Regional Retail Dominance in India's Consumer Electronics Market
Electronics Mart India Limited (EMIL) is the fourth-largest consumer electronics retailer in India and the largest organized player in South India. The company operates 200+ stores across six states, generating revenues of over ₹6,900 crores in FY25 and a 5 year CAGR of 13.4% (FY20 - FY25).
Founded in 1980 as a single store in Hyderabad, EMIL went public in October 2022, raising ₹500 crores as a complete fresh issue at ₹59 per share. The IPO was oversubscribed, with shares listing at ₹87.5 on the exchange. The company currently trades as a mid-cap stock in the consumer durables & electronics sector.
EMIL's business model centers on large-format multi-brand stores averaging 10,000 sq ft, selling products from 100+ brands across 8,000+ SKUs. The product mix includes large appliances (45% of sales), mobiles (42%), and small appliances (13%). Unlike pure-play online retailers, EMIL focuses on physical retail with limited online presence.
Key Market Context:
The Indian consumer durables market is valued at ₹120,000 crores and expected to grow at 7.33% CAGR through 2030. EMIL competes with Reliance Digital, Croma, Vijay Sales, and e-commerce platforms like Amazon and Flipkart.
EMIL began as "M/s Bajaj Electronics," a sole proprietorship established by Pavan Kumar Bajaj in Hyderabad in 1980. The company remained a private entity for nearly four decades before incorporating as a public limited company in 2018.
The transformation from family business to public company was driven by growth capital requirements. With store expansion accelerating and working capital needs increasing, the promoters decided to access public markets rather than rely solely on debt financing.
The October 2022 IPO marked a significant milestone. Priced at ₹59 per share, the issue was fully subscribed and shares opened at ₹87.5, indicating strong investor interest. The IPO proceeds of ₹500 crores were allocated specifically for store expansion (₹111 crores), working capital (₹220 crores), debt repayment (₹55 crores), and general corporate purposes (₹82 crores).
The promoter group held 77.97% stake post-IPO (FY23) and currently holds 65.17% (FY25). The family consists of three members:
| Parameter | Value |
| IPO Size | ₹500 crores |
| Type | Fresh Issue |
| Total Shares | 84,745,762 |
| Offer Price | ₹59 |
| Opening Price | ₹87.5 |
| Issue Period | October 4-7, 2022 |
| Purpose | FY23 | FY24 (₹ cr) | FY25 (₹ cr) | Total (₹ cr) |
| New Store Capex | 23 | 47 | 41 | 111 |
| Working Capital | 100 | 120 | - | 220 |
| Debt Repayment | 55 | - | - | 55 |
| General Purposes | 82 | - | - | 82 |
| Total | 178 | 167 | 123 | 468 |
The IPO was managed by Anand Rathi, IIFL Securities, and JM Financial as book-running lead managers, with total IPO expenses of ₹32 crores, totaling to ₹500 crores.
EMIL operates multiple store formats under different brand names:
The company recently partnered with The Charcoal Kitchen to launch a new store format in Hyderabad, indicating expansion into premium lifestyle segments.
EMIL's store network has grown consistently over the past five years:
| Financial Year | FY20 | FY21 | FY22 | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 | Q1 FY26 |
| Total Stores | 71 | 93 | 103 | 127 | 160 | 200 | 208 |
| Store Growth | - | 30.99% | 10.75% | 23.30% | 25.98% | 25.00% | 4.00% |
| Area (mn sq ft) | 0.76 | 0.94 | 1.04 | 1.23 | 1.48 | 1.76 | 1.80 |
| Net Addition | - | 22 | 10 | 24 | 33 | 40 | 8 |
| Format | Count | Average Size |
| MBO (Multi-Brand Outlets) | 189 | 10,000 sq ft |
| EBO (Exclusive Brand Outlets) | 11 | 3,000 sq ft |
| Type | Count |
| Owned Stores | 17 |
| Leased Stores | 171 |
| POPL (Partly Owned, Partly Leased) | 12 |
Store profitability follows a predictable maturation curve:
The company has closed only one store in FY25 (a Hyderabad mall location due to rental escalation), indicating strong site selection capabilities.
