RETAIL MANAGEMENT

INTRODUCTION:
The word ‘Retailer’ had been derived from the French word
‘Re-tailer’ which means ‘to-cut again’. Obviously then, retailing
means to cut in small portions from large lumps of goods. A
retailer is last middlemen in the chain of distribution of goods
to consumers. He is a link between the wholesalers and the
consumer.
The American Marketing Association defines retailing as “the
activities involved in selling directly to the ultimate consumer
for personal and non-business use. It embraces direct-to-
customer sales activities of the producer, whether through his
own stores or by house-to-house canvassing or by mail-order
business. The retailer is an intermediary in the marketing
channels and is a specialist who maintains contact with the
consumer and the producer and is an important connecting
link in the mechanism of marketing.

The word retail is derived from the French word Retailer, that is to cut a piece,
a break down. A retailer buys in large quantity from the middleman or
manufacturer and breaks the bulk in small quantity, sells or markets them in
small quantity to meet the needs of customers.
• Philip Kotler:
The marketing guru has said all activities in selling goods or service directly to
final consumer for personal or non-business use is retailing or retail marketing.
• Retail marketing or organised business of retailing has following
feature or characteristics:
1)Direct interaction with customers.
Retailing involves direct contact with the end customer and retailers act as a
mediator between the wholesaler and the customer or the manufacturer and the
customer depending upon the distribution channels used.A retailer maintains a
personal contact with his customers. Retailers act as the company’s
representatives to the end customers who give them their feedback and
suggestions.
2)Lower amount of sale transaction.
A retailer is selling in small quantities through break bulk function.
However, the small quantities become large when aggregated.
3)Promotion and point of purchase.
A manufacturer going in for sales promotion has to provide it to the final
point from where the customer buy. Sale, Point of Purchase display,
discounts, etc. have to be offered at this point only.
4)Large no. of retail unit
. Large Retailer means any person, corporation, partnership, business,
facility, vendor, organization or individual that sells or provides
merchandise, goods or materials, including without limitation, clothing,
food, or personal items of any kind directly selling

5.Services:
A retailer should concentrate on his services. Courteous and prompt service on
his part will help him in attracting more and more customers and thereby
flourish in his business. Most retailers go in for after sale service , installation,
home delivery also instalment in payment is given , where they cater to the
needs of the customers after the latter has purchased a commodity from them.
So efficient service should be the motto of every retailer.

Function of retailor
1.Assortment:
Retailer has wide variety of customers who have different requirements.
Retailer collects and assembles these merchandise from different sources,
assorts them and keep in his shelf in a such way ready for easy identification
for himself and customers. He arrange with classification or separation or
category such as brand , size, colour, price, quantity wise displays product to
visiting customers and ensure sales.
2. Breaking the Bulk:
Retailer buys in large quantity “RETAILS’ or cuts into small bulk or pack to
match the need of each individual customer. The large bundle or bag or bulk is
broken into small units of packs that is convenient for a retailer to buy and
carry.
3. Holding Stocks:
Merchandise of adequate quantity is always kept in stores so that it is
delivered whenever demanded. By holding ready stock, He creates Time
Utility, and increases value of goods. This is an important service that a retailer
to keep the inventory optimum level to maintain carrying cost.
4)Promotion of Product:
Promotion is an important activity in selling the product. Retailer undertakes
promotion of products by giving publicity and advertisement in the local
media. Placement, showcasing and window dressing of the product in his shop
and showroom will make the product visible to people and it may attract them
to buy it.

5)Offers Variety of Services to his Customers:

Regular retailer offers variety of services along with the sale. These may include
free home delivery, after sale service, credit Retailer is a man of confidence to a
regular customer. Long and regular association-ship between retailer and his
customer will make them to share their personal and family related issues.
Retailer may act as Friend Philosopher and Guide of his trusted customer in his
routine life.

Infiniti Retail Ltd

Croma is run by Infiniti Retail Ltd., a 100% subsidiary of TATA

Sons and now has a customer base of more than 6 million
customers. Croma – India’s leading large
format electronics retailer is also the first omni-channel
electronics retailer uniting the 3 customer touch-points: a Croma
store, the online electronics shop and a fully functional mobile app.
Croma has a network of 97 Croma stores spread across 20 cities.

It also boasts of an extremely convenient online shopping

experience with its Android & iOS mobile app, where one can buy
online and get delivered, their favorite electronics across more than
5000+ pin codes in the country.

V-Mart Retail Limited (VMRL) was incorporated as Varin

Commercial Private Limited in 2002. The Company started its
operations in the value-for-money retail segment by opening
its first retail store in Gujarat in 2003.

