Reliance to bring Gap to India in latest retail bet (updated)

ARVIND FASHIONS

06/07/2022 14:43

(Adds detail, quotes, updates throughout)
    BENGALURU, July 6 (Reuters) - Reliance, India's largest
retailer, said on Wednesday it has partnered with Gap Inc
 GPS.N  to sell the U.S. clothing retailer's brands locally,
marking its latest expansion in the booming consumer market.
    Under a long-term franchise agreement, Reliance will sell
Gap merchandise through a mix of exclusive brand stores,
multi-brand outlets and e-commerce platforms, the company said
in a statement.
    "The partnership is aimed at leveraging Gap’s position as a
leading casual lifestyle brand," said Reliance Retail, which is
part of billionaire Mukesh Ambani's conglomerate Reliance
Industries  RELI.NS .
    Financials terms of the deal were not disclosed. 
    It comes just days after Reliance announced a plan to open
outlets of popular British sandwich and coffee chain Pret A
Manger in India. It already has partnerships with several luxury
brands including Burberry.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2YI17H
    For Gap, whose brands include Old Navy and Banana Republic,
the partnership comes as clothing retailers struggle with weak
demand in the face of surging inflation.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N2XI3FW
    Gap was looking forward to expanding "across key
international markets", its executive Adrienne Gernand said in
the statement, adding the deal was part of its efforts to
diversify its business portfolio through a partner-based model.
    Gap's previous attempt to woo Indian customers turned sour
after the jeans and casual clothing retailer terminated its deal
with a unit of Arvind Fashions  ARVF.NS  in 2020, when strict
lockdowns resulted in near-zero footfalls across malls and
shopping centres. (https://bit.ly/3nGulEW)
    Reliance has hundreds of retail stores spanning electronics,
groceries and fashion in India, and is also expanding into
e-commerce.

 (Reporting by Tanvi Mehta in Bengaluru and Aditya Kalra in New
Delhi; editing by Maju Samuel and Jason Neely)
 ((tanvi.mehta@thomsonreuters.com; https://twitter.com/TanviMehta710;))