Big grocers queue up to put 24Seven in bag
Reliance Retail and Avenue Supermarts to sell retail grocery chain 24Seven, said executives aware of the development.
Godfrey Phillips India had said in an exchange filing on April 12 that it plans to exit the loss-making 24Seven convenience chain «following a detailed review of the company's retail business division».
The negotiations will hinge on valuation, said one of the persons cited.
«The (Modi) group leadership has held talks with groups which have obvious synergies, as of now. The talks are at different stages,» the executive said.
Scalable Format
24Seven operates about 145 stores in the Delhi-National Capital Region (NCR), Punjab and Hyderabad.
Launched in 2005, the chain offers grocery, staples, snacks, beverages, personal care products, the Modi group's own beauty brand Colorbar, as well as ready-to-eat food counters at some of the larger format stores. «Grocery retail has significant upside, and the 24Seven format is scalable as a blend of hyper-convenience grocery, staples, general merchandise, and even small in-store cafes, despite current accumulated losses,» said the executive cited above.
Trent Ltd, the retail arm of the Tata Group, operates grocery chain Star Bazaar. But grocery remains a small part of the diversified group's overall retail business and 24Seven may only add incremental value, another executive said. Trent's other retail chains — Westside and Zudio — have grown and expanded faster than Star Bazaar.
Reliance Retail Ventures operates close to 50 stores under the 7-Eleven
