“With the highest per capita income in the country, that is nearly three-and-a-half times the all-India average, an excellent infrastructure to promote new industries and support the existing ones, coupled with high percentage of employment, Punjab stands second to none in fast becoming a favoured destination for the retail industry,” says Amitabh Taneja, Editor, “Retailing in Punjab: 2010 and Beyond” and Director-India, International Council of Shopping Centers, USA.
“Private Consumption Expenditure in Punjab during 2004-05 stood at about Rs. 61,900 crore, which is 3.3 per cent of the country's total private consumption expenditure of Rs 1,866,000 crore,” he adds.
A tremendous amount of potential exists in the fashion and lifestyle sector. Watches and jewellery are two other categories that have largely remained untapped in Punjab.
Corporate Houses like the Piramals, the Tatas, the Rahejas, ITC, Godrej, S.Kumar's, RPG Enterprises, and The Future Group (formerly PRIL) with their mega retail chains Crosswords, Shopper's Stop, Pantaloon, Piramyd etc have already announced major plans to liven up the retail sector in Punjab.
As per the study, unlike other states, growth of consumption in Punjab gets equal support from the urban as well as rural consumers and this unique feature indicates an immense potential for organised retail, as the choice for “Location” is not really a constraint here.
Quite strikingly, the average monthly consumption expenditure for rural consumers in Punjab is Rs 1,022.05 – just slightly lower than the state's urban average, but much higher than the national average of Rs.635.72 per person per month. Thus, it is the second-tier cities and semi-urban and rural towns of Punjab that represent a goldmine of opportunity for the retailers.
marketing@alchempro.com
