In its first phase of operations, Bharti Retail has strengthened its position in north India by opening 59 stores in Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and New Delhi, called Easy Day stores. In addition, it also has launched three compact hyper stores called Easy Day Market in Punjab. Bharti Retail had earlier planned to take its tally to 70 stores by the end of 2009. However, the spokesman said that the company’s plans were ‘well on track’. He added that the company has deliberately focussed on north India in its first phase of operations. According a spokesman of the company, “Bharti Retail’s strategy is to consolidate presence in one market, before expanding to another region. At present, the focus of our roll out will be North India, but we have plans to expand operations into other parts of India,” he said.

The spokesman added that in the next five years, Bharti Retail would see a US investment of 2 to 2.5 billion dollars in its stores across the country, and would employ about 60,000 people. The company plans to offer approximately 10 million square feet of retail experience across all cities in India. The spokesman said that Bharti Retail would generate employment for the unskilled and previously untapped workforce like cart vendors, housewives and retired personnel, by offering flexi-hour work schedules. Such groups of persons will also be enrolled for structured training modules at the Bharti Retail Academy. There is no minimum educational qualification to work with Bharti Retail.

The Easy Day stores source fresh fruits and vegetables from Bharti-Walmart. These stores offer a wide assortment of products like personal care products, stationery, household articles, hosiery items, daily-need groceries including staples, processed foods, bakery & dairy products, meat & poultry and fresh produce. The Easy Day Market, on the other hand, also stocks apparels, home furnishings, cosmetics, mobile phones and stationery. These stores also have live bakery, meat shop, poultry and fish and the freshest of fruits and vegetables, grocery and general merchandise.

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