Academy Of Broadcasting Ranked At # 33 Amongst The Top 100 Indian Franchise Opportunities

The Academy of Broadcasting is very proud to announce that it has been ranked at position # 33 amongst the Top 100 Franchise opportunities in India. This ranking has been done by Maverick Franchise Brands, India’ s leading name in the franchise opportunity business. “Your hard work, dedication and innovative ideas towards franchising have made your franchise brand a success in your business. Maverick Franchise Brands is pleased to be able to recognise you with this award, for the inaugural annual India Franchise Rankings 2010,” said Mr Dhawal Shah, Certified Franchise Executive & Co-Founder of the company.

Feeling excited quite expectedly, on this wonderful achievement Mr. Anil Jinsi, the Vice-President  remarked, “We are very happy that our efforts have been recognised at the national-level & that too by the franchise experts. Over these years, we have created Academy of Broadcasting a brand to reckon within the radio industry and have even touched global shores by sheer grit and determination.”

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Impact of Taco Bell Franchise on Indian Fast Food Industry

After having KFC and Pizza Hut as successful brands in India, Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM) is now focusing on developing Taco Bell as the third brand in India. As a part of its strategy, the fast food restaurant operator opened the first Taco Bell restaurant in Bangalore, India.

The sluggish sales in the U.S. have prompted Yum! and other international food chains, to focus more on emerging markets, such as India, which still remains untapped fully. The company remains confident about the success of Mexican-inspired quick-service restaurant brand, whose menu features tacos, burritos, nachos, quesadillas and Crunchwraps with menu pricing starting as low as 35 cents. 

Taco Bell faces competition in USA from Baja Fresh, Chipotle,Taco Johns,Taco Bell,Taco Cabana,Taco time, Del Taco. India is a virgin market for Mexican Food. With the saturation of the U.S. market and the recession taking its toll on restaurants, the industry is concentrating more on the overseas market. Apart from India, Yum! operates Taco Bell restaurants in Canada, Puerto Rico, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Panama, Dominican Republic, Guam, Iceland, Philippines, Dubai, Spain and Cyprus. As of fiscal 2009, the company operated over 250 Taco Bell restaurants outside the U.S. 

Louisville, Kentucky-based company, Yum!, plans to accelerate its expansion in India. The company, which currently operates about 158 Pizza Hut restaurants in 34 cities and 72 KFC outlets in 13 cities in India, plans to increase its total restaurant count to 1,000 by 2015.

The Indian market has been virtually recession-proof providing ample growth opportunities. Yum! plans to tap India's organized food and beverage market, which is growing rapidly. Yum!’s restaurants in India, which are managed by Niren Chaudhary, faces stiff competition from other fast-food chains such as McDonald’s Corp. (MCD) and Domino’s Pizza Inc. (DPZ).

Taco Bell India Strategy

- 100 Taco Bells by 2015

- Price Range between Rs. 18 and Rs. 79

- Unlimited Pepsi Refills at Rs. 35. 

- 22 Mexican Food Varieties, 11 Vegetarian and 11 Non Vegetarian

- Will offer Mexican fast food like tacos, burritos and quesdillos, apart from Nachos

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Carrefour Plans To Enter Indian Market

Carrefour, the French retailer, plans to enter the Indian market by establishing a wholesale business. The Indian economy is one of the fastest growing in the world, with an increasing middle-class. However, unlike China, India’s growth has been fuelled by consumer spending, a fact that has caught the attention of foreign retail giants. However, restrictions on foreign retailers have meant that they have had to find a different route to enter this fast growing market.

Carrefour joins Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT), and Metro AG from Germany, which have started cash-and-carry ventures in India. “Carrefour will develop its activities in India with the start of cash & carry activities in 2010," the company said in an email statement to Reuters.

Indian law allows foreign retail firms to have franchise agreements with local players, and Carrefour has been in talks with local firms for 4 years now. "Carrefour and some Indian companies have been discussing partnerships," the company said, but would not to comment on which firms it had spoken with.

MUMBAI: Gordon Reid — the chief operating officer, who oversaw the expansion of Trent’s Star Bazaar retail outlets — is returning to his parent firm Tesco to head its Chinese operations. According to an official Trent release, Mr Reid’s India stint was part of a franchise arrangement with partner Tesco, and he is now moving back. The company said his replacement at Trent will be announced soon. Trent officials that ET spoke to felt that managing director Noel Tata may opt for international expertise until Star Bazaar strengthens its operational set-up in the country. Mr Reid took over at Trent in 2008 after Tesco inked a deal with the retail arm of the salt-to-software Tata Group.