EMIL operates primarily as a retailer with three revenue streams:
| Revenue Stream | Share | Description |
| Retail Sales | 96% | Direct consumer sales through stores |
| Wholesale | 2% | Bulk sales to single-shop owners |
| Online | 2% | Brand-authorized marketplace listings |
The company does not pursue direct online sales strategy, focusing instead on brand-authorized marketplace presence.
EMIL maintains a diversified product portfolio across multiple categories:
| Category | Share | Description |
| Large Appliances | 45% | TVs, air conditioners, washing machines, refrigerators |
| Mobiles | 42% | Smartphones and accessories |
| Small Appliances | 13% | Kitchen appliances, audio equipment, IT products |
EMIL's top 5 suppliers account for 60% of total purchases, creating significant supplier concentration risk. The company's revenue depends heavily on maintaining relationships with major brands and securing adequate supply volumes.
Major supplier categories include consumer electronics manufacturers, mobile phone brands, and home appliance companies. The company does not manufacture private label products, unlike competitors such as Croma and Reliance Digital.
EMIL's store network is concentrated in South India with recent expansion into North India:
| State | Stores | Cities |
| Telangana | 113 | 38 |
| Andhra Pradesh | 57 | 38 |
| NCR (Delhi, Haryana, UP) | 29 | 5 |
| Kerala | 1 | 1 |
| Total | 200 | 82 |
Hyderabad remains the largest revenue contributor at 60-65% of total sales, though management expects this to decline to 50-55% over 2-3 years as other regions scale.
The NCR region has become EMIL's most critical growth story and strategic priority. Here's why this matters so much for the company's future:
Management is heavily emphasizing NCR expansion because it represents their biggest opportunity to break out of the "South India regional player" tag. The NCR market is massive, Delhi NCR alone has more purchasing power than entire states in South India combined. Plus, the competition dynamics are different here. In South India, EMIL has reached some level of market saturation. In NCR, they're still building brand recognition and have massive room to grow.
NCR stores are already showing superior performance metrics compared to other regions. Even in the tough Q1 FY26 quarter when overall SSG was -18%, NCR managed -8% - still negative but way better than Andhra Pradesh's -32% decline. More importantly, in Q4 FY25, NCR delivered a stellar 33.8% same-store sales growth, which shows the region's potential once stores mature.
Most of EMIL's recent property purchases (₹250 crores in FY25) were concentrated in NCR. By owning properties instead of leasing, they're betting big on NCR's long-term potential and also improving their unit economics since owned stores typically deliver 1-1.5% higher margins.
Management has now announced entry into Odisha, which makes perfect sense as a natural extension from their Andhra Pradesh base. Odisha gives them another state to leverage their South/East India expertise before fully committing resources to the more competitive North Indian markets.
The goal is to reduce Hyderabad's total revenue contribution to sales from current 60-65% to 50-55% over the next 2-3 years. NCR's per capita income and consumer electronics penetration rates are significantly higher than South Indian markets, which means better average ticket sizes and higher revenue per store potential.
If EMIL can crack the NCR market, they transform from a regional South Indian player to a genuine national retailer.
Same-store sales growth (SSG) has declined significantly in recent quarters:
| Period | FY22 | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 | Q2 FY25 | Q3 FY25 | Q1 FY26 |
| SSG | 22% | 17% | 8% | 6.10% | -0.60% | -2.80% | -18% |
| Cluster | Q3 FY25 | Q4 FY25 | Q1 FY26 |
| Telangana - Hyderabad | -5.70% | -0.90% | -15% |
| Telangana - Others | 3.90% | 0.20% | -18% |
| Andhra Pradesh | 1.00% | 5.10% | -32% |
| Delhi NCR | 8.90% | 33.80% | -8% |
The NCR cluster shows stronger performance due to newer stores and lower base effects, while mature South Indian markets face headwinds from monsoons and market saturation.
Exceptional Items Impact: A fire incident in May 2025 at the Guntur warehouse led to inventory loss of ₹5 crores. While the claim is insured and under assessment, such incidents highlight operational vulnerabilities.
Young Store Network: About 85-90 stores (40% of network) are less than 24 months old, impacting fixed-cost absorption and margins. New stores typically achieve 5-6% EBITDA margins in Year 1, growing to mature store levels of 9-10% over time.
The company maintains 12 warehouses to support its store network, with distribution capabilities across its operating regions.
