Reebok to double turnover in 2 years

Reebok India plans to double its turnover to Rs 500 crore (Rs 5 billion) in the next two years, Subhinder Singh Prem, managing director, Reebok India, said.

"We hope to grow by 50 per cent this year. My goal is to double our turnover in the next two years," Prem said.

It is worth noting that India is the fastest growing market for Reebok in the world. In November 2003, Reebok India was recognised as Reebok's best subsidiary in the world. It is also the only market in the world where Reebok is ahead of traditional rivals like Adidas and Nike.

"In the Rs 1,000 and above category of sports footwear, we are the undisputed leader with a 43 per cent share of the market," Prem added.

In addition, according to Prem, Reebok's network of 105 standalone franchisee stores in India is among the strongest in the world. "The US has about 200 and South Korea has more or less the same number of stores as us," he added.

Growth for Reebok in the next two years, Prem said, would come from trying out new formats and concepts. In this connection, Reebok has soft-launched a women's store at Gurgaon near Delhi.

The company is also exploring the possibility of opening a similar store in Chandigarh. "After US, India is the only country where Reebok has a women's store," Prem said.

According to Prem, India is fast emerging as a huge market for Reebok's American sports merchandise like National Basket ball Association jerseys, for which the company holds the rights, and signature footwear collections named after the game's superstars like Alan Iverson.

The company sources cricket shoes and the entry level footwear from local manufacturers but continues to import the more expensive models.

Reebok is also expected to step up its sourcing of sports apparel from India in the days to come. At present, it sources the Greg Norman range of golf apparel and NFL apparel worth around $75-80 million from Indian producers. Almost half of its Greg Norman range comes from India.

Globally, Reebok wants to reduce the number of factories it sources from. As all Indian suppliers are "human rights approved," they are likely to benefit from such a move, Prem said. "The removal of the quota from 2005 will help the Indian suppliers further," he added.