A pharmacist by training, he had worked with Boots for about 15 years earning his spurs in organised retail. He eventually ran the South East of England Region, responsible for around 200 stores. In 2005 he joined Tesco in Central Europe as the COO for their Hungarian business before coming to India. That stint is expected to come to an end on March 1.

Star Bazaar is estimated to have around seven operational stores and plans to scale that up to 11 by end of the year. That figure is slated to touch 50 in five years, according to company plans. Star Bazaar sells fruits, vegetables and non-vegetarian products, dairy, home care, health and beauty products, apparel, home decor, gifts and household items.

Tesco, the world’s third-largest retailer, is currently concluding its supply-chain integration with Star Bazaar as part of its franchise agreement with Trent. Tesco chose Trent as its partner almost two years after calling off talks with the Bharti Group. The wholesale outlets will sell groceries and other goods to small retailers and restaurant owners and supply Star Bazaar, Tesco said. Tesco’s first wholesale store in India is scheduled to open sometime this year. The UK retailer is keen to get a foothold in India where chain-store sales are expected to touch $97 billion by 2012, according to consultant Technopak Advisors. Tesco officials have said the retailer is relying on emerging markets of China, South Korea and India for future growth.

Chavana Spa forays into India with Four Points by Sheraton property Navi Mumbai

19th February 2010: Thailand-based Mandara Spa Asia Limited (MSAL) has forayed into the Indian market by launching its spa brand Chavana Spa through Four Points by Sheraton, Navi Mumbai. In October 2009, MSAL had launched the spa brand to cater to the mid-market and four-star hotel segment. The facility in Navi Mumbai marks the first establishment of an international spa brand in Asia. MSAL has entered into a franchise-management under a revenue sharing model agreement for the spa facility in the hotel. The hotel’s spa facility will offer Balinese therapies with traditional Balinese massages along with Indian head massages, Asian foot massages, purity facials and head and foot massages. The hotel has four treatment rooms and treatment costs range from Rs 1,400 to Rs 6,500.

About 85 per cent of the hotel’s in-house guests are inbound travellers who are likely to be the prime clientele for the spa facility. Besides its in-house guests, the hotel plans to direct its marketing efforts to the local market for this facility. It will focus on advertising and developing collaterals to educate and inform the local market about the offering.

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Raymond eyes 40% rise in retail biz revenue in 2 years

8th February 2010: Apparel house Raymond today said it is aiming to increase revenue from retail business by up to 40 per cent in two years from the current Rs 1,000 crore, for which it will add more stores in smaller towns. "We are looking at 30-40 per cent jump in revenue from retail business in the next two years from the current turnover of about Rs 1,000 crore," Raymond president (retail and business development) Rakesh Pandey told reporters here on the sidelines of an AIMA event.

In the third quarter ended December 31, Raymond reported a total income of Rs 375.9 crore and for the nine-month period it stood at Rs 1,017.95 crore. Under its retail vertical, Raymond has the Raymond Shop (premium retail store offering complete wardrobe solutions for men), Brand Shop (exclusive stores for stand-alone brands of the firm) and Be:Home(a specialty multi-brand home retail chain for soft home furnishings and accessories).

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Videocon to launch mobile services in Mumbai, Chennai next month
19th February 2010

Videocon’s foray into mobile services has been delayed. Starting with Mumbai and Chennai, the company now plans to roll out its GSM mobile services from March

Consumer electronics giant Videocon Group will launch its mobile services in Mumbai and Chennai by March, according to a senior official. Earlier, there were reports that the company would launch its GSM mobile services in Mumbai by 20th February.

Although the company has not fixed any date for launching its services, it is planning to increase the number of its retail outlets across the country to facilitate its foray. “We are launching our GSM mobile services by next month in Mumbai and Chennai which will require us to add more outlets. We are planning to add approximately 500 or more outlets across the country over a year,” said SM Hegde, director, Videocon Group.

Mumbai is one of the busiest telecom circles in India, which delivers a large chunk of revenues to various mobile operators. Average revenue per user (ARPU) of many mobile operators in India is highest in the Mumbai circle. Earlier this month, while speaking with PTI in Davos, Videocon Industries' president and vice chairman Pradeepkumar N Dhoot had said that the company plans to cover the entire country with its GSM mobile services within the next 18 months.

