Mittals name retail stores Bharti EasyDay

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New Delhi, Mar 9: Bharti Retail, which has tied up with Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer, will name its convenience stores Bharti EasyDay. The first batch of stores will be launched on April 2.

A total of five stores will be launched initially—four in Ludhiana and one in Chandigarh. The convenience stores will focus heavily on the food and beverages section.

According to industry sources, the stores would be modelled on Reliance Fresh stores. The store size will vary from 1,300 square feet to 3,000 sq ft.

As is known, Wal-Mart has a technical agreement with Bharti for Its front-end retail stores. For the back-end cash and carry segment the two companies have entered into a 50:50 joint venture.

As earlier reported by FE, Wal-Mart Inc’s vice-chairman Mike Duke had clearly hinted that the front-end stores would not carry the Wal-Mart tag. This is because three-fourths of Wal-Mart’s international business earnings are under 52 local brands across the globe. “We want to be seen as local retailers serving the needs of the local people in an area,” Duke had said.

However, Rajan Bharti Mittal, managing director, Bharti Enterprises, had earlier said the final rollout plans of the retail and cash and carry stores would be made in April, and brand names for the retail and cash and carry stores would be announced then.

According to industry sources, the forced closure of Reliance Retail stores in Uttar Pradesh might have prompted Bharti to rework its branding strategy, and drop the Wal-Mart name to avoid any negative brand perception.