IndiaRetailBiz

“We want to make the Wills Lifestyle brand more upscale, international and personalise the experience for the customer,” Atul Chand, VP (sales and marketing), Lifestyle Retail Division, ITC Limited.

ITC Limited, a cigarettes to hospitality major, according to an ET report, has decided to expand its retail presence across the country. ITC carries out its retail business under Wills Lifestyle, John Players and Miss Players brands.

Under the expansion programme, ITC has planned to scale up the number of its retail store by 60%, from 250 to 400, within a year (2008-09).

ITC has also begun strengthening its retail identity and is repositioning ‘Wills Lifestyle’ as an aspirational, international brand.

In an image makeover exercise, ITC has roped in services of international professional  agencies like FRCH Design (US), Elemental Design (UK), and The Friedman Group (US), who among others will help the retailer in designing stores,  product presentation, visual merchandising and retail training.

In fact, the company has already launched three concept stores in Mumbai (2)and Delhi (1). Design of these stores has been done after taking into account various aspects, like the cultural context, customer profile, etc.

All new stores will be based on the ‘concept’ store design.