Shopping Mall Branding

A study on factors that differentiate malls

in the consumers mind space
Final Dissertation Report
By:
Chinmay Palekar
200520
PGPCM II

Submitted to:
Mudra Institute of Communications, Ahmedabad
In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the
Postgraduate Programme Diploma in Communications Management
Dissertation Guide: Dr. Hemant Trivedi
February, 2007

 Copyright of
Chinmay Palekar (2005-07) and
Mudra Institute of Communications, Ahmedabad

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I would like to acknowledge and thank my guide, Dr. Hemant Trivedi for the constant
support and guidance provided to me at every stage of this study. His sound knowledge
and thorough understanding of the retail sector in India continues to astound me, while
his fresh perspectives and approaches to problem solving have been a constant source of
learning.

I would also like to thank Prof. Dwarika Prasad Uniyal for having generated a spark of
interest and curiosity about retail by way of his Retail Management course. It was he who
sowed the seeds for this study in my head during a conversation with him.

I would also like to give credit to and thank my friends for having assisted me in certain
legs of the research work carried out for this study in various cities.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Volumes have been written by industry analysts and pundits on how Retail,
Telecommunications and Media are among the sectors that will drive growth and provide
direction to the new Indian Economy. The economy is doing well, with a current GDP of
approximately 8.5% and we are slowly moving from a purely manufacturing to a
manufacturing + services driven economy.

The role that Retail plays in this growth cannot be overlooked. After all, retail has grown
and has assumed the role it has due to higher disposable incomes, the rise of the
burgeoning middles class and increased consumer expenditure. This growth has
manifested itself in several ways chief being the increase in the number of organized
retail players with several international brands entering India and several more scheduled
to enter the fray in the not too distant future.

As a response to all these brands entering India, we have witnessed a meteoric rise in the
number of retail formats in India. These retail outlets purvey everything from Food &
Beverages, to Electronics, to Apparel, to Cosmetics and more.

Over the past few years, we have also several new, innovative retail formats such as
hypermarkets a phenomenon we had never experienced until the likes of Big Bazaar
entered our lives. Another such innovation, borrowed from the west, is the concept of a
mall a large indoor space with a controlled climate that offers a retail cum
entertainment experience.

The mall phenomenon has caught on like crazy with just a handful of malls not too long
ago in 1999 to over 60 malls and counting in 2006. While on the face of it this appears
great news to retailers and mall developers alike, look closer and the problems surface.

Almost all these malls are alike. There is nothing to differentiate one mall from the other.
They all feature similar facades, they all stock similar brands (a result of the presence of

so few organized retail players), they all offer nearly the same value proposition to
visitors of a retail and entertainment experience, the list goes on.

The result is that malls are no longer the novelty that they used to be. All of them have
experienced a dramatic drop in footfalls from what they used to be when operations
commenced, nearly all of them have unhappy tenants to whom the mall management
finds it hard to justify the return on investment.

An added dimension is that mall developers in India are effectively real estate developers
turned mall developers a far cry from the professional mall managers in the West and
the Middle East. This problem is only set to get worse as the market for malls gets
saturated (and the time is not too far away). When this happens, malls are going to need
take stances and find ways to differentiate themselves and draw crowds and build loyalty.

This study aims at doing exactly that discovering what are the factors that can
differentiate one mall from another so that mall managers are equipped with the right
tools and techniques to respond to dynamic and changing market scenarios.

The answers of course, lie with those who frequent and shop at malls. This study, through
meeting people who visit malls tries to uncover what it is that draws them to one mall
vis--vis another, what services/facilities that a mall can offer do they/would they value if
they were to be loyal to the mall. Thereafter, this study seeks to draw certain conclusions
on the basis of the analysis of the findings and make certain recommendations.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. PROLOGUE.. 01
2. LITERATURE REVIEW...03
3. SOME PERSPECTIVES07
4. DISSECTING THE INDIAN MALL08
5. PHASE-WISE GROWTH OF MALLS IN INDIA...14
6. THE CENTRAL PROBLEM.17
7. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES..21
8. RESEARCH DESIGN...22
9. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY...23
10. FINDINGS & ANALYSES.. 25
11. CONCLUSION..38
12. REFERENCES...40
13. APPENDICES....41
a. APPENDIX A: SAMPLE QUESTIONNAIRE
b. APPENDIX B: FOCUS GROUP DISCUSSION GUIDELINE49
c. APPENDIX C: CHARTS & DIAGRAMS.54

PROLOGUE
To deconstruct the concept of a mall is to define it as: a climate controlled large indoor
space providing retail, brands and entertainment (recreation) all under a single roof. It is
interesting to note that a mall is perceived as being an indicator of progress it is often
witnessed that when a mall sprouts up in a particular area, the area almost builds itself up
around the mall.

As opposed to other available retail format options, malls save retailers a lot of legal
paperwork and formalities, a lot of infrastructural issues relating to maintenance and
more. However, being India, mall developers sell space to individual investors, thereby
preventing the mall from running as an integrated unit which could affect its long term
profitability.

While this suits the developers of yesteryear just fine, the newer developers are more
professional and realize the importance of positioning, of creating and evolving a specific
kind of tenant mix. Moreover, larger retailers are already and will get more demanding as
time goes by, even now; they cry for more professional mall management and
standardized practices.

This is not to say that mall developers havent changed at all in fact, the tide is already
turning they are savvy entrepreneurs with sharp business acumen and for this lot, the
focus is shifting from being just about earning rent on leased premises to long term
profitability achieved by carefully understanding what markets want what brands are
popular which of these will be sustainable enough to build and retain a customer base.

There is still a lot to learn though, a lot of unchartered territory, while some of what mall
developers have achieved so far have been the result of careful thought and strategic
planning, a lot of it has it been left to chance, which has particularly favoured the bigger
developers.

There is a need to rely less on chance and a lot more on strategy, positioning and
planning. It is about time that contemporary management and marketing management
tools and practices were implemented to enable malls to make the transition from being
just about facility management and real estate to carefully cultivated brands. Like brands,
malls too should offer distinct value propositions to address various customer segments,
they should be differentiated in a customers mind.

The way forward, therefore, clearly lies with the Indian consumer. We need to understand
what are the triggers the consumer experiences to go to a mall, the kind of triggers he
experiences when in a mall, what draws him to a particular mall Brands? Food?
Recreation? A combination of the above? This is what this study hopes to uncover what
parameters can a mall developer/manager use to create differentiation for his mall, to
occupy a clear space in the consumers mind which is his and his alone and thus, create a
brand for his mall in the consumers mind.

LITERATURE REVIEW
Call of The Mall, Paco Underhill

This book by Paco Underhill while giving an overview of mall management, details
various retailers and retail categories present within the store, describes their attributes
and contribution to the mall overall. The book also mentions what are the problems/what
issues are prevalent/what is wrong with the way malls, their retailers and retail categories
do business. Finally and critically, the book details interactions between the author and
various shoppers within these retail outlets hence providing insights into shoppers
behaviour towards malls and these stores.

Why We Buy, Paco Underhill

Why We Buy essentials attempts to answer a lot of questions while throwing up a lot of
questions and insights too on how shoppers behave in isolation within a store and how
they behave in response to a store. Among the things the book describes include typical
shopper behaviour what they like, what they dont like, how male shopping behaviour
differs drastically from female shopping behaviour and the reason for the disconnect,
how there exists different kinds or types of shoppers and how they respond when in a
store with and without stimuli from the store and finally measures that stores can and
currently do implement in an attempt to make shopping easier for shoppers, increase
footfalls and conversion rates.

