If Coronavirus pandemic persists, the future as foreseen might lead to a recession severe than the Great Economic Recession of 2008, as the experts forecast!
The Indian retail industry worth Rs. 59 lakh crore with 46 million employees is already facing hurdles. Fear of losing jobs looms large over the industry as the companies might cut down on expenses, scaling down operations.
Already, the retailers are struggling with tepid demands, hampered logistics of supply chains of merchandised goods, low footfall in the stores and shutdown of malls.
Retail experts warn that if the situation goes on, total business generated in a year could be less than 50 per cent. Fear of joblessness looms large over 11 million people that account for almost 25 per cent of the total number.
According to the report by UN, 25 million jobs in the retail industry are at stake globally if the situation remains same!
Talking about the apparel sector, India receives 35 per cent of the apparel export orders from Europe, which accounts for one-third of the country’s garment exports.
Since the number of cases testing positive are rising at an unusual rate, the continent is facing a lockdown, which will drastically affect the new orders.
On the other hand, e-commerce industry is not vulnerable to this virus, as online shopping goes up. Consumers preferring social distance put the ball in favour of online retailers.
Almost 70 per cent of the revenue is generated from online portals. But delay in delivery of order can be an issue due to the current scenario.
With industry size equal to Rs. 22.7 lakh crore (Source: RedSeer Consulting) employing 6.1 million people (Source: Indian Staffing Federation), there shall be no immediate effect.
However, there are chances of 20-30 per cent job losses!
Bharat Tex Special Report 2026 
