Reliance Retail, the country’s largest organised retailer, has added 30 Metro Cash & Carry outlets in the April-June quarter as the company rapidly expands the footprint of the organised wholesaler.
Metro Cash & Carry — part of the grocery new commerce or B2B division — was acquired for `2,850 crore in December 2022 with 31 outlets in 21 cities. It now has over 200 stores in 180 cities, the company said in its latest investor presentation.
B2B customers — mainly kiranas, merchants and small retailers — can use the Metro B2B app or visit stores to place orders, industry sources said.
Metro Cash & Carry’s customer base has crossed the four-million-mark, according to sources in the know. At the time of the Metro acquisition, the wholesaler had three million B2B customers in India, of which one million were frequent buyers through its store network and app.
In Q1, Reliance Retail opened 331 new stores, taking the total count to 18,918. The total retail area operated by Reliance Retail also rose 15.15% to 81.3 million sq ft as of June 30.
In the fashion & lifestyle business, Reliance is refreshing its assortment in line with emerging trends and expanding store footprint.