RIL Collaborates with Vardhman Textiles to Produce R|Elan Fabrics

The Mukesh Ambani -led Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) has collaborated with Vardhman Textiles to produce the innovative fabric R|Elan, which includes R|Elan GreenGold. R|Elan GreenGold is manufactured by recycling used plastic PET bottles. It is very eco-friendly and has one of the lowest carbon footprints globally.

RIL’s press release

According to a press release by RIL, R|Elan is a high-quality fabric collection that will range across the sustainable and performance themes in casuals, formals, and other women-wear segments. RIL stated that the R|Elan technical team will provide the parameters, specifications, and technical expertise to ensure the best quality fabric is produced.

RIL further stated that as part of this new collaboration, its R|Elan technical team aims to work closely with Vardhman Textiles to develop a range of new manufacturing processes to create specially engineered R|Elan fabrics.

R|Elan range of fabrics

There are five innovative fabrics under the umbrella of R|Elan. R|Elan FreeFlow is used in manufacturing dress material and sarees. R|Elan Kooltex is used to make activewear apparels. R|Elan SuperSoft is used to manufacture shirts. R|Elan SuperBlack is used to manufacture suits. Finally, R|Elan GreenGold is the flagship fabric and manufactured by recycling used PET bottles. It is the greenest fabric in the world. It will be used in trousers and denim.

R|Elan GreenGold is manufactured using bio-fuels instead of fossil fuels. According to RIL’s website, the process also uses a zero-waste concept. This means that all the raw materials are used in the manufacturing process or sold in the market. The process also recycles the maximum amount of water and all the water is utilized in horticulture and manufacturing.

The opinion of Gunjan Sharma, CMO, RIL

Gunjan Sharma, the Chief Marketing Officer of the Polyester Division at RIL, stated that Reliance Industries is proud to be associated with Vardhman Textiles, a leading player, for R|Elan. The two entities will work together to ensure that the customers’ rising demands for sustainable and high-quality performance apparel are met with R|Elan. Sharma further stated that this collaboration is also an effort to create opportunities for the entire textile value chain, including apparel manufacturers and brands.

The significance of R|Elan in the apparel industry

For RIL, R|Elan is a portfolio of innovative fabrics. It will have a presence in various segments such as denim, activewear, ethnic, and western wear, both casuals and formals. RIL has collaborated with over 30 players who are equipped to produce new-age fabrics using the technologies of R|Elan.

In the total INR 2-2.5 lakh crore apparel industry, sarees and ethnic wear, the biggest apparel sub-segment, has an INR 60,000 crore share.  The activewear segment commands only an INR 2,500 crore-market share, which is 10-15 percent. The denim segment is valued at INR 20,000 crore.

Summary: RIL has collaborated with Vardhman Textiles to produce the innovative fabric, including R|Elan GreenGold, which is eco-friendly and made from PET bottles. These R|Elan fabrics are a significant portfolio for RIL in the apparel industry.

Reliance Jio to Set Up Reliance Jio Hubs in Smaller Towns across India

Reliance Jio, the telecom wing of the Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), has plans in place to set up Reliance Jio Hubs to provide people in smaller towns a mall-like shopping experience. The aim of this project is to provide one-stop shops for RIL’s consumer items, ranging from groceries to electronics. The project will utilize the strengths of Reliance Jio’s digital infrastructure and Reliance Retail’s physical stores to increase sales in smaller towns, where online shopping and modern retail is rare.

Details of the Reliance Jio Hubs

At RIL’s 41st Annual General Meeting (AGM), which was held on July 5, 2018, Ambani stated that RIL sees a large business growth opportunity wherein it may make a new hybrid commerce platform, which will be online-to-offline.

A person familiar with the project, on the condition of anonymity, stated that after the Reliance JioGigaFiber broadband services, Reliance Jio Hubs is the next big focus area for the telecom company. The Reliance Jio Hubs project is in connection with Ambani’s vision to integrate retail, telecom, and e-commerce into one technology platform.

Views of a retail analyst

A retail sector analyst, on the condition of anonymity, stated that small towns require assisted e-commerce and the availability of after-sales service in a physical space. He stated that Reliance Jio Hubs could act as warehouses and hold inventory. This meets the 100 percent India-owned requirement as per the draft e-commerce policy. Under this policy, which is floated by the Indian government, only Indian-owned firms are allowed to hold inventory.

The analyst further stated the telecom company intends to set up approximately 800 Reliance Jio Hubs to sell all consumer items under RIL. Within a month, the investment required for this project will be finalized.

The significance of offline retail stores

Since a large percentage of the country’s population still does its shopping offline, plans to know local merchants, and reach local markets and customers are important. A report by eMarketer in June 2018 stated that the online retail market in the country has tripled since 2015. However, of the total retail sales in 2018, it is only expected to contribute 2.9 percent.

RIL already has a strong physical presence in India with 7,500 stores across 4,400 cities operating under the Reliance Retail subsidiary. This wing sells electronics, clothes, grocery, and jewelry under Reliance Digital, Reliance Trends, Reliance Fresh, and Reliance Jewels, among other brands. RIL also has approximately 5,000 Jio Points. These are compact 500 square feet offices in rural pockets and semi-urban areas. They offer customer assistance and after-sales service.

However, Reliance Jio Hubs would be spread across a bigger area. These hubs would work through Reliance Jio, which enjoys a good market share and market appeal in rural markets due to its 4G coverage.

