Leaving the bigger brands like Future group (of which even Big Bazaar is a part of), and Reliance Retail far behind, the Army canteens have become the most profitable retailers in the country. The Canteen Stores Department (CSD), which, incidentally, is a not-for-profitorganisation, earned Rs 236 crore during FY14-15, according to a Right to Information query. Comparatively, Avenue Supermart, which runs D'Mart stores, made a profit of Rs 211crore that year, Future Retail made Rs 153 crore and Reliance Retail Rs 159 crore. CSD's operating margin is 1%, which it claims on its website is lowest for any retailer in the world. For most consumer product and liquor companies, CSD accounts for 5-7% of their total volume sales.  

It is the biggest customer across South Asia for Hindustan Unilever, the country's largest FMCG company, and United Spirits Ltd. A spokeswoman for USL, India's largest liquor company, said CSD is very important, especially for premium scotch brands such as Johnnie Walker and Black Dog. "For any company, a channel as big as CSD is surely their first priority and the company would want to stock its products immediately," said the company's senior official.