27 January 2025, Mumbai
The Retailers Association of India (RAI) has unveiled its 57th Retail Business Survey, showing a 5 per cent growth in retail sales during 2–29 December 2024 compared to the same festive period last year.
Kumar Rajagopalan, CEO of RAI, highlighted inflation and EMI obligations as factors curbing discretionary spending. “The wedding season boosted categories like apparel and jewellery, while Quick Service Restaurants (QSR) show early recovery signs, offering optimism. With the Union Budget approaching, the industry hopes for measures to address inflation and revive consumer confidence,” he said.
Regionally, South India led with a 6 per cent sales growth, followed by West and North India at 5 per cent each. East India lagged with a 4 per cent increase.
QSR emerged as the fastest-growing segment with a 10 per cent surge, driven by improving demand. Apparel, food & grocery, and sports goods recorded a 7 per cent growth each compared to December 2023.
RAI's findings underline the challenges and potential in India's retail landscape, emphasizing a cautious yet hopeful outlook for 2025.