In 2006, the name was changed to V Mart Retail Pvt. Limited and in
2008 the constitution was changed to make it a public limited entity
and the name of the Company was changed to the present one. It is
one of the listed retail companies in India.

VMRL operated 69 stores with a total store area of 5.58 lakh sq.ft
spread across 51cities in 10 states and union territories as on 31st
March 2013. All stores have lease agreements with two other stores
with whom they share revenues as mandated by a clause. VMRL
operates all its stores on its own and has not involved any
franchisees.

VMRL’s operations are mainly spread in Tier-II and Tier-III cities in

the Northern, Eastern and Western parts of the country. Some of
the major states in which the Company operates are New Delhi,
Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Punjab, and
Rajasthan.

Trent limited
Trent Ltd is an India-based retail operations company that owns
and manages a number of retail chains in India. The Company
runs lifestyle chain Westside, a chain of lifestyle retail stores;
Star Bazaar, a hypermarket chain; Landmark, a books
and music chain; and Fashion Yatra, a complete family fashion
store.

Westside offers clothes, footwear, and accessories for men,

women, and children, along with furnishings, artifacts and a
range of home accessories. Star Bazaar hypermarket chain
offers products, including staple foods, beverages, health and
beauty products, vegetables, fruits, dairy, and non-vegetarian
products.

Shoppers stop

Established in 1991, Shoppers Stop is India’s pioneering retailer and

effectively, the highest benchmark in modern retail. Spread
across 210 multi-format stores in 39 cities. The Company is
engaged in the business of retailing a range of household and
consumer products through departmental stores. The Company
operates three business segments: Retail operations, Property
options, and Others. The Company’s Retail operations segment
includes trading of apparels, non-apparels, such as cosmetics,
household items, food products, books and compact discs
(CDs). The Company’s Other segment consists of the gaming
business.

The Company offers a range of national and international brands

across categories, such as fashion apparel, accessories,
cosmetics, perfumes, homeware, and others.

Aditya Birla Fashion & Retail Ltd

Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Ltd. (ABFRL) emerged after the
consolidation of the branded apparel businesses of Aditya Birla
Group comprising ABNL’s Madura Fashion division and ABNL’s
subsidiaries Pantaloons Fashion and Retail (PFRL) and Madura
Fashion & Lifestyle (MFL) in May 2015. Post the consolidation, PFRL
was renamed Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Ltd.
 Revenue: ₹ 8,270 cr
 Retail Stores: 2714
 Employees: 23,000+
ABFRL is India’s No 1. Fashion Lifestyle entity with combined
revenue of INR 8,118 crore for FY 2019 and EBITDA of INR 619 crore
for FY 2019. Birla Fashion is the largest fashion listed retail
companies in India

Avenue Supermarts Ltd

DMart is a one-stop supermarket chain that aims to offer

customers a wide range of basic home and personal products
under one roof. Each DMart store stocks home utility products –
including food, toiletries, beauty products, garments,
kitchenware, bed and bath linen, home appliances and more.

DMart was started by Mr. Radhakishan Damani and his family to

address the growing needs of the Indian family. From the launch of
its first store in Powai in 2002, DMart today has a well-established
presence in 188 locations across Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra
Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Telangana, Chhattisgarh,
NCR, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, and Rajasthan.

The supermarket chain of DMart stores is owned and operated by

Avenue Supermarts Ltd. (ASL). The company has
its headquarters in Mumbai. The brands D Mart, D Mart Minimax,
D Mart Premia, D Homes, Dutch Harbour, etc are brands owned
by ASL.

Future retail limited

Future Retail operates some of India’s most popular retail chains

serve millions of customers in more than 400 cities in every state
of the country through digital platforms and over 2000 stores that
cover over 16 million square feet of retail space.

 Revenue: ₹ 22,225 cr
 Retail Stores: 1511
 Employees: 45,949
Future retail is the second-largest top retail company in
India after reliance retail. The company’s presence through Big
Bazaar hypermarkets and more recently through Foodhall gourmet
stores, allows it to target the entire crosssection of customers. It is
one of the largest listed retail companies in India.

From live kitchens and tasting sessions to international cuisine and

home appliances to go with it, from exotic vegetables to a wider
range of dairy products, learnings, skill sets and insights from
Foodhall is finding its way into Big Bazaar.
In categories like tea, cornflakes, and noodles the packs are
getting bigger and larger. Bulk packs of even niche segments
like salad dressing, chocolates, health biscuits, and spreads are
an order of the day. At the same time, newer products like spreads,
dressings, herbs and exotic vegetables are becoming part of
everyday food.

