Future Group inks retail alliance deal with Carrefour?

Kishore Biyani-led Future Group, the country's largest retail operator, has reportedly signed a retail alliance with French hypermarket chain Carrefour, Europe's largest retailer.

Mumbai-based Future Group, with over 1,000 stores across 71 cities in India and employs over 30,000 people, is said to have has signed an agreement with the French retail chain to open its branded franchise stores in India, the Mint reported today.

Future Group plans to open between 150 and 300 Carrefour-branded hypermarkets in the next five years, the paper reported citing two persons familiar with the development.

Future Group is one of the country's leading business groups present in retail, asset management, consumer finance, insurance, retail media, retail spaces and logistics.

The group's flagship company, Pantaloon Retail (India) Limited operates over 6 million square feet through 450 stores in 45 cities. Some of its leading retail formats include, Pantaloons, Big Bazaar, Central, Food Bazaar, Home Town, eZone, Depot, Future Money and online retail format, futurebazaar.com.

Future Group will pay the French retailer a royalty for using the brand since overseas firms are yet not allowed to own multi-brand retail chains in India, a law that is likely to be relaxed by the Indian government in the near future.

Levallois-Perret, France-based Carrefour, the world's second-largest retail group after Arkansas, US-based Walmart, operates in 4 main store formats-hypermarkets, supermarkets, hard discounts stores and convenience stores.

The Carrefour group, with 2009 revenues of $115 billion, operates in 35 countries and currently has over 15,500 stores, either company or franchisee operated.