Carrefour ties up with Dubai’s Apparel Group to re-enter India

French retail giant Carrefour is making its way back into India after a decade through a partnership with Dubai-based fashion and lifestyle retail conglomerate Apparel Group.

Carrefour’s exclusive brands will be initially launched in North India, with plans for a nationwide expansion.

The first store is likely to open in the National Capital Region next year, Apparel Group said in a statement.

“In a very dynamic and rapidly changing market for food retail, we plan to open our first Carrefour stores during the summer of 2025. This partnership represents a significant step in strengthening our position in India,” Nilesh Ved, owner of Apparel Group and chairman of AppCorp Holding, said.

“Thanks to this partnership, we are very happy to launch in India and grow our footprint in one of the fastest growing economies in the world,” Patrick Lasfargues, Carrefour’s executive director of international partnership, said. “We will be expanding with multiple formats across the country, which is the cornerstone of the Carrefour International Partnership 2026 development plan, marking a significant step forward in our strategy to expand into over 10 new countries by 2026.”

The Apparel Group, founded in 1996 in Dubai, is a leading business house in the apparel retail and food and beverage sectors.

With over 24,000 employees, the group manages a portfolio of 85+ brands and operates over 2,300 stores across 14 countries across the Middle East, India, Southeast Asia and Africa.

The group boasts a network of over 250 stores across 35 cities in 15 states of India.

One of the world’s leading food retailers, Carrefour has multi-format network of over 14,000 stores across more than 40 countries.

Carrefour Partenariat International manages all the Carrefour Group’s franchised Partners worldwide, operating in more than 30 countries with over 2,500 stores.

Carrefour posted sales of €94.1 billion last year and its integrated store network employs more than 300,000 people.

The French retail giant earlier ventured into India through a partnership with another local retailer, but withdrew in 2014, saying the market was underperforming.