Dubai-based Comoculture to enter India early next fiscal

Dubai-headquartered lifestyle fashion retail brand Comoculture plans to enter India early next fiscal with the launch of its first store, a top official of the company said.
The company, which offers a combination of 40 handpicked emerging brands from Europe and the markets it operates in, plans to open 4-5 outlets in metros in India in the first year of operation.
"We want to open 4-5 stores in India in the first year of operation. We offer handpicked emerging brands in the mid- priced segment through our offline and online stores," Comoculture Founder and CEO Peter Castella told PTI.
Comoculture will open its stores in India through master franchise agreement with Retail One Solutions and Services Pvt Ltd.

The brand will open stores in the size range of 800-1600 sq ft with its main product categories being design & fashion jewellery, fashion watches, beauty and lifestyle. It also plans to open health cafe in its larger stores.
"We also connect with some India-developed brands across the categories that we operate in ... but the DNA of Comoculture is that we are a European destination. In India, 20 per cent of our offering will be Indian brands," he said.

The company at present has operations in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman and Iran.
Elaborating on India expansion plans, Retail One Solutions and Services Managing Director Sumeet K Lal said: "There is no hurry to open stores. The idea is to set up a long term business opportunity...scaling up is not a problem once we have established the brand In India".

Comoculture is also planning to enter into markets such as Turkey, Russia and China next year with offline and online stores, Castella said.