EMIL has demonstrated consistent revenue growth over the past five years, though margins remain under pressure:
| Metric | FY20 | FY21 | FY22 | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 |
| Revenue (₹ cr) | 3,172 | 3,202 | 4,349 | 5,446 | 6,285 | 6,965 |
| Revenue Growth | - | 0.95% | 35.82% | 25.22% | 15.41% | 10.82% |
| Operating Margin | 7% | 6% | 7% | 6% | 7% | 6% |
| Net Profit (₹ cr) | 82 | 59 | 104 | 123 | 184 | 160 |
| Net Margin | 2.59% | 1.84% | 2.39% | 2.26% | 2.93% | 2.30% |
The revenue growth - 10.82% growth in FY25 is pretty decent for a retailer. But the operating margins are stuck in this 6-7% range and not really expanding despite the scale benefits they should be getting from 200+ stores.
The company's profitability varies significantly by geography:
The South cluster maintains healthy margins of 6-8%, while the North cluster (1-2%) is still building scale. Management expects NCR margins to improve gradually and converge with South India performance over 12-14 months.
EMIL's business exhibits pronounced seasonality that significantly influences quarterly results. Approximately 50% of annual sales occur during summer (April-June) and festive seasons (September-November), creating natural volatility in financial performance.
This seasonality thing is both a blessing and a curse for EMIL. The positive side is that you know exactly when your big revenue quarters are coming - summer for ACs and coolers, festive season for everything else. This predictability helps with inventory planning and cash flow management.
But if you have a bad summer (like Q1 FY26 with unusual rainfall), your entire year's targets can flop. The seasonal dynamics create massive working capital swings - they have to build inventory ahead of peak seasons, which pushes their inventory days to ~80, way higher than the optimal 60-65 days.
The seasonal dynamics create both operational challenges and opportunities. Marketing expenditure peaks at 3.5% of revenue during festive seasons compared to 1.5-2% in normal quarters.
Weather variations create significant quarterly volatility - Q1 FY26 faced the coolest summer in years with rainfall 50% above normal in Telangana and 148% above average in Andhra Pradesh, severely impacting cooling appliance sales and contributing to the -18% same-store sales decline.
Despite seasonal challenges, the company maintains guidance for 15%+ annual revenue growth, expecting 20%+ growth in remaining quarters driven by festive demand recovery and new store ramp-up.
| Year | FY20 | FY21 | FY22 | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 | Q1 FY26 |
| Capex (₹ cr) | 111.62 | 336.83 | 280.86 | 234.24 | 285.7 | 308.09 | 56 |
FY25 - trailing capex of ₹350 crores included ₹80-100 crores for leasehold stores and ₹250 crores for property purchases, mainly in Delhi-NCR. Management emphasized that NCR property purchases were strategic investments for future expansion.
EMIL ranks as the 4th largest consumer electronics retailer in India and the largest regional player in South India. The company only has one direct listed competitor "Aditya Vision Limited". National competition includes:
| Company | Revenue (₹ cr) | Stores | Own Brand | Revenue CAGR (2017-22) | Employee Cost % |
| Reliance Retail | 131,600 | 300 | Yes | 48.30% | 0.90% |
| Croma | 5,300 | 195 | Yes | 12.70% | 5.10% |
| Vijay Sales | 3,600 | 121 | Yes | - | 3.40% |
| EMIL | 3,200 | 112 | No | 17.90% | 1.90% |
| Player Type | Store Size (sq ft) | Sales per sq ft (₹) | Total Sales (₹) | Gross Margin |
| Single Shop | 750 | 4,000 | 30,00,000 | 9% |
| Regional Player | 7,000 | 13,000 | 9,10,00,000 | 13% |
| National Player | 11,000 | 22,000 | 24,20,00,000 | 15% |
This table shows EMIL's position in the retail ecosystem. They're more efficient than single stores but still not at national player scale. The sales per sq ft of ₹13,000 is decent but national players at ₹22,000
The gross margin progression from 9% (single shop) to 13% (regional) to 15% (national) shows the power of scale in negotiations with suppliers.
EMIL's positioning as a regional player allows it to achieve better margins than single-shop owners while maintaining operational flexibility compared to large national chains.
Supplier Concentration Risk: The company's top 5 suppliers contribute 60% of total purchases. Loss of any major brand relationship or supply disruptions from key suppliers could materially impact revenues and profitability.