FDI in Retail Sector INDIA, Arpita Mukherjee and Nitisha Patel

This book gives a very good macro perspective on the retail sector as a whole both
globally and in India, how the retail sector has evolved with changing macroeconomic

conditions, emergence of new formats, new players, challenges, FDI policies, perceptions
and concerns of foreign players with regard to the Indian retail sector.

India Retail Report 2005, Jim Pooler

An Images KSA Technopak report, this book provides up to date information on the
retail sector in India as of 2005 with emerging trends about retail formats, space, how
consumer trends and preferences have changed as a result of changing lifestyle and
preferences. In that sense, the book provides an extremely holistic perspective on the
Indian retail sector and all the players involved.

Retail Real Estate Malls in India, Shilpa Malik

This report by Images is easily the most definitive piece of work on the state of malls in
India. The report is extremely comprehensive and goes into great detail about how the
evolution of the mall as a concept in India, about how malls are gradually moving from
being a business of real estate and facility management headed by real estate developer
turned mall developers to being headed by professional mall managers in the near future.

The book draws parallels to malls in the West and the Middle East. It also explains and
details certain key concepts of malls such as mall management and provides market
profiles of various cities which have malls. Finally, the book details out the malls within
these cities and dissects them providing details on floor space, tenant mix, etc.

'N.J. mall to start branding campaign', Lindsay Morris

Lindsay Morris in his/her article titled 'N.J. mall to start branding campaign',
(Advertising Age, Vol. 70, Issue 29, Jul 12, 1999) talks about of Jersey Gardens, a mall

that was based in New Jersey. Before the mall opened in 1999, an advertising campaign
was run where the mall management was of the opinion that they should talk about
categories such as jewelry and apparel as opposed to talking about specific retailers. They
believed at the time that what differentiated them from their competitors were facilities
and amenities such as valet parking, a shuttle service between Manhattan and Newark
International Airport and a coat check service (also talked about in Paco Underhills Call
of the Mall)

'Shopping mall operator starts $22 mil brand push', Alice Z. Cuneo

Alice Z. Cuneo, in her article titled . 'Shopping mall operator starts $22 mil brand push',
(Advertising Age, Vol. 70, Issue 8, Feb 22, 1999) talks about a shopping mall group
called the Simon Property Group, the owners of the Mall of America and the largest
shopping mall group in the US, launched a branding campaign, where one of the spots
focused on the centers' convenience, selection, value and entertainment activities. They
also created a loyalty program for their customers called MallPerks that would give
their customers points redeemable against travel or other awards and also, a branded
credit card.

'Branding the mall: Mills taps NY shop and boosts budget', Mercedes M. Cardona

Mercedes M. Cardona, in her article 'Branding the mall: Mills taps NY shop and boosts
budget', (Advertising Age, Vol. 74, Issue 47, Nov 24, 2003), talks about how the Mills.
Corp, in an effort to brand their malls, decided that they would position shopping at their
malls as an experience and not a chore. They decided to launch a campaign that would
promote its shopping/entertainment complexes, which included ESPN Zone skateparks
and children's activity areas.

'Aussie mall group taps DDB Needham for U.S.', Alice Z. Cuneo

Finally, Alice Z. Cuneo, in her article 'Aussie mall group taps DDB Needham for U.S.',
(Advertising Age, Vol. 70, Issue 6, Aug 02, 1999) talks about how an Australian mall
group, Westfield Corp. approached the advertising agency DDB Needham in a bid to
brand their malls. The group claimed that what they were offering to shoppers were
services such as car-like strollers for their children and employees/sales attendants so
helpful that they would take time away from what was their job to help the shopper locate
a store themselves and even walk them over to it.

So, clearly, while the first (Jersey Gardens) chose to focus on categories offered, the
others took the popular services route.

SOME PERSPECTIVES
Malls in the USA
As of end 2004, the United States of America has a total of 1200 malls. This is nearly
after a decade of consolidation of catering to a population of 275 million. In the USA,
retail professionals have scientifically honed their skills of mall development and
management.

It is a land of several successful malls and mall developers. Most malls are situation in
out-of-town locations, backed by robust infrastructure. People often make weekend trips
to these malls for both, shopping as well as leisure.

Malls in the Middle East

This regions first shopping mall in the true sense, was the Al Ghurair Center, which
opened in 1980. The Middle East has witnessed unprecedented growth in not just number
but also the types of malls in a very short period of time.

Malls here are very sophisticated, buoyed by Arab consumers indulging in shopping
malls as a leisure pastime. Moreover, the presence of several international retailers such
as Marks & Spencer, Monoprix, Sainsburys, Giordano, Bulgari and Debenhams have
also gone a long way in changing the way malls in the Middle East operate.

DISSECTING THE INDIAN MALL

Here, an attempt is made to dissect shopping malls as we know them on certain
parameters such as Size, Location, Design, Tenant Mix, Amenities, Footfalls, Mall
Management, etc.

These parameters can be broadly classified as Infrastructure & Management Parameters.

INFRASTRUCTURE PARAMETERS

Size

While a mall in
the US could be
anywhere
between
4,00,000
10,00,000 sq. ft.,
Indian malls are
typically
between 50,000
6,00,000 sq. ft.

For the sake of simplicity and providing some classification, malls in India have been
categorized as Small (50,000 2,00,000 sq. ft.), Medium (2,00,000 5,00,000 sq. ft.) and
Large (5,00,000 sq. ft and above).

In essence, while all these malls primarily offer retail to their customers, almost all of
them have some form of entertainment (food/recreation/multiplex) thrown in to make it a
complete family package that bundles shopping as well as fun. In all cases so far, the
retail component of the mall outweighs its entertainment component(s).

Location
Most malls are located in either
suburban

locations

or

prime

residential areas within the city. As

of 2005, nearly 60-70% of malls in
Delhi and Mumbai were located in
the suburbs.

So far, the trend is that malls fall

under the purview of real estate
and facility management and hence, most malls are started by real estate developers
looking to build a township that is replete with residential, commercial and retail avenues
for all kinds of tenants. The retail component particularly hikes up the value of the real
estate and the malls feed off the residential catchment area. Thus, malls dont have to do
much.

Entertainment Destinations
Most malls are promoted as retail cum entertainment destinations. This is the result of
multiplexes gaining popularity as anchor stores in malls and malls featuring several
recreational acitivities such as bowling, gaming arcades, etc. (Fun Republic in
Ahmedabad is one such example).

Design
Most

malls

feature

glass

and

aluminum

sheet

facades

to

give

them

contemporary/futuristic look and international feel. Again, there is nothing that stands out
about these designs they all look staid and similar without lending a personality to the
mall.

While most malls feature an atrium (a foyer of sorts), they are mostly just spill outs of the
design and very few of them actually utilize an atrium as a centre where everything
converges, and hence where all the buzz and activity is. Some malls that use this
effectively repeatedly are Crossroads, Centre One in Mumbai and The Metropolitan mall
in Gurgaon.

Amenities
Most malls reflect a lack of planning and foresight by simply demonstrating lack of
parking areas for consumers vehicles. This problem is made worse by the lack of a valet
(or similar professionally managed) parking service. Even worse, are the kind of
innovations that malls like Crossroads in Mumbai invented rooftop parking nothing is
more cumbersome.

Most malls are severely unequipped in this area to the extent that they find it difficult on
busy weekends to provide parking space to at least a good 40% of visitors. This is
essentially because when the mall was being designed, the developers never took the
trouble to seriously consider population, increase in affluence buoyed by the economy as
variables that would dramatically affect what would appear to be an otherwise
inconsequential area.

