One of India’s fastest growing retail formats is the premium grocery retail format. Leading this opportunity from the front is New Delhi based Necessity, a 24/7 supermarket chain.
Founded in 2016 by ace entrepreneur Vishal Mahajan, the chain is today present across 18 cities in 7 states across India.
“Necessity offers a unique shopping experience with convenience, affordability, and quality. What began as a single store has now transformed into a rapidly expanding retail network”, said Mahajan on a Linkedin post.
Exit 31 Mar. ‘25, the supermarket chain will be operating 40 stores and is expanding into southern India with its first store coming up at Tex Valley, a B2B hub cum market for textiles and apparel, located 15 kms off Erode, in Tamil Nadu.
Adds Mahajan, “Our path to success was not without obstacles. Entering new markets, managing logistics, and keeping up with evolving customer preferences required strategic planning and adaptability. However, our commitment to excellence turned these challenges into stepping stones for growth”.
In the coming years, Mahajan assures an innovative shopping experience, Artificial Intelligence powered recommendations, self-checkouts and digital payments for consumers.
The company is also planning a diverse product range, expanding its fresh produce, introducing new gourmet selections and by offering premium grocery items too.
Necessity, according to Mahajan, will focus on the community and sustainability by implementing eco-friendly business initiatives and by nurturing local partnerships.
Editor’s Note
One of the earliest retail formats in India in the organised segment was Food and Grocery Retail, stared by the RPG Group with its Foodworld format. In 2004, the company launched the “Giant Hypermarket” in Bangalore and Hyderbad, when Big Box retailing was unheard off.
Due to the infancy of the market and lack of awareness by shoppers to stock their home pantries with large packs, the model didn’t take off, even as Foodworld, which had a partnership with Hong Kong based Dairy Farm International (DFI) grew from strength to strength.
By late 2000s, the market was dominated by the Future Group’s big Bazaar, followed by Hypercity operated by Shoppers Stop, More. by Aditya Birla Retail while the RPG group ceded its partnership with DFI and began to operate Spencers Hyper by mid 2010s.
The organised F&G retail market in India is currently pegged at INR 650,000 Cr (USD 80 Bn) pa and accounts for 12% of the entire retail market in the country.
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