The EKAM Summit 2025 brought together industry leaders to move India's retail sector from symbolic diversity commitments to measurable, system-led inclusion across hiring, workplaces, and frontline experience.

The role of inclusion as both a social imperative and a business strategy came into sharp focus at EKAM – The All Inclusion Summit 2025, jointly hosted by the Retailers Association of India (RAI) and the Trust for Retailers and Retail Associates of India (TRRAIN). Held on November 20 at The Westin Mumbai Garden City, Goregaon, the summit convened retail leaders, HR heads, policymakers, and inclusion practitioners to examine how equity can be embedded into everyday organisational systems rather than treated as a symbolic commitment.

The 2025 edition of EKAM was anchored around the theme "Equity In Action – Moving from Intent to Impact", reflecting a growing recognition within the retail industry that inclusion must translate into tangible outcomes across recruitment, compensation, promotion, workplace access, and leadership opportunity.

Keynote Address — Padma Shri Dr. Niru Kumar, CEO, Ask Insights, D&I Consultant, Advisory Board Member of Election Commission of India

Panel conversations such as From Pledges to Progress: Building Measurable DEI Outcomes and Retail for All: Making Stores, Services, and Supply Chains Inclusive offered practical insights into how organisations can operationalise diversity, equity, and inclusion across the retail value chain. Speakers shared real-world examples highlighting how inclusive store design, accessible infrastructure, equitable people policies, supplier diversity, and ethical sourcing can shape more resilient and customer-centric retail ecosystems.

Addressing the summit, Kumar Rajagopalan, Chief Executive Officer of the Retailers Association of India, emphasised that inclusion is not peripheral to retail operations but central to their effectiveness. He noted that India's retail workforce spans multiple regions, identities, abilities, and socio-economic backgrounds, yet many employees continue to face barriers related to safety, confidence, and access. According to Rajagopalan, retailers that invest in fair hiring practices, accessible workplaces, and supportive frontline leadership are better positioned to build engaged teams that reflect and understand their customers. He added that the next step for the sector lies in moving from isolated good practices to shared standards that normalise dignity and equity across Indian retail.

Echoing this perspective, BS Nagesh, Founder of TRRAIN and Chairman of Shoppers Stop, said that retail's people-centric nature makes inclusion foundational rather than optional. He stressed the need to move beyond intent and redesign systems so that individuals—irrespective of gender, disability, socio-economic background, or identity—have equitable opportunities to contribute and grow. Drawing on TRRAIN's long-standing work with frontline employees, he observed that respect and support directly influence confidence, performance, and retention, and that EKAM reflects an industry increasingly ready to embed equity into everyday practice.

The summit featured participation from senior leaders across retail, fashion, grocery, and financial services. Speakers included Harish Iyer, Senior Vice President and Head – Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at Axis Bank; Rohith Kumar, Chief Human Resources Officer at Arvind Fashions Ltd.; Neelam Ahluwalia, Vice President – Learning & Inclusion at BigBasket, Sanchita Ghosh of Titan, Nabamita Banerjee of Shoppers Stop, and Shubra Singh from IKEA among others. Their discussions underscored the need for leadership accountability, data-led decision-making, and sustained investment in capability-building to make inclusion durable.

Ameesha Prabhu, Chief Executive Officer of TRRAIN, highlighted that inclusion directly shapes livelihoods, confidence, and long-term economic participation. She noted that access to training, supportive environments, and empathetic leadership can transform outcomes for women, persons with disabilities, and individuals from marginalised communities. According to her, EKAM serves as a reminder that inclusion becomes meaningful only when organisations commit to long-term capability and system design, with benefits extending beyond the workplace into the communities retail serves.

The importance of aligning policy, infrastructure, language, and daily behaviour was further reinforced by Harish Iyer of Axis Bank, who pointed out that diversity has always existed in Indian society, even if it has not always been fully recognised. He stressed that meaningful DEI agendas must acknowledge lived realities and consciously remove barriers that limit participation, enabling organisations to move beyond compliance toward compassion and equity.

Dr. Niru Kumar, CEO of Ask Insights and a diversity and inclusion consultant, added that effective inclusion requires a systems-led approach that addresses bias, accessibility, and psychological safety. She emphasised that workplaces prioritising fairness and dignity create stronger cultures, better decision-making, and greater trust—outcomes that are both ethically and commercially significant.

Industry data referenced during the summit reinforced the business case for inclusion. Findings from Boston Consulting Group indicate that employee happiness rises significantly and attrition reduces sharply in inclusive workplaces, while Deloitte's Women @ Work survey shows markedly higher levels of loyalty, productivity, and belonging in organisations recognised as gender equality leaders. These insights highlighted that when inclusion is embedded into organisational design, it delivers measurable benefits for both people and performance.

With EKAM 2025, RAI and TRRAIN reaffirmed their commitment to advancing inclusion as a sector-wide priority. The summit positioned equity not as an adjunct to growth, but as a foundational element of a more humane, competitive, and future-ready retail industry in India.

PANEL DISCUSSION ON FROM PLEDGES TO PROGRESS: BUILDING MEASURABLE DEI OUTCOMES

L-R: Smit Gade, Director - Research, Good Business Lab; Sanchita Ghosh, Head - DEIB, Titan Company Ltd.; Maya Fuke, GM-HR, Nexus Select Malls; Nabamita Banerjee, Customer Care Associate and CHRO, Shoppers Stop Ltd.; Bani Sushil Khurana, Head - DE&I, Reliance Retail Ltd. and Neelam Ahluwalia, VP - Learning & Inclusion, bigbasket

PANEL DISCUSSION ON WHY IS THE DEI ROLE CRITICAL IN SHAPING ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE & PERFORMANCE

L-R: Adhir Mane, Former CHRO - Corporate, Raymond Ltd.; Binny Ashish, Head - HR, Celio Retail Pvt. Ltd.; Delna Elavia, HR Director- India, & ID&E lead EMEA, Estée Lauder Companies; Lisa Basumatari, GM - Talent, Performance & Learning, Arvind Fashions Ltd. and Priya Adiseshan, CPO, Sapphire Foods India Ltd.

PANEL DISCUSSION ON HOW GENZ ARE REWRITING THE DEI NARRATIVE

L-R: Meher Sharma, Impact catalyst & Manager- Resource Mobilisation, TRRAIN; Aryama Ghosh, Senior Associate, Piramal Foundation; Adnan Shaikh, Community Advocate & Writer; Divya Sharma, Social Impact Consultant, Disability Advocate, Former member - YPAT YuWaah at UNICEF; Yogendra Mule, Team Lead, SSBeauty and Rukmani Krishnamurthy, Management Trainee - CSR, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd.

THE WINNERS OF CHAMPIONS OF CHANGE - CELEBRATING IMPACTFUL INITIATIVES

bigbasket
Reliance Retail Ltd.

THE WINNERS OF CHAMPIONS OF CHANGE - CELEBRATING IMPACTFUL INITIATIVES

Nexus Select Malls
Titan Company Ltd.
Celio Retail Pvt. Ltd.
Shoppers Stop Ltd.
Max Fashion
Spykar Lifestyles Pvt Ltd

THE WINNERS OF CHAMPIONS OF CHANGE - CELEBRATING IMPACTFUL INITIATIVES

Inorbit Malls India Pvt Ltd
Bata India Ltd.