India opens retail sector to foreign brands

The Indian Government has revised its policy regarding FDI (foreign direct investment), allowing foreign retailers to open “single-brand stores owned at 100 per cent, following governmental approval,” according to a statement of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry of India. The required condition is that companies who own more than 51 per cent of their outlets in India supply themselves for a minimum of 30 per cent of the value of their products from local artisans and small businesses.

The Government is  therefore returned on his steps, reviewing the decision taken in November that forced foreign brands to rely on a local partner, limiting at 51 per cent the ownership of a store. This opens the way for the expansion of great international chains, from Starbucks to Ikea,  and also for brands like Louis Vuitton, Gucci and Armani, already present in India and willingly to grow in the Indian market.