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Wyndham Hotel Group signs four franchise agreements in India

19th February, 2010: Wyndham Hotel Group has signed four franchise agreements in India, bringing the total number of hotels that the company has opened or under development in India to 14. The Group currently has 7,100 hotels under 11 brands across the world.

The properties currently being built and scheduled to open later this year, include the 140-room Ramada Amritsar hotel, owned by Starex Developers Pvt Ltd; the 130-room Ramada Gurgaon Expressway New Delhi hotel, owned by Sartaj Hotels Pvt Ltd; the 392-room Ramada Plaza Dwarka New Delhi hotel, owned by Tirupati Buildings & Offices Pvt Ltd and the 100-room Ramada Gurgaon Central hotel, owned by Greenland Hospitality Private Ltd.

Tom Monahan, Executive Vice President of international development, Wyndham Hotel Group said, “India is seeing the most hotel development activity in the Asia Pacific region, behind China. These new hotels will strengthen the brand’s presence in New Delhi and National Capital Region (NCR) region as well as mark our presence in Amritsar.”

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Footwear Major Woodland to franchise internationally

Feb 16, 2010: Footwear and apparel player Woodland will open exclusive stores in select foreign markets later this year, marking its foray into single-brand retailing overseas. The company, according to its top official, would be using the franchise route for its international expansion. The home-grown brand is in advanced stages of negotiations in some markets like the Middle East, South-East Asia and Sri Lanka for selecting local franchise partners and said it will have three to four exclusive outlets abroad by the year-end. At present, Woodland is present in over 600 multibranded outlets in the Middle East, Singapore and Thailand. 

"We are on the verge of concluding negotiations and opening our first exclusive outlets in overseas markets. By end of 2010, we will have at least a total of 3-4 outlets overseas," said Harkirat Singh, MD, Woodland. "Different countries follow different rules for investments in retail business. In such a situation, franchise partnership is a good option. Besides, that way the local partner makes the investment," Singh added. 

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Lite Bite intends to become Rs 500 crore brand by 2015

Feb 15, 2010: Lite Bite Foods, promoted by Amit Burman, vice chairman of FMCG major Dabur India, in his individual capacity, is aiming to become a Rs 500-crore food company by 2015. The company operates a bunch of eatery brands including Subway, Fresco, Asia 7, Punjab Grill, Baker Street and Pino's Pasta Pizza.

"The company is in the process of investing Rs 120 crore in next five years and is planning to open 250 eateries that would include its quick service restaurant (QSR) brands and casual dining restaurants over the next five years," Burman said while announcing the launch of Gautemala-based QSR brand, Pollo Campero, known for its fried chicken menu. 

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Franchising and the Wellness Industry Opportunity

Franchising and the Wellness Industry Opportunity

India is likely to have more than 2,000 spas by the end of 2010, up from just 200. The wellness industry is alive and kicking in India and nothing demonstrates this better than the hyper-activity in the spa business.

Consider this: Hyderabad-based O2 Spas, which has set up shop at the Delhi and Mumbai airports, is now delivering spa therapies to offices. Weight loss and beauty specialists Vandana Luthra Curls and Curves (VLCC) is developing a residential medical spa in Gurgaon at an investment of Rs 100 crore. Delhi-based Spas India Private Limited, a subsidiary of Canadian Spas Worldwide, wants to expand from its single spa in Delhi to 10 more cities, Bangalore and Mumbai among them. First off the expansion block is Guwahati, on which Spas India is spending nearly Rs 10 crore.

Find a suitable Health and wellness Franchise & Spa Business Opportunities and be a part of this profitable franchise industry. If you're interested in relaxation/pampering innovative ideas, and what better way to do this than with one of these spa franchises? Avail of additional health and wellness Franchise Opportunities at FranchiseExpo.in

Meanwhile, Vallée de Vin Private Limited, is planning a unique “wine spa” by next year. And, Bharat Hotels’ Lalit Resort and Spas in Kerala, will invest Rs 70 crore in a 40-cottage spa. Recently opened in Pune, Mumbai’s Rudra Spa, whose cash registers ring up Rs 15 lakh to Rs 20 lakh every month, has plans to expand to Mumbai’s suburbs through a franchise model.

What’s prompting all this healthy activity is sheer demand. Although there are no industry figures, it is clear that expanding incomes are encouraging affluent Indians to explore more expensive health solutions. A study by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci) suggests that the wellness industry is growing at close to 20 per cent annually and currently stands at Rs 1,500 crore. According to O2’s founder and CEO, Ritesh Mastipur, India has 200 registered good-quality spas. “By the end of this year there will be 2,200 spas in India,” predicts Rajesh Sharma, president, Spas India.

