India’s retail sector is moving toward a ₹200 trillion market by 2035. However, the gap between mar-ket growth and store-level profitability remains a structural challenge, with up to 40% of organised outlets currently operating at a loss.
For the upcoming financial year, the industry must shift focus from the volume of expansion to the quality of growth. Connected commerce has evolved beyond a digital layer; it is the reality of a con-sumer who discovers products on social feeds and fulfills those journeys in-store. This requires a transition in how we measure success. Winning in this landscape involves governing by shelf throughput — specifically tracking Gross Margin Return on Floor Space (GMROF) — rather than unit cost.
We must also prepare for agentic commerce, where AI-assisted tools mediate discovery before a cus-tomer reaches a storefront. This transition demands disciplined trade-offs regarding target cohorts and channel mix. As we enter the next year, our goal is to build retail organisations that are as agile in their operations as the Gen-Z consumers they serve are in their discovery. The next decade be-longs to the swimmers, not just those carried by the tide.
