The Retailers Association of India’s (RAI) Retail Leadership Summit (RLS) 2023 was held on February 22 and 23 in Mumbai. The summit was an opportunity for the retail industry to come together and discuss building sustainable omnichannel retail businesses. The summit was presented by Reliance Retail, and several notable figures in the industry gave speeches.

Kumar Rajagopalan, the CEO of RAI, spoke about the growth of the retail industry in India despite global issues around inflation and the Russia-Ukraine war. He said that technological adoption and infrastructural progress were helping Indian retail maintain a sense of positivity. He also emphasised the importance of RLS as a platform for retailers and retail service providers to connect and create better standards of retail.

RAI chairman, Bijou Kurien, set the tone for the event with his speech about the opportunity for small retailers to digitally transform their businesses. He said that technology could be adopted in batches, on a revenue model, rather than as a large capital investment. He also highlighted the potential of UPI for payments and ONDC for commerce. According to Kurien, small retailers could achieve the same capability as large retailers and gain a sustainable advantage.

The keynote address on day one was delivered by Ashwin Khasgiwala, the Chief Operations Controller of Reliance Retail Ltd. & Director of Reliance Brands Ltd. On day two, Peyush Bansal, the Co-Founder, Chief Executive & People Officer, India, SE Asia, Middle East, Lenskart had an in-depth one-on-one discussion with Bijou Kurien. Bansal spoke about the need for more B-school graduates to join the retail industry, saying that retail was a profession that people should be proud of.

The summit was attended by several retail leaders and top names in the retail service provider space. Kulin Lalbhai, the Executive Director of Arvind Ltd., spoke about the negative impact of using discounts as a crutch to stimulate online hypergrowth. He hoped that as the market matured, excessive reliance on discounts would subside, and brands would work to have a unique personality and value proposition.

Venu Nair, the MD & CEO of Shoppers Stop Limited, spoke about the shift in shopping behaviour during the pandemic and how it had made omnichannel a key way of shopping. Gunjan Shah, the MD & CEO of Bata India Ltd., spoke about the potential of the footwear segment and the opportunities for brands in terms of bringing technologies into products and big export opportunities. Abhishek Ganguly, the MD of Puma India & South East Asia, emphasized the importance of brands and retailers evolving faster and understanding consumers' needs better and faster to stand to gain.

List of Panels at RLS 2023