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Interview with Mr. Nabi Saleh, the Executive Chairman for Gloria Jean's Coffees

Specialty coffee chain Gloria Jean’s Coffees, which silently entered India two years ago via a master franchise agreement with Citymax Hospitality, a company controlled by the Dubai-based retail group Landmark, is looking to ramp up operations now. From the current nine outlets, the intention is to scale up to 25 and then 100 by the end of 2013. This will see the privately-held coffee chain, which has 917 outlets globally, go to 16 cities from the current four. Nabi Saleh, the New-South-Wales, Australia-based executive chairman of Gloria Jean’s Coffees, talks about the company’s plans in India. Excerpts:

What took you so long to ramp up operations here despite a presence since the last quarter of 2007?We are not into growth for growth’s sake. We believe in the franchising concept like most other fast-food and coffee chains, but we choose to scrutinise our partners carefully. We are fine if they take their time when setting up operations in a country. We have master franchise agreements in 35 countries. We understand how it works. There is no point in rushing in to set up stores only to shut half of them down later. This is, at the end of the day, a retail business. You have to guarantee foot falls. How do you do that? With a first-class service offering that targets the right consumer.

How different is Gloria Jeans from other coffee chains?The big differentiator is that we do not outsource our back-end operations to third-party vendors like other coffee chains do. Operations such as sourcing, roasting and blending are all done in-house. We have a team in place that directly sources single-origin coffee beans from growers across the world. At the moment, our team is sourcing from over 26-27 coffee-growing nations across the world.

To us, coffee is our hero. So everything emanates from there. We have something called a coffee university, where we train our staff rigorously. Even our master franchisers are invited to participate in our programmes at our university. There is a certain degree of localisation we permit to suit the palate of people in the region. But there is a broad template we follow over and above that. That is our signature style.

Who is your target audience in India? It is the up and coming middle class. We could have people from above or below this catchment walking into our outlets, too. That is not an issue. But we have positioned ourselves in a manner we feel would appeal to upper middle class Indians.

But how competitive are you on pricing in India?
We are quite competitive. A Gloria Jeans cappuccino, for instance, costs anywhere between Rs 49 to Rs 55 for a 230-millilitre cup. Competition provides lesser volume, 180-millilitres, I understand, for the same price. A consumer would land up spending anywhere between Rs 49 to Rs 110 depending on what he or she purchases at our outlets. It’s not a such a bad deal, if you ask me.

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CK Birla group to enter pathology lab business will expand by franchising

The GP-CK Birla group's BM Birla Heart Research Centre is venturing into the pathological laboratory businesswith a national chain of franchised centres. The chain, tentatively named Birla Diagnostic, will be launched soon. Chief operating officer of the hospital, Suyash Borar said: "We will be rolling out 20 pathological laboratories in Eastern India in the next 12 months. These will be on the lines of the best pathological labs in the country."

Most of the laboratories would be franchised. "We will own two of these while rest will be franchised," Borar said. The centre was the first hospital in India to get accredited by the National Accreditation Board for Hospitals & Healthcare Providers. It has also secured the accreditation of the College of American Pathologists (CAP) for its pathological laboratory. "The lab can now get samples even from outside the country," said a CK Birla group's spokesperson.

The CAP serves nearly 16,000 physician members and the laboratory community throughout the world. More than 6,000 laboratories are accredited to the CAP, and approximately 23,000 laboratories are enrolled in its proficiency testing programmes. According to estimates, there are more than 40,000 independent pathological laboratories with the Rs 3,000 crore medical diagnostics market in India. Each day, 22 million pathological tests are carried out across the country, of which only 1 million are done at accredited laboratories.

CK Birla group to enter pathology lab business will expand by franchising

The GP-CK Birla group's BM Birla Heart Research Centre is venturing into the pathological laboratory businesswith a national chain of franchised centres. The chain, tentatively named Birla Diagnostic, will be launched soon. Chief operating officer of the hospital, Suyash Borar said: "We will be rolling out 20 pathological laboratories in Eastern India in the next 12 months. These will be on the lines of the best pathological labs in the country."

Most of the laboratories would be franchised. "We will own two of these while rest will be franchised," Borar said. The centre was the first hospital in India to get accredited by the National Accreditation Board for Hospitals & Healthcare Providers. It has also secured the accreditation of the College of American Pathologists (CAP) for its pathological laboratory. "The lab can now get samples even from outside the country," said a CK Birla group's spokesperson.

