Future Group Founder's Nephew Launches 'Theatre-Style' Stores

Vivek Biyani, the nephew of Future Group founder Kishore Biyani, launched ‘Broadway’, a theatre-style retail store chain where customers can shop and enjoy events and infotainment content all in one place.

The “mini-carnival” Broadway stores are expected to be home to 150-odd domestic and international brands and will be opened in Delhi, Mumbai and Hyderabad by early 2025.

According to Broadway co-founder Vivek Biyani, “Broadway is designed and built like a co-retail space for brands to create deeper connections and stronger engagement with their customers.”

All Broadway stores will include “Broadway Studios” to create in-house content and host events. According to Biyani, Broadway has already collaborated with multiple content creators and influencers to project and exhibit in-house content.

The move to launch a retail chain in an experiential format is made at a time when growing traction towards online retail and e-commerce has intensified concerns around footfalls at offline stores, and more emphasis is now on attracting consumers by making their store visits exciting.

“We feel that the new-age consumption centres and retail stores need to transform, where we feel that we need to create a destination, an experiential format, where consumers are coming in and experiencing products, participating at events and spending more time at F&B (food and beverage), rather than going for a functional need to just buy a product,” the press release shared by Broadway said.

“Spread across a sprawling 25000–35000 sq. ft. of space, each of the Broadway outlets will feature a staging area, a creator’s studio, sampling stations, consultation rooms, a dry salon, ‘the maker’s lab’, gourmet experiences and much more, in addition to the shopping space,” it added.

Customers can expect a multi-sensory feast with interactive displays, engaging activities, and daily events. A variety of content and performances, along with activities such as workshops to attract customers, will be offered during the events.

‘Bahubali’ actor and entrepreneur Rana Daggubati, ANAROCK Retail’s Chief Exceutive Officer and Managing Director Anuj Kejriwal, and Salarpuria Group Director Apurva Salarpuria are key investors in Broadway. However, the Broadway management refused to reveal their shareholding in the new venture.

The first Broadway store will be inaugurated by the end of August at Vasant Kunj’s Ambience Mall in Delhi, while the standalone high-rise stores in Hyderabad and Mumbai will open by the end of September and March 2025, respectively.

The management plans to open more stores in the three metropolitan cities, after which they plan to foray into Bengaluru and Chennai. "We expect five stores in the top five cities in the next five years," said Anarock CEO Anuj Kejriwal.

The new retail chain already has major brands, predominantly from the beauty, fashion, apparel and wellness segments. “Some of the brands that will be showcased at the stores include Aqualogica, DermaCo, Minimalist, Belif, Wellbeing Nutrition, Kapiva, Oziva, The Good Bug, Comet, Suta, Mokobara, trueBrowns, Bold Care, The Label Life and more,” Biyani added.

Companies across multiple sectors are choosing to expand their premium range of products rather than the mass segment, as growing disposable income and improvements in standard of living have been attracting more consumers on the premium side.

However, on this, Biyani said, “We are not really looking at brands where pricing becomes a co-differentiator. So, with a with a lot of D2C brands that are aspirational in nature, we expect them to be part of the broadway."

According to the management, all brands will pay a participation fee to Broadway and have signed contracts for at least 3–6 months.

However, the management is keen on retaining the freshness of the new retail stores. Hence, new brands are likely to be seen on Broadway every couple of months.