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Cookie Man plans to expand to 250 stores, eyes airport retailing
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Wednesday, 04 March, 2009, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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Our Bureau, Mumbai
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Cookie Man India is planning to open a total of 250 stores from the present 45 stores in the next five years. The company, which has been expanding in malls, is now eyeing airport retailing to scale up presence. Says Pattabhi Rama Rao, president, Cookie Man India, "Airports in India are expanding and this represents a tremendous opportunity for us to scale up our operations. Currently, we are present in 8 airports across the country. This will be scaled to 28 in the next two to three years." Currently, 25% of its turnover is accrued from airport retail business.
He told Business Standard that the company is currently not focusing much on tier II and III cities as mall development has taken a hit following the slowdown. "The malls which were supposed to have come up, are yet to take shape. This is making it difficult for us to expand in the current scenario. We will be investing Rs 25 crore on our expansions," he said.
Rao said the company had developed a robust franchising business model that had helped it to rapidly expand pan-India. Cookie Man had also broken into the institutional space by establishing relationships with airlines -- Jet Airways, Kingfisher - and hotel chains across the country. Noting that a lack of any recognized player in the premium baked segment has helped the company gain a significant foothold in the market, he said the company retailed over 50 varieties of freshly baked cookies besides a range of freshly baked products. The company is also looking to tap into the corporate gifting segment to boost its top line. "We have graduated from tin packaging to ceramic packaging. Through continuous menu engineering, we will also constantly innovate our product range," Rao added.
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