For retail sector in T.N. to grow, experts call for sector-specific policy

As chain stores, home-grown brands and national brands now have a big presence in T.N., experts say a cohesive State policy that focuses on ease of doing business, ease in raising capital and tech-centric growth is the need of the hour

The Retailers Association of India has urged the Tamil Nadu government to come out with a policy specific to the retail segment. Retail is one of the biggest sectors in the State, which has some well known shopping hubs in Chennai and Coimbatore.

According to Kumar Rajagopalan, chief executive officer of the Retailers Association of India, Tamil Nadu has been in the forefront of the development of chain stores, over the past five decades.

“Many of the developments in retail have taken place without a formal focus towards consumption by policy makers. However, many Acts and policies of various departments impact the working of retail businesses such as the Shop and Establishment Act, Labour Act, and Weights and Measurement Act etc.

Therefore, it is imperative that the State governments focus on retail as a sector, to enable the sector to grow since this sector is important from employment, support to consumption and taxes for the government,” he said.

Any retail policy must focus on ease of doing business and development facilitation. “Retailers need anywhere from 20 to 50 licenses  depending on the kinds of items that they sell as goods or services. This needs to be focussed and eased for automatic licence processing online. Similarly, work hours need to be allowed, based on consumer preference,” Mr. Rajagopalan said.

Currently, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Haryana have a policy for retail and some of them offer skilling support for the retail sector.