H&M to launch portal for online shopping

After Zara's announcement to start selling online in India, now Swedish fast-fashion giant Hennes & Mauritz (H&M) will start online operations in India by next year in a bid to close the gap with Spanish rival Zara. With this H&M will officially enter the country's e-commerce space.

While Zara, which entered India in 2010, reported sales of around Rs 842 crore for the year ended March 2016, H&M said its India arm posted sales of Rs 435 crore in six months from December 2016 to May 2017.The Swedish firm plans to open around 50 stores by 2020 with an investment of Rs 700 crore. In a departure from the norm, a sizeable chunk of these stores will open in smaller towns and cities. Most top-tier fashion brands have stuck to metros.

"Our pricing structure, which is far lower than our rivals', will allow us to venture into these markets," Janne Einola, CEO of H&M India. The company has signed leases for eight new stores this year, in places including Coimbatore, Indore, Ghaziabad and Amritsar.H&M, which entered India in 2015, currently operates 16 stores across the country.