Our Purpose
Building an
inclusive
and
equitable
community
How it began
TRRAIN was the brainchild of Mr. B.S. Nagesh, and was born after in-depth research was conducted amongst retail employees and employers, both in modern and traditional retail. This study, conducted by an independent body, indicated that a vast majority of people working in the retail sector hardly ever felt a sense of pride or dignity from their work. Further, forms of support or social inclusion were hard to come by, and upskilling or learning new skills was almost entirely out of the question. Unsettled by the hard hitting research findings, Mr. Nagesh decided it was time for him to give something back to the industry that had given him so much. Thus began the story of TRRAIN.
TRRAIN has one vision: To support and empower the retail industry by training the next generation of retail employees to be an asset to any retail organization they might become a part of, based on their warmth, humility and enthusiasm for work. As an NGO, TRRAIN strives to initiate holistic programmes that will impart a sense of pride in retail employees, reward and support retail employees, and inspire them to put their heart and soul into the work they do. Further, TRRAIN works for the empowerment for the differently abled and low-income women, in the retail sector by providing them with means to support sustainable livelihoods for themselves and their families.
Our Vision
What we do
TRRAIN has impacted the lives of many people in retail through our training and award programmes.
So far:
TRRAIN PANKH has empowered 24,195 Persons with disabilities and provided them with employment opportunities.
TRRAINHER ASCENT has empowered 8,258 Underprivileged Young Women from marginalised backgrounds (DEI)
Retail Employees Day (RED) – A TRRAIN-RAI’s initiative is celebrated in 31 countries, with 22 million employees.
TRRAIN Retail Awards have recognized and applauded the finest, and most enduring customer service stories of sales associates at a global level.
TRRAIN Aptech Retail Education Programme has upskilled 30,000+ employees.
Empowering persons with disabilities and providing them with employment opportunities
Impact: Till date, TRRAIN has successfully impacted the lives of 24,000+ persons with disabilities (PwDs) under the Pankh programme.
Aim: To train PwDs and help them gain employment, and encourage social inclusion and humane conduct in the industry.
Empowering young women from marginalised backgrounds (DEI)
Impact: Till date, TRRAIN has successfully impacted the lives of 8,000 + young women under the TRRAINHer Ascent programme.
Aim: To train young underprivileged women in India and help them gain employment, and encourage a gender diverse workplace in the retail industry.
A TRRAIN-RAI's initiative
Impact: 12th December is globally celebrated as Retail Employees' Day to thank retail employees for their untiring efforts. Retail Employees Day is celebrated by several brands such as Titan, Landmark Group, Shoppers Stop, Being Human, in multiple malls like Inorbit Malls, Infiniti Mall, Nexus Malls and Dubai Mall, and across 24 countries, including India, UAE, Turkey, Philippines, Bangladesh and several more. It is celebrated on the 12th of December, annually, with much aplomb.
Aim: To build a sense of pride in the lives of retail employees by thanking them for their warmth, humility and tireless service 365 days a year, with a grand celebration.
TRRAIN Retail Awards recognizes and applauds the finest, and most enduring customer service stories of sales associates at a global level.
Impact: 300+ employees in India, have been recognised and rewarded for their customer service excellence. The awards felicitate retail associates who have gone beyond the call of duty to deliver customer service excellence.
Aim: To felicitate retail employees who go the extra mile and gladly provide exceptional and continual customer service. These awards aim to build a sense of respect among retail employees and let them know that their efforts are recognised, lauded and invaluable to the success of any retail sector.
Impact: The programme has upskilled 30,000+ employees till date.
Aim: To assist retail associates in learning and upgrading their skills so they can keep up with the competition in the retail sector. To achieve this, TRRAIN has collaborated with one of the best global learning solutions company, Aptech.
Our Mission
Our Team
Our founder, Mr. B. S. Nagesh, is one of the pioneers of modern retail and has more than 35 years of experience in retail. He is a firm believer of the philosophy of 25 years of learning, 25 years of earning and 25 years of giving back. TRRAIN (Trust for Retailers and Retail Associates of India) is his way of giving back to the industry that gave him so much over the course of a rewarding career.
Co-Founder & CEO, Ameesha Prabhu shoulders the responsibility of nurturing the initiatives taken up by the Trust for Retailers and Retail Associates of India (TRRAIN) as its Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer. Her passion for retail emerged over 28 years ago when she began her career as a shop floor associate to becoming the Head of Buying. She embraces technology with ease and has been involved in many Retail Technology Implementations. Deriving from her personal journey in retail, she has a well-rounded understanding of the retail environment as well as empathy with the front-end associates. She relishes opportunities to share her insights with aspiring retail professionals and entrepreneurs. At TRRAIN, she is responsible for incubating, developing & nurturing the various projects which directly impact the life of a retail associate. She likes working with the retail fraternity, and is a role model and mentor to the enthusiastic, young team at TRRAIN.
