Will see strong comeback in August & September; expect margins to grow: Bata

Gunjan Shah will be at the helm of the brand's operations in India, a statement from Bata India said.

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Bata India has put its best foot forward this quarter after posting a decent set of numbers.

In an interview to CNBC-TV18, Rajeev Gopalakrishnan, President-Asia South, Bata India spoke about the results and his outlook for the company.

Everything went right in the last quarter for the company. Same-store-sales-growth (SSSG) improved to 10 percent in Q1 vs 3 percent in FY17, he said.

Company is focused on the premiumisation in the top 30 stores. Bata has opened close to 40 stores in the last quarter and it is now targeting 120 stores in FY18.

Wholesale saw some glitch in terms of goods and services tax (GST) but retail grew 15 percent in the last quarter.

Higher SSSG and premium products aided margins, he added.

End of season sale was preponed to June, so the company witnessed a dull period in July, the footfalls was down by 15-20 percent.

“In August-September, we will come back very strongly because we have taken all the right steps to get the best of the best stock availability in the next six months’ time. We are very much upbeat that in the next six months, we will be doing a better show,” said Gopalakrishnan.

Shoes priced below 500 will have an edge under the GST regime, he said.

According to him, premium portfolio growing faster for company as consumer pattern is changing.

He expects margin to grow in the coming years.