Curating FASHION that speaks

Shoppers Stop, India's leading fashion and beauty destination, 'curates fashion that speaks to the hearts of its customers. It takes great pride in its large presence in the retail sector, with 102 (including airport doors) stores spread across 50 cities in India. In an exclusive interaction with Images Business of Fashion, Venu Nair, MD and CEO, Shoppers Stop said, "With increasing usage of social media, the fashion aspiration of tier 1 and tier 2 towns is on a high. Customers want to be updated with latest fashion and beauty trends and are ready to invest." Excerpts

With 83 stores across 38 cities across the country, you are well positioned. To what factors would you attribute this achievement?

We take great pride in our large presence in the retail sector, with 102 (including airport doors) stores spread across 50 cities in India. Additionally, we have 7 Home Stops, 11 SSBeauty, and 142 beauty specialty stores. Customer centricity is our key mantra of success. With over 9 million loyal customers, Shoppers Stop continues to be one of the most loved destinations. As a brand we have always believed in delivering a great experience to the customers, along with best-curated brands, trending styles, exclusive brands, and lot more.

Your presence in tier 2 and 3 is growing. In comparison with metros, which is giving you more business?

With increasing usage of social media, the fashion aspiration of tier 1 and tier 2 towns is on a high. Customers want to be updated with latest fashion and beauty trends and are ready to invest. Although we continue to see good growth in our metro stores, we see a significant growth opportunity in tier 1 and tier 2. Out of the 11 departmental stores we opened in the last financial year, 2 were in metros, while 9 were in tier 1 and tier 2 towns.

Looking for the right retail space in the metros is quite a challenge. What challenges do you face in tier 2 and 3?