ABRL Supermarket brand 'More' launched in AP

Hyderabad, Feb 1 (UNI) Planning nearly 1,500 Super markets and 100 hypermarkets across India with about Rs 10,000-crore investment over the next 3-5 years, Aditya Birla Retail Limited (ABRL) said it was looking at other formats, including discount stores, to expand its retail hold in the country.

The company is exploring 'all' options and the rollout plan could be ready later this year, company CEO Sumant Sinha said today after announcing the rebranding of the Trinethra grocery retail supermarkets to ''More'' in Andhra Pradesh.

The rebranding follows the acquisition of the Trinethra stores by ABRL last year and in its wake 105 Trinethra stores in Andhra Pradesh will be rebranded and 12 new stores have already been launched under the umbrella of 'More,' the retail brand from the Aditya Birla Group.

The acquisition of Trinethra super retail has provided ABRL with a strong retail footprint in South, extending to 275 stores over more than half a million sq ft in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, where it is the leading food and grocery retailer.

Before the launch of 'More' stores, Hyderabad had 79 stores, Visakhapatnam (16) and Vijayawada 10 stores. Currently, Aditya Birla Retail has 86 stores in Hyderabad, 17 in Vizag and 14 stores in Vijayawada. All Trinethra stores will be re-branded to 'More' by the end of February.

Supermarkets CEO Andrew Denby said the launch of More neighbourhood supermarkets will be soon followed by destination hyper markets, which will address monthly and event-based shopping needs.

The group already has stores in other parts of the country and envisions having a pan-India presence, covering Tier I and Tier II markets, in the not so distant future. It plans 400 new supermarkets in one year and 10-15 hypermarket in the next 12-18 months.

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