Fdi in Multi-Brand Retailing: Opportunities and Threats For Rural India
Fdi in Multi-Brand Retailing: Opportunities and Threats For Rural India
Fdi in Multi-Brand Retailing: Opportunities and Threats For Rural India
ABSTRACT
Corresponding Author:
Dr. Brajaballav Pal
Asst. Professor,
Dept. of Commerce, V.U
[email protected]
Indian retail industry is one of the sunrise sectors with huge growth
potential. According to the Investment Commission of India, the retail
sector is expected to grow almost three times its current levels to $660
billion by 2015. The last decade has witnessed the entry of a number of
organized retailers opening stores in various modern formats in metros
and other important cities. Still, the overall share of organized retailing in
total retail business has remained low. The traditional grocery retail is the
largest contributor to the total grocery retailing in India. But, more than
that, it is a major employment provider accounting for 10 % of the total
employment in the country. This became a major concern for the Indian
government while deciding over the opening of FDI gates for India.
This paper attempts to discuss all these aspects. The paper is
organized into four main sections. While the FDI in Indian Retail is
discussed in first part, the second part of the paper outlines the
Employment in Retailing .The third part presents a discussion on
Current Scenario of AgriInfrastructure in the Country and the fourth
part deals with the Opportunities and Challenges faced by the Indian
retail sector.
2013, IJBM, All Right Reserved
1. INTRODUCTION
Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is a method of
allowing external finance into an economy. FDI facilitates
international trade and transfer of knowledge, skills and
technology. Foreign Investment in India constituted a small
per cent of Gross fixed capital formation in 1993, which
went up to 4 per cent in 1997.The Tenth Plan approach
postulates a GDP growth rate of 8 per cent during 20022007.1 This implies an increase in FDI from the present
levels of $3.9 billion in 2001-2002 to at least around US$ 8
billion a year during 2002-2007.2
India is fast emerging as a key destination for FDI.
According to the FDI Confidence Index prepared by A T
Kearney, India ranks second in FDI attractiveness ranking,
the first being China. Developing countries, emerging
economies and countries in transition increasingly see
foreign direct investment (FDI) as a source of economic
development, modernization and employment generation
and have liberalized their FDI regimes to attract
investment.
The liberalization of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)
policy of the Indian Economy in 1991, that has made most
business sectors in India eligible to receive foreign
investment, has opened up front doors to many a
multinational corporation. But the policy framework for
the retail and the trading sector has continued to be
highly
restricted.
Ever since, the multinational
corporations have been eagerly waiting for the opening
of the Indian retail sector for the FDI. Discussions
pertaining to FDI in retail trade in India have always
yielded a mixed bag of reactions. In the recent times FDI
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PAL et.al/FDI in Multi-Brand Retailing: Opportunities And Threats For Rural India
buyers such as the government and other bulk customers.
A retailer is one who stocks the producers goods and is
involved in the act of selling it to the individual consumer,
at a margin of profit. As such, retailing is the last link that
connects the individual consumer with the manufacturing
and distribution chain.
2.2 Evolution of retail in India
It is essential to highlights on the evolution of the retail
sector in India. Earlier, weekly markets, village fairs and
melas evolved as a source of entertainment which was
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PAL et.al/FDI in Multi-Brand Retailing: Opportunities And Threats For Rural India
b) Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) up to 51%, in the
Single Brand Retail Trading (SBRT) sector was
permitted, under the Government/ Foreign
Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) route, subject to
the following conditions:
i) Products to be sold should be of a Single Brand only.
ii) Products should be sold under the same brand
internationally.
iii) It would cover only products which are branded
during manufacturing.
iv) The foreign investor should be the owner of the brand.
c) Government allowed 100% FDI in single brand retail
with a rider that foreign brands would mandatorily
have to source 30% of their requirements from Small
and Medium Enterprises.
