WEDNESDAY, 7 OCTOBER 2026

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Today in Indian Retail

Retail

Trent bets ₹2,500 cr to add 100 Westside stores a year

Tata retailer shifts capital to mid-premium private-label format as value fashion crowds up and margins matter more on the floor.

, Retail correspondent··4 min read

Empty mid-size department store aisle with hanging garments and soft overhead lights
Empty mid-size department store aisle with hanging garments and soft overhead lights

Trent Ltd will expand Westside by as many as 100 stores annually, backed by a board-approved ₹2,500 crore raise, a sharp jump from the earlier 10-15 openings a year. The push comes as the network already tops 1,300 stores and Zudio sits near 982 outlets. Management is balancing the value engine with higher-margin department stores ahead of the festive window.

Trent is pouring fresh capital into Westside after years of Zudio-led growth. The mid-to-premium format runs 100 per cent private label and targets larger 18,000-25,000 sq ft boxes in underserved urban markets including the Northeast. Q1 standalone revenue already rose 19 per cent to ₹5,666 crore.

Shop-floor P&L feels it immediately. A Westside till rings higher basket values from beauty, footwear and home alongside apparel, with gross margins near 45-50 per cent versus the 32-38 per cent multi-brand norm. Kirana-adjacent value players cannot match that mix without deep discounting.

Westside’s private-label model delivers 45-50 per cent gross margins that value formats cannot touch.

The move squeezes rivals such as Shoppers Stop and ABFRL Pantaloons on premium real estate while helping Trent reduce reliance on crowded Tier-2 value fashion where Yousta and Style Up are aggressive. Franchise and mall landlords gain from bigger ticket leases.

Watch the festive sell-through numbers and any further filing on the ₹2,500 crore deployment. Store openings should accelerate through the October-November window before full-year guidance firms up.

Filed under Retail·Meera Iyer

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