A PROJECT REPORT ON STUDY ON CONSUMER BUYING BEHAVIOUR & CONSUMER SATISFACTION OF RETAIL SHOPPERS IN

RELIANCE RETAIL (STRATEGIC MANPOWER SOLUTIONS LIMITED) PUNE SUBMITTED BY Mr. ANIL WABLE M.B.A.(MARKETING) SUBMITTED TO UNIVERSITY OF PUNE IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER IN BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION PDEAS MAHATMA PHULE INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT & COMPUTER STUDIES HADAPSAR, PUNE-411028 2007-09

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
This is one time opportunity for me to express my gratitude towards all those people, who helped me to bring out this project report out of the dark. First of all I would like express my gratitude towards Mrs. KIRTI JADHAV HR HEAD RELIANCE RETAIL INDUSTRIES PUNE to give me opportunity to work with their organization and invaluable guidance and facilities provided during my project without which this study could not have been complete successfully. I would also like to thank Mr.Ganesh Gorollou Area Manager and the entire team for helping me by sharing their expertise and views on various topics. I express my sincere and deep sense of gratitude towards Prof.A.S.Sarkar Director & Prof. R. G. Sathe project guide for their valuable guidance from the beginning till the end of the project work. Finally I would thank to all those for their help and useful suggestion, which contributed towards successful completion of my project.

Anil S Wable

INDEX

No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Topic EXECUTIVE SUMMARY INTRODUCTION COMPANY PROFILE OBJECTIVES THEORETICAL BACKGROUND RESEARCH METHODOLOGY DATA ANALYSIS & INTERPRETATION FINDINGS LIMITAIONS RECOMMENDATION ANNEXURE BIBLIOGRAPHY

Page No. 5 9 13 28 30 41 44 53 56 58 60 64

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

INTRODUCTION:
The project titled Study of consumer buying behavior & consumer satisfaction of Retail
Shoppers undertaken for Reliance Retail in Pune under the guidance of Mr. Ganesh

Gorollou area manager. The job assigned under summer project was Study the factors affecting the buyer behavior in retail shops for ultimate aim of consumer satisfaction for the Pune region. Apart from cultural, personal, social & psychological factors (which are customer related) there are other factors like range & quality of merchandise, convenience of shopping, price, promotion, services and store atmosphere, shopping experience, customer relationship management of store & retailer. It also deals with the finding the strength of Reliance Fresh against its rivals. OBJECTIVE: 1. To Study different factors affecting consumer behavior in retail shoppers. 2. To understand reasons behind consumers choosing the store. 3. To analyze how enhanced consumer satisfaction leads to increase in sales. 4. To trace out various sources of customer dissatisfaction.

RESEARACH METHODOLOGY: The methodology applied for the project work includes the market survey which is done by meeting to customers in Reliance Fresh of Dhankawadi Pune region & filling the questionnaire. The primary data is collected from customers & Secondary data is from internet, books & information which is provided from company. The descriptive research design is opted for collecting primary data from sample size of 250 respondents. The questions were arranged in sequential and logical order involving structured close ended as well as open ended questions. Personal Interview method is used to fill the questionnaire.

FINDINGS: 1. Most of the customers are satisfied with the range of merchandise provided at Reliance Fresh. However there are some suggestions regarding product range of some of the category like apparel & home appliances that it should be either increased or removed completely, though it creates ambiguity in minds of the customer. Thus it may leads to dissatisfaction of the customer. 2. Regarding store atmosphere Reliance Fresh need to be improved in two vital areas i.e. sound & scent. In Reliance Fresh regular announcements w.r.t. Reliance one membership, its features, 2 wheeler insurance, Reliance one policies etc. are to be made. The announcements are played continually which irritate the customer. Also the scent is not up to the mark with the customers expectations. 3. Although service quality & CRM at Reliance Fresh is satisfactory, there is need to improve it through regular research up to its highest level. 4. In visual merchandising along with music, house keeping is another factor which affects hygiene of store. It is observed that disposal of dump is not regular, which leads to odor & unhygienic condition in store. Also signages placed upon F & V (Fruits & Vegetables) & promotional events are not updated & placed properly. 5. The offers are not properly communicated in Reliance Fresh. It has been seen that in most of the cases the customer are not able to interpret & even understand the offer. Some of them ask to CSAs (Customer Service Associate) however, most of them avoid asking & go for regular purchases. 6. The customers are more responsive to loyalty programme held by Reliance Fresh. Among customers those who are aware of loyalty programme more than half of the customer prefer to shop at Reliance Fresh for valuable points they earned out of it. It leads to improved consumer satisfaction & consumer loyalty. 7. From the poll out of customers it is cleared that range of merchandise, price, convenience & promotion are detrimental factors that force the customer to choose a particular store while store atmosphere, service & CRM are secondary in nature and solely depends on retailer to keep & retain the customer for their lifetime value. 6

RECOMMENDATIONS: a. The range of merchandise should be increase in apparel by keeping limited product ranges & eliminating unproductive ranges like shirts, trousers. b. The store atmosphere should be improved by using air conditioners & fragrant. c. For better shopping experience the music should played along with regular announcement. d. The signage & promotional offers should be updated daily and placed properly in well communicated language understandable to customers. e. The dump should be disposed off regularly. The F & V section need to be kept clean regularly. f. There is need for employee training regarding improved customer relationship. The employee should be trained about product, its features, promotions, prices, policies of company regarding terms & conditions of payment, home delivery, change of product in case damaged, spoiled or deteriorated.

INTRRODUCTION

INTRODUCTION TO RETAIL:
The meaning of the word Retailer is to cut a piece off. According to Philip Kotler: Retailing includes all the activities involved in selling goods or services to the final consumer for personal, non business use. THE GLOBAL RETAIL INDUSTRY: Retail has played a major role world over in increasing productivity across a wide range of consumer goods and services .The impact can be best seen in countries like U.S.A., U.K., Mexico, Thailand and more recently China. Economies of countries like Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Sri Lanka and Dubai are also heavily assisted by the retail sector. Retail is the second-largest industry in the United States both in number of establishments and number of employees. It is also one of the largest world wide. The retail industry employs more than 22 million Americans and generates more than $3 trillion in retail sale annually. Retailing is a U.S. $7 trillion sector. GLOBAL RETAIL (Source: CSO, MGI Study)
Table No. 1

1999 Total Retail (US$ Billion) Organized Retail (US Billion $) % Share of Organized retail Top Retailers Worldwide 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. U.S.A. Carrefour Group, France The Kroger Co. U.S.A. The Home Depot, Inc. U.S.A. Metro, Germany 150 1.1 0.7

2002 180 3.3 1.8

2005 225 7 3.2

(Source: STORES / Deloitte Touche Tomahatsu)

