Trent ties up with Benetton to promote Sisley brand

MUMBAI: Tata group company Trent Ltd on Tuesday said it has entered into a strategic partnership with Benetton Group for commercial expansion of Sisley brand in the country.

"The partnership with the Benetton Group gives us the opportunity to tap the burgeoning premium segment of consumers. We believe that Sisley has high potential for growth and we will leverage our experience to optimise the tremendous opportunity," Trent Managing Director Noel Tata said in a filing to BSE.

Under the agreement, Trent would open and manage a number of Sisley stores in the country's major cities. The first few shops would open over the next couple of months in Hyderabad and Bangalore.

The new partnership would enable the Benetton Group to boost its presence in India, where it has been operating for over 15 years and has over 141 United Colors of Benetton shops, Trent added.

The agreement comes only a few months after the launch of Sisley's first three pilot stores in Delhi which were an immediate success with Indian customers. These three shops would be directly managed by Trent. Sisley has more than 850 stores around the world and offers a wide choice of clothes for men and women.

Trent has over a decade of experience in the Indian retail industry and has an existing portfolio of 39 stores across three formats targeting the value or mid-market segment. It operates the Westside departmental stores, Landmark, books and music retail chain and Star Bazaar, its chain of hypermarkets.

Shares of Trent were trading at Rs 639.50, up 4.14 per cent on BSE in afternoon trade.