Retail boom

Ranchi, July 30: Buoyed by the entry of big retail players in Jharkhand, Usha Martin group has taken the initiative to set up the state’s maiden retail management school in the capital.

“We will start a 10-month course in retail management by October, before or just after the Durga Puja. The course will be open for graduates of any stream,” said Aveek Bhattacharya, manager, marketing and new initiatives, Usha Martin group.

The expected fee for the course would be around Rs 40,000. The 10-month course would include six months of classroom training and three months of on-the-job training. A month would be dedicated to examinations.

For many retail players who have already opened shops in three major cites of the state — Ranchi, Jamshedpur and Dhanbad, it had been a Herculean task to get quality employees in the grades of supervisors, store managers and inventory makers.

The new course would be conducted on Usha Martin Academy’s Gymkhana Club premises.

The retail management cradle would certainly help the retail players in the state and graduates wanting to make a career in the retail sector.

Jharkhand and Bihar would be largely benefited as the salaries offered in the retail sector is mediocre and mostly local guys and girls take it as a career.

Bhattacharya said they were already into talks with retail giants like Future Group and Spencer’s for providing employment to the upcoming institute’s passouts.

As far as course designing is concerned, the academy authorities are interacting with the authorities of retail sector to find what precisely they would look for in trained graduates when it comes to providing employment.

Industry grapevines feel that general management courses do not teach retail management in detail and it would be beneficial if some institutes offer specialised courses. A senior representative of one of the retail groups said a retail management institute in the state is a welcome step as in next decade the sector would boom.