Pantaloon Retail - Mall - A - Maal

Pantaloon Retail - Aggressive Growth Strategies

Pantaloon Retail posted a 83.03 per cent increase in net profit for the quarter ended December 2005 at Rs 18.56 crore compared with Rs 10.14 crore for the corresponding quarter of the last year. Net sales was 98.14 per cent higher at Rs 472 crore compared with Rs 238.21 crore for the corresponding quarter last year. Operating profit stood at Rs 38.31 crore compared with Rs 22.48 crore for the year-ago period, higher by 70.41 per cent. Earnings per share stood at Rs 8.33 against Rs 5.1 for the same quarter last year.

Pantaloon Retail India plans to set up a non-banking financial company (NBFC). The company is looking at entering the insurance and credit side of the retail business. The retail major already has private equity and asset management services. In addition to this, the company also announced an agreement to set up a retail chain for kidswear under the Gini & Jony Apparel brand. Pantaloon would have a 50 per cent stake in the joint venture. “In organised retail, there is a gap as far as children wear is concerned. Our aim is to fill this gap with our JV,” said Biyani.

Pantaloon has also picked up a 33 per cent stake in Capital Foods and Capital Foods Exports each. These companies manufacture and market ready-to-eat food items under the Smith & Jones and Chings’ Secret brands.

The Pantaloon group-promoted Kshitij will be setting up 51 malls over 14.5 million sq ft over the next three years. The 51 malls would include the ones being developed using Kshitij Venture Capital Fund, as well as malls both owned and leased by Pantaloon Retail. Baijal said the total cost of the projects being implemented by KVC fund is approximately Rs 2,500 crore, and KVC’s equity contribution is around Rs 600 crore. In terms of tenant mix, Pantaloon Retail is likely to occupy about 20 per cent of the overall space available. The company has tied up with Inox Leisure to set up multiplexes at the Kshitij properties, and about 37 of the 51 malls coming up would have a multiplex.