REI Agro, on Tuesday, launched its retail chain, 6Ten, in Punjab and Haryana. The company has started its operations in the state with the simultaneous opening of five stores in Chandigarh, Mohali & Panchkula. The Initial investment will be about Rs 30-40 crore. The company plans to come up with 1,500 stores across the country by 2011. The Rs 1,000-crore REI Agro is India’s leading producer and exporter of basmati rice. The company has recently decided to hive off their retail division by forming REI Six Ten Retail. The retail division comprises of over 35 retail outlets in the NCR and other backend facilities including processing and packing units etc, besides the current outlets in Chandigarh, Mohali and Panchkula. 6Ten stores are speciality food stores offering products such as grocery items, FMCG products, fruit & vegetables to consumers. The company is fast expanding its presence in the northern states including Punjab & Harayana. The company targets to open over 50 stores across these two states within next year. The organised Indian retail market is expected to touch $12 billion by 2015. REI would target the organised retail which has a negligible penetration in the overall retail space market in the country today. Company MD Sundip Jhunjhunwaala says: “With organised retailing growing at more than 30% annually, there is a huge untapped market for these stores in India. We are targeting this space across states like Punjab & Harayana to deliver world-class products and shopping experience to consumers. The company soon plans to open these stores in Patiala, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Amritsar and Rohtak. The company has decided to procure fruits and vegetables from several markets in Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Chandigarh while staples such as pulses, flour, spices would be procured from millers. Similarly, FMCG items would also be sourced from companies, he said. REI Agro would also set up flour milling facility and a processing centre in north in order to feed its retail stores, he said. The company undertakes processes of procuring paddy to drying, de-husking, milling and polishing, colour sorting, grading, inspection, packing, branding, distribution and retailing.