Walt Disney eyes Indian retail, in talks with DLF Brands

The Walt Disney Co is looking at cashing in on the demand for branded kids clothes and accessories. It is in talks with DLF Brands to open stores in the country on a licensing and franchise basis. The plan is to open a few large format flagship stores of 10,000 square feet, though most of the outlets in India will have an average 1,000 square feet of space to largely focus on apparel and toys.

DLF Brands will be opening around 50 Disney stores in the first phase and has already started looking for locations. Depending on the performance, Walt Disney Co could explore owning or turning the licensee agreement into a joint venture with DLF.

Internationally, Disney is the largest retail character licensor. In India, it sells 3,000 stock keeping units (SKUs) of popular characters such as Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck in nearly a million stores as well as through online sites such as Amazon and Flipkart.

Children’s apparel market in India is pegged at Rs 95,000 crores. It is expanding at a compounded annual growth rate of about 20 per cent and is largely controlled by unbranded units. In recent years, a few international kidswear brands have entered the Indian market and these are TCP, Pepe Jeans, Jacadi and Poney.