The CAP serves nearly 16,000 physician members and the laboratory community throughout the world. More than 6,000 laboratories are accredited to the CAP, and approximately 23,000 laboratories are enrolled in its proficiency testing programmes. According to estimates, there are more than 40,000 independent pathological laboratories with the Rs 3,000 crore medical diagnostics market in India. Each day, 22 million pathological tests are carried out across the country, of which only 1 million are done at accredited laboratories.

Tony White shares his vision for Australian Franchise Gloria Jean in India

Australian cafe chain Gloria Jean’s Coffees, which forayed into the Indian market through the Dubai headquartered Landmark group’s hospitality 

Tony White, regional general manager, Gloria Jean's Coffees

arm Citymax in 2008, has grown at 23% year-on-year. With 917 cafes globally, the chain expects to brew its way into the Indian market with 100 stores by 2013. Gloria Jean’s Coffees regional general manager Tony White speaks about its lessons from this market and how it is using India as the node to serve countries from Africa to the subcontinent. Excerpts: 

Where does Gloria Jean’s position itself and what has been experience like since its 2008 entry? Gloria Jean’s operates at around 10% premium over the two main cafe players in India, offering 100% arabica beans. Although we position ourselves at the upper end of the mainstream cafe market, we do not want to operate at the price points of international players as it would prevent us from achieving scale. We have grown to a presence of nine stores across Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Chennai. Gloria Jean’s India broke even at the retail level two months back and is targeting company-level profitability by 2012. By then the Citymax would have 40 stores in place.

Is there a possibility that your tie up with master franchisee Citymax be extended to subfranchised growth? Sub-franchising is definitely an option to grow. But we will look at branching out into sub franchisees only once we reach a 50 store presence. Although most of our outlets are franchised in Australia, it is usually owned by a couples for whom it is a means of livelihood. They’ve got their skin in the business and are focused on driving sales. But in India, the franchisee does not necessarily run the business. Although we may train him, a lot of factors may get lost in translation when he reaches out to the staff. Consistency of experience is essential to not dilute the brand. 

What is the progress on your roasting facility in Bangalore on stream? We have a long term commitment to this market and are setting up a roaster with a capacity to manufacture up to 12,000 cups per batch by the calendar year end. Being situated in the city, the fresh beans can be easily distributed to our outlets which are largely metro specific. Import tariffs have forced us to source locally and this facility is expected to become a hub for Asia. It will also allow us export to 11 countries across the subcontinent, Middle East and Africa, which were earlier importing beans from Australia. By 2012, 80% of the in house production will serve India while the remainder will be exported.

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Shoprite calls off India Franchise Agreement with Nirmal Lifestyle

4th Feb 2010 MUMBAI: Shoprite Holdings, the South Africa-based retail heavyweight has called off its franchisee deal in India with real estate developer, Nirmal Lifestyle Group, top officials close to the development said. Kishore Biyani led Future Group is now buying out Shoprite’s single hypermarket in Mumbai with its existing employees to set up a food store which will be rebranded as Food Republic. 

It is learnt that Shoprite which also has a cash and carry operation in India may consider the option of tying up with an existing Indian retailer to scale up operations in the country. Shoprite is also concerned over opening more stores in India given the lack of clarity by the Indian government on opening up foreign investment in retail, a company official said on conditions of anonymity.

The retailer had signed a franchisee deal with the Nirmal group in 2004 and set up its first hyper market in Mumbai. The existing hypermarket in Mumbai is understood to be quite profitable but the retailer has not been able to expand beyond the first store in Mumbai. Suppliers to the store confirmed that Shoprite has announced its decision to call off its hypermarket operations and send a notice that the Shoprite store would cease to exist by January 2010.

“Probably, the JV did not seem viable with the existing partner. However, Shoprite has been extremely efficient in its dealings with suppliers and have ensured timely payments” said a well-known wine supplier on conditions of anonymity. Senior officials from Shoprite global is understood to have held meetings with Nirmal group management late last year but later sent a notice terminating the agreement, an official privy to the JV said.

Ram Harishankar, executive Director of the Shoprite Group in India was not reachable for comments. Dharmesh Jain managing director, Nirmal Lifestyle declined to comment on the development. An email sent to Shoprite’s US headquarters too did not elicit any reply. When contacted, Kishore Biyani, CEO of Future Group declined to divulge details. “We are currently in talks and I do not want to comment on anything further” he said. 

