Reliance Retail has entered into a franchise agreement with US-based footwear retailer Payless ShoeSource.

Reliance Retail will open exclusive franchisee stores in India for consumers seeking value for money. The company has already created a page on social networking site Facebook as an advertisement campaign. It also runs a retail chain called Reliance Footprint and has about 128 stores in the country.

Reliance Retail plans to replicate the experiential elements of Payless stores. The Topeka-based retail chain has 258 franchise stores located in West Asia, Asia and Eastern Europe in such countries as Russia, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, South Korea, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates and Malaysia, among others.

“Partnering with Reliance will further our vision of being the ‘go to’ shoe store that shoppers anywhere in the world can count on to be there for them and for their families, helping them look good every step of the way,” said Paul Jones, CEO of Payless Holdings.

A unique feature of Payless stores is its hard-to-find sizing for women and the unique right-sizing service for children.

“We believe this association has the potential to storm the ladies and kids footwear market in India which has largely been unorganised and fragmented to date. We look forward to launching these stores in India next year,” said G. Sankar, CEO Footwear business, Reliance Retail, in a statement.

Payless stores have well-known brands such as Airwalk, Dexter, Brash, and designer label Christian Siriano and children’s brand Smartfit.