Hamleys & Rowan joins hands with Circle E Retail to manufacture toys

To address the rising demand, Reliance Retail, the top retailer in the nation and owner of both the Famous British Toy Company Hamleys and the Domestic Toy Company Rowan, has formed a joint venture with a company located in Haryana.

To vertically integrate its toy business, the firm has partnered with Circle E Retail of Sonipat, Haryana.

In order to vertically integrate our toy retailing company, we also have a JV with Circle E Retail, said Reliance Retail CFO Dinesh Taluja last week during an earnings call.

Industry insiders claim that the corporation is now developing a plan for integrating processes from design to shelf.

Reliance Retail would be in control of all parts of the toy industry under this, from product creation and manufacture to retail sales. In addition, this will gradually assist Reliance in reducing its reliance on other producers.

According to the sources, this new business would serve both of Reliance Retail's toy brands, Hamleys and Rowan. In addition, Reliance Retail, which employs Rowan, is a significant participant in the B2B toy industry.

Toy production is a speciality of Circle E Retail. It has a cutting-edge production facility in Haryana and has been authorized to produce and sell a broad variety of toys.

At the time the report was filed, Reliance had not responded to an email made to them on the development.

The standard retail market was added to Reliance Retail's brand Rowan's B2B Wholesale Market last year. The plan was to use smaller shop floors to access the rapidly expanding market for inexpensive, branded toys.

The oldest toy shop in the world, Hamleys, was purchased by Reliance Retail in 2019. This was Reliance Retail's first acquisition of a major international retailer.

Currently, Hamleys is present in more than 15 nations throughout the world. The largest chain of toy stores in India is Hamleys, which has over 100 locations across 36 cities. Reliance Brands Ltd. (RBL), a division of RRVL, launched a joint venture with the Italian firm Plastic Legno SPA in June 2022 and bought a 40% share in that company's Toy Manufacturing Operation in India.

Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd (RRVL), one of the top distributors of toys, has both brands in its portfolio. While Rowan competes in the mid-premium and mass markets with its cheap products, Hamleys primarily serves the premium market.

The Indian toy market is expected to be worth over $1 billion in 2019–20 and is anticipated to double to USD 2 billion by 2024–25, according to a joint analysis by industry group FICCI and KPMG.