Retail Scenario in India As the corporate the Piramals, the Tatas, the Rahejas, ITC, S.Kumars, RPG Enterprises, and mega retailers- Crosswords, Shoppers Stop, and Pantaloons race to revolutionize the retailing sector, retail as an industry in India is coming alive. Retail sales in India amounted to about Rs.7400 billion in 2002, expanded at an average annual rate of 7% during 1999-2002. With the upturn in economic growth during 2003, retail sales are also expected to expand at a higher pace of nearly 10%. Across the country, retail sales in real terms are predicted to rise more rapidly than consumer expenditure during 2003-08. The forecast growth in real retail sales during 2003- 2008 is 8.3% per year, compared with 7.1% for consumer expenditure. Modernization of the Indian retail sector will be reflected in rapid growth in sales of supermarkets, departmental stores and hyper marts. Sales from these large-format stores are to expand at growth rates ranging from 24% to 49% per year during 20032008, according to a latest report by Euromonitor International, a leading provider of global consumer-market intelligence. A. T. Kearney Inc. places India 6th on a global retail development index. The country has the highest per capita outlets in the world 5.5 outlets per 1000 population. Around 7% of the population in India is engaged in retailing, as compared to 20% in the USA. Indian Retail Size:
Graph No. 1

S EOFINDIAN RE AIL IZ T
80 0 US B $ n 60 0 40 0 20 0 0 Y AR E 32 4 50 3
21* 02 21* 07

8 00

20 07

Source: Technopak Analysis, CSO & Other Sources

Different Forms of Retailing:

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Popular Formats Hyper marts Large supermarkets, typically (3,500 - 5,000 sq. ft) Mini supermarkets, typically (1,000 - 2,000 sq. ft) Convenience store, typically (750 - 1,000 sq. ft) Discount/shopping list grocer Traditional retailers trying to reinvent by introducing self-service formats as well as value-added services such as credit, free home delivery etc. The Indian retail sector can be broadly classified into:
Graph No. 2

F atwise B orm reakup of Expected Investm in ent Indian R etail in next 6-7 y ears
6% 26% 2% 33%

H yperm arkets S uperm arkets Other F orm ats Warehous as & e/C h C arry D epartm S ent tores

33%

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COMPANY PROFILE

CHAIRMAN AND FOUNDER

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MUKESH D. AMBANI
Born: APRIL 19, 1957

Achievement: Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries Limited,

India's largest private sector company; Chosen as ET Business Leader of the Year 2006; Ranked 42nd among the World's Most Respected Business Leaders and second among the four Indian CEOs and featured published in a survey conducted D. by PricewaterhouseCoopers Mukesh Ambani

Chairman & Managing Director in Financial Times, London, November 2004. Mukesh Ambani is the face of new emerging India. He is the Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries Limited, India's largest private sector company. Mukesh Ambani was born on April 19, 1957 in Mumbai. His father Dhirubhai Ambani was then a small businessman who later on rose to become one of the legends of Indian industry. Mukesh Ambani did his Bachelors in Chemical Engineering from University of Bombay and Masters in Business Administration from Stanford University,USA. Mukesh Ambani joined Reliance in 1981 and was the brain behind Reliance's backward integration from textiles into polyester fibers and further into petrochemicals. During the process of backward integration, Mukesh Ambani led the creation of 51 new, world-class manufacturing facilities involving diverse technologies that raised Reliance's manufacturing capacities manifold.

World's largest grassroots petroleum refinery at Jamnagar is the brainchild of Mukesh Ambani. He was also the incharge of Dhirubhai's dream project Reliance Infocomm. But after the split in the Reliance Empire, Reliance Infocomm went to his brother 13

Anil Ambani. Mukesh Ambani is now planning to enter retail sector in a big way. He has plans to establish big retail stores all over the country. Recently, he also entered into an agreement with Haryana Government to establish a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) with an investment running in to thousand of crores. Mukesh Ambani has many achievements and honors to his name. Mukesh Ambani was chosen as the ET Business leader of the Year 2006. He was ranked 42nd among the World's Most Respected Business Leaders and second among the four Indian CEOs featured in a survey conducted by Pricewaterhouse Coopers and published in Financial Times, London in November 2004. He was conferred the World Communication Award for the Most Influential Person in Telecommunications in 2004 by Total Telecom, October, 2004. Mukesh Ambani was also conferred the Asia Society Leadership Award by the Asia Society, Washington D.C., USA.
Reliance: Contribution to Indian Economy Revenues US$ 19.9 billion Cash Profit US$ 2.9 billion Net Profit US$ 2 billion Total Assets of US$ 20.8 billion Revenues equivalent to 2.8% of Indias GDP 8.2% of Indias total exports Contributing 8% Indias indirect taxes 4.7% of the total market capitalization 11.5% weightage in Bombay Stock Exchange Sensex 9.3% weightage in National Stock Exchange Sensex

India and Reliance

ABOUT COMPANY:
The Reliance Retail blueprint envisages nation-wide chains of hypermarkets, supermarkets, discount stores, department stores, convenience stores and specialty stores, in about 800-odd cities and towns across the

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length and breadth of India. The RIL board of directors approved the initial phase of the retail foray at an estimated cost of Rs 3,350 crore (US$ 750 million). With a vision To generate inclusive growth and prosperity for farmers, vendor partners, small shopkeepers and consumers, Reliance Retail Limited (RRL), a subsidiary of RIL, was set up to lead Reliance Groups foray into organized retail. With a 27% share of world GDP, retail is a significant contributor to overall economic activity across the world. Of this, organized retailing contributes between 20% to 55% in various developing markets. The Indian retail industry is pegged at $ 300 billion and growing at over 13% per year. Of this, presently, organized retailing is about 5%. This is expected to grow to 10% by 2011. RRL has embarked upon an implementation plan to build state-of-the-art retail infrastructure in India, which includes a multi-format store strategy of opening neighborhood convenience stores, hypermarkets, specialty and wholesale stores across India. RRL launched its first store in November 2006 through its convenience store format Reliance Fresh. Since then RRL has rapidly grown to operate 590 stores across 13 states at the end of FY 2007-08. RRL launched its first Reliance Digital store in April 2007 and its first and Indias largest hypermarket Reliance Mart in Ahmedabad in August 2007. This year, RRL has also launched its first few specialty stores for apparel (Reliance Trends), footwear (Reliance Footprints), jewellery (Reliance Jewels), books, music and other lifestyle products (Reliance Timeout), auto accessories and service format (Reliance Autozone) and also an initiative in the health and wellness business through Reliance Wellness. In each of these store formats, RRL is offering a unique set of products and services at a value price point that has not been available so far to the Indian consumer. Overall, RRL is well positioned to rapidly expand its existing network of 590 stores which operate in 57 cities. During the year, RRL also focused on building strong relationships in the agribusiness value chain and has commenced marketing fruits, vegetables and staples that the company sources directly to wholesalers and institutional customers. RRL provides its customers with high quality produce that has better shelf life and more consistent quality than was available earlier.

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Recognizing that strategic alliances are going to be a key driver to its retail business, in FY 2007-08, RRL established key joint ventures with international partners in apparel, optical and office products businesses. Further, RRL will continue to seek synergistic opportunities with other international players as well. This year, RRL will continue its focus on rapid expansion of the existing and other new formats across India. Reliance gearing up to revolutionize the retailing industry in India. Towards this end, we are aggressively working on introducing a pan-India network of retail outlets in multiple formats. A world class shopping environment, state of art technology, a seamless supply chain infrastructure, a host of unique value-added services and above all, unmatched customer experience, is what this initiative is all about. The retail initiative of Reliance will be without a parallel in size and spread and make India proud. Ensuring better returns to Indian farmers and manufacturers and greater value for the Indian consumer, both in quality and quantity, will be an integral feature of this project. By creating value at all levels, we will actively endeavor to contribute to India's growth. Reliance Fresh, Reliance Mart, Reliance Digital, Reliance Trendz, Reliance Footprint, Reliance Wellness, Reliance Jewels, Reliance Timeout and Reliance Super are various formats that Reliance has rolled out.