2.6 Entry Options for Foreign Players
Some of the popular entry options for foreign players have
been as follows:
i) Franchising: Under this arrangement, the parent
company lends its name and technology to a local
partner and gets loyalty in return. In case a master
franchisee is appointed at the national or regional level,
the parent company gets the right to appoint local
franchisees. Nike, Marks and Spencer, Pizza Hut and
Mango are some of the best-known foreign players who
have adopted this set up of operations.FDI (unless
otherwise prohibited) is allowed with the approval of
the RBI under the Foreign Exchange Management Act.
ii) Strategic Licensing Agreements: Some foreign brands
offer exclusive licenses and distribution rights to Indian
companies. Through these rights, Indian retailers can
either sell it through their own store or enter into shopin-shop arrangements or distribute the brands to
franchisees. Mango, the Spanish apparel brand has
entered India through this route with an agreement
with Pyramid, Mumbai.
iii) Joint Venture: In this case, the international partner
provides equity and support to the Indian investor. The
Indian partner provides all the local knowledge that is
typically needed in such a venture. Mc Donalds and
Reebok have adopted the joint venture route in India
iv) Manufacturing and Wholly Owned Subsidiaries: The
foreign brands such as Nike, Reebok, Adidas, etc. that
have wholly-owned subsidiaries in manufacturing are
treated as Indian companies and are, therefore,
allowed to do retail. These companies have been
authorized to sell products to Indian consumers by
franchising, internal distributors, Indian retailers, own
outlets, etc. For instance, Nike entered through an
exclusive licensing agreement with Sierra Enterprises
but now has a wholly owned subsidiary, Nike India
Private Limited.
2.7 Benefits of FDI in other countries: FDI was not
permitted 100% at a time for most of the companies
operating in different countries in retail businesses. It
accrues benefits in different way in different countries. In
1992, China permitted foreign ownership up to 49% and
gradually lifted the restrictions. Thailand, Russia,
Indonesia, Brazil, Argentina, Singapore and Chile allowed
100% FDI in retail while Malaysia permits to a certain limit.
FDI entails impressive growth in retail and wholesale trade
of China.
FDI limits
100%
Benefits
First permitted in 1992 with foreign ownership restricted to 49%, progressively lifted
with no restrictions now.
Over 600 hypermarkets opened between 1996 and 2001.
The number of small outlets (equivalent to Kiranas) increased from 1.9 million to over
2.5 million.
Employment in the retail and wholesale sectors increased from 28 million people to 54
million people from 1992 to 2001.
Thailand 100%
Referred to as a country where FDI had an adverse effect on the local retailers.
Has limited capital requirement for retail and wholesale outlets.
Russia
100%
Supermarket revolution took place in 2000.
Heavy growth registered.
Indonesi 100%
Modern retail took off in 1990s.
a
No limit on number of outlets.
Matahari is leading chain.
Brazil, Argentina, Singapore and Chile allow 100% FDI in retail sector while Malaysia permits FDI to a certain limit.
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Remarks
Impressive growth in retail and
wholesale trade.
PAL et.al/FDI in Multi-Brand Retailing: Opportunities And Threats For Rural India
2.8 FDI in Retail and Corporate Finance:
The available theoretical and empirical research has mainly
discussed and quantified the positive effects of FDI on the
performance of the domestic economy, including indirect
effects on domestic companies, especially in the framework
of supplier-customer relations. The available evidence
suggests strong direct positive effects on investment
activity, employment, export performance and output
growth. From the macroeconomic perspective, FDI is
known to be the least volatile form of capital flows.
However, foreign direct investment can also introduce
certain risks into the economy. The strengthened export
orientation due to FDI increases the dependence of the
domestic economy on the external environment and
possibly also on global developments in those sectors
where the investors operate, which may lead to higher
volatility in the economys performance. In addition,
transfers of profit from foreign-owned corporations may
put pressure on the current account and exchange rate of
the host economy. The tendency of foreign companies to
obtain funding for their operations within their group
rather than from local banks may reduce the demand of
large foreign-owned companies for loans on the local
market. This slows the development of the domestic
financial sector.4
3. Employment in Retailing
A number of issues have been raised about opening up the
retail sector for FDI in India. The first concern is the
potential impact of large foreign firms on employment.
