United Colours of Benetton, the manufacturer of men's, women's and children's casual wear, footwear and accessories, plans to celebrate its 40th anniversary by opening more exclusive stores across the country, as well as hosting parties in every city where it has a presence.
As the anniversary has coincided with the company's launch of Autumn-Winter collection, speaking on the sidelines of the launch, Managing Director Gagan Singh said, "We will open two more shops in Kolkata by 2007, and 70 shops all over India, taking the total to 200 stores by 2008."
Benetton's marketing strategy will be driven by locational convenience and suitability. "If we know that Park Street in Kolkata is the heart of the city, we also know that we should have a shop there," the MD said.
Locational appropriateness will also mean opening a store in an area where it will attract buyers of a particular profile. In addition, each store will cater to one type of buyer profile only in each floor.
A Benetton shop selling children's wear will be located close to a mainline store of the same type on the same floor because buyers of children's clothing will all visit that location if not that floor for their requirement. "If we have our kidswear store on the same floor, we can attract the same buyers," Singh said.
With close to 200 malls opening up every year in the country, the company has also planned to aggressively scale up its retail presence in malls, he added.
Besides, Benetton will have a shop by early next year in South City, the city's largest housing complex being erected on Anwar Shah Road in south Kolkata.
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