Retail vision:
A targeted sales turnover of Rs 90,000 crores (US$ 20 billion) by 2010 with a planned investment of Rs 30,000 crores over the next five years - that's the retail vision of Mukesh Ambani and his RIL retail team. RIL's retail venture seems all set to achieve the status of being the flag-bearer of India Retail Inc, and that too in record time.

AWARDS & ACHIVEMENT:

Growth through Recognition

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Reliance has merited a series of awards and recognitions for excellence for businesses and operations.

2007-2008

Shri Mukesh Ambani was awarded the Defense India Excellence Award 2007. The Award is a salute to those who have made the country proud. Shri Mukesh Ambani was conferred the Indian of the Year Award by NDTV. This is Indias most prestigious award for outstanding contribution towards the betterment of the nation. Shri Mukesh Ambani received the coveted award in the Business Category. Shri Mukesh Ambani was conferred the Outstanding Business Leader of the Year Award by CNBC TV18. Shri Mukesh Ambani was awarded the Business Leadership Award 2007 by NDTV Profit. Shri Mukesh Ambani was conferred the Leadership Award for Global Vision by the United States India Business Council. Shri Mukesh Ambani was elected to be a member of the Honorary Fellows of The Institution of Chemical Engineers, UK. On invitation to Shri Mukesh Ambani, Reliance Industries Limited became a Council Member of World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) in July 2007. Presently, Shri Mukesh Ambani is the only Indian CEO who is Council Member of WBCSD.

Corporate Ranking and Ratings: Reliance featured in the Fortune Global 500 list of Worlds Largest Corporations for the fourth consecutive year. Ranked 269th in 2007 having moved up 73 places from the previous year. Featured as one of the worlds Top 200 companies in terms of Profits. Among the top 25 climbers for two years in a row. Featured among top 50 companies with the biggest increase in Revenues. Ranked 26th within the refining industry.

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Reliance is ranked 182nd in the FT Global 500 (up from previous years 284th rank). PetroFed, an apex hydrocarbon industry association, conferred the PetroFed 2007 awards in the categories of Refinery of the Year and Exploration & Production - Company of the Year. Brand Reliance was conferred the Bronze Award at The Busiest Brands Awards 2008, organized by agency faqs. Institute of Economic Studies conferred the Udyog Ratna award in October 2007 for contributions to the industry. Chemtech Foundation conferred the Hall of Fame in February 2008 for sterling contributions to the industry. Chemtech Foundation conferred the Outstanding Achievement - Oil Refining for work at the Jamnagar Manufacturing Division. Petroleum Federation of India conferred the Refinery of the Year Award 2007 to Jamnagar Manufacturing Division

Exports: The Plastics Export Promotion Council - PLEXCOUNCIL Export Award in the category of Plastic Polymers for the year 2006-2007 was awarded to Reliance being the largest exporter in this category.

Health, Safety and Environment:

Jamnagar Manufacturing Division was conferred the Golden Peacock Award for Occupational Health & Safety 2007 by Institute of Directors. Jamnagar Manufacturing Division was conferred the ICC Award for Water Resource Management in Chemical Industry. Jamnagar Manufacturing Division was conferred the Good House Keeping Award from Baroda Productivity Council. Jamnagar Manufacturing Division was conferred the BEL-IND Award for the best scientific paper at the 58th National Conference of Occupational Health. Naroda Manufacturing Division was conferred the Safety Award and Certificate of Appreciation presented by Gujarat Safety Council &

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Directorate of Industrial Safety & Health, Gujarat State for the recognition of safety performance at the 29th State Level Annual Safety Conference.

Dahej Manufacturing Division received BSC 5-Star rating from British Safety Council, UK. Dhenkanal Manufacturing Division received the 2nd Prize for Longest Accident Free Period from the Honble Minister of Labor, State of Orissa. Hoshiarpur Manufacturing Division bagged the First Prize in Safety in Punjab, organized by Punjab Safety Council. Patalganga Manufacturing Division won the Gold Medal at CASHE (Change Agents for Safety, Health and Environment) Conference. It also won the III Prize in Process Management category for Presentation on Safety through Design in chemical process industry in Petrosafe 2007 Conference. Kurkumbh Manufacturing Division won the Greentech Safety Award silver trophy for outstanding achievement in safety management in chemical sector. Hazira Manufacturing Division received the TERI Corporate Environmental Award (Certificate of Appreciation) for PET recycling project. Nagothane Manufacturing Division received the Shrishti G-Cube Award for Good Green Governance from Minister for Commerce and Industry, on World Earth Day.

Training and Development:

Jamnagar Refinery was adjudged the winner of the Golden Peacock National Training Award -2007. Patalganga Manufacturing Division won the ASTD (American Society for Training & Development) Excellence in Practice Award for innovative practice titled Learning Functions role as Business partner: Empowering people with Knowledge to achieve Business Goals. Reliance won the CNBC TV-18 instituted Jobstreet.com Jobseekers Employer of Choice Award.

Energy Excellence:

Exploration & Production (E&P) Division won The Infraline Energy Excellence Awards 2007: Hydrocarbon Columbus Award for Excellence in Petroleum Exploration.

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Patalganga Manufacturing Division won the First Prize in Energy Conservation in State of Maharashtra organized by Maharashtra Energy Development Agency (MEDA). Jamnagar Manufacturing Division won the Oil & Gas Conservation Award -2007 from the Centre for High Technology, Ministry of Power & Natural Gas for the excellent performance in reduction/elimination of steam leaks in the plant. Jamnagar Manufacturing Division was the recipient of the Infraline Energy Award-2007 by Ministry of Power. Hazira Manufacturing Division won the Government of India Energy Conservation Award (2007) conferred by the Bureau of energy efficiency and Ministry of Power. Hazira Manufacturing Division was adjudged Excellent Energy Efficient Unit at Energy Summit - 2007 by CII. Vadodara Manufacturing Division received the CII award for Excellence in Energy Management - 2007 as energy efficient unit. This division also received the 2nd prize in National Energy Conservation Award - 2007 from Bureau of Energy efficiency, Ministry of Power, Government of India. The Companys manufacturing divisions at Vadodara and Hazira were honored with CII-National award for excellence in water management - 2007 as water efficient unit in Within the fence category. Additionally, Hazira Manufacturing Division was honored as water efficient unit Beyond the Fence category.

Quality:

For the first time ever, globally, a petrochemical company bagged the Deming Prize for Management Quality. The Quality Control Award for Operations Business Unit 2007 was awarded to the Hazira Manufacturing Division for Outstanding Performance by Practicing Total Quality Management. QUALTECH PRIZE 2007, which recognizes extraordinary results in improvement and innovation, was won by Hazira Manufacturing Division for its Small Group Activity Project. Vadodara Manufacturing Divisions Polypropylene-IV (PP-IV) plant was conferred the Spheripol Process Operability Award-2006 for the highest operability rate with an on stream factor 98.97% by M/s. BASELL, Italy.

