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Marks and Spencer Reliance India Pvt. Ltd, a JV between UK retailer Marks and Spencer Plc (M&S) and Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries Ltd's subsidiary Reliance Retail Ltd, plans to take the store count to more than 50 from 17 in the next three years, with the new stores being larger, between 15,000 sqft – 35,000 sqft. Referring to a recent McKinsey report that said that said India is to become the world's fifth largest consumer market by 2025, Nandini Sethuraman, head of marking M&S Reliance India said, “Our contribution to international operations is small today, but this can change within a matter of few years and everyone realizes that. We are seeing a growth of 25-30% as we add new categories, sell more volumes and add new stores.“ M&S has been in the country since 2001, first as a franchise run by Planet Retail Holdings Pvt Ltd, until it entered the JV with Reliance Retail in April 2008, which is when it set up a sourcing base in India. Currently M&S sources 40% of the goods locally and for categories such as menswear, it is up to 70%. Sethuraman said that the objective was to take the sourcing to 70% all around. Post the JV in 2008, M&S has expanded its range to include bath and body toiletries, home accessories, footwear, swimwear and kidswear. It recently tested luggage but is yet to decide on availability and pricing. “The objective is to create a store experience similar to the international stores,“ said Sethuraman.
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