Future Group expands e-biz model for Big Bazaar

Retail giant Future Group is all set to expand its presence through franchisee model under the brand name ‘Big Bazaar Direct (BBD)’.

Under this, franchisees can sell Big Bazaar products to their customers over 3G Internet enabled tablet. This an effort to sell its product where Big Bazaar stores have not reached and the target is to cater small towns of the country.  

This initiative was started in August 2013 on pilot basis in Nagpur and Vidarbha region of Maharashtra. The company is planning to take this across India and targets to appoint over 50,000 franchisees in the next three years. Other than Maharashtra, this model is also launched in southern region of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi.  Currently, over 350 franchisees are associated with this initiative.

“Big Bazaar Direct (BBD) will allow us to go deeper in the country where Big Bazaar can not reach. We have over 30 crore consumers associated with the Big Bazaar chain and with Big Bazaar Direct our plan is to add another 30 crore consumers. We will expand the franchisees network up to 50,000 in the next three years. In this, we have invested only in technology and supply chain network,” said Vivek Biyani, director Future Group.

In BBD, a 3g-enabled tablet is given to every franchise, which is integrated with the back-end of Big Bazaar. The initial investment for a BBD set-up is Rs 3 lakh.  

Out of the given amount of Rs 3 lakh,  Rs 1 lakh is refundable security deposit, Rs 1 lakh is the set-up charge for the Big Bazaar Direct tablet, initial branding, a year’s training and launch material and Rs 1 lakh will be used as advance payment of franchisee, which will be used for placing orders.

The goods will be delivered to the customers directly from a central warehouse in Nagpur within a specified period of time by a courier.

The commission to the franchisees ranges from 3 per cent to 15 per cent depending upon the product category. According to Biyani, the franchisees have made business ranging from Rs 50,000 to Rs 8 lakh per month with Big Bazaar Direct. Also, Big Bazaar stores stock around 50,000 SKUs, only 10 per cent will initially be available through the BBD.