Reliance Stunned Amazon As It Takes Over Control of Future Stores Overnight

New Delhi: Amid the ongoing fight between Reliance and Amazon over Future deal, the former has taken over the control of Future Stores.

According to Reuters report, last week, light blue grocery crates belonging to India's largest retailer Reliance were seen landing at some Future Group stores in Mumbai. Customers witnessed a similar incident across the country.

The report also claimed that Reliance started it all on the night of 25 February at around 8 pm, when the company's staff started arriving at the Future store. Even the management of Future Group was not aware of this plan of Reliance.

Meanwhile, the ongoing legal battle between Reliance and Amazon is in the Supreme Court (SC).

As per the report, an employee of a Big Bazaar store in Delhi told that the situation was very worrying, everyone was upset. No one knew who those people were. They wanted access to the entire store, while the seniors had no idea what was going on.

Similarly, at a Future store in Sonepat, Haryana, employees were asked to move out as Reliance had taken control of the entire store. Quoting a source, the Reuters report also claimed that when Future Group employees came to the store early in the morning in Vadodara, West Gujarat, they were asked to go back home and no reason was given for the same.

''Reliance has taken control of around 200 Big Bazaar stores, citing non-payments by Future, and is also planning to take control of around 250 Future retail outlets,'' the report said.

The experts are of the view that it's a last move against the Amazon as now there is nothing left in Amazon's hands as Reliance has taken over the stores.

Meanwhile, the Reliance has given a big relief to the employees of Future Group as it has offered to hire them at the store which indicates that though Reliance has suddenly taken over the stores of Future Group, but this will not affect the jobs of the employees.

What is the fight about?

The dispute between Amazon, Future Retail and Reliance arose when Reliance Retail bought Future Retail. In such a situation, people are not being able to understand that where did Amazon come from in the deal between Future Retail and Reliance Retail and what is the fight between these three that the matter reached the court. The situation is such that the matter has gone up to the Supreme Court and it is also being taken up in arbitration courts across the world.

Here's how and why Amazon came from in the Future-Reliance deal?

Future Group signed a deal to sell its retail, warehousing and logistics business to Reliance Industries for about Rs 24,000 crore. Objecting to the deal, Amazon said that it had bought 49 per cent stake in Future Retail's promoter firm, FCPL, in August last year. In this deal, Amazon has got the right to first ask about investing in the Future Group. Along with this, after a period of three to 10 years, it has also got the right to buy a stake in the group's flagship company Future Retail.

Interestingly, FCPL holds 7.3 percent stake in Future Retail.

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