The company spent the six months before launch on one sentence — 'secure own-brand sales in the Indian domestic market within three years' — and the single-brand retail entity, early trademark filing and GST registration by sales state followed from it in turn. A company that started without a purpose changed its structure three times in the same period.
BY FIELD · Market Entry
Entry purpose, retail FDI structure & market research
In India, shops are harder than factories. Decide your purpose first, then the retail FDI layer — it fixes ownership, sourcing duties and who you may sell to.
For: every company selling in India for the first timeWhat you must do
Required
Adullam
Domestic sales, manufacturing base, sourcing and R&D are different businesses with different rules, states and capital. Your purpose decides entity type, state, capital and tax
Source: Adullam column · 2026-10-05 ↗Conditional
Official
100% foreign ownership, automatic route. Sell only to businesses; group-company sales ≤ 25% of total
Source: Adullam column · 2026-10-05 ↗Conditional
Official
100% automatic route. Above 51% foreign ownership, 30% of sourcing must be from India. You can open online first, but a store must follow within 2 years
Source: Adullam column · 2026-10-05 ↗Conditional
Official
Up to 51% with government approval, minimum US$100M investment and state consent — many states don't allow it, so hardly a practical route
Source: Adullam column · 2026-10-05 ↗Required
Official
Marketplace 100% automatic route; no FDI where the platform owns inventory
Source: Adullam column · 2026-10-11 ↗Conditional
Official
Press Note 3 (23 Jul 2026): inventory model allowed only for exporting Indian-made goods. In force from 3 Sep 2026 via FEMA rules notification
Source: EY India · 2026-09 ↗Recommended
Adullam
Stacking duty, logistics and margins on the Korean price usually lands at the top of the market. Work back from the target MRP, subtracting margins, GST, logistics and duty, to set the ex-works price
Source: Adullam column · 2026-10-05 ↗Required
Adullam
Buying back or fighting a trademark a local contact filed first costs tens to hundreds of times the cost of filing early
Source: Adullam column · 2026-10-05 ↗Steps & deadlines
- 1 weekFree consultation · entry purpose set in one sentenceClient & Adullam · Source: Adullam column · 2026-10-05 ↗
- 2–3 weeksResearch rival brands' price bands and channelsAdullam · Source: Adullam Consulting · 2026-10-20 checked ↗
- 1 weekRetail FDI layer · entity structure decidedAdullam & incorporation team · Source: Adullam column · 2026-10-05 ↗
- ImmediatelyIndian trademark filingIndian Trade Marks Registry · Source: Adullam column · 2026-10-05 ↗
- 1 weekReverse pricing from the target · channel priorities → entry planAdullam · Source: Adullam column · 2026-10-05 ↗
Documents to prepare
- Product list, ingredients and Korean selling price
- Sales track record in Korea and abroad
- Target cities and customers
- Budget and schedule
- Existing Indian business partners (if any)
Time & fees Example
- Duration
- About 4–6 weeks (example)
- Fees
- Quote by scope (first consultation free)
- Deliverables
- Entry plan (in Korean) + price and channel simulation
Related Adullam platform
Once the retail FDI layer is set, it feeds into the entity structure
Adullam Incorporation ↗Recent cases
Moving from wholesale to retail changes FDI caps and conditions, the business objects in your articles and your GST registration structure. If you plan how you will sell three years ahead at the outset, you won't have to restructure the entity.
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