Nike is further consolidating its operations in India. The world’s largest sportswear company has laid off a chunk of its already diminishing workforce in the country, while asking others to join its operations in South East Asia and shelved plans to open a huge back office in Bengaluru, according to sources.
The move comes against the backdrop of the US-headquartered company shuttering 35% of its stores in India in 2016, following it up by reducing the number of its stores to around 150 or lower in 2019. It signals India’s diminishing importance as a growth market in its global scheme of affairs.
New Delhi-based SSIPL, which runs Nike stores in India, will play a bigger role for the company, it is learnt. “Unlike other global sportswear companies, Nike did not localise its products for India, as a result of which it found it difficult to cut its losses in the domestic market. It remains to be seen whether Nike would continue having a corporate office here or run operations completely from Singapore,” he said.
