Trent lifts Q2 profit 25% as Zudio nears 1,000 stores

Standalone revenue climbed 23% to ₹5,788 crore while operating EBITDA jumped 37% to ₹791 crore. Margins improved to 11.6% even as the company added 19 Zudio and 10 Westside stores net of consolidations. Fashion footprint now exceeds 18.5 million sq ft.

Shop-floor maths favours the compact Zudio box. A new outlet still costs ₹3-4 crore including inventory; mid-single-digit like-for-like growth plus higher beauty and footwear mix lifts basket size without heavy discounting. Kirana-adjacent catchments in smaller towns see faster payback when footfall holds through the week.

Approximately 85 per cent of new Zudio outlets were in peripheral growth markets or Tier 2 cities and beyond.

The push squeezes pure-play value rivals still chasing metro density and helps mall owners filling vacant large-format space. Star grocery revenue crossed ₹1,006 crore, up over 20%, with own brands at 74% of sales.

Watch the next 90 days of store openings and any update on overseas lifestyle brand exports once Noel Tata hands over the chair on 12 November. Diwali week same-store numbers will show if Tier-3 conversion sticks.