FDI-compliant market entry for foreign single-brand retailers in India.
A foreign single-brand retailer can now own one hundred percent of its Indian retail operation under the automatic route, a significant liberalisation from the earlier approval regime, but the policy carries a local-sourcing requirement and a set of conditions that shape the entire operating model. Thirty percent of the value of goods must generally be sourced from India for entities with foreign investment above the earlier threshold, with defined computation and incremental-sourcing rules, and the goods must be sold under a single brand internationally.
The policy also permits single-brand retailers to undertake retail trading through e-commerce, which changes the channel strategy, and the sourcing and single-brand conditions interact with how the brand structures its franchise, distribution, and online presence. We structure the entry to satisfy the single-brand and sourcing conditions, design the sourcing and e-commerce model to comply from launch, and build the franchise, lease, and supply arrangements so the retailer can scale within the policy.
Structuring one hundred percent single-brand retail entry under the automatic route and the single-brand conditions.
Designing the thirty-percent local-sourcing model, its computation, and the incremental-sourcing rules.
Structuring the permitted e-commerce retail channel alongside physical stores.
Drafting the franchise, distribution, and brand-licensing arrangements consistent with the single-brand condition.
Negotiating retail leases and the store-rollout arrangements for the Indian operation.
Structuring the FDI and the FEMA reporting for the retail entity.
Yes. Single-brand product retail trading allows one hundred percent foreign investment under the automatic route, a liberalisation from the earlier approval regime. The operation must satisfy the single-brand and local-sourcing conditions attached to the policy.
Single-brand retailers with foreign investment above the earlier threshold must generally source thirty percent of the value of goods from India, with defined computation and incremental-sourcing rules. The sourcing model has to be designed to meet this from the applicable point.
Yes. The policy permits single-brand retailers to undertake retail trading through e-commerce, so the brand can combine physical stores and an online channel, provided it continues to meet the single-brand and sourcing conditions.
No. No engagement is treated as accepted until conflicts, scope and terms are confirmed in writing. An initial discussion is confidential and is used only to understand the matter and assess fit.
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