Reliance Retail net jumps 32% to Rs 3,165 crore in Q3

 Reliance Retail Venture Ltd (RRVL)  reported a 31.87 per cent rise in its net profit to Rs 3,165 crore helped by festive season sales in the third quarter ended in December 2023.

Its gross revenue crossed the Rs 80,000 crore mark for the first time in the quarter led by grocery, fashion & lifestyle and consumer electronics businesses.

The revenue from operations surged 23.75 per cent to Rs 74,373 crore in the December quarter of FY24. Gross revenue was up 22.83 per cent to Rs 83,063 crore.

The retail arm of billionaire Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) posted a net profit of Rs 2,400 crore in the October-December quarter of FY2022-23, and its revenue from operations was Rs 67,623 crore.

Its EBITDA margin from operations on net sales was at 8.1 per cent, up 40 bps Y-o-Y driven by operating leverage as the business expands and continued focus on cost management, according to an earning statement from RIL.

"We have a very good festival season. We saw good engagement from customers and healthy growth during the festive season across the business," said Reliance Retail CFO Dinesh Taluja during the earning calls.

Its larger consumption basket did "extremely well" during the period and revenue grew strongly to cross Rs 80,000 crore for the first time, he said.

"All the major consumption baskets did well. Grocery grew by 41 per cent yoy basis, while fashion & lifestyle grew 28 per cent despite the apparel segment. Our consumer electronic business also did well with 19 per cent growth," he added.

During the quarter, Reliance Retail added 252 new stores to its network, taking the total count to 18,774 stores. At the end of the December quarter, Reliance Retail had retail operations spread over an area of 72.9 million sq ft.

"We continue to invest in infrastructure in the back end and front end as well as technology platforms," said Reliance Retail CFO Dinesh Taluja during the earning calls.

Moreover, it also witnessed a 40.3 per cent growth in footfall to over 282 million across store formats.

Its Digital Commerce and New Commerce businesses continued to grow and contributed 19 per cent of revenue.

Reliance Retail recorded 320 million transactions in the December quarter, which was up 19.9 per cent. Similarly, its registered customer base increased 24.7 per cent to 293 million.

However, Reliance Retail's finance costs increased 10.6 per cent in the October-December quarter. This was on account of the "increase in interest rate and borrowings for business expansion".

Commenting on the result, RIL CMD Mukesh D Ambani said the retail segment has also delivered an impressive financial performance with its rapidly expanding physical as well as digital footprint.

"Reliance Retail remains focused on enriching customer shopping experience by adding new brands and offerings to its portfolio. Its New Commerce initiatives continue to support the growth journey of millions of small merchants through technology, generating immense societal value," he said.

Over the segments, the grocery business of Reliance Retail delivered a 41 per cent Y-o-Y growth with uptick led by festive demand.

In the Grocery consumption basket, Reliance Retail operates stores under the brand name - Fresh Signature, Smart Superstore, Smart Bazaar, Smart Point, Freshpik, Shree Kannan Departmental, 7-Eleven and Jayasurya stores

While its e-commerce arm JioMarT also delivered a "steady growth" led by an increase in traffic and average order value.

Reliance Retail consumer brands with categories like beverages, general merchandise and staples also delivered 3-fold Y-o-Y growth in revenues and distribution reach, it said. The new product launches continue to see strong performance.

In the December quarter its cola beverage brand Campa and FMCG brand Independence have received "good traction" from trade channels & consumers, the earning statement said.

Helped by the festive season, which fell in the December quarter, its Fashion & Lifestyle business delivered 28 per cent Y-o-Y growth led by higher footfalls and conversions. Its digital commerce arm Ajio added 1.6 million new customers.

Reliance operates several formats such as Trends, Azorte, Centro, Reliance Jewels, and Hamleys formats and a portfolio of more than 50 marquee international brands.

Similarly, Its consumer Electronics business delivered 19 per cent Y-o-Y growth on the back of higher basket value and improved conversions. New launches and flagship models in segments such as - phones, large appliances and TVs had a strong performance.

The company which operates Reliance Digital and MyJio Store format in the consumer Electronics segment said sales from its own brands scaled up with its merchant count up 2.6 times.

RRVL Executive Director Isha M Ambani said, “Reliance Retail has delivered a strong performance during the festive quarter.”