Following agriculture, in 2007-2008, the retail sector is the
second largest employer in India.5
3.1 Employment Shares in Retail Trade
Table 1 Employment Shares in Retail Trade, 1993-2008
Rural
Urban
Male
Female
Male
Female
2007-08
5.6
1.7
18.8
8.6
1993-94
3.63
1.4
14.6
6.66
Source: DIPP Report
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Though India is the second largest producer of fruits and
vegetables (about 200 million MT), it has a very limited
integrated cold-chain infrastructure, with only 5,386 standalone cold storages, having a total capacity of 23.6 million
MT. Lack of adequate storage facilities causes heavy losses
to farmers in terms of quality degradation and wastage of
produce in general, and of fruits and vegetables in
particular. Post-harvest losses of farm produce, especially
of fruits, vegetables and other perishables, have been
estimated to be over INR 1 trillion per annum, 57% of
which is due to avoidable wastage and the rest due to
avoidable costs of storage and commissions.8
Table 4 CURRENT STATUS OF WAREHOUSING CAPACITY IN INDIA
Name of the Organization/Sector
Storage Capacity
(in million MT)
Food Corporation of India (FCI)
32.05
Central Warehousing Committee (CWC)
10.07
State Warehousing Committee (SWC)
21.29
State Civil Supplies
11.3
Cooperative Sector
15.07
Private Sector
18.97
Total
108.75
Source: Government of India
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PAL et.al/FDI in Multi-Brand Retailing: Opportunities And Threats For Rural India
5.2 Threats: In a survey, conducted by The Confederation
of Indian Industry (CII) during December 2011 to January
2012 on the impact of FDI on Small and Medium
Enterprises (SMEs) showed that 52 percent of respondents
hope for early implementation of 51% FDI in multi- brand
retail. On the question how the SME industry consider
entry of MNC retailers as a threat or opportunity, majority
of respondents (66.7%) see it as an opportunity for their
sector while around 21 % of respondents perceive it as a
threat. About 12.5 percent of respondents are of the
opinion that the decision would have little or no impact on
their company.13
1. Effect on Traditional Mom and Pop StoresTraditional retailing has been established in India for many
centuries, and is characterized by small, family-owned
operations. Because of this, such businesses are usually
very low-margin, are owner-operated, and have mostly
negligible real estate and labour costs. Getting customers to
switch their purchasing away from small neighbourhood
shops and towards large-scale retailers may be a major
challenge. The oppositions, on the other hand, believe that
local kirana shops will not be affected. The kirana stores
operate in a different environment catering to a certain set
of customers and they will continue to find new ways to
retain them.
2. Effect on Farmers- It is being claimed by the advocates
of FDI in retail that the elimination of intermediaries and
direct procurement by the MNCs would secure better
prices for the farmers. The fact is that the giant retailers
would have far greater buyer power vis--vis the farmers
compared to the existing intermediaries. The entry of giant
MNCs into agricultural procurement would make the
problems worse for the farmers. On the contrary, the
advocates of FDI believe that FDI in retail in the agriculture
will help in improving supply chain, infrastructure and
ensure economic security for farmers through the
elimination of middlemen in the country.14
3. Effect on Consumers- Those who purchase at modern
outlets have reported better product quality, lower prices,
one-stop shopping, choice of more brands and products,
better shopping experiences with family and fresh stocks
as some of the reasons for their choice of outlet. On the
other hand, proximity to residence, goodwill, credit
availability, possibility of bargaining, choice of loose items,
convenient timings, home delivery, etc., are some of the
benefits of traditional outlets.15 .
4. Effect on Existing Indian Organized Retail Firms- The
existing Indian organized retail firms support retail
reforms. They expect a flurry of joint ventures with global
majors for expansion of capital and opportunity to gain
expertise in supply chain management.
FINDINGS AND CONCLUSION
We have dealt with various aspects of FDI Policy in
Indian retail. It has been mentioned in table 1 that the
share of retail employment has risen significantly. But, in
India, only 8% of the workforce engaged in retail sector
which is half of USA. Moreover, employment in organized
retail is only 2% which is far below than South East Asian
countries. Chart 3 shows that the retail sector has provided
employments to 41,000 people as compare to 37,000 in
2,006 growing at CARG of 2%
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