A Project Report On

STUDY OF CONSUMER BEHAVIOR, BRAND

MANAGEMENT AND CORPORATE TIE-Ups

Carried out at

Future Group-Indus League

Submitted By

Progga promiti Das

Roll no. 9267 MBA++ (Marketing Retail)

Under the Guidance of

Dr. Rajesh Prahurkar

In Partial fulfillment of the requirement for the award of the degree of Master of Business Administration (MBA++)

Department of Management Sciences University of Pune (PUMBA) 2009-2011

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UNIVERSITY OF PUNE
BONAFIDE CERTIFICATE

Certified that this project report STUDY OF CONSUMER BEHAVIOR, BRAND MANAGEMENT AND CORPORATE TIE-Ups is the bonafide work of Progga Promiti Das who carried out the project work under my supervision.

Internal guide External Examiner Dr.Rajesh Prahurkar

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to all those who have guided me in right direction to complete this project successfully. I express my sincere gratitude towards Dr.Rajesh Prahurkar , Professor of Department of Management Science, University of Pune for encouraging me throughout my project and for blessing me with this opportunity. I would like to thank my colleges internal guide for giving me the permission to commence this project in the first instance, to do the necessary research work and to use department data. I also express my sincere thank towards Mr. Raj Sartape, the Area Sales Manager(ASM) of Indus League(Future Group apparels) for guiding us in understanding every aspect of retail business and I also owe thank to Future group for providing such a huge platform . I am deeply indebted to my faculty Guide who gave me stimulating suggestions and encouraged me at all times during my project work. Last but not the least, I would like to thank my respondents for sparing their precious time to answer my questionnaire and giving me an access to such a valuable information. Finally my sincere thanks to my parents and to all my friends for their support and motivation throughout the project.

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AbstractRetailing is one of the fastest growing industries in India. It also provides largest employment in India. In India majority of retail sector is unorganised while very few retailers are organised and work in more than one city. Indus League clothing ltd. is a future group holding, a company owned by future group and it heads the brands like John Miller, Urbana, Indigo Nation, Jealous21, Scullers and Daniel Hechter. The project is titled STUDY OF CONSUMER BEHAVIOR, BRAND MANAGEMENT AND CORPORATE TIEUPs. The main objectives of the project was to study and understand the consumer buying behavior, Understanding the brand management process by conducting a marketing research and making tie-ups with MNC's by B2B marketing in various service organisations such as IT companies, Hotels, Colleges for their employees and students. It also aims to determine how to position various in-house brands of Indus League and Future group apparels. Satisfying our customers is an essential element to stay in business in this modern world of global competition. We must satisfy and even delight our customers with the value of our products and services to gain their loyalty and repeat business. Recommendations given includes suggestions like emphasising on promotional activities such as corporate discounts and other promotional schemes, regularity in supplying of apparel orders and proper inventory management, providing high end customisation to clients in terms of patterns, colors, fittings and providing with post purchase services in terms of alteration help for increasing the loyalty and inviting repeat purchase. This project revealed that Indus League Clothing Ltd. should position itself as high quality low price apparel manufacturing company.

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TABLE OF CONTENT LIST OF FIGURES

Sr. No ABSTRACT TABLE OF CONTENT LIST OF FIGURES LIST OF TABLES 1 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 2 2.1 2.2 3 3.1 3.2 4 5 INTRODUCTION Overview of the Retail Industry Organisational Profile Future Group awards Need for the study CUSTOMER BUYING BEHAVIOR Customer Behavior Decision Making RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY. Research Design Data Interpretation and Analysis B2B MARKETING AND INSTITUTIONAL TIE-Ups FINDINGS AND SUGGESTIONS APPENDICES REFERENCES 5|Page CHAPTER Page.No 4 5 6 7 8 11 14 23 27 29 30 33 36 37 39 56 63 68 72

