Rural Retail Market in India: A new avenue.

India is also said to be a nation of shopkeepers. India has one of the highest densities of retail shops with over 12 million outlets and approximate 90 per person.  The population of India now stands at 1.21 Billion where as the rural share is around 70% of it with more than 5 Lac villages.

The rural population has also caught the eye of retailers looking for new area to explore. The TATA’s & ITC are set to storms the rural areas of the country as they realize the huge potential of the virgin rural market. ITC launched the first rural mall in the name of “Chaupal Sagar” offering diverse mix of products range from FMCG to electronics, automobile to provide farmer’s with one-stop destination to their need. Godrej and DCM Shriram consolidated are also launching one-stop shop for farmers & their communities. Godrej Agrovet is planning to set-up chain of stores in the name of “Aadhar Stores”. DCM Shriram planning to set up rural/semi-urban utility mart in the name of “Hariyali Kisaan Bazaar” chain of stores.

Thus, from the above story it is very clear that the rural market is no longer a non-player in retail game. It is now accounting for over one-third of the market for most durable & non-durable products. Even manufacturers are developing new products with the rural consumer in mind besides using village oriented marketing strategies for brand awareness. If the Shchin Tendulkar wowing village boys with a soft drink, shows that rural market is no longer of hypothetical empirical value but is well researched one as top company honchos know where to put their money & how. But, to capitalize on the opportunity a player need to be aggressive in it’s outlook and build scale quickly.