American multinational retail corporation Walmart has decided to lay off 150 employees in India as a result of break-up of its joint venture with Bharti Enterprises and a temporary halt in its expansion plans.
Cutting down on its workforce, Walmart India, with around 1,100 employees, will lay off 100-150 senior to mid-level employees, reports The Financial Express.
Sources familiar with the matter also said that many recruitments have been kept on hold for now, which were hired in anticipation of the retailer’s expansion plans in India.
Started in a 50:50 joint venture with Bharti Enterprises, Walmart India currently runs 20 Best Price Modern wholesale units in India. The joint venture was called off in October 2013.
As per an agreement reached between the two companies, Walmart decided to buy Bharti’s 50% stake. The process of disengagement between the two has already begun, with employees being transferred to Walmart India’s rolls.
Bharti Walmart was started in 2007 for wholesale cash-and-carry and back-end supply chain management operations in India to sell a wide range of fruits and vegetables, groceries and staples, stationery, footwear, clothing, consumer durables and other general merchandise items.
Break-up of the joint venture has also halted Walmart’s expansion plans for its cash-and-carry stores in India until 2015.