Sr.No Fig.No Title 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 The retail marketing mix 1.2 The retail communication mix 1.3 Evolution of Indian retail 1.4 Major players in Indian retail 1.5 Spread of future group 2 CUSTOMER BUYING BEHAVIOR 2.1 Power pricing by Jealous21 2.2 Influences on the decision making process 2.3 Black box model 3 RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY 3.1 People visiting for the first time 3.2 Frequency of visit 3.3 Frequency age group wise 3.4 Frequency gender wise 3.5 Promotions stimulating people 3.6 Influences of the promotional activities 3.7 Influence of the promotions occupation wise 3.8 Number of people exposed to communication of IndusLeague 3.9 Exposure of the communication age group wise 3.10 People exposed to in store communication 3.11 People liking the communication 3.12 Ratings for IndusLeague 3.13 Peoples opinion on the offer 3.14 Opinions of the people on offers, age-group wise. 3.15 Shopping experiences 3.16 Shopping experiences, age-group wise 3.17 Shopping experiences, gender wise 4 B2B MARKETING AND INSTITUTIONAL TIE-Ups 4.1 Demand categories 4.2 Buying decision making process APPENDICES List of organizations

Page.No 9 10 12 13 26 33 35 39 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 59 60 68 71

LIST OF TABLES
Sr.No 3 Table.No 3.1 3.2 Title RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY People visiting for the first time Frequency of visit Page.No 39 40 6|Page

3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.9 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17

Frequency age group wise Frequency gender wise Promotions stimulating people Influences of the promotional activities Influence of the promotions occupation wise Number of people exposed to communication of IndusLeague Exposure of the communication age group wise People exposed to instore communication People liking the communication Ratings for IndusLeague Peoples opinion on the offer Opinions of the people on offers, age-group wise. Shopping experiences Shopping experiences, age-group wise Shopping experiences, gender wise

41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55

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CHAPTER-1 INTRODUCTION

Marketing :
Philip Kotler defines marketing as a societal process by which individuals and groups obtain what they need and want through creating, offering and freely exchanging products and services of value with others.

Retailing :
Retailing includes all the activities in selling goods or services directly to final consumers for personal, non business use.

Retail Marketing Mix :

Retail marketing focuses on the segmentation, targeting, positioning and branding of a retail store and methods of communicating this to consumer. The basic function of retail is to provide the right goods to the consumer, at the right place and time. Retail marketing mix is the marketing tool that a retail organisation uses to pursue its

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marketing objectives, such as to inform the customers about the products that he has on offer, to make the customer to visit and shop from his store and to achieve the sales target.

Figure 1.1: The Retail Marketing Mix

The Retail Communication Mix :

Communication is an integral part of the retailers marketing strategy. Communication is used to inform the customers about the retailer, the merchandise and the services. It also serves as a tool for building store image. Every brand contact delivers an impression that can strengthen or weaken the customers view of the company. A communication program can be designed to achieve a variety of objectives for the retailer, such as building a brand image of the retailer in the customer's mind, increasing sales and store traffic, providing information about the retailer's location and offering, and announcing special activities. Retailers communicate with customers through advertising, sales promotions, Web sites, store atmosphere, publicity, personal selling, e-mail, and word of mouth. These elements in the

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communication mix must be coordinated so customers have a clear, distinct image of the retailer and not be confused by conflicting information.

Figure 1.2 : The Retail Communication Mix

1.1-Overview of the Industry:

Retailing is the worlds largest private industry. In India, retailing is one of the largest industries and one of the largest employments also. The retailing industry is quite old in the country. Growth of retail companies in India exhibits the growth in the retail industry in India over the years.

Evolution of Retail in India:

In India, during eighties, retailing or retailers meant peddlers, vegetable vendors, small grocery stores, cloth stores and consumer durable shops. These retailers are operated in highly unstructured and fragmented market. Very few retailers operated in more than one city. During nineties, organised retailing was led by few manufacturers who had retail outlets in more than one city, 10 | P a g e

especially textile retailers like Vimal Textile, Bombay Dyeing, Raymonds. But Indian retail scenario started changing after 1995. Liberalisation, Privatisation and Globalisation (LPG) strategy led to dilution of the stringent restrictions. This paved the way for MNCs in the Indian market. Increasing salaries of IT and Greenfield employees sector gave rise to completely new group of buyers with higher purchasing power. Moreover the entry of MNC brands generated considerable enthusiasm and interest among domestic retailers. This encouraged setting up of retail chains by domestic retailers like Viveks and Nilgiries in Chennai, Nirulas in New Delhi etc. Competition in retailing is fierce. Everyday retailers come with new ideas, a proven successful idea open hundreds of new stores. Leading retailers are opening new retail stores, at the same time new investors like Bharti Group and global giant like Wal-Mart are also going to start the retail stores in the Indian retail market.