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Vaidyaratnam eyes to have more franchisees

3rd February 2010: Vaidyaratnam, an ayurvedic player, has announced plans to roll out 1,000 more franchisees in major destinations in India and abroad in the next three years. Meanwhile, the company has set a turnover target of Rs 200 crore by 2015. For this, the company would invest 25 crore in a phased manner over the next four year. The target is achievable considering the pace at which the market for ayurveda is expanding both within the country and abroad. The company has also decided to invest Rs 25 crore in a phased manner in the next four years, E T Neelakandan Mooss, managing director, Vaidyaratnam, said at a press meet.

“In the next three years, the company will have 1,000 more franchisees in major destinations in India and abroad. This initiative will provide 3,000 fresh employment opportunities. The franchisees outside Kerala will showcase ayurvedic products, especially the Vaidyaratnam brand,” Mooss added. Vaidyaratnam, with a current turnover Rs 65 crore, already has to its credit 1,000-odd retail outlets in the State. It also has branches and distribution network spread across Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Delhi.

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Franchising can change the world

Who says that the franchise can not work in a small third world country or in an economically weaker countries, where humans are only one or two dollars a day? I believe that franchise systems can work in these positions, both in Asia, Middle East, former Soviet States, Indonesia, Latin America, the Caribbean or in Africa. You see, there are a whole series of micro-systems are helping in these countries, people start businesses of their own.

Micro-franchising is a business model that attempts to adapt some of the traditional franchising concepts to small businesses in the developing world. It seeks to provide replicable business plans to small entrepreneurs in developing countries by using methodologies developed in the traditional franchising model. It attempts to follow in the footsteps of the micro-finance and micro-credit models in developing countries by funding new ideas and business opportunities

Franchising works bestunits of the system, because these types of small businesses. With a simple proven system, and the influx of micro-credit can be set to people with small businesses that can provide for themselves and their families. For example, consider the activities of people at risk? Each of these devices can be bought for the transportation of a few hundred dollars / few thousand rupees, but someone who makes only $ 1 – $ 2 a day / Rs. 50 to Rs. 100 a day and spends most of the time and money for food and not be able to save what isrequired to purchase the device in the first place.

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Cox & Kings eyes overseas acquisitions to strengthen franchise operations in India

2nd February 2010: Travel operator Cox & Kings India is scouting for acquisitions in countries like the US, Canada, England, Australia and New Zealand, a senior company official said today. The travel operator, which raised Rs 610 crore through a public issue in December last year, has earmarked Rs 150 crore for funding such acquisitions. "We have a fund of Rs 150 crore earmarked for this (acquisitions). We are very comfortable with countries where the laws are familiar like the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand...It becomes very attractive for us particularly since these countries are just coming out of recession," Cox & Kings Executive Director Peter Kerkar told PTI here.

Kerkar said the company is still on the look out and that "it could be several small companies or one large company". Last year, Cox & Kings acquired MyPlanet Australia and Bentours International, expanding its product and retail distribution presence in Australia. Besides this, it has a strong presence there through Tempo Holidays, a outbound tourism market player that it had earlier acquired. He said the company would focus on enhancing its distribution in India, through franchise sales outlets as well as internet.

Cox & Kings as a franchisor would grant the franchisee / entrepreneur the licensed right to own and operate a business based on the Cox and King's travel business concept, using its trademark. Cox and Kings would help the franchisee start the business, providing training, assistance with, site development and ordering inventory, advertising and marketing support. To benefit from this business opportunity, a franchisee needs 250 to 1,000 sq ft of space and to make an investment of Rs 10-15 lakh

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Central Cottage Industries Corporation of India to Franchise overseas in New Zealand

2nd February 2010: The New Delhi based Central Cottage Industries Corporation of India Ltd (CCIC) is keen to establish its Cottage Emporium showrooms in New Zealand on franchise basis. The prospective franchisees could be of Indian origin, familiar with Indian handicrafts and handlooms, although this would not be a condition. But the showrooms should be named ‘Central Cottage Industries Emporium’ and deal with goods sourced only from the CCIC.

The state-owned company operates as an independent commercial entity with showrooms in India and Denmark (Copenhagen) and believes there is ample potential for its extensive product range in New Zealand. Its merchandise includes carpets, shawls, fabrics, sarees, artifacts in sandalwood and other woods, metals, silver jewellery and other crafted objects from diverse regions of India. CCIC Managing Director M A Ibrahimi said the company had worldwide customers and that foreign showrooms would cater to the growing demand for its quality products.

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