To complement the wide array of spreads, jams, dips, and sauces

that Big Bazaar offers, it has also launched a wide assortment of
fresh and flavourful bread including multi-grain, whole wheat,
cheese straws, focaccia, baguettes, and burger buns.

Reliance retail limited

Reliance Retail is India’s largest and most successful retailer

India’s largest retailer by reach, scale, revenue, profitability,
and India’s biggest retail company. Established presence across
key consumption baskets and holds a leadership position in food,
consumer electronics and fashion retailing. 10,415 stores covering
22 million sq ft area Reliance Retail operates the most extensive
store network in the country. It is first Among top retail company in
India.

India’s biggest retail company is engaged in the business of retailing

products and services across five key consumption baskets:

 a) Fashion and Lifestyle,

 b) Consumer Electronics,
 c) Grocery,
 d) Petro Retail
Development of retail sector in India or Immerging trend of retail

he top seven trends in retailing in India are as follows: 1. Shift

from Unorganized to Organized Retailing 2. Store Design 3.
Competition 4. New Form of Retailing 5. Technology 6.
Consumer Buying Behaviour 7. Entertainment.

1. Shift from Unorganized to Organized Retailing:

Retailing in India is thoroughly unorganized. There is no
supply chain management perspective. The key factors that
drive the growth of organized retailing in India are higher
disposable incomes, rising urbanization, growing
consumerism, nuclear family structure, growing number of
educated and employed women population.

2. Store Design:
Irrespective of the format, the biggest challenge for organized
retailing is to create an environment that pulls in people and
makes them spend more time in shopping and also increases
the amount of impulse shopping.

3. Competition:
Competition is increasing between different types of retailers.
Discount stores, departmental stores, supermarkets, etc. all
compete for the same customers. The small independent
retailers survive by providing personal services to the
customers.

4. New Form of Retailing:

New format includes Franchise, retail chain departmental
store Hypermarket Supermarket , Super store and Modem
malls made their entry into India in the late 1990s, with the
establishment of Crossroads in Mumbai and Ansal Plaza in
Delhi. India’s first true shopping mall, ‘Crossroads’—complete
with food courts, recreation facilities and large car parking
space—was inaugurated as late as 1999 in Mumbai. Malls have
given a new dimension to shopping experience.

5. Technology:
Technology today has become a competitive tool. It is the
technology that helps the organized retailer to score over the
unorganized players, giving both cost and service advantages.
Technology has also made possible the growth of non-store
retailing.

6. Consumer Buying Behaviour:

In India, there are no uniform trends with respect to consumer
buying behaviour. There are visible differences in the shopping
pattern of consumers across income segments. Organized
retailing has definitely made headway in the upper class.

However, even in this segment, items such as milk, fruits,

vegetables and a significant portion of ‘through-the-month’
purchases seem to be done at traditional outlets. Organized
retail outlets seem to be associated with branded items/special
purchases. Organized retailing does not seem to have made an
impact on the lower class, except for ‘curiosity’ shopping.

7. Entertainment:
Modem retail formats provide a place for people to assemble,
and a means of entertainment, by providing facilities such as
food courts, mini theatre, children’s play spaces and coffee
shops. These facilities help the customers enjoy shopping.

8.GROWING PER CAPITA INCOME

Per capita income quadrupled from $452 USD in 2000 to $1,593 USD in
2015. Consumers now have more disposable income. There is a
growing trend among Indian consumers to purchase branded products
as well as goods and services focused on convenience and healthier
living.

It is important to remember that averages do not tell the entire story as

there remains significant inequality in wealth distribution in India today.
In reality, only about 6% of the population is a target market for major
retailers looking to enter the Indian retail landscape.

Still, 6% of India’s enormous population represents about 80

million people, or roughly the entire population of Germany and more
than France, England, Italy or Spain. The Indian market cannot be
ignored by retailers or marketers.

9.CHANGES IN HOUSEHOLD STRUCTURE

Nuclear families have increased by 13% over the past two decades to
comprise 70% of all Indian households. Nuclear families tend to spend
20-30% more than joint families.

Additionally, as more women participate in the workforce, there are new

demands for services that help the consumer who is busy and short on
time. This trend is only expected to continue. The World Economic
Forum reports that 82% of female respondents to a recent survey said
their ideal employment would be full-time outside of the home.

10.FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT POLICY (FDI)8.

FDI requires foreign companies to invest directly in private Indian
businesses, and the rules of investment were once very stringent.
Recent policies changes have relaxed some of the investment
restrictions. For instance, in 2012 the government loosened the policy on
single brand retail trading to increase the FDI cap from 51% to 100%
(with certain conditions).