Also, while some new malls are, most of them are not very friendly to people who are
physically challenged. Simple devices like ramps and fully functional elevators that can

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comfortably accommodate wheelchairs are only finding place in new malls with most of
the older ones not even running all their escalators continuously through the working
hours in a day. Interestingly, some malls have already started proving Day Care Centre
services/Crches and childrens recreational facilities.

MANAGEMENT PARAMETERS

Footfalls
An interesting trend is the decline in footfalls at malls and the increase of conversions.
While Crossroads mall in Mumbai enjoyed an average of nearly 40,000 footfalls a day to
even more on weekends when it began operation in 1999, as of end 2003, this number has
fallen to about 10,000. This is because, as mentioned earlier, malls once upon a time were
a novelty, but now, with so many of them sprouting up everywhere and so many of them
being nearly similar, there is little

incentive for people to visit them out of

curiosity/novelty.

The burgeoning middle class and the rise of disposable income and hence increased
consumption expenditure has led to an increase in the conversion rate of footfalls. To
again quote the example of the Crossroads mall, though their footfalls dropped by end
2003, their conversion rate increased from 1 in every 10 to visitors to 6. The estimated
conversion rate for Piramyd (one of Crossroads anchor stores) is a massive 25-40%. The
average bill size increased nearly 3-4 times.

By end 2003, most malls were experiencing a reasonably healthy and stable 10-15%
conversion rate of footfalls.

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Mall Management
As mentioned earlier, most malls are not professionally managed and are run by real
estate developers turned mall developers who lease space to retail investors. It could be
argued that this has not been possible due to a variety of reasons including dearth of
talent, ownership and cost issues, etc. However, as the mall market matures, professional
management will be a necessity.

Some malls in Mumbai and Bangalore are already considering employing professional
managers as is Forum Mall in Kolkata.

Facility management, which in principle should be just a component of mall

management, is what a bulk of what mall management in India is at present. This
function too is outsourced to professional services firms.

Positioning
Most malls lack clear positioning and are thriving on first mover advantage. This is
where the problem lies. Since there are only so few organized retailers, most malls wind
up with more or less the same set of retailers. So, most malls look and feel the same. The
exception being, the case of Sahara Mall in Gurgaon, which is apparently trying to reach
out mass markets with brands such as Big Bazaar and Haldirams.

While this is not a problem right now, once the market for malls get saturated (explained
later), malls will need to have clear positioning if they are to survive without
cannibalizing into each other.

12

Tenant Mix

In most Indian malls, 30% of the space belongs to the Apparel sector and 12-20%
belongs to the Food & Beverage sector. The balance comprises consumer durables,
lifestyle brands, etc.

Popular anchor stores in malls are typically department stores (e.g. Shoppers Stop,
Lifestyle), hypermarkets (e.g. Spencers, Big Bazaar) and multiplex chains (e.g. Fame
Cinemas, Fun Republic, Adlabs, PVR Cinemas). Specifically, over the last 3 years or so,
it has been observed that department store chains and supermarket chains have generated
substantial demand at these malls.

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PHASE-WISE GROWTH OF MALLS IN INDIA

1. Evolution
In this phase, the total space in the country, after taking into account what were regarded
as the three major developments in the period up till 2001 (Spencers Plaza in Chennai,
Crossroads in Mumbai and Ansal Plaza in Delhi) was not more than 6,50,000 sq. ft.

2. Acceleration
Starting 2001, this phase was expected to last upto 5 years with several mall developers
announcing several malls in every possible format at every possible location.

By the end of 2003, there were at least 25 malls operational in India, totaling 50,00,000
sq. ft. of space. The projection for 2005 was 2,60,00,000 sq. ft. of space, a rapid increase
by any standards. This mall boom has been attributed to increased consumer expenditure
and growth in organized retail.

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Another reason why mall developers have been able to sustain this pace of growth is the
revenue model they employ where they sold mall space both, prior to and during the
construction phase to acquire funds. As is practice now, almost up to 70% of of space is
sold even before the mall commences operations.

Again, because this is a bandwagon that most mall developers have jumped on to blindly,
most of these malls lack any kind of strategy, positioning, planning, differentiation. Their
layout is poor space is managed poorly, parking and other infrastructure is woefully
inadequate and again, these developers lack an understanding of what professional mall
management entails clearly shown through a surge in the growth of the market without
an equal if not, more demand generated from the retailers end.

It is in this phase that the more savvy mall developers suddenly realized the importance
of positioning and tenant mix to more effectively leverage long-term profitability.

3. Saturation
This stage is where the market for malls is headed oversupply. The day is not far when
there will be a multitude of malls operational. In such a scenario, retailers will be spoilt
for choice.

It is in this phase then, that mall developers will need to re-evaluate what they set out to
achieve. This might result in a redefining of objectives and defining a target audience,
goals and doing a series of activities to cater to specific segments of customers. They
might go off into tangents by exploring ideas such as Specialty Malls (Gold Malls,
Automobile Malls, Electronics Malls) or even adopt themes such as Regional Malls,
Discount malls, Entertainment malls, etc.

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4. Consolidation
This is a phase that most mature markets have undergone. In the US, an example of a
mature market, nearly 33% of the 1200 malls have become obsolete and after a decade of
consolidation, an organization operating in real-estate investments, controls 47% of all
malls including 200 high performing ones.

The smaller ones are left floundering without the resources, the skills and the muscle to
compete as they are owned by smaller organizations, trusts and families. These secondtier malls are also further hit by non-mall competitors such as Wal-Mart and floundering
lower price departmental store tenants such as J. C. Penney Co.

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THE CENTRAL PROBLEM

Volumes of articles have been written about the retail boom in the last few years in India
and how the sector is dynamic and will contribute to and drive the growth of the new
Indian economy as well as provide it direction. Coupled with the trend of increased
consumer expenditure, high levels of disposable income and the rise of the Indian middle
class and their purchasing power, things ahead look optimistic.

These variables have manifested themselves in several ways: the rise of organized retail,
the entry of several international retail brands, increased marketing expenditure by the
established players to maintain/gain ground against the new competition and of course,
coming closer to the topic the increase in the number of retail outlets be they
Exclusive or Multi Brand Showrooms, Department stores or even, closer home, malls.

There used to be a time, not long ago, when shopping malls were a novelty. They were
marvels, because one had never seen anything so grandiose, so extravagant a place that
offered not only a multitude of brands under one roof creating a shopping experience
like no other but also, entertainment, recreation and leisure.

It was a time when the Crossroads mall and several others like it in Mumbai had to
actually impose restrictions on the kind of people who could/could not enter the mall.
Visiting and especially shopping at a mall was considered as a sign that one had arrived.
But then, something started happening.

The number of malls started increasing extremely rapidly. Now, the consumer had
several options to choose from. So did the retailers. Because organized retailers and
organized retail brands are limited in number even now, many malls wound up with more
or less a similar mix of retailers. So, prospective customers started defecting from the
erstwhile specific malls they visited to just about any mall because they too knew that
they would more or less get what they wanted at any mall.

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The larger implication of this was a drastic reduction in the number of footfalls, forcing
several mall tenants in some of the smaller to simply shut shop and leave. The mall
management could not justify the return their tenants were receiving. Even if they
wanted to, how could they?

Almost all malls are similar they are located in prime residential areas or sort of out-oftown locations, they feature nearly the same tenant mix, they all offer basic amenities
like parking, they all offer a good mix of brands, they are all air-conditioned, all of them
feature escalators, all of them feature food courts (which also feature similar brands
The Subways and McDonalds of the world). So, on what parameter could they
differentiate themselves from one another?

