'TS govt, Global Linker support 8,500 retailers to sell online'

Hyderabad : The Government of Telangana has partnered the Global Linker program to onboard local retailers and so far, we have onboarded 8,500 small retailers to extend their brick and mortar offerings to online. This programme is working at local level which the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC)is doing on at a national level, said Jayesh Ranjan, Principal Secretary - Industries & Commerce Department.

He was addressing a gathering at the second edition of Hyderabad Retail Summit (HRS) organised by Retailers Association of India (RAI) here on Wednesday. On the occasion, he said, "Advancement can happen through knowledge sharing and recently the Government of Telangana notified stores could remain open round-the-clock." Jayesh further said, "This decision had come at the request of the retailers and consumers. Even hyper-local retailers requested for neighbourhood stores to remain open, only a select few stores.

However, there are responsibilities involved including safety expectations that retailers will be able to match the expectations of the government and cops."

"In Telangana, wealth is equitably distributed mainly due to agriculture, irrigation and direct transfer to farmers. We are waiting for a retail revolution to happen in the State and would like the RAI to partner with the State government to make this happen for rural. We would like to also focus on local sourcing and are keen that the retailers give as much prominence to local producers," he added.

Speaking about HRS 2023, Kumar Rajagopalan, CEO of the RAI, said, "The HRS is expected to bring in various retailers, mall owners, as well as service providers having technology and logistics capabilities. Technology is fast changing the way retail in the country is evolving and it is only right that retailers come together to embrace those technologies that will keep them abreast of their competition." The HRS 2023 hosted in-depth panel discussion on topics such as The Art of Retail Strategy: Balancing Innovation and Tradition, Staying Ahead of the Curve: Adapting to Changing Retail Technology, and Navigating CX: Building Loyalty Through Customer Experience.

Sharing valuable insights on these panels were some prominent faces of the retail industry in the region, namely Avnish Kumar - Managing Director, Neerus Ensembles; Gautam Gupta - MD & CEO, Paradise Food Court; Muskaan Dadu - Managing Partner, Dadu's; P Jayakumar - CEO, Apollo Pharmacy; Susanne Pulverer - CEO & Chief Sustainability Officer, IKEA India; Vikash Hisariya - Managing Director, Vishal Peripherals, among others.