CIE plans to set up three international class departmental stores in India under the brandname `Saga'. Mir claims these would be the first of their kind in the country. ``What I see in India are not departmental stores. They are just large shops. You go to buy the stuff you need in your day-to-day life,'' he says. ``We will be bringing our international expertise to the Indian market.''

Currently, CIE has about 30 showroom in India and six overseas at New York, London, Frankfurt, Mauritius, Bangkok and Nairobi.The showrooms in India are not only confined to the metros but are also located a major tourist attractions such as Agra, Jaipur, Varanasi, Hydarabad, Cochin, Madurai and Trivandrum.pMir believes there is tremendous potential for CIE in the Indian market. The company's focus so far has been the rich foreign customer: in terms of the turnover, over 90 per cent of revenues come from foreign clients.

CIE plans to open its first departmental store for Indian customers at Bandra in Mumbai by the end of 1999. Spread over seven floors, the store will have 50,000 square feet area with restaurants and a coffee shop on the top floor. Mir has provided for an underground car parking in the complex.

By the end of 2000, Mir plans to open three more stores in Chennai, Bangalore and Delhi. Mir plans to convert CIE's four-storey `Saga' showroom at Nizammudin in Delhi into a departmental store focussing on Indian customers too. A similar strategy will be followed for Chennai and Bangalore. ``Our business philosophy will bedifferent from others. Though customers will get all the general products, our USP will be non-essential products such as paintings, designer garments, sculptures, jewellery, precious stones, and furniture,'' he said.

He is, however, quick to add that product prices will not be the same as for foreign clientele. ``We will expose our products to the Indian customer gradually. There is no point in trying to sell a Rs 15 lakh carpet or a Rs 1.5 lakh marble table-top to Indian customers. They have to be initiated at a lower price range and then move up,'' Mir said.

Mir believes the retail trade business in India will see a complete change in the next 10 years. ``Departmental stores in India will be as good as Singapore or New York and competition will be intense,'' he predicts.

Mir says such a situation would be of great advantage to CIE. ``We presently work and give the same importance to our customers that they are used to getting from any of the top international department stores because our customerbase is mainly rich foreigners,'' he said. ``We pamper our customers. If we don't do that, we will be out of business.'' There is little danger of that happening. By focussing on rich Indian customers next, the one thing Mir is certainly not planning is: closing shop.