Westside

Westside is the department-store business of Trent Limited (NSE: TRENT), the Tata Group retailer behind Zudio and Star as well. Trent speaks about the network as its own. Its FY25 results release says “we opened 40 Westside” stores during the year and records that, on 31 March 2025, “our store portfolio included 248 Westside”. That release contains no use of the word “franchise”.

Trent’s FY25 annual report is direct about both the cost of a Westside store and the party funding it: “The total investment in a new Westside store leased and operated by the Company is in the region of ₹8-9 Crore across capex, deposits and inventory.” It describes the typical footprint as “predominantly between 20,000 - 30,000 sq.ft.” These figures are an order of magnitude removed from those marketed online as a “Westside franchise”.

The online figures — roughly ₹1–2 crore to set up, a ₹10 lakh franchise fee, a 10% royalty, 2,000–3,000 sq ft, and a “FOCO” model — originate with one franchise-listing page, not Trent. FRANticc previously published them, incorrectly; this page replaces that version. The space claim gives the game away: 2,000–3,000 sq ft is about a tenth of the space Trent says a Westside store occupies.

For clarity, Trent does make some related disclosures. The group is not wholly franchise-free: its FY25 Business Responsibility and Sustainability Report lists 1,041 stores in India and says only “1015 stores operated by the Company have been considered. The stores operated by franchisee are not considered.” Its wholly owned subsidiary, Nahar Retail Trading Services Limited, is described as “engaged in the business of franchising of fashion apparel retail stores of the Company”. Trent also lists a Westside Retail Business Associate enquiry address: westside.rba@trent-tata.com. But none of these disclosures provides a published programme: westside.com, trentlimited.com, and Trent filings contain no application form, eligibility criteria, or fee, royalty, deposit, or space requirement. A quoted Westside franchise cost is therefore a number Trent has never published.

India does have apparel brands with documented franchise and dealership programmes — Van Heusen, U.S. Polo Assn., Louis Philippe, Raymond, Monte Carlo, Fabindia and others publish investment ranges and an application route. They appear in the tiles above.

Sources: Trent Limited Integrated Annual Report FY 2024-25 (Westside store economics; BRSR store counts; subsidiary note on Nahar Retail Trading Services Limited) · Trent Limited Q4 & FY25 results press release, 29 April 2025 · trentlimited.com contact page and westside.com (accessed 25 August 2026).