Hamleys, the UK-headquartered toyshop chain, is set to double its India presence from the existing 29 stores by March 2018.
The over-250-year-old company, which prides itself as the ‘Finest Toyshop in the World’, has entered the Hyderabad market with a 7,000 sqft store in Sujana Forum Mall. “Our strategy is to focus on opening stores in malls and irports in most cities in the country,” said Karandeep Singh, Business Head, Hamleys India.
Present in 18 cities now, Hamley’s will concentrate on Coimbatore, Kochi, Guwahati, Ludhiana and more stores in Hyderabad in the next few months. The company is in negotiation with airports to expand its network. “Our strength is engagement with the customers and their experience in stores,” he told BusinessLine . Hamleys came to India in 2010 in collaboration with Reliance Lifestyle Holdings, a subsidiary of Reliance Brands Ltd, with its first store at High Street Phoenix, Mumbai. By end of 2016, India accounted for 29 of the total 103 strores in the world, more than the 12 in the UK. In China, it has opened a large-format store which is a combination of a play area and toyshop.
The Hyderabad store will offer up to 6,000 products, including the iconic characters like the Toy Soldier, Ring Master and teddy bears. Globally, the company has over 10,000 fun products sourced from large fairs in the US, Germany and Hong Kong, Singh said.