FabMart.com, a start-up retail venture of Madanapalle Retail Pvt Ltd, has come out with a new model aimed at addressing the demand-supply needs in smaller towns.

Alphonse Reddy, Founder and CEO of FabMart.com, said retailers in major cities stock majority of models across product categories and brands. But, in small towns, they stock only low or mid-priced and fast moving models. Consumers in smaller towns are increasingly demanding a shopping experience on par with customers in large cities in terms of brands, product range and special offers. Similarly, some of the big brands have been looking for entry into smaller towns.

In this model, the company will tie up with retailers in various small towns, who will book orders by displaying merchandise using a touch-screen tablet with Internet connectivity provided by the company. The customer can collect the product a few days later from the retailer. This transaction will eliminate concerns of security of online transactions and save the consumer the trouble of travelling to a city where the product is available. FabMart.com will share the profit equally with the retailer, he said.

The company plans to appoint 100 such franchisees in Tamil Nadu and a total of 750 retailers in the South before the end of this calendar year. Hemu Javeri, CEO of the $100-million private equity firm Forum Synergies, has invested in this venture in his personal capacity along with the Hyderabad-based IT services company Pennywise Solutions.

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