International retail giant, Giordano has launched its India operations with the opening of its first store in the Southern metropolitan city of Chennai. The store is located at Chennai City Centre.According to Peter Lau, Chairman and Chief Executive of Giordano International, the company is bullish on India and expects to open around 20 stores in the country by 2008.“India is now the focus of every international retail chain because of its accelerating economic growth. Currently, we will concentrate on South India, the retail hub of the country, and then move on to other regions in a phased manner.” said Lau who was in India to officially launch the operations.

Started in 1981 in Hong Kong, today Giordano operates more than 1600 stores spread over 30 countries including China, Japan, Singapore, Korea, Taiwan, Australia, the Middle East, Eastern Europe and Central Asia.“We are a totally customer driven company with a very simple mission- to make people feel good and look great. We also follow the latest in technology to manage our distribution system effectively and ensure prompt response to customers.“ added Lau.Chennai based Giordano Fashions India Private Limited will be the country’s exclusive distributor for the brand.“Most Indian customers are aware of Giordano because of the company’s strong presence in the nearby GCC, Australia and Asian markets. Giordano’s success is driven by its core values of Quality, Knowledge, Innovation, Service and Simplicity and we will follow the same policies here to ensure consistency in quality and service.“ said Ishwar Chugani, Director, Giordano Fashions India Pvt Ltd.The new Giordano store is located at the recently opened Chennai City Centre. The company has already confirmed more stores to be operational in Chennai and others in Bangalore, Hyderabad and Mumbai.