Can the malls management be blamed? After all, unlike malls that are managed
professionally in developed markets like the West, malls in India to date at least, have
been promoted, designed and developed by real estate developers turned mall developers.

Real Estate developers lack the competency to become mall managers their mindset is
that mall management is about: a) Leasing space (It doesnt matter who the tenant is so
long as he can afford the rent) and b) Facility Management. Moreover, these real estate
developers often develop malls simply because they think it perfectly complements
and/or completes a residential township that they are developing.

The macro entities like the Government and policy makers are not completely innocent
either. This is where the disconnect between theory and practice is most evident.
Consider this: The Government without considering the ramifications, sanctions a piece
of land to mall developers. What follows then is that multiple malls sprout up within less
than 10 minutes away from each other.

The city of Ahmedabad is a prime example of this with the Satellite area being already
crowded with Fun Republic mall, Gallops Mall, the soon to open Gujarat ISKCON mall
and God knows what else. There are a good 3-4 projects in the pipeline along that stretch.

18

Retailers at these malls are already feeling the crunch. It is a known fact that some
retailers at the Fun Republic mall met with little or no success, way before the Gallops
mall even came along. A retailer that noticeably shut shop at the Fun Republic mall was
Doks (The 9 to 9 store).

Another case is that of the Subway restaurant. Subway has two outlets one in the Fun
Republic mall, the other in the Gallops mall. These two outlets, instead of battling
McDonalds, U.S. Pizza and Pizza Hut all of whom compete in the same category as
them, are busy battling each other to see which outlet does better.

The latest news is that the Subway outlet at Gallops mall is about to shut down due to
poor sales. There is no one to blame for this but Subway it is an almost amateurish
marketing error. How could they allow such an oversight to occur? Surely they above
every one else understand the importance of receiving footfalls from a particular
catchment area and how having two outlets located so closely within the same catchment
area would lead to cannibalization?

This is a classic sign of things to come and is a wake-up call - mall developers,
management and retailers alike have to understand the need to differentiate merchandise,
services, facilities, amenities all in a bid to ensure that there exists no cannibalization
between retailers and malls are able to run profitably.

What is strange is that some mall managers and mall developers in India, whether
consciously or not, practice this already. Apparently, the Sahara Mall in Gurgaon has a
very clear mid market focus. Perhaps then, the benefit of creating differentiation and
hence creating a mall brand is a concept that is just not treated seriously enough.

India is not too far away from a time when the market for malls will saturate. When that
happens, mall developers and mall managers had better have their act together they had
better have thought of how to position themselves, differentiate themselves and practice
and display that differentiation to visitors, or they will have lost. Footfalls will continue

19

to dwindle, slowly, so too will the sales - all because they did not how/on what
parameters to compete.

This problem will get even more compounded with international mall developers and
funding coming from the U.S., Europe, South East Asia and the Middle East. The malls
in the Middle East are already very advanced and they already employ tactics and
strategies to differentiate themselves.
This is the purpose of the study to attempt to understand in the Indian context, what are
the competition parameters available to mall developers and mall management, how they
can be leveraged to create differentiation and hence, how a mall can become a brand.

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RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
Given the context of the central problem as stated above and the need to uncover what
differentiates malls from one another and what specifically people who frequent malls
think create differentiation for malls, the research objectives were formulated keeping in
mind the following issues that needed addressing:
In the Indian context, what stereotypes exist with respect to shopping malls in the
minds of shoppers? Hence, what new insights, stereotypes can be developed that
will enable not only malls to differentiate and brand themselves, but also the retail
sector on the whole to grow using this new dimension
Objectives for people who frequent these malls (shoppers and non-shoppers)
o Profiling people who visit malls?

Why they visit malls

What is/are the benefit(s) they derive from visiting malls that they
dont at other formats

Is there a purchase they make specific to a mall

How often and how much time they spend in malls

What are their expectations regarding malls

If there is a particular mall that they visit frequently, why that

particular mall? What makes it unique?

To what extent does their demographic and psychographic profile

influence and affect their behaviour, attitude and perception
towards malls

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RESEARCH DESIGN
The nature of the study necessitated a research design that would capture quantitative as
well as qualitative data. Hence, the proposed research design was a quantitative survey
coupled with a qualitative, exploratory study to understand:
Profiles of people who frequent malls
o Their expectations and preferences with regard to malls
o To understand why they prefer one mall to the other
Differentiation
o As seen in the eyes of consumers
o As practiced by mall developers

Sampling Design
I. Focus Group Discussion

Sampling Universe: Young men and women who visit malls, aged 22-30; 30-40
Sampling Frame: Friends, acquaintances who frequent various types of malls in
Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Delhi and Mumbai.
Sample Size: 35 (7 FGDs of 5 people each)

II. Interviews at Malls

Sampling design: People who visit malls

Sampling frame: People exiting malls in Bangalore, Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai
Sample Size: 70 (Bangalore: 10, Delhi: 20, Kolkata: 10, Mumbai: 30)

22

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Based on the research questions that need to be answered in the previous section, the
proposed research methodology involved a mix of primary and secondary research,
whereby the primary sources of data would be an exploratory qualitative study performed
through observational research, interviews, depth interviews and focus group discussions.

Primary Sources of Data

1. Observational Research: Proposed for malls across Mumbai to understand what
were the various facilities and amenities malls offered, the kind of merchandise
they stocked, how differentiation if any they were practicing was visible to
shoppers, the kind of shoppers who frequented the mall, stores they visited and
spent the most time in, mall services, facilities they used.
2. Focus Group Discussions were conducted with men and women, belonging to
SEC A, between ages 20-30 to understand their profile, their lifestyle, why they
visit malls, attitudes, behaviour and perceptions towards and about malls.
3. Interviews facilitated through a structured questionnaire designed to capture data
to facilitate demographics and psychographics profiling of respondents and their
attitudes, behaviour and perceptions towards and about malls and that mall in
particular. These depth interviews would be conducted at the exits of various
malls in Mumbai such as Crossroads (Haji Ali), Center One (Vashi), CitiMall
(Andheri), Infiniti Mall (Andheri), Inorbit Mall (Malad), City Centre (Goregaon),
R-Mall (Mulund)

Secondary Sources of Data

The purpose of the secondary research would be to use empirical work to establish strong
conceptual frameworks and backing and would revolve around and include topics such as

23

shopping behaviour, retail management and brand management. Books used would
include Paco Underhills Why We Buy and Call of The Mall, Strategic Brand
Management by Kevin Lane Keller among others that might crop up during the course of
the study. Periodicals referred to would include Real Estate Real Malls in India by
KSA-Images Retail. Finally, the internet resources like EBSCO would be used.

24

FINDINGS & ANALYSES

As mentioned in the Research Design section, a Quantitative as well as Qualitative
approach was adopted for this study. The reason being that it was imperative that certain
data (such as Monthly Income, Avg. Household Income etc.) be collected in the form of
statistics to enable quick analysis.

A qualitative approach was also necessary as the core of the study was to understand
factors that create differentiation, why a person prefers a particular mall over another and
these are questions from which if one is to generate insight, then the responses would
necessarily have to be qualitative.

The study was conducted in Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai. In
Ahmedabad, the study was carried out primarily at Satellite. In Bangalore, respondents
were from Airport Road, Whitefield, Koramangala, R T Nagar, Sanjaynagar and
Indiranagar.

