Reliance to enter FMCG business this year, partner 10 mn merchants in 5 yrs

The objective of this business will be to develop and deliver products and solve every Indian's daily needs, with high quality products at affordable pricing, said Isha Ambani

The country's largest retailer Reliance Industries on Monday announced that it will enter the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) business this year as part of its expansion plan.

Addressing the 45th AGM of Reliance Industries on Monday, Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd (RRVL) Director Isha Ambani said: "This year, we will launch our FMCG goods business".

The objective of this business will be to develop and deliver products and solve every Indian's daily needs, with high-quality products at affordable pricing, she said while addressing Reliance Industries' annual general meeting.

In FY22, Reliance Retail strengthened the presence of its own brands by launching several new products across the categories as staples, home, personal care and general merchandise, said Isha Ambani.

The Indian FMCG market is estimated to be over USD 100 billion and is largely dominated by big firms, such as HUL, Reckitt, P&G, Nestle and homegrown companies like Dabur, Emami and Marico. It will now compete with Adani Wilmar and other FMCG companies.

Isha Ambani further said Reliance Retail will continue expanding its reach to more customers by adding stores and merchant partners through its new commerce initiative Jio Mart.

"Reliance Retail's strategy is to integrate with millions of small merchants and provide them with a platform to prosper. Since the launch two years ago, it has grown merchant partners base to over 20 lakh partners," she said.

Reliance Retail adds around 1.5 lakh partners a month.

"We are on course to partner with one crore merchants, as we expand our presence to cover the entire country, serving over 7,500 towns and 5 lakh villages in the next five years," Ishan Ambani added.

Besides, Reliance Retail has also launched a WhatsApp JioMart partnership, which enables a customer to browse the grocery catalogue, add products to a cart and make purchases through the popular messaging platform.

Isha Ambani, 30, also gave a presentation on placing online grocery orders using WhatsApp and making payments.

Reliance Retail will also start marketing goods produced by Indian artisans.

"As part of our commitment to India's rich culture and heritage, we will soon start marketing quality goods produced by tribals and other marginalised communities across India," Isha Ambani said.

This will not only provide a gainful opportunity for employment and entrepreneurship but also help to preserve the talent, skill sets and knowledge base of the Indian artisans, especially women.

During the AGM address, billionaire Mukesh Ambani introduced his daughter Isha as leader of his conglomerate's retail business as he laid bare the succession plan at India's most valuable firm.

RRVL is the holding company of all the retail companies of the billionaire Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries group. It almost become a Rs 2 lakh crore company with its value of sales and services at Rs 1,99,749 crore in FY22.

In his speech, the RIL chairman congratulated Reliance Retail for its performance and said it is among the top 10 retailers in Asia.

He also shared the five imperatives known as "panch pran" for the business models of Reliance Retail and said the focus would be on enriching customers' experience across digital and physical stores using technology.

It would also operationalise and use multi-channels to increase reach, especially in rural India.

"In this endeavour, our strategy is to integrate millions of small merchants and provide them a platform to prosper," he said, adding the company will invest in design, value, and services.

It will also expand its product and design capability to MSMEs so that they could provide the product of high quality and enhance customers' experience.

Besides, Reliance will also strengthen its logistics and supply-chain capabilities, he added.

As of June 30, 2022, Reliance Retail was operating 15,866 stores with an area of 45.5 million sq ft covering all corners of the country.

In FY22, Reliance Industries invested Rs 30,000 crore in its retail business and added 2,500 stores. On average, Reliance Retail had added seven stores per day.