Kishore Biyani: Retail face of the year

Kishore Biyani, MD, Pantaloon Retail (India), receives the 'retail face of the year'. Mohini Bhatnagar reports

His motto: "Rewrite the rules but retain the values", seems to have worked well for Kishore Biyani, MD, Pantaloon Retail (India) Ltd. In being chosen as the 'retail face of the year' by Images Retail, Biyani's efforts at 'rebranding' Indian retail has been recognised. "Pantaloon will innovate a pan-Indian model of retailing, rather than copy the western model," says Biyani.

Biyani was chosen for the award through a nationwide industry poll after a performance assessment by global retail consultants, KSA Technopak, Knowledge Partners and a jury chaired by McKinsey and Co.

The awards included 13 categories in retail segments such as fashion, catering services, food and grocery, health and beauty, leisure, consumer electronics and entertainment. The others nominated for the title included the likes of BS Nagesh, CEO, Shoppers' Stop, Raghu Pillai, CEO RPG Enterprises, KN Iyer, CEO of Crossroads, and Vikram Bakshi, McDonald's JV partner in India.

Today, Biyani has three successful retail brands spread over 1.1 million sq ft of real space. The brands include the 10-outlet Big Bazaar hypermarket; the 13-outlet Food Bazaar that straddles the food and grocery business and the 13 Pantaloon apparel stores. His fourth retail format mall called Central was launched in Bangalore in May this year.

By the end of 2005 he expects to have 30 Food Bazaar outlets, 22 outlets under Big Bazaar, 21 Pantaloon outlets and four under the Central logo occupying three million sq ft.