Footwear major Bata India expects to cross its target of opening 500 franchisee stores “very soon”. The company feels that the increase in the number of stores would boost its bottom line significantly. Currently, the footwear company has 416 stores.
“With regard to the franchise, our target is 500 (stores). We already have 416, and very soon we should cross the target. Overall, I think that it will do very well to bottom line in a very healthy way,” Bata India chairman Ashwani Windlass told shareholders during the company’s annual general meeting on Thursday.
The company’s overall store count crossed the 2,000 mark in the last financial year. It is expanding footprints through a combination of franchisee and COCO (company-owned company-operated) models. It is also increasing penetration into tier III-V towns.
“Today our retail business is 75% of total business, whereas the rest comes from non-retail, which is essentially distribution. So, this is a healthy chain compared to where we were three years ago. This mix will continue to evolve as we exploit these channels even more than before,” Windlass said.
The chairman informed that around 52%, 31% and 10% of the company’s total business comes from men, women and children footwear, respectively. Roughly 12% of the company’s turnover comes from digitally enabled channels, which includes the omni channels.
“We typically look at around Rs 100 crore capex every year. We will review the same based on the needs as the company is well placed to any capital expenditure because of its sound financial condition,” Windlass said.
“As a trend-setter, your company is majorly investing in high performance merchandising technology, seeking to shorten the product cycle and replenish our latest collections in the stores faster,” he told shareholders.
The company, on Wednesday, reported a 10% year-on-year (y-o-y) decline in its consolidated net profit to Rs 106.89 crore for the quarter ended June 30, from Rs 119.37 crore in the corresponding period last fiscal. Its revenue from operations grew 1.6% y-o-y at Rs 958.15 crore during the period. For FY23, the company’s revenue stood at Rs 3,451.57 crore, while consolidated net profit was at Rs 323 crore. The fall in profit was primarily on account of early start of the end of season sale by the industry, the company said.
On Thursday, the company’s scrip ended the at Rs 1,648.90 apiece, down 3.01% from its previous close.