For the purpose of classification, the areas were classified as Upmarket Bangalore
(Airport Road, Whitefield, Koramangala, Indiranagar) and Upper/Middle Class
Bangalore (R T Nagar and Sanjaynagar).

Similarly, in Delhi, respondents were from Noida (South Delhi, Upmarket), Gurgaon
(South West Delhi, Upmarket), Motibagh (West Delhi, Middle Class), Punjabi Bagh
(West Delhi, Upmarket), Kalkaji (South Delhi, Middle Class), Sonia Vihar (East Delhi,
Middle Class), Kamla Nagar (North Delhi, Middle Class) and Malviya Nagar (South
Delhi, Upper Middle Class).

Similarly, in Kolkata, classification was done along the following lines Ballygunge
(South Kolkata, Upmarket), Camac Street (Central Kolkata, Upmarket), Lansdowne
(South Kolkata, Upmarket), Salt Lake (Upmarket), Lake Town (South Kolkata,

25

Upmarket), Park Street (Central Kolkata, Upmarket) Lake Gardens (South Kolkata,
Upper Middle Class) and New Alipore (South Kolkata, Upmarket)

Finally, respondents from Mumbai were classified as follows - Andheri (Western

Suburbs, Middle Class), Bandra (Western Suburbs, Upmarket), Chembur (Central Line
Suburbs, Middle Class), Colaba (South Mumbai, Upmarket), Cuffe Parade (South
Mumbai, Upmarket), Deonar (Central Line Suburbs, Middle Class), Goregaon (Western
Suburbs, Middle Class), Mazgaon (South Mumbai, Upmarket), Mumbai Central (South
Mumbai, Upmarket), Santacruz (Western Suburbs, Upper Middle Class), Vashi (Central
Line Suburbs, Upper Middle Class), Wadala (Central Line Suburbs, Middle Class), Worli
(South Mumbai, Upmarket), Ghatkopar (Central Line Suburbs, Middle Class) and
Mulund (Central Line Suburbs, Middle Class)

This section lists down certain quantitative as well as qualitative findings and seeks to
understand how these findings can be used for the purpose of this study.

QUANTITATIVE FINDINGS

YOUTH AND MALLS

Perhaps going against popular belief, it is the age group of youth from 21-25 that
frequents malls the most (young adults - post graduates/just about to join the work
force/already working) and not teenagers and youth about to complete graduation (upto
age 21).

Not only do they like shopping, but, they visit malls often, they also like shopping at
malls, like spending loads of time at malls (upto even 3 hours), are comfortable buying
their favourite brands (important to them) at malls and when they shop, they spend good
amounts of money.

26

To them, an outing need not necessarily be about watching a movie, having a meal or a
similar activity but instead, is an opportunity for them to spend time and hang out with
their friends. They think that malls fit the bill well.

The data to substantiate this is available in Appendix C.

ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME AND MALLS

Here an interesting trend was noticed with the variable of Annual Household Income.
While the people with the highest Annual Household Income did go out more often and
spent more, they did not spend this money at malls. They preferred to spend this money
at Exclusive Showrooms and Multi Brand Outlets. It is the people with AHI of Rs.
6,00,000 to Rs. 8,00,000 (Upper Middle Class) who frequented and shopped at malls a
lot.

When asked where they would be comfortable purchasing their favourite brands, the
people belonging to AHI Rs. 6,00,000 Rs. 8,00,000 almost unanimously said malls.
Also, it is this group that shopped far more often than the group with higher income.

The data to substantiate this is available in Appendix C

CITY-WISE COMPARISON OF MALLS

Delhi and the NCR seem to be the places to be at. The malls in Delhi score over malls in
other cities on several parameters, with people on an average, ranking services, facilities,
brands offered at Delhi malls substantially higher than other cities.

People in Delhi visit malls often, spend the most amount of time at malls and rate malls
as very good places to hangout a reflection of the level of understanding mall
27

developers in Delhi have of their clientele the recreation facilities at malls in Delhi have
been rated quite high. People in Delhi are also more comfortable shopping at malls than
people in other cities. When asked where they would be comfortable buying their
favourite brands most of them said malls.
We will explore more of this through the qualitative findings later. The quantitative data
to substantiate this is available in Appendix C.

CASE: MUMBAI
It was thought relevant to explore Malls in Mumbai briefly as there were some interesting
insights. The first, obvious one was that malls in South Mumbai were perceived as being
more trendy, as being better places to hang out, as having better brands and so on.
However, an interesting trend was that people who like to shop most at malls dont
belong to South Mumbai, but instead belong to the Central Line Suburbs shopping at
malls like R Mall and the very popular Nirmal Lifestyle.
Also, as seen in the graph (Appendix C) on average expenditure for shopping, the
Western Suburbs seem to be getting increasingly very affluent. It is almost as if
purchasing power were swaying in favour of the Western Suburbs.
The data to substantiate this is available in Appendix C. More details on specific malls
and why they were preferred/not preferred are in the Qualitative findings explored later.

CASE: DELHI
People from Delhi, particularly South Delhi (e.g. Noida) are extremely satisfied with the
malls they have in the city. They have rated malls very highly on loads of parameters and
have even displayed high inclination to shop at malls, with again, people from South
Delhi being the most keen to shop at malls.

We will explore more of this through the qualitative findings later. The quantitative data
to substantiate this is available in Appendix C.
28

QUALITATIVE FINDINGS

The Qualitative findings below are the findings combined from the Focus Group
Discussions and the questionnaires administered. Through these two, an attempt was
made to get qualitative reasons for: a) people preferring one mall over the other and b)
perceived differentiation, if any between malls.

Since the qualitative questions in the questionnaire and the questions asked in the Focus
Group Discussion are nearly similar, the findings have been integrated.

People were asked a series of questions key to the study conducted and some of their
responses to the questions have been detailed here:

1. What is the first word that comes to mind when I say mall?

Ahmedabad
Big, Space, Glass, Aluminium faade, Brands, Food, Subway, Lifestyle, Gallops,
Entertainment, Fun Republic

Bangalore
Shoppers Stop, Crowds, Glass, Faade, Multiplex, Posh, Exclusive, Brands

Delhi
Hang out, Food, Multiplexes, Big, Brands, Variety, Convenience, Air Conditioned,
Choice

Mumbai
Crossroads, Inorbit, Marks & Spencer, Westside, Variety, Fun, Big Bazaar, Lifestyle,
Food, Brands, Space, Glamour

29

2. Why do you visit malls?

(A few responses were repeated such as Big, Spacious, Variety, Everything under
one roof, Exclusivity, Movies and hence these responses have not been repeated).

Bangalore
Great Variety, Great Window Shopping, Exclusive stores, Movies, Malls
are trendy, Everything under one roof

Delhi
Malls are the One Stop for everything shopping to eating to movies, Malls make
performing chores fun, Malls are an experience

Kolkata
Malls allow me to do many things in one visit, Cool place to be seen, Good
place to meet and hang out with friends, Why should I travel to various parts of the
city on the one day I have off when I can get everything at a mall?