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Figure 1.3: Evolution of Indian Retail

Growth of Retail Companies in India :

Growth of Retail Companies in India is still not yet in a matured stage with great potentials within this sector still to be explored. Most of the retail companies are sections of other industries that have stepped in the retail sector for a better business. The Growth of Retail Companies in India is most pronounced in the metro cities of India; however the smaller towns are also not lagging behind in this. The retail companies are not only targeting the metros in India but also is considering the second graded upcoming cities like Baroda, Chandigarh, Coimbatore, Cochin, Ludhiana, Trivandrum, Simla, Gurgaon, and others. The South Indian zone have adopted the process of shopping in the supermarkets for their daily requirements and this has also been influencing other cities as well where many hypermarkets are coming up day to day.

Reasons for the fast Growth of Retail Companies in India :

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The retail companies are found to be rising in India at a remarkable speed with the years and this has brought a revolutionary change in the shopping attitude of the Indian customers. The Growth of Retail Companies in India is facilitated by certain factors like Existing Indian middle classes with an increased purchasing power Rise of upcoming business sectors like the IT and engineering firms Change in the taste and attitude of the Indians Effect of globalization Heavy influx of FDI in the retail sectors in India

Major players in Indian retail industry :

Pantaloon Retail India Ltd K Raheja Group Tata group RPG Group Landmark Group Piramal Group Figure1.4: Major players in retail Subhiksha Bharti-Walmart Reliance

1.2-Organisation Profile:
Pantaloon Retail India Ltd.
Pantaloon Retail India Limited is Indias leading retailer that operates multiple retail formats through retail chains such as Pantaloon, Big Bazaar, Food Bazaar, E-Zone, Fashion Station, & Depot, which serves in both the value and lifestyle segment of the Indian consumer market. The company operates over 12 million square feet of retail space, has over 1000 stores across 71 cities in India and employs over 30,000 people. Pantaloon retail India Ltd., expects its business to grow manifold in next few years, both in terms of new formats as well as new locations. To further reach out to its customers, and to provide them a convenient shopping experience, Pantaloon Retail took the initiative of Web marketing and sales through its newly launched Web site of Futurebazaar. The portal enjoys the benefit of buying in bulk from the entire group and keeping its margins low, which allows it to offer low prices to its customers.

Future Group :
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Future Group is led by its flagship enterprise Pantaloon Retail. Future Group, led by its founder and Group CEO, Mr. Kishore Biyani, is one of Indias leading business houses with multiple businesses spanning across the consumption space. Future Groups joint venture partners include, US-based stationery products retailer, Staples and Middle East-based Axiom Communications. The groups flagship company, Pantaloon Retail was awarded the International Retailer of the Year 2007, by the US-based National Retail Federation, the largest retail trade association and the Emerging Market Retailer of the Year 2007 at the World Retail Congress in Barcelona. Future Group believes in developing strong insights on Indian consumers and building businesses based on Indian ideas, as espoused in the groups core value of Indianness. The groups corporate credo is, Rewrite rules, Retain values. Retail forms the core business activity of Future Group while group subsidiaries are present in consumer finance, capital, insurance, leisure and entertainment, brand development, retail real estate development, retail media and logistics.

