Meesho’s Secret IPO, Swiggy Shifts Gears— And Prada’s Big Mistake

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📰 India Retail Pulse

Wipro’s consumer VC arm tweaks investment strategy as startup ecosystem matures
Wipro Consumer Care Ventures plans to focus on sustainable and profitable brands as India’s D2C funding ecosystem becomes more selective.
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Delhi HC stays ₹340 crore damages order against Amazon in Beverly Hills Polo Club trademark case
The court paused enforcement of damages after Amazon was found infringing Lifestyle Equities’ ‘Beverly Hills Polo Club’ trademark.
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Early Nykaa investor to offload $150-million stake via block deal
The investor aims to exit partly due to Nykaa’s recent struggles in its fashion business despite strong beauty sales.
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Bira beer maker restructures leadership amid liquidity woes and revenue decline
Facing cash crunch and falling sales, B9 Beverages has reshuffled its management to stabilize operations.
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Swiggy rolls out ₹99 Store in 175 cities targeting Gen Z and price-sensitive customers
The service offers budget meals at ₹99 with eco saver delivery mode, grouping orders to lower logistics costs.
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Prada faces backlash for lifting Kolhapuri chappal designs, forced to credit India
Luxury brand Prada acknowledged India as the source after public outrage over its use of traditional chappal designs.
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Brands boost quick commerce hiring as Zepto, Instamart, Blinkit drive sales
Demand for talent in supply chain and operations rises as quick commerce surges across urban markets.
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Swiggy to shut down B2B offering for small businesses, Minis
Swiggy’s SaaS platform for small merchants will close by August due to limited traction and strategic focus shifts.
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CCI orders probe into market abuse charges against Asian Paints
Competition watchdog is investigating whether Asian Paints stifled rival distributors and unfairly dominated the market.
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🌍 World Retail Headlines at a Glance

L’Oréal acquires Color Wow, adding innovative haircare brand to its portfolio
Color Wow, known for pioneering hair solutions, will join L’Oréal’s Professional Products Division to boost salon-focused business.
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Lululemon sues Costco over alleged knockoff activewear
Lululemon claims Costco’s leggings and tops mimic its designs, potentially misleading customers into thinking they’re buying Lululemon products.
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Shein hit with €40mn fine in France over misleading discounts
French regulators penalized Shein for promoting inflated discounts and deceptive pricing tactics.
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US-Vietnam trade deal hints at higher Southeast Asia tariff rates
Analysts expect tariffs over 10% on imports from Southeast Asia as U.S. seeks new trade balances post-Vietnam negotiations.
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Jewelry sales outperform as US luxury spending falters, Citi finds
While high-end categories slow, fine jewelry remains resilient as affluent consumers continue to spend on timeless pieces.
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Survey: Product reviews to influence most Prime Day purchases
A majority of shoppers say reviews will heavily dictate their Prime Day choices, underlining the power of social proof in e-commerce.
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🔥 Top Funding & IPO News in Indian Retail

AMAMA, Delhi-based jewellery brand, raises $1 million from Mistry Ventures
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English learning startup SpeakX seeks to raise $15 million
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AppsForBharat raises ₹175 crore led by Susquehanna Asia Venture
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Meesho files confidential prospectus for IPO
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Reliance to spin off FMCG brands into a new arm ahead of mega IPO plans
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🤖 Deep Dive: Why Retailers in India—and Globally—Are Betting Big on AI-Powered Growth

Retailers worldwide are doubling down on AI not merely as a tech trend—but as the strategic lever for survival and outperformance in 2025 and beyond. The past quarter has seen a flurry of developments that reveal why AI has moved from buzzword to boardroom priority.

What’s Happening

Here’s a snapshot of the most significant moves in AI adoption in the past 3 months (Apr-Jun 2025):

• Google launched its AI Shopping Suite, including virtual try-ons for clothing and cosmetics, AI product summaries, and visual search based on images. Retailers like H&M and Macy’s have begun pilots integrating these features to boost engagement and reduce returns.

• Mango (Spain) unveiled its AI-powered stylist, enabling real-time personalized product recommendations in-store and online. Early tests showed +28% higher average order value.

• Amazon introduced “Hear the Highlights,” an AI tool creating audio summaries of product descriptions, designed to improve engagement among multitasking shoppers.

• Reliance Retail in India ramped up AI in store operations, using vision AI for shelf monitoring and automated planogram compliance. According to internal reports, it’s reduced shelf out-of-stock events by 17% in pilot stores.

• Nykaa in India has been piloting AI-driven product tagging and virtual try-on features to enhance its fashion segment, even amid recent financial strain.

• Meta (Facebook) invested ~$14.8B in Scale AI, securing data annotation capabilities essential for future retail AI models.

• AI content and image tools like Fermat and Renderforest have gained traction with small retailers looking to produce personalized landing pages and videos quickly.

Why It Matters

• Profit Pressure: Retail margins remain squeezed, and AI promises efficiency. From labor optimization to supply chain predictions, retailers see AI as crucial to survive in high-cost environments.

• Consumer Expectation: Shoppers now demand hyper-personalization. 71% of consumers expect brands to deliver personalized experiences—and AI is the only scalable way to meet this.

• Reducing Returns: Virtual try-ons and accurate product data are tackling returns—a multi-billion-dollar problem globally.

• Speed-to-Market: AI tools accelerate everything from creative production to new product launches.

• Data Monetization: As retailers own more consumer data, AI is becoming the weapon to turn that into revenue, whether through advertising or new product insights.

Bottom Line

AI in retail is no longer about “innovation labs” or isolated experiments—it’s about direct impact on P&L. The retailers investing in AI today are the ones preparing for tomorrow’s competitive landscape. Expect 2025 to close with even more aggressive integrations, especially in India’s rapidly digitizing retail scene.

Sources:

Retail Dive | WWD | Retail Dive | Mint | YourStory | Reuters | Fermat Commerce | Renderforest | McKinsey | Salesforce

Insight of the Week 📊

Luxury Shoppers Still Spending on Jewelry- Sales rose 7% YoY in the US

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