As store performance and frontline execution come under sharper focus across India’s retail sector, the Retailers Association of India (RAI) has stepped up its on-ground capability-building efforts through a series of workshops aimed at strengthening store operations, leadership, and profitability.

A key initiative in this direction was RAI’s Workshop on Store Operation Mastery, conducted in Mumbai and Bengaluru. Facilitated by Krishnan P. and Anandaram S., the workshop focused on improving customer experience, people leadership, and data-driven performance management through actionable KPIs. The sessions were designed around real case studies, practical toolkits, implementation frameworks, and peer-to-peer learning, making them highly application-oriented.

The Mumbai workshop, held on 30 October at Hotel Suba International, saw participation from 22 retail professionals representing organisations such as Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd., Reliance Retail (Digital, Grocery, F&L, and Central L&D), P T Invent, Looks Salon, and Raymond Pvt. Ltd. This was followed by the Bengaluru edition on 13 November at Hotel Royal, which drew 33 participants from a diverse set of retailers including JBC Ventures, Raymond Ltd., V-Mart, Celio Retail, Thangamayil Jewellery, Koskii, Burgundy Hospitality, Bharat Petroleum Corporation, Reliance Retail, Apex Venture – Mum and Mini, and Mompharmacy.

Complementing these leadership-focused programmes, RAI also conducted Excellence in Store Operations workshops as part of its calendarised training initiatives, targeting store managers and associates. These sessions were held in Visakhapatnam and Hyderabad, with an emphasis on practical, on-ground skills to improve store productivity and profitability. Key modules covered included store profitability, visual merchandising, local store marketing, and buying, merchandising, and inventory management.

The Visakhapatnam workshop, conducted at Dwarka Inn and led by Purushotham K. Putran, was attended by 23 participants from retailers such as CMR Jewellers & Textiles, Popular Shoemart, Popular Shoemart India, and Taruni Clothing.

In Hyderabad, the workshop held at The Plaza Hotel, Begumpet, was facilitated by Siddharthan Mullapudi, Rajesh Jain, and Rahul Mukherjee. The session saw strong participation from 42 attendees representing retailers including Bhima Jewels, V-Mart Retail (Unlimited), Sai Silk Kalamandir, Krishna Jewellers, Popular Shoemart India, Reliance Retail, Taruni Clothing, Jyothi Supermarket, Ratnadeep Supermarket, Apollo Pharmacies, and Sangeetha Mobiles.

Together, these workshops reflect a growing recognition within the industry that store excellence is increasingly driven by disciplined execution, skilled leadership, and data-backed decision-making. Through sustained, multi-city training programmes, RAI continues to focus on strengthening retail operations at the point where strategy meets the customer—inside the store.