Ayushi Mehta
India’s biggest billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries Ltd. has been ranked the second fastest retailer growing in the world in 2021 by Deloitte.
Previously, it has been ranked 53rd in the list of Global Powers of Retailing, according to the Deloitte report.
This list of world’s top retailers is currently topped by US giant Walmart Inc. Amazon.com Inc upgraded its position to rank second. Costco Wholesale Corporation of US slipped a rank to be placed third followed by Schwarz Group of Germany.
Reliance Industries’s Reliance Retail is perhaps the only Indian company that entered in the global list of 250 retailers. It was featured for the 4th time in a row in the list of Global Powers of Retailing and World’s Fastest Retailers.
The top 10 list contains names of seven US retailers and one retailer from the UK (Tesco PLC at 10th position). Other names on the list of the US retailers in the top 10 include The Kroger Co (ranked 5th), Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc (6th) and CVS Health Corporation (ranked 9th). Germany’s Aldi Einkauf GmbH & Co. oHG and Aldi International Services GmbH & Co. oHG is placed at 8th position.
Deoitte, in a statement said- “Reliance Retail, last year’s Fastest 50 leader, dropped to second place. The company recorded YoY growth of 41.8 per cent, driven primarily by a 13.1 per cent increase in the number of stores in its consumer electronics, fashion and lifestyle and grocery retail chains, to 11,784 stores across 7,000+ towns and cities in India at fiscal year end (FY20).”
It further said- “The company is partnering with WhatsApp to further accelerate Reliance Retail’s digital commerce business on the JioMart platform using WhatsApp and to support small businesses on WhatsApp. Reliance Retail acquired the 29 stores of Shri Kannan Departmental Store at the end of FY2019, and in August 2020 announced it would acquire Future Group’s retail, wholesale and logistics units for USD 3.4 billion.”