Mumbai
Makes for a good outing for the family, Malls have attractions for my small kids
too everyones happy, I can shop without being disturbed, Malls help me know
whats trendy, I can make a good decision because Im satisfied Ive seen
everything, Facilities like Crche are really good I can shop without worrying
about my small children, I think sales people at malls are reall y helpful, Malls
are very lively,

3. What activity do you spend the most amount of time on when at a mall?
(In decreasing order of time spent)

Ahmedabad
Shopping, Eating, Window Shopping, Hanging out

30

Bangalore
Window Shopping, Eating, Shopping

Delhi
Shopping, Eating/Hanging out (same amount of time), Movies, Window Shopping

Kolkata
Hanging out, Window Shopping, Shopping/Eating (same amount of time)

Mumbai
Shopping, Window Shopping, Hanging out/Eating (same amount of time)

4. Where would you be comfortable buying your favourite brands? Why?

The reasons were more or less common. Those who chose Exclusive Stores, MBOs,
Department stores claimed they were more comfortable buying here because they
felt:

a) Shopping at an Exclusive Showroom made them feel special and part of the
exclusive and gave them the entire range of that particular brand, (size, designs,
colours, fabrics, fits). Also they felt that since they were shopping at the Brands
showroom they could be assured of quality and authenticity. Finally, they
associated a lot of peace of mind and privacy with shopping here as opposed to a
mall.
b) Shopping at a MBO/Dept. Store gave them unrivalled variety, facilitated easy
brand comparison, helped ensure that they got what they wanted, they were
assured that they had seen everything before buying and hence had made
informed choices, they like the service these outlets provide.

Those who chose malls, essentially chose malls as a one stop place for everything
that instead of going across the city looking for individual showrooms, a mall brought

31

everything to them under one roof. Also, that a mall had something to fit everyones
pocket and hence was a good place to shop if you are sure of the product you want,
but not the brand. Finally, they felt malls were fun, trendy and lively which made
malls a great atmosphere to shop in.

5. If not malls, why not malls?

The most common complaint against malls was crowds in numbers, noisy and
unruly (quality of crowd). They said this really dampened the experience for them.
Other major reasons included that a) people preferred shopping at department
stores/local stores as opposed to malls because they liked the fact that people
recognize them, b) Brands are not represented adequately women complained that it
was VERY difficult to get a 27 waist jeans at a mall as this is a popular size and is
often out of stock and the best bet is an exclusive showroom.

Some also cited reasons as having TOO MANY options to choose from, making it
confusing that they were trying to be everything to everybody.

6. Are there things you purchase only at malls? Why?

A lot of women said that they purchase their shoes and formal wear at malls,
especially shoes as malls have very exotic collections and brands which are not
available elsewhere. Formal wear too, they felt comfortable knowing that they are
more likely to get good womens formal wear at a mall as opposed to elsewhere.
Some women also said they make their monthly household purchases from
hypermarkets situated in malls.

Men said they liked purchasing deodorants, perfumes and wallets from malls as they
felt they didnt get as wide a collection elsewhere and also clothes as they found
almost all brands available at malls and this meant easy comparison.

32

7. Where do you hang out in a mall?

Ahmedabad
Food Court, at Fun Republic Gaming Zone, Multiplex

Bangalore
Food Court, Multiplex

Delhi
Food Court, Multiplex, Atrium

Mumbai
Food Court, Multiplex, Bowling Alley, Atrium

8. Name some malls you frequent. Why these malls? What is it that you think
sets these malls apart from the others?

Ahmedabad
Fun Republic Multiplex, Gaming Zone
Gallops Great Shopping

Bangalore
Forum Its located very conveniently, It has some brands which arent
available elsewhere, Its a great place to hang out
Garuda It has lots of parking space, Very good collection of womens
formals, Very big and attractive

Delhi
Ansal Plaza It has Shoppers Stop the best one, Very good crowd, Very
good coffee shops to hang out in

33

Spice Mall PVR!!!

Sahara Mall Haldirams is there
CentreStage It has some really good exclusive brand showrooms

Mumbai
Centre One: The food court is very good, Crche service is awesome
Nirmal Lifestyle: My wife likes shopping here, Looks really good and the open
air kind of ambience is really good
R Mall: Good Multiplex, looks awesome
Crossroads: Have become accustomed to it It has a very exclusive feel to it
Its a fun place to be
Inorbit: Its SO big, so spacious, I can spend hours there, Its location is the
best
Phoenix Mills Bowling! Something for everyone Sports Bar, Lush, Big
Bazaar, you name it.
Infiniti Mall Westside, Great Multiplex

9. If you had to pick one mall as a favourite, which would it be? Why? What
makes it so special?
(Some responses were repetitive across cities such as Big, Good Food, Variety,
Brands and hence have not been stated repeatedly below)
Bangalore
Forum mall First mall in the city, Great place to hang out, Very Lively,
Very convenient location
Garuda mall Good Food Court, Great variety

Delhi
Ansal Plaza It has EVERYTHING
MGF Metropolitan International Feel, International Brands like Tommy
Hilfiger, Carlton, Great Parking facilities

34

DT Mega Mall Great management of space, not claustrophobic even on

weekends
Kolkata
Forum Great Location

Mumbai
Phoenix Mills Great Ambience, Its loads of fun Theres something for
everyone no matter who you are Great place to shop for clothes
Inorbit Very convenient location, excellent ambience You can spend hours here
and not get bored
Fun Republic Great mix of recreation + movies

10. What is the one thing in a mall that is MOST important to you?
(All responses had predictable variables such as Food Court, Variety, Brands, etc.
These are assumed as standard for all responses)

The most common response was space. Every city EXCEPT Mumbai said that space
was important to them. The same applies for parking too. Every city EXCEPT
Mumbai said that parking played a huge factor in them coming to the mall.

The next most common response was clean loos. Women from Delhi said that safety
was a concern to them that especially when in the parking lot, they wanted to feel safe
as some of them drove alone.

Also, a lot of respondents felt that it was important that the service they received in a
mall in the individual stores was another important factor. Finally, almost all
respondents agreed that they liked to shop at malls that werent so noisy.

35

11. If you could change/add one thing to a mall, what would that be? (In short,
something which you think would make the mall ideal?)
(Again, usual responses like better brands, more variety, have been discounted as
being standard across respondents)

Bangalore
Better Layout & Design entrances get too crowded at times, Loyalty
Programmes, Better ways to manage crowd & noise, Clean Loos, Good
Hygiene, Places to sit/relax when you are tired especially for the elderly

Delhi
Clean Loos, Reading Lounge, Less hassles with parking, Soft Music playing
in the mall, Something for kids so that they can enjoy

Kolkata
A crche service I feel guilty coming out shopping when my 1 year old is at
home, Good customer service, Better layout

Mumbai
Free Parking, Design recreational areas as far as away as possible from
shopping areas it disturbs the serious shoppers, More changing rooms within
stores, Clean loos

ANALYSES
It emerges from the study that there are several parameters that a mall can compete on
and differentiate itself from the rest. The most obvious parameter is merchandise (stock a
better number of brands/better mix of brands, more variety within brands to represent
them adequately). They could also compete on the basis of amenities and services
(perhaps the best parking, value added services like crches).

36

They could also compete by offering shoppers a better ambience (perhaps better crowd
management, hygiene, soft music). They could also compete by offering regular visitors
loyalty programmes and incentives to visit the mall again. They could compete by
offering the best food court as this has also emerged as an important consideration.

Maybe another approach is to compete by basing your mall on a theme we are all
familiar with Porters model of competition where you can offer the best products or the
cheapest prices or customer specific solutions. Maybe there exists a market for specialty
malls malls that sell only electronics, for example.

Maybe malls can compete by offering visitors the best recreation available. Maybe they
can even compete on virtue of layout & design (better organization, comfortable places
for people to relax).

Another thought is that malls can compete by regulating themselves. And that is the
thought I would like to propose and conclude on.

37

CONCLUSION
It is interesting to note that quite a few malls already do whatever has come out of the
study but, for some reason, they havent been able to understand these factors as points of
differentiation. Maybe they do and they dont know how to implement it in the form of a
sustainable action plan.