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Allahabad Manufacturing Division won the Excellent Category Award at National Convention of Quality Circle (NCQC) - 07.

Six-Sigma:

Lean Six sigma project on Reducing retention time of caustic soda lye tankers at Jamnagar won the 1st prize in the national level competition held by Indian Statistical Institute (ISI). Patalganga Manufacturing Divisions Six Sigma Project on Improve Transfer Efficiency for Automatic winders in PFY won the 2nd Prize for Best design for Six Sigma Project in International Six Sigma Competition organized by IQPC (International Quality and Productivity center). Barabanki Manufacturing Division won the 3rd prize in All India Six Sigma case study contest 2008 for the Case study on Reduction of waste of Plant 2 from 16% to 8%. Hoshiarpur Manufacturing Division won the 2nd prize in Six Sigma competition at National Level organized by ISI and Quality Council of India (in manufacturing category), while Dhenkanal and Barabanki Manufacturing Divisions won the 3rd prize. Vadodara Manufacturing Divisions Six Sigma project won the 1st prize as the Best Six Sigma project at National level by CII.

Technology, R&D and Innovation:

Vadodra Manufacturing Divisions R&D bagged an award from Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers for Excellence in Process / Product Development for the work on Eco friendly Process for Acetonitrile Recovery. DSIR National Award for R&D Efforts in Industry (2007) was conferred on Hazira Manufacturing Division for the Cycle hexane Recovery Project. Patalganga Manufacturing Divisions Project titled Augmentation of ETP and use of biogas in Fired heaters won the Best Innovative Project from CII. Reliance bagged the Innovation Award at Tech Converge 2007 for innovative developments in short-cut fibers. Hazira Manufacturing Division won the Golden Peacock Innovation Award 2007 for its Cyclohexane Recovery Process.

Information Technology: 21

CIO of the Year Award for the best IT-enabled organization in India for the Year 2007. Ones to Watch - CIO - USA Award, for figuring among the top 20 organizations fostering excellence in IT team. The Skoch Challenger Award conferred for the best IT Head (managing the most IT enabled organization) of the Year 2007. Best IT Implementation Award, by PC Quest for Knowledge Management Systems portal (KMS). CIO Excellence Award for Chemical Industry Information Technology Forum for exemplary Information Technology implementation amongst global chemical companies. CTO Forum Hall of Fame Award for the best CIOs in India for not only providing service to their organizations, but also serving as idols.

Social Initiatives: Hazira Manufacturing Division won the Golden Peacock Global Award for Corporate Social Responsibility - 2008.

MAJOR SUBSIDARIES AND COMPANIES OF RIL (Related to Retail): Reliance Fresh Limited Retail Concepts and Services (India) Limited

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Reliance Retail Insurance Broking Limited Reliance Dairy Foods Limited Reliance Retail Finance Limited RESQ Limited Reliance digital Retail Limited Reliance Hypermarket Limited Reliance Retail Travel & Forex Services Limited Reliance Brands Limited Reliance Lifestyle Holdings Limited Strategic Manpower Solutions Limited Reliance Gems and Jewels Limited Delight Proteins Limited Reliance Agri Products Distribution Limited Reliance Retail Securities and Broking Company Limited Reliance Home Store Limited Reliance Food Processing Solutions Limited Reliance Supply Chain Solutions Limited Reliance Loyalty and Analylitics Limited Reliance Digital Media Limited Abacus Retail Private Limited Bigdeal Retail Private Limited Reliance Vantage Retail Private Limited

PRODUCT PROFILE:

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Reliance Fresh Reliance Retail is also going to open one store for every 3,000 families within a radius of 2 km across all locations by 2011. The company is competing directly with the large number of traditional local provision stores. Reliance Retail is either going to set up new stores in the identified areas or take over existing stores. The company has already done that in Mumbai and other cities. Of the four million sq ft of retail space to be created under the "Reliance Fresh" brand (for groceries), one million will be through acquisitions. The retailer is also moving into laundry, personal care and apparel product lines, in which it plans to launch private labels. Reliance is planning to roll out its specialty format stores this year, beginning with consumer durables, for which it has struck sourcing deals with companies in Hong Kong, the Chinese mainland and with Videocon in India. To strengthen its links with farmers, the company is setting up integrated agri-retail business centers, which include three processing and distribution centers, 51 retail outlets for farmers and 75 rural business hubs, all with an investment of US$445

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million. Many companies, looking at the retail boom in food and grocery, are setting up ventures to help retailers source these goods. Reliance Fresh is the convenience store format which forms part of the retail business of Reliance Industries of India which is headed by Mukesh Ambani. Reliance plans to invest in excess of Rs 25000 crores in the next 4 years in their retail division. The company already has in excess of 560 reliance fresh outlets across the country. These stores sell fresh fruits and vegetables, staples, groceries, fresh juice bars and dairy products. A typical Reliance Fresh store is approximately 3000-4000 square. feet and caters to a catchments area of 1-2 km. Post launch, in a dramatic shift in its positioning and mainly due to the circumstances prevailing in UP, West Bengal and Orissa, it was mentioned recently in news Dailies that, Reliance Retail is moving out of stocking fruits and vegetables. Reliance Retail has decided to minimize its exposure in the fruit and vegetable business and position Reliance Fresh as a pure play super market focusing on categories like food, FMCG, home, consumer durables, IT and wellness, with food accounting for the bulk of the business. The company may not stock fruit and vegetables in some states, Orissa being one of them. Though Reliance Fresh is not exiting the fruit and vegetable business altogether, it has decided not to compete with local vendors partly due to political reasons, and partly due to its inability to create a robust supply chain. This is quite different from what the firm had originally planned. When the first Reliance Fresh store opened in Hyderabad last October, not only did the company said the stores main focus would be fresh produce like fruits and vegetables at a much lower price, but also spoke at length about its farm-to-fork theory. The idea the company spoke about was to source from farmers and sell directly to the consumer removing middlemen out of the way.

INDUSTRY OVERVIEW:

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Retail industry is considered one of the fastest evolving industries in India. As per an AT Kearny Survey, India is considered as the second most attractive retail destination from amongst 30 emerging markets. India's vast middle class and its almost untapped retail industry are key attractions for global retail giants wanting to enter newer markets. A.T. Kearney has estimated India's total retail market (current) at $202.6 billion (Approx. Rs. 912 Crore) which is expected to grow at a compounded 30 per cent over the next five years. At present Retail Industry contributes 14 per cent to the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP). It employs nearly 7 per cent of the total workforce which means 42 Million (4.2 Crore) people. The retail industry is definitely one of the pillars of the Indian economy. The retail industry is divided into organized and unorganized sectors. Indian organized sector accounts for just 2 per cent of the trade and employs just 500,000 people. Unorganized retailing refers to the traditional formats of low-cost retailing such as the local kirana shops, owner-manned general stores, paan / beedi shops, convenience stores, handcart and pavement vendors, and so on, and employs over 40 million people. This sector is highly fragmented, with about 11 million outlets operating in the country.