Summary: Reliance Jio is planning to set up Reliance Jio Hubs in smaller towns. The goal of this is to provide the people living in such areas with a mall-like shopping experience.

Reliance Jio User Base to Cross 400 Million Customers by March 2020

Reliance Jio, the telecom wing of the Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), is likely to attain a user base of more than 400 million customers by March 2020. Industry analysts have stated that this number will include almost 150 million JioPhone users due to a strong performance in rural markets. They have also stated that to cross-sell a blend of digital content services, telecom, and retail products, RIL may soon deploy an omni-channel strategy.

Views of CLSA

According to CLSA, formerly called Credit Lyonnais Security Asia, Reliance Jio’s projected 414 million user base in March 2020 would be equivalent to 45 percent of the Indian population and would represent the 14 to 80 years age group. In addition to this, the foreign brokerage company has also estimated that RIL’s retail and telecom businesses may contribute 80 percent to RIL’s consolidated earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) through the financial years 2018 to 2021.

CLSA also stated that the Kai-OS operating system, which is controlled by RIL and powers the JioPhone, might be utilized to open up advertisement revenue opportunities with higher customer engagement.

CLSA telecom analyst, Vikas Jain, stated that RIL may strengthen the e-commerce expansion of its established organized retail business in the upcoming months. This would help it acquire a larger customer base through its omni-channel fashion, grocery, and digital retail offerings.

The progress of Reliance JioPhone

Reliance Jio has stated that voice commands used on the JioPhone are surpassing those on smart-phones by nearly five times. Users of the 4G-enabled feature-phones are spending more time using the Internet and apps than smart-phone users do.

IIFL Institutional Equities stated that, in rural markets, JioPhone users spend hours watching videos daily, and data consumption may increase once the apps for YouTube and Facebook are available on the JioPhone.

Opinions of industry analysts and key players

Industry analysts expect Reliance Jio’s content apps, such as JioMusic, JioCinema, JioTV, JioMags, JioMoney, JioChat, and Saavn, to reap strong revenues for the company shortly. This is because Reliance Jio’s user base is already accustomed to using more than 10 GB per month. A likely increase in fixed-line broadband users of the JioGigaFiber service may also help in this regard.

Analysts believe that Reliance Jio’s 290 minutes-a-day of customer engagement, with the help of 150 million subscribers using the JioPhone, can be tapped to create sizeable revenue opportunities. Analysts also believe that Reliance Jio’s subscriber base will increase rapidly once WhatsApp becomes available on the feature-phones, which would happen by September 20, 2018. This may help the telecom company acquire more customers and a larger revenue share in the competitive market.

BNP Paribas stated that Reliance Jio is performing well, especially in rural markets. This is due to its affordable 4G services, which have good coverage, and the success of the JioPhone, which has sold nearly 25 million devices as of June 2018.

Summary: Reliance Jio’s user base is likely to cross 400 million customers by March 2020. This is due to a cross-selling omni-channel strategy, increased JioPhone usage in rural markets, and increased subscriptions for the JioGigaFiber service.

Reliance Jio Offers Complimentary 1 GB Data with Purchase of Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate

Reliance Jio, the telecom wing of the Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), is now offering subscribers 1 GB free data if they have purchased a Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolate. This offer is introduced in celebration of Reliance Jio’s second anniversary, which was on September 5, 2018. Subscribers can avail of the offer, which is valid till September 30, 2018, via the MyJio app.

Details of the free 1 GB data offer

To avail of the offer, subscribers must have an empty wrapper of a Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolate. This chocolate is available for a price as low as INR 5. Other Cadbury chocolates, which can be used to avail of the offer, are Dairy Milk Roast Almond, Dairy Milk Crackle, Dairy Milk Lickables, and Dairy Milk Fruit and Nut.

How to avail of the free 1GB data offer

To avail of the Jio offer, subscribers need to visit the MyJio mobile app on their smart-phones.

On the MyJio app, subscribers must tap on a banner on the homescreen, which highlights the free data offer. The MyJio app will redirect them to another screen where the ‘Participate Now’ button must be tapped. Subscribers must then scan the barcode of the empty Dairy Milk chocolate wrapper. After this, the free data will be credited to the subscriber’s MyJio account within seven to eight working days from the date they have redeemed the offer

Terms and conditions of the free 1GB data offer

The free 1 GB of data is being offered as an additional benefit over and above the subscribers’ regular entitlement of data.

According to the terms and conditions of this new Reliance Jio offer, the free 1GB data can be availed of through Cadbury Dairy Milk wrappers that have varying costs of INR 5, INR 10, INR 20, INR 40, and INR 100.

However, if the original Dairy Milk chocolate is not -garners-more-than-16-million-subscribers/”>Reliance Jio subscribers have the option of availing the free 1 GB data on their own accounts or transferring the free data to another Reliance Jio contact. Moreover, only one empty Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolate wrapper can be used to redeem free 1 GB data per registered Reliance Jio account.

Reliance Jio has also offered a third option to subscribers, wherein they may donate the free data to an NGO named Pratham Foundation. This will help facilitate e-learning in far-flung areas of India.

Summary: Reliance Jio offers subscribers free 1GB data with a purchase of Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate. This is offered to celebrate the telecom company’s second year anniversary, which was on September 5, 2018.