The point remains How does one brand a shopping mall? Its quite evident that its not
just consumer perception alone then. While taking a consumers needs into consideration
while developing a mall and deciding the tenant mix should be the norm, often mall
developers lose sight of what they wanted to achieve.

A brand is after all an idea, a promise you make to your customer of constantly delivering
a certain value proposition, a certain experience over and over again and it will be just
the same the next time like it was the last time you experienced it. This means a lot of
hard work and effort which malls developers have thus far shied away from.

If you were a mall developer, the way you would logically approach the situation would
be to think through the following: What are others doing? As a consequence, what do
you want do? Who do you want to be? Why should customers come to you and not your
competitor? Some of the answers, as discussed in the analyses can come from this study
from what consumers demand of the mall.

However, there is a problem. This is not the only dimension to branding a mall and not
all mall developers think this way which explains the state we are in now. There are
those mall developers who do create a positioning for themselves and hence, strategically
approach the process of selecting tenants, of getting the mix right. The problem is these
are too few in number.

38

Even those who do strategise and set out with positioning in mind, falter along the way
and become spineless in the face of falling footfalls and revenue. This is when the mall
starts going downhill when tenants come and go as long as they meet the rent. None of
the parties is accountable neither the mall developer nor the tenant (retailer).

This is where the problem lies. Perhaps what is needed is a change in thought. As
mentioned earlier, to deliver the same brand promise every time is no mean feat. In this
context, as a mall developer you need to ensure that your customers think the same way
about you day after day, month after month, for years to come.

Perhaps then the answer is to create a Quality Control mechanism which keeps your
brand in check. Retailers do it, manufacturing organizations do it, why cant malls? The
thought is simple and impelementable as a mall developer, it requires you to when
commencing operations set certain benchmarks for the mall certain performance
indicators which keep the brand (positioning/differentiation) that you had set out to
achieve in check.

Perhaps this can be done by imposing certain performance conditions on tenants at the
time of signing them up, lay down certain terms & conditions whereby they will have
certain targets they will have to achieve on a quarterly/biannual basis. The malls
management will do periodic checks to ensure that targets are being met repeated
failure to deliver expected targets would result in the tenant being shown the door.

This, coupled with whatever positioning/differentiation factors that the mall intends on
using (as described in this study) would be the most effective way to keep things in check
and preserve the identity of the mall and hence, enable the mall to become a BRAND.

39

REFERENCES
Books
Paco Underhill, Call of The Mall, First Edition, 2004
Paco Underhill, Why We Buy, First Edition, 1999
Arpita Mukherjee and Nitisha Patel, FDI in Retail Sector India, First Edition,
2005
Jim Pooler, India Retail Report 2005, First Edition, 2003
Shilpa Malik, Real Estate Real Malls in India, First Edition, 2004

Periodicals
Cardona, Mercedes M. 'Branding the mall: Mills taps NY shop and boosts
budget', Advertising Age, Vol. 74, Issue 47, Nov 24, 2003
Cuneo, Alice Z. 'Aussie mall group taps DDB Needham for U.S.', Advertising
Age, Vol. 70, Issue 6, Aug 02, 1999
Morris, Lindsay 'N.J. mall to start branding campaign', Advertising Age, Vol.
70, Issue 29, Jul 12, 1999
Cuneo, Alice Z. 'Shopping mall operator starts $22 mil brand push', Advertising
Age, Vol. 70, Issue 8, Feb 22, 1999

40

APPENDIX A: SAMPLE QUESTIONNAIRE

(Administered at exit of malls in Bangalore, Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai)

Gender: Male

Female

1. Where do you live?

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2. What do you do? Are you a:

Student
Working Professional

3. If a student, are you:

SSC
HSC
Undergraduate
Graduate
Post Graduate
Professional

4. If you are a working professional:

Employed/Service
Self-employed/Businessman

41

5. How old are you?

Less than 15 years

Between 15-18 years
Between 18-21 years
Between 21-25 years
Between 25-35 years
Between 35-45 years
More than 45 years

6. Could you tell me what is approximately your monthly income?

Less than Rs. 10000

Between Rs. 10000-Rs. 20000
Between Rs. 20000-Rs. 30000
Between Rs. 30000-Rs. 40000
More than Rs. 40000
Do not wish to disclose

7. What is your familys approximate annual income?

Less than Rs. 2,00,000

Between Rs. 2,00,000-Rs. 4,00,000
Between Rs. 4,00,000-Rs. 6,00,000
Between Rs. 6,00,000-Rs. 8,00,000
Greater than Rs. 8,00,000
Do not wish to disclose

8. How often do you go out?

Less than once in a month

Once a month
Once in two weeks
Every week
As often as I can
Dont Know/Cant Say

9. What is a typical outing for you?

Shopping
Movie
Meal
Movie + Meal
Other recreational activities bowling, etc.
Anywhere where I can hang out and catch up with friends

42

10. On average, how much do you spend per outing?

Less than Rs. 100

Between Rs. 100 and Rs. 300
Between Rs. 300 and Rs. 500
Between Rs. 500 and Rs. 700
More than Rs. 700
Dont Know/Cant Say

11. How often do you shop?

Less than once in a month

Once a month
Once in two weeks
Every week
As often as I can
Dont Know/Cant Say

12. Do you set out with the intention of purchasing something while shopping?

Rarely, I enjoy window shopping

Often, if I really, really need something
Often, I love shopping
All the time, when I set out to shop, it is to purchase

13. How much do you spend on an average shopping trip?

Less than Rs. 300

Between Rs. 300 and Rs. 600
Between Rs. 600 and Rs. 900
Between Rs. 900 and Rs. 1200
Between Rs. 1200 and Rs. 1500
More than Rs. 1500
Dont Know/Cant Say

14. Where do you like to shop?

Exclusive Brand Showrooms/Outlets of the product you are looking for

Multi-Brand Outlets of the product you are looking for
Department Stores offering various products
Local stores
Hypermarkets like Big Bazaar, Spencers
Malls

43

15. What do you most look for when shopping?

Variety/Assortment
Good Brands
Good Quality Merchandise
Value for Money purchases

16. Do you prefer shopping alone or with company?

Alone
Company

17. If company, whom do you shop with?

Friends
Sibling(s)
Family

18. How often do you visit malls?

Less than once in a month

Once a month
Once in two weeks
Every week
As often as I can
Dont Know/Cant Say

19. When you do visit a mall, when during the week and what time of day do you prefer?

Weekday, morning
Weekday, afternoon
Weekday, evening
Weekend, morning
Weekend, afternoon
Weekend, evening
Saturday, morning
Saturday, afternoon
Saturday, evening
Sunday, morning
Sunday, afternoon
Sunday, evening

44

20. Why do you visit (a) mall(s)? As opposed to other types of stores to shop at?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

21. How often do you shop at malls?

Less than once in a month

Once a month
Once in two weeks
Every week
As often as I can
Dont Know/Cant Say

22. How much time do you spend at a mall?

Less than an hour

Between an hour and 2 hours
Between 2 hours and 3 hours
Between 3 hours and 4 hours
More than 4 hours
Dont Know/Cant Say

23. What do you most do, when at a mall?

Window Shopping
Shopping
Recreation
Eating
Hang out with friends

24. Assuming you would typically do all of the above when at a mall, how much time do
you spend on which activity?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

45

25. Choose a category of products (Apparel, Electronics, etc.). Which brands do you buy?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

