| | JUNE 20238Tyre maker Bridgestone seeks to boost its retail footprint in the country by 20-25 percent this year and intends to grow higher than the industry's growth, a top company executive has said. Bridgestone India at present has over 3,200 dealerships across 1,300 cities and towns in India. Bridgestone India, which is a subsidiary of Japanese multinational tyre manufacturer Bridgestone Corporation, has a well-diversified portfolio, mainly of radial tyres which cater to OEM as well as replacement segments."Bridgestone India has been increasing its market penetration over the last few years. In 2022, we increased our retail footprint by 11 percent, expanding to an additional 218 towns. This year we are looking to increase our overall retail network by 20-25 percent", Bridgestone India Managing Director Stefano Sanchini told PTI in an interaction. The company is expanding its distribution network to enhance the coverage across tier-III/IV cities giving it a larger footprint in the aftermarket for automotive tyres that accounts for over 25 million tyres, he said."We aim to retain our leadership in this segment. The OE market has shown revival last year and is expected to further grow in 2023. Our investments towards increased capacities and capabilities will help us fulfil the market needs," Sanchini said. South Korean e-Commerce behemoth Coupang plans to enter the Indian market. SoftBank-backed startup has begun talks with the Indian government about entering one of the world's largest e-commerce markets, according to government officials."We have received an application from the South Korean government, in which Coupang has expressed interest in entering India", officials stated, adding that "discussions with the Coupang delegation are likely to begin next month".If the Seoul-based company, also known as "Amazon of South Korea", enters India, it will compete directly with both homegrown Flipkart and Amazon's Seattle headquarters.Despite their success in the Indian market over the last decade, the two behemoths are facing competition from the government-backed ONDC and other homegrown e-commerce platforms such as Reliance's JioMart and Tata Digital.India is quickly emerging as a lucrative e-Commerce market, but it is still considered underserved. According to the FIS 2023 Global Payments Report, it is expected to grow from $83 billion in 2022 to $150 billion in 2026.Flipkart ($23 billion GMV) and Amazon ($18-20 billion GMV) are at the top of the scale, with the two controlling roughly 60 percent of the market. According to research firm Berstein, Reliance is third in e-Commerce sales with $5.7 billion, driven by attractive fashion (Ajio) and JioMart (e-grocery).Coupang's proposal comes a year after the company announced plans to close its Japanese operations. According to a March 2022 report in The Korean Times, the company decided to withdraw from Japan 21 months after it began offering its online delivery service there. BRIDGESTONE TO STRENGTHEN ITS RETAIL FOOTPRINT IN INDIASOFTBANK BACKED COUPANG TO ENTER INDIAN MARKETSIN FOCUSIN FOCUSIn 2022, we increased our retail footprint by 11 percent expanding to an additional 218 towns. This year we are looking to increase our overall retail network by 20-25 percent
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