| The
discussions at the forum of experts held in Kolkata
brought to light some issues pertaining to the current
problems. The panelists for last Friday's topic 'Indian
retail industry: Boom or doom? Threat, challenges and
opportunities' included Mr Sanjiv Goenka, vice-chairman,
RPG Enterprise, Mr Harsh Neotia, chairman, Ambuja Realty,
Mr Kishor Biyani, MD of Pantaloons Retail, Mr Vikram
Bakshi, MD of McDonald's India, Mr Rahul Saraf, MD,
Forum projects, Mr Henry Jardine, US Consul General
and Mr Jahangir Pocha, editor of Business World.
All the panelists were unanimous in their opinion that
organised retail has a bright future ahead in India.
At the same time they opined that it should not be at
the cost of small shop-keepers. "The market is
huge and there is a space for everyone", Mr Goenka
said.
Retail is a positive story and we have to find out the
best possible model where small shopkeepers and big
retailers can co-exist, Mr Bakshi commented.
Mr Biyani mentioned some of the key challenges organised
retail sector has been facing in the country such as
dearth of skilled manpower, tariff issues and absence
of an industry regulator.
Source: http://www.thestatesman.net
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