As part of its Rs 25,000 crore retail venture, Reliance Retail opened a new format store for Apple products. Called iStore, this store is an offering from Reliance Digital, the consumer durable information technology arm of Reliance Retail. The company would be opening 20-odd stores in this fiscal across the country.
The iStore in Hyderabad is claimed to be the largest in the country, spread over 2,875 sq.ft and would offer Apple’s innovative products and solutions in a welcoming environment. ?iStore will house the entire range of Apple products such as iMac consumer desktop computers, MacBook consumer notebooks, MacBook Pro, iPods and the entire suite of Mac software along with over 500 accessories and peripherals,? Ajay Baijal, CEO, Reliance Digital said.
According to Baijal, each store would be spread over 2,000 sq.ft entailing an investment of Rs 7-8 crore and Hyderabad would be the largest reference store for Apple products in the country though it is the second store after Bangalore. Besides, iStore will offer specific training modules for different Mac applications like iPhoto, iMovie, Mac OS, X Leopard, etc through regular training modules. It is expecting over 250 foot falls in a day at its iStore with revenue about Rs 10-12 crore per year.
Meanwhile, as part of its expansion plans, Reliance Digital, which has targeted to become a $5 billion company by 2012, is also expanding its footprint in the country. The company would be rolling out about 150 stores across the country in the next 18 months. In the next two months, it would be setting up a 40,000 sq.ft store, the largest one in the country, in Gurgoan, he added.
