Reliance Retail reported a 17 percent year-on-year growth in overall revenue for the December quarter, coming in at Rs 67,623 crore. The figure was lower than Nomura's estimate of Rs 70,330 crore. The retail arm of Reliance Industries saw revenue increase 4.1 percent on a sequential basis.

The retail division's operating profit or EBITDA increased 25 percent from the same period last year to Rs 4,773 crore, which comfortably surpassed Nomura's estimate of Rs 4,640 crore.

The division's EBITDA margin on sales increased 70 basis points from the same period last year to 7.7 percent, as a result of a favourable mix, operating leverage and efficiencies.

Reliance Retail also expanded its physical store network with 789 new openings, taking the total at the end of the quarter to 17,225 stores.

"Retail business had another quarter of strong progress with more Indians choosing to shop at Reliance Retail stores. We are focused on delivering superior products and value to customers while improving profitability," Reliance Industries Chairman and Managing Director Mukesh Ambani said.

Reliance Retail received a record 201 million footfalls across formats and geographies during the quarter, registering a growth of 25 percent from the same period last year. The division's registered customer base increased 30 percent from last year to 235 million. Overall transactions also increased 30 percent year-on-year to 265 million.

"Reliance Industries is a long-term story, we have seen Avenue Supermarts numbers, and it was expected that retail will be under pressure," Sudip Bandyopadhyay, Group Chairman of Inditrade Capital, said. He also said that the division was looking to acquire brands in the retail space and make it a much larger play than it is today.

Also Read: Reliance Jio Q3 Results: Telco registers over 50% margin for the fourth consecutive quarter

Among business segments within retail, the Digital and New Commerce business registered 38 percent growth from last year and contributed to 18 percent of the business. Daily digital commerce orders grew 30 percent while merchant partners were up 70 percent year-on-year across geographies and consumption baskets.

JioMart also continued its growth momentum by strengthening its catalogue by 71 percent compared to the September quarter and expanded its seller base by 83 percent sequentially.

"We see these are the strong numbers, especially on the retail side where they have done Rs 67,000 crore of revenues, which is above the expectation of Rs 63,000-64,000 crore," Abhijit Bora of Sharekhan By BNP Paribas said.

Retail's consumer brands business launched several new variants in processed foods, beverages, spices and staples during the quarter. The management said the acquisition of Sosyo, Lotus Chocolate and the launch of the Independence brand would further strengthen the portfolio of the business.

Also Read: Reliance Industries reports net profit at Rs 15,792 crore in third quarter

First Published:Jan 20, 2023 7:36 PM IST