting to show respectable profits this year.
BS Nagesh, MD & CEO, Shoppers’ Stop, says the chain is hoping to close the year with a turnover of over Rs 300 crore (up from Rs 248 crore) while the profits should see a substantial jump.“It will be a pleasant triple-digit growth.� For the next fiscal, the turnover target is Rs 400 crore, he adds.
The chain is also planning to take its total number of stores to 17 by March 2004, up from the current 11. In the next two months, Shoppers’ Stop will open stores in Calcutta and add another in Mumbai. Following that, two more will come up. They will again be in Mumbai and Calcutta. “We will continue focusing on the top 10 cities as of now,� says Sanjay Badhe, director (operations).
The chain has also been strengthening its management structure. While it has streamlined its human resource and finance functions and hand-picked unit heads for each store, it has also set up a senior management committee to take decisions.
The chain is also trying to set standards. For its Gurgaon and Calcutta stores, it has hired the services of Kingsman, a Singapore-based mall design company. “They were flown in specially to understand the Indian customer and blend that with their design experience to create this store for us.�
The latest store in the chain, in Gurgaon, was opened last weekend. Kingsman has tried to give a feeling of greater depth, more space and a uniform look to the store.