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The success story of the 'book woman of India'
May 16, 2008
Retail sector in India
I feel the retail sector in India is overrated, hyped and very euphoric and it has to correct. The retail euphoria in India has gone mad. I feel the media is creating the hype.
People are just jumping into retail, opening stores and losing money left, right and centre. There is too much of hype surrounding retail in India and the legendary Indian middle class. Where are the 300 million Indian middle class? They are not there; they are certainly not buying at the stores. Every retailer is bleeding. If four locations are successful, 10 are unsuccessful.
A bestseller in the US sells 150,000 copies but a bestseller in India sells 5,000 copies. And we are a billion people.
As a consultant, I will be honest enough to say if the business plan doesn't look good, don't burn your fingers. What is going to not work is much more obvious than what is going to work.
Overheads are very high. The first correction has to be in real estate. Then, labour cost which is unreal.
Where is the retail sector heading?
It will lead to more companies going bust. There will have to be a correction in the retail sector. The bubble will burst soon. Only the players with deep pockets can sustain the losses.
It has already started. A lot of stores are shutting down which you never saw three years ago.
Advice to young entrepreneurs
First thing I will tell them is, if you want to be an entrepreneur, please be one. Don't let anyone talk you out of it. There is nothing better than working for yourself. The satisfaction you derive from your own enterprise won't come from working for a corporate sector with ten times the salary.
Don't go into it blind. Try and apprentice with somebody and at least understand the industry. Don't jump into it with zero knowledge because you will make mistakes. Today, they are expensive mistakes.
Once you start, scale up slowly.
Think 50 times before selling equity.
Landmark sold music too along with books. In the image, Hindi karaoke music CDs on display at a music store in the Indian-American community in Chicago, Illinois. Photograph: Tim Boyle/Getty Images
Also read: The top 10 best-selling cars ever
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