‘Are you going to sell fabric cut-pieces?’ How Noel Tata defied doubters to build a retail powerhouse
Noel Tata recalled the scepticism surrounding Trent’s entry into apparel retail, when modern retail and private labels were unfamiliar in India. At the HT Leadership Summit, the Tata Trusts chairman recounted Trent's growth as a retail powerhouse
In 1999, the Tata Group's entry into apparel retail in India raised eyebrows, as modern retail was not an established concept in the country at the time. Noel Tata, who would later build and scale Westside, Zudio, and Star Bazaar under Trent, recalled the skepticism of the period when India's consumption engine was just beginning to take off and private labels were unheard of.
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