26. Where would you be most comfortable purchasing these products?

Exclusive Brand Showrooms/Outlets of the product you are looking for

Multi-Brand Outlets of the product you are looking for
Department Stores offering various products
Local stores
Hypermarkets like Big Bazaar, Spencers
Malls

27. Why?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

28. If not malls, why not malls?

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

29. Are there certain purchases which you make only at malls? What? Why?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

30. Why not other stores?

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

46

31. Name some malls you visit in this city regularly. Why these malls specifically?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

32. If you had to pick one mall of all the ones mentioned above as your favourite, which
would you pick and why? What sets it apart from other malls?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

33. What is the one thing most important to YOU in/at a mall? Why?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

34. If something(s) could be done to a mall to improve your experience and increase the
chances of you returning, what would it be?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

35. Please rate malls in this city on the following parameters:

Recreation
Parameter
Shopping (Assortment)
Ambience
Shopping (Brands)
Amenities (e.g. Parking)
Shopping (Quality of Merchand)
Food Court
Shopping (Value for Money)
Layout & Design
As a place to hang out

Poor

Bad

Average

Good

Very
Good

DK/CS

47

36. Please rate your favourite mall on the following parameters:

Parameter

Poor

Bad

Average

Good

Very
Good

DK/CS

Ambience
Amenities (e.g. Parking)
Food Court
Layout & Design
Recreation
Shopping (Assortment)
Shopping (Brands)
Shopping (Quality of
Merchandise)
Shopping (Value for Money)
As a place to hang out

48

APPENDIX B: FOCUS GROUP DISCUSSION GUIDELINE

(Conducted with people from Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Delhi, Mumbai)

Section I
Objective: Introduction

Hello, thank you for coming, I am ________, a student of the Mudra Institute of
Communications, Ahmedabad. I am doing a thesis on branding of shopping malls

I have called all of you here today to hold a friendly, interactive discussion on
shopping and shopping malls. to hold a discussion to get know a few things about
shopping habits and malls

While the discussion, would be informal, free-flowing and interactive, I will

nonetheless be moderating the discussion to ensure that everyone gets an opportunity
to voice their opinions, to be heard and to ensure that the discussion flows in a
particular manner that it is engaging for everyone

This discussion would take about 1 hour

I will throw open the discussion by posing a few questions. Please, feel free express
yourselves, no one is right or wrong

Finally, from time to time, I will be taking a few notes down. Please do not feel
intimated or uncomfortable

Section II
Objective: Warm up

I would like to begin by first asking you some simple questions about yourself, your
occupation, your hobbies, interests, etc. I request all of you to please respond one at a
time.

Firstly, could each one of you please tell me about yourself? (One line that defines
you)
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What is your occupation?

How long have you been living in this city?

What is a typical day for you like?

What do you want to become?

What are your hobbies/interests?

How much of this do you pursue in your spare time?

What do you do for leisure?

Do you read newspapers and newsmagazines? Which ones? How often?

Do you watch TV? Which channels? Which shows? How much time/How often?

Section III
Objective: To understand shopping behaviour, attitude and perception towards
malls, specific malls in their city

Now, I would like to ask you some questions about shopping and shopping malls. All the
questions I will ask you are again, simple and non-technical in nature. While answering,
please feel free to be frank and honest when expressing your pleasure/displeasure about
something.

Everything asked is strictly for the purpose of my study and in no way will be divulged to
any marketers/interested third parties.
Also, from now, all questions are open to discussion meaning that at any time should
one of you feel like contributing more than just the response to my question, he/she is
free to do so and others can comment too.

So, we now begin:

Without thinking, what is the first thing that comes to mind when I say mall?

I am assuming you have all visited at least one mall. But, how many malls have you
visited in this city? Can you name them?

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How often do you visit a mall?

What were the means through which you became aware of these malls? (Probe for
advertisements, friends, radio, other sources)

When you visit a mall

o How do you get there?
o Who do you go with?

What kind of purchases do you make at a mall?

o Why do you not make these purchases at other shopping formats standalone
stores, shopping centers, showrooms, etc.?

What kind of purchases do you not make at a mall?

o Why not?
o Where then do you buy these products?

When you visit a mall, is there a specific mall you visit?

o Which one?
o Why this mall?
o What is the best feature of this mall?

Could you please tell me what you think are the top three malls in this city?
o Why do you think these malls are the top three? What makes them so? Probe
o Do you think these malls are unique? What is it that makes them unique?
Probe
o Do you think between them, each of these 3 malls is unique? What is it then
that sets them apart from each other? Probe

Section IV
Objective: To understand what facilities attract shoppers to malls, specific malls in
their city

What kind of stores do you most visit in a mall?

o What stores do you visit in your favourite mall?

Where do you hang out in a mall?

o Where do you hang out in your favourite mall?

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What is the imagery that comes to you when someone talks about malls?
o What imagery comes to you if I mention your favourite mall? One word?

Tell me, what according to you are the advantages of malls vis--vis other shopping
formats? Probe

OK, now, what are the areas where you think a mall is actually found lacking? What
according to you are the disadvantages? Probe

What do you think is the single greatest feature in your favourite mall? Probe
o Dont other malls have this?
o Why is this so important to you?

Does your favourite mall have a multiplex/theatre?

o Which one? How often do you view movies?
o When do you visit this multiplex? Why? Probe

All malls have a food court they boast of. What do you think of them?
o What about your favourite malls food court? Rate it
o How important do you think is the food court in a mall?

I will now cite some facilities/features common to most, if not all malls. How
important do you think each of this? What do you think sets your favourite mall apart
in a few/some/all of these facilities/features?
o Parking
o Brands/Stores/Categories
o Location
o Ambience
o Layout
o Food Courts
o Multiplex
o Basic Amenities (Washrooms)
o Accessibility (For the physically challenged)

To use a colloquial phrase, how important do you think the crowd or the public at
a mall play in enhancing/reducing the experience

Consider your three favourite malls: (list them). If each of these malls were a person,
how would you describe them in terms of: Probe

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o Gender
o Age (Teenager/Young/Adult/Middle Aged/Old)
o Modernisation (In Sync With the times/Balanced between tradition and
modernism/very old fashioned)
o Affluence (Very rich / Rich / Middle class / Poor)

o Character or personality (Flamboyant/Fun/Shy/Family person)

Section V
Objective: The Ideal Mall

Suppose I were to give you the opportunity to design your own mall. Could you tell me:
Probe

Where would this mall be located in this city?

o How big would this mall be?

What kind of a mall would it be? Super Exclusive/Posh/Middle Class?

o Describe the feel of the mall

What brands would feature in this mall?

What would be the one feature so unique to your mall that it differentiates it from the
rest?
o A Brand? A Facility? Design Aesthetics? Layout? Facilities? Amenities?
Loyalty Programmes?

What about other features/facilities such as Food Court/ Parking/ Dcor/ Personnel/
Lighting? Would they be unique too? How would you differentiate them from similar
facilities/features offered by other malls?

Describe the mall as a person. What makes your mall so?

o Gender
o Age (Teenager/Young/Adult/Middle Aged/Old)
o Modernisation (In Sync With the times/Balanced between tradition and
modernism/very old fashioned)
o Affluence (Very rich / Rich / Middle class / Poor)

o Character or personality (Flamboyant/Fun/Shy/Family person)

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APPENDIX C: CHARTS & DIAGRAMS

I.

DATA for YOUTH & MALLS

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II. DATA for ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME & MALLS

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III. DATA for CITY-WISE MALL COMPARISON

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III. DATA for CASE: MUMBAI

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III. DATA for CASE: DELHI

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