Subsidiaries of Pantaloon Retail :

Future Bazaar Future Group Future Capital Holdings Future Generali Future Learning & Development Future Media Future Knowledge Service Home Solutions Future Axiom Telecom Future Brands

Central :

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Central, a lifestyle shopping mall is a branch of Pantaloon Retail India Ltd. First Central was launched at Bangaluru in 2004. Central is a showcase, seamless mall and the first of its kind in India. The thought behind this pioneering concept was to give customers an unobstructed and a pure shopping experience and to ensure the best brands in the Indian market are made available to the discerning Indian customer. Central is presently serving its customers through 11 stores located in 7cities across the India. It is planning to have 20 stores by the year 2010 in various cities. Central houses over 300 brands across categories, such as apparel, footwear and accessories for women, men, children and infants, apart from a whole range of Music, Books, Coffee Shops, Food Courts, Super Markets (Food Bazaar), Fine Dining Restaurants, Pubs and Discotheques. Central also serves its customers through various value added services. These value added services provided by Central are : Gift Central Beauty Central Flower Central Radio Central Wi-Fi Central DJ Central : Complimentary gift wrapping : Complimentary make over : Flower service for your dear ones : Radio while you Shop, Eat & Celebrate : Complimentary broadband usage : Live entertainment on weekends

Indus League :
Indus-League Clothing Ltd. was incorporated in Nov, 1998 and started commercial operations . from April 1999 by six first generation entrepreneurs, to build lifestyle branded garments, at time. when consumers were not aware of readymade garment brands. The Company is engaged in the design and manufacture of ready-made garments.

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The Company is led by Ms. Rachna Aggarwal, Director & CEO a first generation entrepreneur with more than 15 Yrs of experience in this industry. She is supported by senior management team with considerable years of experience in the industry. The Board of Directors of the Company include several professional and independent directors, being industry leaders in Management, Retailing, Manufacturing, Advertisement and Marketing. The majority of the shareholding of the Company is held by Future group there are other strategic investors include Benett Coleman & Co. Ltd. and others. Some of the brands of Indus League includes; 1.Daniel Hechter 2.Urbana 3.Indigo Nation 4.John Miller 5.Jealous 21 6.Urban Yoga

DANIEL HECHTER
Leading french pret-a-porter brand, Daniel Hechter launched its first showroom in South Extension Part- II, Delhi. Exclusive stores have also been launched in Mumbai, Bangalore and Gurgoan.

Daniel Hechter, an International label focusing on Menswear in India ensures creative fashion that includes the classic range of products with visible value addition, combined with sporty elegance in the sophisticated leisure range. The range offers premium classic shirts, trousers in slim silhouettes, double mercerized T-shirts and pima jerseys.

The French company which was recently launched in India by Indus league on an agreement, that Daniel Hechter would provide expertise in European design and styling to bring the latest collection to India, while Indus League would rely on its manufacturing ability as well as its retail 16 | P a g e

prowess to market the brand across the country. Indus League will look to grow Daniel Hechter to a Rs. 50 crore brand by the end of 3 years. With this agreement the French Pret brand will offer its range of menswear to the Indian consumer.

Speaking on the brand, Rachna Aggarwal, CEO, Indus League Clothing Ltd. said, We bring to Delhi international styles and designs from Paris through an exclusive Daniel Hechter Store. Delhi is a very stylish market and through this store we intend to ensure that the customer gets the finest quality and best of styling.

We have been eying Delhi as a fast developing market for luxury brands in India. We are glad to be associating ourselves with the city with our first store in South Extension. We hope Daniel Hechter is an absolute delight to Delhi with a fine blend of European designs and elegenat personalities of the people said Tanguy Mulliez, International License Director, Daniel Hechter

The Daniel Hechter brand has its origin in Paris, the fashion capital. Fashion from Daniel Hechter blends French savoir-faire with sporty elegance. It garbs wearers in the certainty of always being well dressed. Fashion from Daniel Hechter conveys a lifestyle feeling, rendering the brand both authentic and appealing.

