The owner of the world’s oldest toy store has revealed plans to quadruple its store network in India, bringing the total to around 500 store locations.
Founded in 1760 as Noah’s Ark, Hamleys opened its Regent St flagship store in London’s West End in 1881. Reliance purchased the Hamleys business in 2019 for just $89M, including its 21 stores in the UK. Thus far, the brand has had mixed success in different markets outside of the UK.
India boasts a young population, with 27 per cent of the country aged under 14. This presents a huge opportunity for toy retailing in the market according to Darshan Mehta, Chief Executive Officer of Reliance Brands. Mehta also predicts that 30 per cent of the chain’s sales will be online in five years – a 10 per cent increase from current figures. A further 20 per cent increase is expected to come from direct selling over the phone of via Whatsapp.
As of now, the company is also looking to expand into Europe, South Africa and China.
