35,000 Associates, 1 Vision

By Matt Pillar, chief editor

September 2013 Integrated Solutions For Retailers

While India’s Future Group manages several retail concepts across a number of segments, it’s standardizing store ops strategy on a common platform.

The Future Group is a multiple-category retail conglomerate composed of banners including Pantaloons (fashion), HomeTown (DIY), Big Bazaar (hypermarket), Food Bazaar (supermarket), and Central (department store). More than 300 million customers shop in the company’s collective 17-million-square-feet of retail space annually. Those customers come from the 93 cities and 60 rural locations across India where Future Group stores can be found, and they’re served by a workforce that’s 35,000 strong. Until 2009, those associates received little in the way of comprehensive — and consistent — direction from management.