HCL Info plans 200 Digilife stores

HCL Infosystems Limited, an information-enabling and integration company, plans to open 150 to 200 HCL Digilife stores over the next two years, with equal focus on metros, state capitals and tier-II cities.

Stating that the current potential of digital lifestyle market was currently pegged at around Rs 2,500 crore and was expected to touch Rs 10,000 crore by 2010, M Ravi Sanker, head (entity) HCL Infosystems, said that the company's Digilife chain was poised to clinch a substantial chunk of this market.

An outlet each are expected to come up at Coimbatore and Salem in six weeks, he said, adding that outlets were planned at Kochi and Kozhikode by middle of July.

"Each of these stores would entail an investment of around Rs 10 lakh, and is expected to garner business of between Rs 15 lakh and Rs 20 lakh a month," Sanker said.

HCL Infosystems currently has 38 Digilife retail outlets across the country. Of these, four are company-owned while the rest are operated through the franchisee route.

In Tamil Nadu alone, the company runs two outlets "� one each at Chennai and Madurai. The third franchised store in the state at Trichy on May 30.

Besides operating direct, channel and retails sales network across the country, the company has a support with four ISO 9001-certified manufacturing facilities.

The company currently maintains service points in 360 locations across the country, with 30 of them being in Tamil Nadu.