Reliance Retail is an Indian retail company and a subsidiary of Reliance Industries. Founded in 2006, it is the largest retailer in India in terms of revenue.[5] Its retail outlets offer foods, groceries, apparel, footwear, toys, home improvement products, electronic goods, and farm implements and inputs. As of 2023,[update] it has over 245,000 employees at 18,000 store locations in 7,000 towns.[1] Apart from physical stores, the company also sells products on its e-commerce channels.
As of August 2023,[update] the company is valued at $100 billion.[6][7]
Reliance Retail was established in 2006 as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Reliance Industries, with chairman Mukesh Ambani announcing an investment of up to ₹25,000 crore (US$5.52 billion) for the new venture at Reliance's 32nd annual general meeting in June 2006.[8]
The first set of convenience stores under the name Reliance Fresh were inaugurated in Hyderabad in November 2006.[9] This was followed by entry into consumer electronics via Reliance Digital,[10]hypermarkets under Reliance Mart,[11] apparel with Reliance Trends,[12] jewellery via Reliance Jewels,[13] and footwear through Reliance Footprint, all in 2007.[14]
In August 2020, Reliance Retail announced that it would acquire the retail, wholesale, logistics and warehousing business of Future Group for ₹24,713 crore (US$3.34 billion).[15] However, the deal was called off in April 2022 after a lengthy legal dispute between Future Group and Amazon.[16]
In September 2020, American investment firm Silver Lake bought a 1.75% stake in Reliance Retail for ₹7,500 crore[17] and KKR acquired a 1.28% stake for ₹5,500 crore valuing the company at $58 billion.[18]
In October 2020, Singapore's GIC bought a 1.22% stake for $752 million, while TPG acquired a 0.41% stake for $250 million giving Reliance Retail a pre-money valuation of $58.5 billion.[19]
On 7 October 2021, the company announced its partnership with 7-Eleven to open its stores in India.[20] The first 7-Eleven in India opened in Mumbai.[21]
On 6 January 2022, Reliance Retail invested $200 million in Dunzo for a 25.8% stake.[22]
In 2022, soft drink brand Campa Cola was acquired by Reliance Industries for ₹22 crores. In March 2023, Reliance Consumer Products (RCPL), the fast-moving consumer goods arm and subsidiary of Reliance Retail Ventures (RRVL), announced the relaunch of Campa Cola in three variants (cola, orange and lemon) at select stores.[23]
In February 2023, Reliance Retail began accepting India's central bank digital currency (CBDC), the Digital Rupee.[24]
In August 2023, the Qatar Investment Authority invested $1 billion in Reliance Retail for a 0.99% stake in the company at a $100 billion valuation.[6] In October 2023, the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority acquired a 0.59% stake in the company with an investment of nearly $600 million.[25]
In May 2024, Jio Leasing Services Ltd (JLSL), a subsidiary of Jio Financial Services, announced the purchase of customer premises equipment, devices and telecom equipment worth $4.32 billion from Reliance Retail.[26]
Reliance Retail started a pilot program on Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) using the Fynd retail platform, with plans to gradually launch all of Reliance Retail's brands on ONDC.[27]
Retail outlets of fruits, vegetables and groceries.[29]
2
Reliance Smart/Smart Point
Reliance Smart offers fresh produce, bakery, dairy products, home, and personal care products, general merchandise, fruits, vegetables, and groceries.[30]
JioMart is the e-commerce venture of Reliance Retail that provides grocery delivery. It operates in 200 cities in India and was started as a joint venture between Reliance Retail and Jio Platforms.[37]
10
Azorte
In 2022, Reliance Retail launched fashion stores under Azorte brand, under which it retails footwear, fashion accessories, home and beauty products.[38]
11
Tira
Tira is an omnichannel beauty retailer launched in April 2023.[39]
Hamleys, one of the oldest and largest toy retailers in the world, was acquired by Reliance Retail in 2019 for £67.96 million.[40]
2
Shri Kannan Departmental Store
Shri Kannan Departmental Store is a retail store chain that sells fruits, vegetables, dairy, staples, home, and personal care, and general merchandise. It operates 29 stores in Coimbatore and was acquired by Reliance Retail in 2020 for ₹152.5 crore.[41]
3
Netmeds
Netmeds is a licensed e-pharmacy based in Chennai. In 2020, Reliance Retail acquired a 60% stake in Netmeds' parent Vitalic for approximately ₹620 crore.[42]
Urban Ladder is an omnichannel furniture and decor retailer based out of Bangalore, India. In 2020, Reliance Retail acquired a 96% stake in Urban Ladder for ₹182 crore.[43][44]
5
Addverb
Addverb is a Noida-based robotics company in which Reliance Retail bought a 55% stake for $132 million in 2021.[45]
6
Amante
Amante is a retailer and wholesale distributor of lingerie in India and Sri Lanka, acquired by Reliance Retail in 2021.[46]
7
Zivame
Bangalore-based Zivame operates an online lingerie store for women. It has also ventured into other segments such as activewear, sleepwear and shapewear. According to Zivame's website, it has 30-plus retail stores and a presence in more than 800 partner stores across the country. In 2021, Reliance Retail acquired an 85% stake in the company for ₹1,200 crore.[47]
8
Clovia
Clovia is an Indian innerwear and loungewear company. In 2022, Reliance Retail acquired a 89% stake in the company for $125 million.[48]
In 2021, Reliance Retail acquired a 66% stake in local search company Justdial for ₹5,710 crore (US$770.58 million).[49]
10
Milkbasket
Milkbasket is a subscription-based daily micro-delivery service. In October 2021, Reliance Retail Ventures acquired a 96.49% stake in Milkbasket for $40 million.[50][51]
In March 2023, Reliance Retail completed the acquisition of Metro Cash & Carry India for a cash consideration of ₹2,850 crore (US$340 million). After the acquisition, Reliance Retail got access of over 3 million B2B customers of Metro Cash & Carry including 1 million frequent buyers.[52]
12
V-Retail
In 2023, Reliance Retail acquired V-Retail, a footwear and apparel retail company which operated 32 stores under the name of Centro across Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.[53]
Although Reliance Retail's grocery businesses primarily markets products of third party FMCG players, they also sell inhouse brands including: Best Farms, Good Life, Enzo, Mopz, Expelz and Home One.[54][55][56]