Adidas receives a nod from government for FDI in Retail

After days of discussion, finally Government of India has given its nod to Adidas to bring in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in retail. The company doesn’t need to set a separate retail company for that and in fact, it can carry its business through its present business entity.

Now, since the company has been given a backing from the government, it is planning to open around 30-50 company –owned stores across the major cities of the country by 2020. Adidas will be filing another FDI application for Reebok so that it can also opt for the similar path of expansion in India.

Speaking about the move, Dave Thomas, MD, Indian Operations, Adidas Group said that as per the new government approval received last week, the existing Adidas wholesale entity can set up its own retail stores and also start its ecommerce venture. The company-owned stores will come up from the middle of next year, with the first few in Delhi where brand will have 3-4 outlets across formats -the premium HomeCourt and Adidas Originals Neighbourhood formats and one factory outlet.

The group first received the FDI approval for Adidas stores last October which required the company to set up a separate entity for company-owned retail and ecommerce since the existing entity was into cash-and-carry wholesale trading.

However, recently, government amended the norm, equipping the manufacturers to sell their products in the country through wholesale, retail and ecommerce channels.