Aditya Birla Group partners Galeries Lafayette to open luxury department stores in India

Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited (ABFRL), the retail and fashion arm of Aditya Birla Group, has signed a pact with Galeries Lafayette, a French department store chain, to open luxury department stores and a dedicated e-commerce platform in India. Galeries Lafayette is known globally for its flagship location at Boulevard Haussmann in Paris.

As part of the deal, ABFRL will open Galeries Lafayette’s flagship stores in Mumbai and Delhi, which will bring more than 200 luxury and designer brands under one roof, Aditya Birla Group company said in a release on Thursday.

ABFRL will open a 90,000 square feet flagship store in Mumbai by 2024. It will be housed across two historic buildings that recently heralded their century at the heritage precinct of Fort, the leading commercial and cultural hub of the city, the release noted.

The release further stated that the building is currently being designed by the architectural firm Virgile + Partners, who have worked extensively on storied department stores globally. Pike Preston is the advisor on-record for this collaboration.

Speaking on the development, Nicolas Houzé, CEO, Galeries Lafayette and BHV Marais said, “We are proud to expand our international footprint in such a prestigious and refined market as India, where we believe our brand can benefit from a strong potential. It is also a new illustration of our ambition to reach 20 stores abroad, with a primary focus on China, Asia and the Middle East by 2025.”

Galeries Lafayette, one of Europe’s leading department stores, is also accelerating its expansion in China and recently announced the opening in early 2023 of a store in Shenzhen’s dynamic, young district of Futian. The company has signed a new lease with real estate company Shum Yip as part of the group’s strategic expansion plan, aiming to open ten stores in China by 2025.

Meanwhile, shares of Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail closed 2.1% lower at 309.5 apiece on the BSE on Thursday.

Speaking on the development, Nicolas Houzé, CEO, Galeries Lafayette and BHV Marais said, “We are proud to expand our international footprint in such a prestigious and refined market as India, where we believe our brand can benefit from a strong potential. It is also a new illustration of our ambition to reach 20 stores abroad, with a primary focus on China, Asia and the Middle East by 2025.”

Galeries Lafayette, one of Europe’s leading department stores, is also accelerating its expansion in China and recently announced the opening in early 2023 of a store in Shenzhen’s dynamic, young district of Futian. The company has signed a new lease with real estate company Shum Yip as part of the group’s strategic expansion plan, aiming to open ten stores in China by 2025.

Meanwhile, shares of Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail closed 2.1% lower at 309.5 apiece on the BSE on Thursday.