Reliance Industries’ retail arm has begun piloting a search-and-discovery platform aimed at more tightly integrating its physical stores with its online shopping ecosystem, a senior executive said on Monday.
Reliance Retail, India’s largest retailer, operates 19,340 stores nationwide and serves more than 349 million customers, offering products ranging from electronics and apparel to groceries. The new platform is currently being tested at its fashion formats, including Trends and Yousta, with plans to extend it to its supermarket chain Smart Bazaar later this year.
Damodar Mall, Chief Executive of Grocery Retail at Reliance Retail, stated that customers would be able to scan a QR code in-store to access the platform. He explained that the tool would enable shoppers to discover and search for products tailored to their individual preferences, thereby enhancing the overall shopping experience.
The move comes at a time of intensifying competition in India’s retail landscape. Online marketplaces such as Amazon India and Walmart-backed Flipkart continue to expand their footprint, while quick commerce operators including Instamart, Blinkit and Zepto have rapidly captured market share with ultra-fast delivery offerings.
However, festive discounting, continued investment in hyperlocal delivery infrastructure and the one-off impact of India’s new labour code reduced core margins in the retail division to 8% in the third quarter, down from 8.6% a year earlier.
Mall observed that the pace of change in India’s retail sector remained intense. He added that the transformation was occurring within the context of an expanding consumption market, which allowed for shifts in market share without necessarily constraining overall industry growth.
