Description
A new year comes laden with the promise of a fresh beginning. Even our mental accounting calendar is programmed to hit the refresh button this time of year. In line with the year-start sentiment, this maiden 2023 issue of the magazine features a slate of articles by leading experts that looks into the possibilities, opportunities and curveballs that India’s food retail industry will likely run into as the year unwinds.
What will be the key trends that will shape the operability of retail businesses and keep them relevant in the future? What opportunities and challenges will brands and enterprises face as they step up to meet the new set of expectations from modern consumers increasingly being influenced by technology? Read the articles (pages 24-30) to grok the context in which these issues and concepts have been framed and how they will pan out during the year.
In a befitting choice to this year’s first issue, our cover story (pages 32-37) pick is a young start-up retailer that burst on the scene only about a year ago in a small Telangana town. Some may say that National Mart, as an offshoot of Ratnadeep Retail, is a chip off the old block. But the brand and its young founder Yash Agarwal certainly deserve big-ups for moving the retailing needle and thread for taking modern grocery to India’s backwaters. Another interesting story on India’s coffee machine market (pages 38-46) reveals how fresh brew coffee and the specialty segment of the coffee market are in a simmer with new café chains and brands ginning up demand for more premium coffee machines.
To wrap up, we bring you the winners at the 6th Pepsi IMAGES Food Service Awards at India Food Forum on December 8 (pages 50-61). These best-performing retailers were honoured for their outstanding achievements in business performance, marketing, innovation, and growth of the food service business in India.