Geographic Concentration Risk: Majority of stores and revenues are concentrated in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Economic slowdown, natural disasters, or increased competition in these markets could significantly affect performance.
Trademark and Intellectual Property Risk: EMIL does not own certain trademarks including "BAJAJ ELECTRONICS," "Electronics Mart," "EMIL," and "Electronics Mart India Limited." If competitors circumvent protection measures, the company's business and reputation could be adversely affected.
Seasonal Dependence: High dependence on festive and summer seasons creates earnings volatility. Adverse weather conditions (like the coolest summer in Q1 FY26) can significantly impact quarterly performance.
Online Competition: E-commerce platforms offer competitive pricing, wider selection, and convenience. EMIL's limited online strategy may handicap growth, particularly among younger demographics.
Capital Intensity: Store expansion requires significant capital investment (₹7 crores per store). This creates pressure on return ratios and limits expansion speed compared to asset-light models. While the company only has a ROIC of 9.92% as compared to Aditya Vision limited with a ROIC of 18%.
Dividend Policy: The company has not declared dividends since inception, focusing on growth investments. This may limit appeal to income-seeking investors.
Strong Regional Position: EMIL's dominance in South India provides a strong foundation for growth. The company's deep market penetration, brand recognition, and understanding of local consumer preferences create significant competitive advantages.
Proven Execution Track Record: Consistent store expansion (25+ stores annually), successful IPO execution, and effective working capital management demonstrate management's operational capabilities.
Industry Growth Tailwinds: The Indian consumer electronics market's expected 7.33% CAGR through 2030 provides favorable industry dynamics for organized retailers.
Scale Benefits Realization: As a regional player, EMIL achieves better margins than smaller competitors while maintaining operational flexibility compared to national chains.
Same-Store Sales Growth Deterioration: The significant decline in SSG (-18% in Q1 FY26) raises questions about market saturation, competitive pressures, and execution challenges in mature markets.
Geographic and Supplier Concentration: Heavy dependence on South India and top supplier relationships creates vulnerability to regional economic cycles and supply disruptions.
E-commerce Disruption Risk: Limited online presence may handicap long-term growth as consumer preferences shift toward digital channels.
If EMIL successfully executes NCR expansion and achieves 100+ stores in North India over 3-5 years, the company transforms from a regional player to a national retailer. This would command premium valuations similar to Croma or other national chains. Revenue could potentially reach ₹15,000-20,000 crores with improved margins from scale benefits.
100 NCR stores at ₹50-70 crores annual revenue each (higher than South India due to better purchasing power) could contribute ₹5,000-7,000 crores in revenue. Combined with the existing South India base growing at 10-12% annually, total revenue reaches ₹15,000+ crores by FY30.
If they achieve 7-8% operating margins at this scale (vs current 6-7%), net margins could expand to 4-5%, generating ₹600-1,000 crores annual profit.
If NCR expansion fails to achieve projected returns, e-commerce continues gaining market share, and same-store sales growth remains negative, EMIL could get trapped as a declining regional retailer. Revenue growth slows to single digits, margins compress further due to competitive pressure, and the stock gets re-rated as a value trap.
The ₹250 crores invested in NCR properties becomes a sunk cost if stores don't achieve projected performance. With limited IPO proceeds remaining and thin cash generation, funding further expansion becomes challenging.
Meanwhile, Amazon and Flipkart continue gaining market share, particularly among younger consumers. EMIL's core markets see increased competition from national chains expanding southward.
EMIL likely remains a profitable regional retailer with modest growth. Revenue grows 12-15% annually over the next 3-5 years, reaching ₹10,000-12,000 crores. Margins remain in the 6-7% range due to competitive pressures. The stock performs in line with broader retail sector multiples.
For Growth Investors: EMIL offers exposure to India's consumer electronics growth story through a profitable, cash-generating business. The NCR expansion represents significant upside potential if executed successfully. However, execution risk is high, and the investment requires conviction in management's ability to compete against better-funded national players.
For Value Investors: At current valuations, EMIL might offer decent value given its dominant position in South India and North India expansion. However, the lack of dividend yield and reinvestment requirements for growth limit immediate returns.
For Income Investors: Not suitable due to no dividend policy and growth capital requirements.
For a detailed equity research report along with financial projections, you can read our full report on Electronics Mart India here.