URBANA

Indus League, which retails brands such as Indigo Nation and Scullers, is betting big on its recently launched premium menswear brand Urbana. The Urbana range, comprising shirts, trousers, jackets, belts and ties, is targeted at the upmarket male in the 35-45 age group. It is positioned as a brand that "combines technology with fashion and functionality." "The premium men's formalwear business is estimated at Rs 1,200 crore -1,500 crore. Hence, there is huge potential. We expect Urbana to emerge as a Rs 100-crore brand in three years," said Mr K.K. Pant, CEO and MD, Indus League. 17 | P a g e

Urbana products are claimed to be incorporated with technologies for sweat-, wrinkle- and stainresistance, apart from having the `Durawhite' property for "sparkling whiteness even after several washes" and an anti-ageing formula. The shirts and trousers are priced between Rs 1,299 and Rs 2,299 and the jackets at Rs 3,4994,999. Urbana is currently available at Central malls and Pantaloon stores. It will soon be available in shop-in-shops at premium menswear retail outlets and in standalone stores. "Over the next three years, the company will aim to establish 150-200 such points across the country. Marketing spends are expected to be around Rs 15 crore; store investment would be Rs 50 lakh per store," said Mr Pant. The company is looking at "selective and direct marketing communication" to promote Urbana given its niche premium positioning.

INDIGO NATION
Indigo Nation, the stunning range of fashionable formal wear designed exclusively for the young, edgy and maverick man, continues to style the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the ongoing Indian Premier League.

After a hugely successful season last year, Indigo Nation is proud to style the debonair and stylish Royal Challengers Team of Bangalore for the second year in a row. The collection specially designed for the Royal Challengers includes an exciting range with Reversibles clothes that can be worn inside out and a stylish assemble of checkered shirts that go best with denims. They include a wide variety of shirts in varied hues of creams, blues and beiges. This special collection created by Indigo Nation for the Royal Challengers is not just a toast to the team but also to their admirers across the nation. 18 | P a g e

The royal challengers spell the attitude of Indigo Nation they are young and dynamic. Indigo Nation, the brand has possibly benchmarked the young corporate dress ethos in formals and changed men's fashion in India from sober and monotonous to bold and radical. They intend to expect the same boldness and style from the Royal Challengers Bangalore, who are not just raring to go on the field but off it as well. Indigo Nation is a young and edgy formal wear brand from the house of Indus-League Clothing Ltd, which is a unique brand lifestyle marketing firm headquartered in Bangalore. Indigo Nations Contra Formals has set a new trend in dressing for the young and dynamic like they say Young Like That!! Indigo Nation has possibly benchmarked the young corporates dress ethos in formals and changed men's fashion in India from sober and monotonous to bold and radical.

JOHN MILLER
Van Winkel Confectiebedrijven was set up in Budel in 1949. The founder Sjef van Winkel developed machines and accessories himself in order to constantly improve his shirt production. This shirt manufacturer rapidly grew into the Van Winkel Fashion Group, a respected family firm with a total of 55 staff in the Benelux countries and its own production company in Macedonia with 165 staff. The third generation of the van Winkel family is now closely involved with the organisation. The Van Winkel Fashion Group produces and sells its shirts to various mens fashion firms under 2 brands: Ledb established in 1963 with shirts for the higher middle segment and John Miller established in 1989 with shirts for the higher segment. The John Miller brand was created from the Cotonissimo brand which guaranteed luxury shirts made of 100% pure cotton fabric from a European supplier. In 1989 the name John Miller was introduced with the addition of Original Cotonissimo. From spring 1995 the addition was dropped and the brand name became John Miller. The John Miller brand still stands for luxury shirts of exceptionally good quality. The high-quality materials from European suppliers, the beautiful workmanship and the comfortable fit ensure that the products are a great pleasure to wear and as comfortable as possible. John Miller also stands out thanks to its strong service orientation. JOHN MILLER BRAND PROMISE : John Miller luxury shirts have been developed from a rich Dutch tradition of shirtmaking and its own innovative vision. Besides stylish wear, John Miller offers fashionable shirts in which a lot of attention has been paid to detailed workmanship. 19 | P a g e

Very high-quality fabrics and materials are used for the shirts. Nothing but the best will do for the fit and for optimum comfort in wear. Besides the criterion of quality in the widest sense of the word, John Miller explicitly focuses on the service element in its market approach. A service-orientated approach ensures long-term relationships with suppliers, customers and consumers. John Miller shirts guarantee optimum wearing comfort. That is because they are made exclusively of high-quality natural materials such as cotton, linen and silk. John Miller also has a line of shirts featuring a unique two-ply fabric quality. Made of 100% cotton fibres, the fine threads of this fabric make it exceptionally supple, resulting in a high level of wearing comfort and little to no wrinkling.

