Anatomy of retail footwear market in capital of Odisha

India’s retail sector is wearing new clothes and with a three-year compounded annual growth rate of 46.64 per cent, retail is the fastest growing sector in the Indian economy. Traditional markets are making way for new formats such as departmental stores, hypermarkets, supermarkets and specialty stores. Western-style malls have begun appearing in metros and second-rung cities alike, introducing the Indian consumer to an unparalleled shopping experience. The Indian retail sector is highly fragmented with 97 per cent of its business being run by the unorganized retailers like the traditional family run stores and corner stores. The organized retail however is at a very nascent stage though attempts are being made to increase its proportion to 9-10 per cent by the year 2010 bringing in a huge opportunity for prospective new players. The Organized Retail Penetration (ORP) is the highest in footwear with 22 per cent followed by clothing. Though food and grocery account for largest share of retail spend by the consumer at about 76 per cent, only 1 per cent of this market is in the organized sector. Today the footwear industry manufactures a wide range of footwear ranging from leather, rubber and other synthetic materials, and styles ranging from casual, formal, work, and athletic shoes. This paper presents the market size and the turnover of the footwear market in the capital of Orissa i.e. Bhubaneswar and also presents the customer’s behaviour towards the retail footwear.