With extensive experience in retail store rollouts, what are some key considerations you prioritize to ensure a seamless and successful retail
expansion?
Adapting a master design concept across multiple sites during store rollouts may seem straightforward, but it presents its own challenges. Having worked with a variety of international and Indian brands, I’ve found that each client, brand, and store site has unique hurdles. As a trusted design agency partner, we ensure we’re well-prepared to handle them.
Process standardization—both internally within teams and externally with clients and other stakeholders—is key to successful rollouts. This includes selecting the right talent, conducting extensive training, using advanced tools and software, and maintaining strict quality control. Our approach is client-centric and solution-oriented, with a strong focus on aligning with clients’ business goals, timelines, and budgets. Projects also involve multiple stakeholders, such as MEP consultants, PMC, build partners and specialist consultants. Clear role definitions, escalation matrices, communication protocols, and alignment meetings at each project stage are essential. Identifying gaps and providing
solutions with all factors in mind ensures the success of the project and the overall expansion model.
How do you stay updated with global design trends, ensuring your work remains innovative and relevant across various industries?
The biggest advantage my team and I have in India is access to WPP and Landor’s global network. Our Architecture team in India is the only one that provides delivery and rollout support to all Landor studios worldwide. We frequently collaborate with teams in the US, EMEA, and APAC, which keeps us updated on global design trends, technology, and new materials.
Landor’s approach emphasizes research and innovation. We regularly conduct workshops, knowledge-sharing sessions with internal and external experts, and bench research. Additionally, we encourage our teams to attend external workshops, seminars, webinars, and conferences. This helps them stay current with market trends and broadens their perspectives to think bigger and bolder.
What role does digital transformation play in shaping the future of brand architecture and customer experiences across different industries?
Bringing digital touchpoints into brick-and-mortar stores is essential and as a creative design agency, it’s our expertise to deliver a seamless omnichannel experience throughout the customer’s store journey. We typically consider two aspects of tech in store design. The first is “Tech for Impact,” which aims to mesmerize and engage customers, encouraging them to spend more time in the store and enjoy a memorable,
immersive experience. The second is “Tech as a Facilitator,” which ensures a smoother and faster customer journey, addressing queries instantly without human intervention. AR (Augmented Reality) and VR (Virtual Reality) experiences have transformed stores in recent years, and brands are increasingly incorporating these technologies to enhance customer experiences. The future of brands will be defined by how well they leverage digital touchpoints to innovate and meet evolving customer expectations. Additionally, digital integrations are making companies more agile, data-driven, and customer-centric.
What are the essential factors that international brands should consider when adapting global concept designs for the Indian market or other regions?
I’m sharing my perspective on international brands entering the Indian market, based on my experience with numerous brands in India. Much of this applies to other regions as well.
First, it’s essential to onboard the right design agency—one with both global and local expertise, a deep understanding of the brand, and a proven track record. India’s diversity in culture, language, religion, and geography requires brands to adopt a neutral design concept to ensure wide acceptance during expansion. Incorporating local thematic elements into store designs based on location can also foster quicker brand acceptance.
Sustainability is another important factor, as it’s critical in today’s context and earns customer respect. From a design standpoint, brands should have three store design versions: one for premium metro locations, a toned-down version for other metro and Tier 1 cities, and a value format for Tier 2 and 3 cities, depending on the product range and pricing.
Additional considerations include adhering to local norms, exploring locally available materials, and adapting global concepts to site-specific conditions. With the right design agency onboard, all of these aspects can be managed smoothly and efficiently.
What is the current market share landscape for international retail brands in India and how do you see it evolving in the coming years?
I would say India is a predictable market for those brands that have done thorough research and taken appropriate steps before entering. Many brands have entered India with the right expansion model and successfully established a presence across the country. At the same time, a few brands have struggled to expand as planned or have exited due to significant business losses. However, the best part is that some are revisiting their strategies to re-enter the market, while others who have exited aim to return with revised business models.
Government policies are also evolving to attract global investment, which is favorable for international brands. Numerous options are currently available, such as single-brand retail, multi-brand retail, franchising, and joint ventures. Brands must strategically choose one based on their business model and expansion plans, as each option has its pros and cons.
Overall, India is poised to be an attractive market for the majority of global brands for at least the next 10-15 years or longer, depending on its eventual evolution. It’s now up to brands to adapt to the needs of Indian consumers to succeed in this aggressively developing and promising market.