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OBJECTIVE

OBJECTIVES:
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1. To Study different factors affecting consumer behavior in retail shoppers. 2. To understand reasons behind consumers choosing the store. 3. To analyze how enhanced consumer satisfaction leads to increase in sales. 4. To trace out various sources of customer dissatisfaction.

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THEORETICAL BACKGROUND

1. INTRODUCTION
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Consumer perceptions are strategically important at all stages of product development, from initial conceptualization to concept testing, to positioning, to designing, manufacturing, packing, pricing, delivering , financing, selling and advertising. Consumer does not buy products, they buy the satisfactions they expect and experience from the use of product. They are less concern with what the manufacturer puts in to the product. They are less concern with what they can get out of it. To win consumers acceptance the product should be designed, manufactured and packed in accordance with the appropriate technical specification, but that is not enough. The consumer must perceive the product in terms of the satisfaction it delivers. In the effect of product does not exist as a separate entity. The product is what the consumer is preserving to be. In free market system, consumers direct production through their choices voluntarily registered whenever they make purchase, consumers in effect are telling manufacturer what to produce. Reorganization of such sovereignty leads to the expansion THE CONSUMER IS THE KING the producer who provides the products that effectively satisfy consumer needs and wants will be richly rewarded and conversely the producer who fails to do so will be penalized by the lack of buyers. The consumer King Philosophy does not mean that consumers are write their own specification for commodities. Nor does consumers research insist that this be done. The consumer is not an engineer he cannot be expected to tell the manufacturer the length of the stroke or the cubic inch piston displacement of an automobile is more desirable then excessive speed and then engineers can attempt to design such a product which will give this result. When the manufacturer gets this broad but fundamental picture of human wants the direction of his manufacturing efforts will be more clearly mapped out to him. His reward ill be in proportionate to his ability to follow this lead in manufacturing and to present his finished product convincingly to the public.

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Customers do not make their decisions in a vaccurn. Consumers purchase decisions are highly influenced by various factors. For the most part those factors are uncontrollable by the marketers. Those factors are as follows:-

1.

CULTURAL FACTORS:

Culture exerts the broadest and the deepest influenced on consumer buying behavior, his may be further subdivided as under:CULTURE: - Culture is the most predominant fundamental determinant of a persons want and need. Preferences and behaviors through a process of socialization involving the family and other key institutions. SUB CULTURE: - Each culture contain smaller group of sub cultures that provide more specific identification and socialization for its members. SOCIAL CLASS: - Virtually all societies exhibit social satisfaction. It may sometimes take place in the form of class system or may be according to incomes. Social class shows distinct product and brand preferences in such areas as clothings, home furnishings, leisure activities and automobiles etc.

2.

SOCIAL FACTORS:

A consumer behavior may also be influenced by a verity of social factors such as reference group, family status, and role and so on. REFERENCE GROUP: - A person reference group is those that have face to face (direct) or indirect influence on the person attitude or behavior. Reference group like friends, family etc. are major influence in the purchases an individual makes. According to Philip kotler reference group is stronger for products that are visible to others whom the buyer respects.

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FAMILY: The family is considered to be one of the strongest sources of group influence for the individual. The marketer must know the income of the family as a whole that are being used for family purchases. ROLE AND STATUS: - A person participates in many groups throughout life. These may consist of family, clubs or organization and so on. The person position in each group can be defined as a role and status. Philip kotler defines as role as consisting activities that a person is expected to perform according to the persons around him. The buyers behavior exhibited by a person is, to a great extent, the result of his or her role and status in the society.

3.

PERSONAL FACTORS:

The consumer buying decisions are influenced to a limit by personal characteristics. This may individual gender, age, lifecycle stage, occupation economic circumstances, lifestyle, personality and self concept. AGE & LIFE CYCLE STAGE: - The age of the person is very important in deciding the goods to be purchased. A young man will be more interested in sports shoes and jackets where as a man in his later stage of life will go in for sober down to earth clothes. OCCUPATION: - A person consumption pattern is also influenced by his or her occupation. An exclusive of an organization would like to purchase a three piece suit whereas a clerk would be dressed in more ordinary clothes. ECONOMIC DETERMINANTS: - People economic circumstances consist of spend able income, saving and assets. Crowing power and the attitude towards spending various versus saving. LIFE STYLE: - A person pattern of living in the world as expressed in the persons activities interest and opinion in the lifestyle of that person.

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PERSONALITY & SELF CONCEPT: - Personality can be a useful variable in analyzing consumer behavior provided that personality types can be classified and strong correlation exist between certain personality types and product or brand choices. Self concept or self image is the complex mental picture of ourselves that we carry around. This too is the great influencer in the ultimate purchase of the product.

4.

PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTORS:

As the most compelling inner determinants of human motives are also called drives. Urges impulses, needs, wants, tensions and willful carvings. MOTIVES: - A motive is an internal energizing force that orients a person's activities toward satisfying a need or achieving a goal. Actions are effected by a set of motives, not just one. If marketers can identify motives then they can better develop a marketing mix. PERCEPTION: - Perception is the process of selecting, organizing and interpreting information inputs to produce meaning. We chose what info we pay attention to, organize it and interpret it. Information inputs are the sensations received through sight, taste, hearing, smell and touch. LEARNING: - Need to understand individuals capacity to learn. Learning, changes in a person's behavior caused by information and experience. Therefore to change consumers' behavior about your product, need to give them new information about product. ATTITUDES: - Knowledge and positive and negative feelings about an object or activity-maybe tangible or intangible, living or non- living. Individual learns attitudes through experience and interaction with other people. Consumer attitudes toward a firm and its products greatly influence the success or failure of the firm's marketing strategy.

BUYING PROCESS:

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We have to go buying the various influences on burgle and develop an understanding of how consumers actually make their buying decisions. For this we must determine who makes the buying decisions involved and the steps in the buying process. BUYING ROLLS:According to Philip Kotler there may be several persons involved in buying decision playing different buying roles. These can be identifying as under: i. ii. iii. INTIATOR - The initiator is the person who first thinks or suggests the ideas of buying a particular product or commodity. INFLUENCER - An influencer is the person whose views or advice carries weight in making the final decision. DECIDER - The decider is the person who ultimately decide any part of or the entire buying decision viz. whether to buy, what to buy, how to buy or where to buy. iv. v. BUYER - The buyer is actual person who makes the purchase. USER - The user is the person who ultimately consumes or uses the product.

TYPES OF BUYING BEHAVIOUR: Types of consumer buying behavior are determined by:

Level of Involvement in purchase decision. Importance and intensity of interest in a product in a particular situation. Buyers level of involvement determines why he/she is motivated to seek information about a certain products and brands but virtually ignores others.

The four type of consumer buying behavior are: i. Routine Response/Programmed Behavior--buying low involvement frequently purchased low cost items; need very little search and decision effort; purchased almost automatically. Examples include soft drinks, snack foods, milk etc.

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ii.

Limited Decision Making--buying product occasionally. When you need to obtain information about unfamiliar brand in a familiar product category, perhaps. Requires a moderate amount of time for information gathering. Examples include Clothes--know product class but not the brand.

iii.

