A sharp acceleration in store additions across key retail formats in the March quarter has helped ease concerns around slowing growth for Tata Group’s Trent and strengthened the earnings outlook for Avenue Supermarts (DMart), according to a report by Elara Capital.

After a softer January–February period that had raised questions around demand trends, the strong Q4FY26 expansion across Zudio, Westside, and DMart has shifted sentiment, with analysts now pointing to improved revenue visibility and potential earnings upgrades.

“Store addition momentum has been meaningfully stronger than expected, which alleviates near-term concerns on growth trajectory, especially for Trent,” said Karan Taurani, executive vice president at Elara Capital.

Zudio, Westside lead Trent’s recovery narrative

Value fashion brand Zudio led the expansion, adding 103 stores in Q4FY26, taking its year-to-date additions to 192 stores. While this remains slightly below the 220 stores added in FY25, it is ahead of Elara’s estimate of around 150 stores and broadly in line with consensus expectations of about 196 stores for the year.

Also read: Trent revenue jumps 17% in Q3, FY26 but stock takes a beating as analysts flag growth concerns

The aggressive rollout comes even as revenue updates remain awaited. Analysts believe the network expansion itself offers a strong base for growth. “Faster network expansion provides upside support to our revenue growth assumptions of around 19–20% on an annualised basis, assuming like-for-like growth remains stable,” Taurani said.

Westside, Trent’s premium fashion format, added 22 stores in the quarter and 52 stores for the year so far. This is well above the roughly 16 stores added in FY25 and ahead of analyst estimates of 35–37 stores. The steady performance of Westside has helped offset pressure from moderating like-for-like (LFL) growth at Zudio. LFL is used to compare current sales against the same period in a previous year.

Combined, the expansion across formats is expected to support throughput improvements in new stores, a key factor for sustaining growth momentum.

DMart expansion beats expectations, upgrades likely

Avenue Supermarts, which operates DMart, also reported a strong quarter, adding 58 stores in Q4FY26 and 85 stores for the full year to date. This again is significantly higher than about 50 stores added in FY25 and well above consensus estimates of 51.

Also read: DMart shares rise 3% after Q3 results; brokerages remain split on growth outlook

The expansion has been driven in part by a push into North India, where the company is scaling up its presence.

“Strong store additions coupled with stabilising LFL trends support the case for an upgrade cycle for DMart,” Taurani opined. He added that revenue growth could move towards 18–20% in FY27, compared with earlier expectations of 16–17%.

Another tailwind for DMart comes from a shift in competitive intensity. “Increasing focus on profitability by quick commerce players is incrementally positive for DMart margins,” Taurani said.

For Trent, which has seen its stock correct about 22% over the past three months, the improved operational momentum could also support a partial recovery in sentiment.

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Going ahead, analysts will track LFL growth trends, particularly at Zudio, along with the pace of new store ramp-ups, sustainability of expansion, and competitive pressures from quick commerce. Overall, the stronger-than-expected store addition cycle has reduced downside risks to growth and improved earnings visibility across India’s organised retail sector.