Extensive Decision Making/Complex high involvement, unfamiliar, expensive and/or infrequently bought products. High degree of economic/performance/psychological risk. Examples include cars, homes, computers, education. Spend a lot of time seeking information and deciding. Information from the companies, friends and relatives, store personnel etc. Go through all six stages of the buying process.

iv.

Impulse buying, no conscious planning.

THE BUYING DECISION PROCESS: The consumer buying process is a complex matter as many internal and external factors have an impact on the buying decisions of the consumer. When purchasing a product there several processes, which consumers go through. These are discussed below.

1. Problem/Need is recognized: In the first step the consumer has determined that for some reason he is not satisfied and wants to improve his situation. For instance, internal triggers, such as hunger or thirst, may tell the consumer that food or drink is needed. External factors can also trigger consumers needs. Marketers are particularly good at this through advertising, store displays and even the intentional use of scent. At this stage the decision-making

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process may stall if the consumer is not motivated to continue. However, if the consumer does have the internal drive to satisfy the need they will continue to the next step. 2. Search for Information: Assuming consumers are motivated to satisfy his or her need, they will next undertake a search for information on possible solutions. The sources used to acquire this information may be as simple as remembering information from past experience or the consumer may expend considerable effort to locate information from outside sources (e.g., Internet search, talk with others, etc.). How much effort the consumer directs toward searching depends on such factors as: the importance of satisfying the need, familiarity with available solutions, and the amount of time available to search. To appeal to consumers who are at the search stage, marketers should make efforts to ensure consumers can locate information related to their product. For example, for marketers whose customers rely on the Internet for information gathering, attaining high rankings in search engines has become a critical marketing objective. 3. Evaluate Options: Consumers search efforts may result in a set of options from which a choice can be made. It should be noted that there may be two levels to this stage. At level one the consumer may create a set of possible solutions to their needs (i.e., product types) while at level two the consumer may be evaluating particular products (i.e., brands) within each solution. Within each solution type will be multiple brands from which to choose. Marketers need to understand how consumers evaluate product options and why some products are included while others are not. Most importantly, marketers must determine which criteria consumers are using in their selection of possible options and how each criterion is evaluated. 4. Purchase: In many cases the solution chosen by the consumer is the same as the product whose evaluation is the highest. However, this may change when it is actually time to make the purchase. The intended purchase may be altered at the time of purchase for

36

many reasons such as: the product is out-of-stock, a competitor offers an incentive at the point-of-purchase, the customer lacks the necessary funds (e.g., credit card not working), or members of the consumers reference group take a negative view of the purchase (e.g., friend is critical of purchase). Marketers whose product is most desirable to the consumer must make sure that the transaction goes smoothly online purchase by streamlining the checkout process. For marketers whose product is not the consumers selected product, last chance marketing efforts may be worth exploring, such as offering incentives to store personnel to talk up their product at the checkout line. 5. After-Purchase Evaluation: Once the consumer has made the purchase they are faced with an evaluation of the decision. If the product performs below the consumers expectation then he will reevaluate satisfaction with the decision, which at its extreme may result in the consumer returning the product while in less extreme situations the consumer will retain the purchased item but may take a negative view of the product. Such evaluations are more likely to occur in cases of expensive or highly important purchases. To help ease the concerns consumers have with their purchase evaluation, marketers need to be receptive and even encourage consumer contact. Customer service centers and follow-up market research are useful tools in helping to address purchasers concerns.

Customer Satisfaction a Critical Component of Profitability

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Exceptional customer service results in greater customer retention, which in turn results in higher profitability. Customer loyalty is a major contributor to sustainable profit growth. To achieve success, you must make superior service second nature of your organization. A seamless integration of all components in the service-profit chain, employee satisfaction, value creation, customer satisfaction, customer loyalty, and profit and growth links all the critical dynamics of top customer service. The mature companies often forget or forsake the thing that made them successful in the first place: a customer-centric business model. They lose focus on the customer and start focusing on the bottom line and quarterly results. They look for ways to cut costs or increase revenues, often at the expense of the customer. They forget that satisfying customer needs and continuous value innovation is the only path to sustainable growth. This creates opportunities for new, smaller companies to emulate and improve upon what made their bigger competitors successful in the first place and steal their customers.

Customer Expectations

38

Customer is defined as anyone who receives that which is produced by the individual or organization that has value. Customer expectations are continuously increasing. Brand loyalty is a thing of the past. Customers seek out products and producers that are best able to satisfy their requirements. A product does not need to be rated highest by customers on all dimensions, only on those they think are important. Customers for Life The purpose of a business is to create and keep a customer. If a business successfully creates and keeps customers in a cost-effective way, it will make a profit while continuing to survive and thrive. If, for any reason, a business fails to attract or sustain a sufficient number of customers, it will experience losses. Too many losses will lead to the demise of the enterprise. Process-managed Enterprise A process-managed enterprise supports, empowers and energizes employees, encourages their initiative, enables and allows its people to perform process work. "Process work is work that is focused on the customer, work that is directed toward achieving results rather than being an end in itself, work that follows a disciplined and repeatable design. Process work is work that delivers the high-level of performance that customers now demand."

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RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

40

RESEARCH The method for the study carries a lot of significance, as all the result are dependent on methodology used. A questionnaire was formulated. The questions were open ended as well as close ended. The questionnaire was designed in a concise manner, keeping in mind the minimum time to be utilized while interviewing the respective customers. Research Design: Descriptive research design has been opted for knowing the consumer buying behavior & consumer satisfaction of retail shoppers. Research Instrument: Questionnaire is used as a instrument to collect primary data. The Questionnaire consists of set of questions presented to respondents. The questions were arranged in sequential and logical order involving structured close ended as well as open ended questions. Research approach: Survey Research is opted for collecting primary data. Surveys are best suited for descriptive research. The survey are undertaken to learn about consumers knowledge, beliefs, preferences and satisfaction. Sampling Plan: A sample is a microcosm of the population from which it is accepted. It can only be accepted as accurate within certain limits. Sample must be representative so that valid conclusion about population can be inferred. However a Sample cannot reflect perfect image of the population from which it is deals. Sampling unit: The sampling unit is composed of people of Pune region with different age and income groups selected randomly. Sampling size: The sample size was 250 respondents in retail shops.

41

Survey area: The survey was conducted in market of Dhankawadi, Pune. Sampling Procedure: No probability Sample (Quota sample) procedure is opted for conducting research. The researcher finds and interviews a prescribed number of people in each of several categories. Method of data collection:Two method were used to collect data, 1. Primary data 2. Secondary data 1. Primary Data:Primary Data are data freshly gathered for a specific purpose or for a specific research project by researcher also called first hand information. Sources of collecting Primary data -: a. By observation b. By personal interview c. By Questionnaire method. 2. Secondary Data: Secondary data are that were collected for another purpose and exist somewhere. Sources of collecting secondary data a. Retail magazine b. News letter c. Internet d. Marketing & Retail books. Technique of data analysis: All the data acquired by means of information gathered from questionnaire was compared in different criteria. All this information was then plotted in the form of tables, So as to identify the trend in the consumer satisfaction level.

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DATA ANALYSIS & INTERPRETATION

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CUSTOMERS SATISFACTION REGARDING RANGE OF MERCHANDISE:

Table No. 2

Sr.No. Answer 1 2 Yes No Total

No. of Customer 182 68 250

Percent (%) 72.8 27.2 100

Graph No.3
R ANGEOFMER AND E CH IS

200
NO OF C TOMER US

182

150 100 50 0
ANS WER OF C TOMER US

68

Y ES NO

From the above diagram we can conclude that most of the customers are satisfied with the range of merchandise provided at Reliance Fresh. Diagram shows that nearly 72.8% customers are satisfied with range of merchandise. The range of merchandise & quality is perhaps the most important reason for customers to choose particular store.

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CUSTOMERS SATISFACTION REGARDING DIFFERENT ATTRIBUTES OF STORE ATMOSPHERE:

Table No. 3

Rating

Exce Very llent good (+5) (+4) 45 12 68 14 49 152 21 123 44 114

Good Aver Below Total (+3) age avg Score (+2) (+1) 37 53 31 69 56 20 138 11 87 21 6 26 17 36 10 990 605 964 663 921

Mean Score

Position

Attribute Color Sound Temperatur e Scent Air

3.96 2.42 3.856 2.652 3.684

1st 5th 2nd 4th 3rd

Graph No. 4

AT R UT OFS OR AT T IB E T E MOS H R PEE

1000 TOTAL S ORE C 800 600 400 200 0 A TTRIBUTE colour sou nd temp eratu re scen t air

Store atmosphere is one of detrimental factor while choosing store. From the above diagram we can conclude that color scheme used at Reliance Fresh is very good with mean score 3.96 & 1st position with compare to other attribute .The temperature & air are at 2nd & 3rd position with mean score 3.85, 3.68 respectively. However scent & sound are at 4th & 5th position with mean score 2.65, 2.42 respectively. Thus by comparing total score it is concluded that sound & scent at Reliance Fresh store are below customers expectation.

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CUSTOMERS SATISFACTION REGARDING DIFFERENT ATTRIBUTES OF SERVICE QUALITY:

Table No. 4

Sr.No 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Category Excellent Very good Good Average Below the average Total

No. Customers 24 77 81 43 25 250

of Percent (%) 9.6 30.8 32.4 17.2 10 100

Graph No. 5

L EL OF ATTR UTES OFS V E QUALITY EV IB ER IC 10% 17% 31% 32% 10%

E CE L NT X LE VE YGOOD R GOOD AVE AGE R BL E OW AVE AGE R

According to above diagram it has been observed that nearly10% customers are completely satisfied from service. The 31% customer saying that service quality is very good & about 32% customers says service is good at Reliance Fresh. However according to 17% customers service is of average quality & 10% customer says that service is below the average. Thus companys policies regarding service should be well defined & need to be executed at grass root level i.e. at Retail mall

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ATTRIBUTES OF STORE VISUAL MERCANDISING:

Table No.5

Rating Attribute Lighting Music Housekeeping Window Signage Display & Shelving

Exce Very Good Aver Below Total Mean Position llent goo (+3) age avg Score Score (+5) d (+2) (+1) (+4) 58 12 23 35 47 44 72 21 84 78 82 90 80 53 88 84 59 66 23 138 31 38 41 37 17 26 24 15 21 13 881 605 801 830 843 865 3.524 2.42 3.204 3.32 3.372 3.46 1st 6th 5th 4th 3rd 2nd

Graph No. 6

ATTR UTESOFS E VIS IB TOR UALMER CANDIS ING

1000 TOTAL S COR E 800 600 400 200 0 ATTR UTE IB L hting ig Mus ic H ekeeping ous Window S nag ig e D play & S is helving

It has been observed from above diagram that lighting is very good at 1 st position in Reliance Fresh following Display & Shelving at 2nd ,Signages at 3rd ,Windows at 4th , Housekeeping at 5th & Music at 6th position. Thus from total score it is seen that Music & Housekeeping are two areas where Reliance Fresh need to be improved. However the remaining areas are at satisfactory level.

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LEVEL OF C.R.M.
Table No.6

Sr.No 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Category Excellent Very good Good Average Below the average Total
Graph No. 7

No. of Customers 24 68 85 43 30 250

Percent (%) 9.6 27.2 34 17.2 12 100

LEVEL OFCR M
12% 17% 10%
E CE L NT X LE

27% VE YGOOD R
GOOD AVE AGE R BL E OWAVE AGE R

34%

Customer Relationship Management is another vital area that affect buying behavior of retail shoppers. From above graph it is cleared that most of the customers are satisfied from customer relationship at Reliance Fresh. Nearly 10% customers said that CRM is excellent,27% said that it is very good ,while 34% said it is good. However according to 17% customer it is average & 12% said it is below average. Thus from above discussion it is cleared that although most of the customer are satisfied from level of CRM at Reliance Fresh, still there is need to achieve the highest level of CRM.

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AWARENESS LEVEL ABOUT OFFERS:

Table No. 7

Sr.No. Answer 1 2 Yes No Total

No. of Customer 92 158 250

Graph No. 8

Percent (%) 36.8 63.2 100

AWAR ENES AB S OUT OF ER F S 2 00 1 50 1 00 50 0 ANS WER OFC TOMER US 92 Y ES NO

The promotional offers are one of important factor of marketing mix. There are provisions made by store manager to properly communicate the promotional offers to customer at inside & outside of the store. From above graph it is seen that nearly 37% of customer are aware about offers provided at Reliance Fresh, however remaining 63% customers are not aware of it. It has been seen that in most of the cases the customer are not able to interpret & even understand the offer. Some of them ask to CSAs however, most of them avoid asking. It affects customer base, loyalty & satisfaction which may cost to retail shop.

NO OFCUS TOMER

158

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EFFECTIVENESS OF LOYALTY PROGRAMME:

Table No. 8

Sr.No. Answer 1 Yes 2 No Total

No. of Customer 134 98 232

Graph No. 9

Percent (%) 57.75 42.24 100

E F C IVE S OFL F E T NE S OYAL YP OGR T R AMME

1 50
NO OF C TOMER US

1 34 98

1 00 Y ES 50 0
ANS WER OF C TOMER US

N O

Loyalty Programme is one of most important tool used by Reliance Retail Ltd. to survive & prosper in todays competitive environment. With this feature Reliance Retail has an edge-over to its rivals. Above graph shows that nearly 58% customers prefer to shop at Reliance Fresh due to loyalty programme & remaining 42% customer prefer to shop due to other features along with loyalty programme. However there are only 7.2% customers who are not aware of Reliances loyalty programme. Thus strategy used by management is working for Reliance Retail. Under loyalty programme customer gets valuable points on their purchases which upon redemption cost in terms money to customer. The management is planning to offer a customer service like bill pays (electricity, telephone & other utility bills), insurance (2&4 wheeler, general & life insurance), mutual fund which is unique feature of company.

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LEVEL OF COMPARISON (ATTRIBUTES):

Table No.9

Rating Attribute Range of Merchandise Convenience Price Promotion Service Store atmosphere C.R.M.

Most Very Imp Some imp imp (+3) what (+5) (+4) imp (+2) 22 134 58 17 48 62 47 29 48 34 93 63 87 80 63 73 49 95 60 89 85 89 43 12 39 34 32 33

Least Total imp Score (+1) 19 17 18 17 18 22 21 931 862 889 858 818 833 816

Mean Score

Position

3.724 3.448 3.556 3.432 3.272 3.332 3.264

1st 3rd 2nd 4th 6th 5th 7th

Graph No. 10

LEVE OFCOMPAR ON L IS
9 50 TOTAL S COR E 9 00 8 50 8 00 7 50 ATTR UTE IB

R NG O A E F ME HA IES RC ND C NV NC O INIE E P IC R E PO T N R MO IO S VIC ER E S R A TO E TMO P E S HER CM R

When studying consumer preferences regarding different attributes while shopping we should come to know that range of merchandise is the most important attribute while shopping with 1st position. If the required merchandise with ranges & quality are present then only the customer prefer the store. The price of the product is another important aspect customer prefer while choosing shop being at 2nd position. If the store is quietly near to customer, he prefers to go over there rather than at distant places. Thus while choosing the store, convenience is another aspect customer prefers which is at 3rd position. The promotional events held in store also help to attract to customer, which is at 4th position. However store atmosphere is at 5th, service at 6th & CRM is at 7th position.

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FINDINGS

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FINDINGS:
1. Most of the customers are satisfied with the range of merchandise provided at Reliance Fresh. However there are some suggestions regarding product range of some of the category like apparel & home appliances that it should be either increased or removed completely, though it creates ambiguity in minds of the customer. Thus it may leads to dissatisfaction of the customer. However it is observed that customer prefer only selected ranges of apparel and avoids other like shirts, trousers. Thus the store manager must keep selected categories with full ranges which customer prefer to buy and removed other categories with limited ranges. 2. Regarding store atmosphere Reliance Fresh need to be improved in two vital areas i.e. sound & scent. In Reliance Fresh regular announcements w.r.t. Reliance one membership, its features, 2 wheeler insurance, Reliance one policies etc. are to be made. The announcements are played continually which irritate the customer. Thus the announcements are either replaced by soft music or played alongwith music alternately. Also the scent is not up to the mark with the customers expectations. Especially when gone through F & V section the smell of perished products is much dark. Thus the manager must use fragrant at each section of store and replaced regularly perished food items. 3. Although service quality & CRM at Reliance Fresh is satisfactory, there is need to improve it through regular follow up to its highest level. The management must make customized policies for services. Also training of employees are conducted regularly to make them acquainted with new product, service policies, new technology ect. 4. In visual merchandising along with music, house keeping is another factor which affects hygiene of store. It is observed that disposal of dump is not regular, which leads to odor & unhygienic condition in store. The manager must look after regular disposal of dump and cleanliness of rest of store.

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Also signages placed upon F & V (Fruits & Vegetables) & promotional events are not updated & placed properly. The manager and employee must regularly check the system for changes of prices and promotional offers. 5. The offers are not properly communicated in Reliance Fresh. It has been seen that in most of the cases the customer are not able to interpret & even understand the offer. Some of them ask to CSAs (Customer Service Associate) however, most of them avoid asking & go for regular purchases. The manager must use local language i.e. Marathi alongwith English to properly communicate the offers & signages or he placed one of his CSA for guiding the customer. 6. The customers are more responsive to loyalty programme held by Reliance Fresh. Among customers those who are aware of loyalty programme more than half of the customer prefer to shop at Reliance Fresh for valuable points they earned out of it. It leads to improved consumer satisfaction & consumer loyalty. 7. From the poll out of customers it is cleared that range of merchandise, price, convenience & promotion are detrimental factors that force the customer to choose a particular store while store atmosphere, service & CRM are secondary in nature and solely depends on retailer to keep & retain the customer for their lifetime value.

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LIMITATIONS

55

LIMITATIONS:
1. The data collected was solely on the basis of information given by customer. 2. Unwillingness of the customers to answers the entire set of questions was also a limitation. 3. Since the customers are not literate to retail & marketing terms in most of the cases it is difficult to get the answer of some important and core questions. 4. The research was conducted only on the basis of primary data collected, which may give biased result. 5. The study was conducted only in the area of Dhankawadi, thus study does not give full picture of PUNE. 6. Most of the answers are on their own view which may not be always true. 7. Limitation of coverage area.

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RECOMMENDATIONS

57

RECOMMENDATIONS:
a. The range of merchandise should be increase in apparel by keeping limited product ranges & eliminating unproductive ranges like shirts, trousers. b. The store atmosphere should be improved by using air conditioners & fragrant. c. For better shopping experience the music should played along with regular announcement. d. The signage & promotional offers should be updated daily and placed properly in well communicated language understandable to customers. e. The dump should be disposed off regularly. The F & V section need to be kept clean regularly. f. There is need for employee training regarding improved customer relationship. The employee should be trained about product, its features, promotions, prices, policies of company regarding terms & conditions of payment, home delivery, change of product in case damaged, spoiled or deteriorated.

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ANNEXTURE

59

Questionnaire: Personal Details:

Name: Address: Marital status: Married/Unmarried Mobile No: Occupation: Self-employed House wife Student 1] How often do you visit Reliance Fresh? Daily Alternate days Weekly Monthly Service Retired Other Age: Gender: Male/ Female

Date:

2] Are you satisfied with range of merchandise provided at Reliance Fresh? Yes No 3] Which Attribute of store atmosphere in Reliance Fresh do you like? How do you rate the following factors? (+5 being excellent and +1 being the below average) Attribute a) Color b) Sound c) Temperature d) Scent e) Air + (5) + (4) + (3) + (2) + (1)

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4] How would you rate the service quality of Reliance Fresh? Excellent Very good Good Average Below the average

5] Which attribute of visual merchandising you like most while shopping? How do you rate the following factors? (+5 being excellent and +1 being the below average) Points a) Lighting b) Music c) Housekeeping d) Window e) Signage f) Display & Shelving + (5) + (4) + (3) + (2) + (1)

6] How is the customer relationship at Reliance Fresh? Excellent Very good Good Average Below the average

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7] Are you aware of the offers provided by Reliance Fresh? Yes No

8] Are you aware of the Reliances loyalty programme? Yes No 9] Do you prefer to shop at Reliance Fresh for loyalty points? Yes No (If Yes go to Que.No.9)

10] Which of the following factors will you prefer while shopping in Retail Shops? How do you rate the following factors?

Attribute Range of Merchandise Convenience Price Promotion Service Store atmosphere C.R.M.

+ (5)

+ (4)

+ (3)

+ (2)

+ (1)

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

63

BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. Marketing Management By Philip Kotler 2. Retailing Management By Levy & Weitz. 3. Marketing Management in Indian Prospective By Singh 4. Marketing Research By Devid Aaker and Geige S Dey 5. Marketing Research Theory and Practice By V.V. Buller 6. Retailing Management By Swapna Pradhan 6. Other Sources Periodicals Retail magazine News letter 7. Sites www. Goggle.com www. wikipedia.com www. reliancefresh.com www.ril.com www.relianceretail.com

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