JEALOUS 21

The new look Jealous 21, a forever young complete wardrobe store that gives a young girl (1724 years) everything she needs to define her distinctive style and personality, opened in the city at Orchid City Centre , Mumbai Central. This novel retailing concept has been conceived by IndusLeague Clothing Ltd. (where Future Group through Pantaloon Retail (India) Limited has a strategic stake), which had acquired the popular womens denim brand Jealous in April 2005. On the occasion of the launch event, the young Jealous 21 models catwalked across the store displaying the attitude of the Indian girl of today and the woman of tomorrow. The always in fashion Jealous 21 store is for the young girl, who is experimenting, innovating, going to work, starting to party and discovering her own unique style. Positioned as the trendsetter in denim wear, Jealous 21 aspires to give her everything she needs Fit, fashion, budget, familiarity and identity. The Jealous 21 merchandise offers great fits, great washes and great value for money. Always in fashion, it is great place to be seen at! Bina Mirchandani , Head Category Pantaloon Retail ( India ) Limited said, The store is smart , stylish, designed for the perfect young woman, who knows and understands the joys of being a girl and a woman. The Jealous 21 girl is sizzling, stylish, casual, sexy and professional. Always evolving and positive, the dependable Jealous 21 gives her affordable and chic fashion all year round. K.K. Pant, Managing Director Indus-League Clothing Ltd said, Jealous 21 is a fresh and new concept store. This store has been designed keeping in mind the young girls shopping desires. We at Indus-League have always sought innovation and launched new concept stores, thereby giving a new shopping destination to the people of the city where we are present.

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The Jealous 21 range comprises casual, club and denim wear. It seeks inspiration from its glorious lineage the Jealous denim wear brand. The denim brand, known for its fit, was launched in the early 90s and was positioned as a brand for the young urban woman . Now the brand is being reinvented to infuse new energy into it. The company plans to expand its retail network for a nationwide presence. Jealous 21 was launched in India in November 2006, with its first outlet in Orchid City Centre in Mumbai. The new look Jealous 21 a forever young complete wardrobe store gives a young girl (17-24 years) everything she needs to define her distinctive style and personality. The Jealous 21 range comprises: casual, club and denim wear. It seeks inspiration from its glorious lineage the Jealous denim wear brand. The denim brand, known for its fit, was launched in the early 90s and was positioned as a brand for the young urban woman. Now the brand is being reinvented to infuse new energy into it.

URBAN YOGA
Urban Yoga, the first line of clothing for yoga in India, has opened their first exclusive concept store in the plush and luxurious Palladium Mall in Mumbai. The brand takes it inspiration from the art of performing yoga. Similarly the 300 sq feet store at the Palladium is built around the philosophy of Yoga and transcends the brand ethos to enhance ones shopping experience. The store conveys a serene ambiance and celebrates yoga and its holistic pursuits right from its impressive use of padmasana logos and the natural wooden feel of the store interiors. Rachna Aggarwal, CEO, Indus League said, The store gives consumers a complete brand experience and conveys the values and lifestyle imagery of the brand. We have tried to re-create the entire yoga experience at the store. The collection at the store is focused on providing utmost comfort and flexibility while performing yoga. The fabric and style benefits of the range help you keep your mind on yoga and not on your clothes. The collection is available for men, women and kids. The specific fabric and styles benefits allow for stretch and better movement while practising yoga or just exercising. The specific style benefits include shifted shoulder seams in tops and ribbed fabric at the back and sides of the garment to facilitate better stretch. Also available for women are seamless kimono cuts for better movement of arms while exercising and broad roll up 21 | P a g e

waist bands that helps to keep the garment in place, while retaining a stylish look. The fabric used has five per cent lycra and is bio-washed for a soft body feel. Also available this season is a range of Sandesh tees. The Sandesh tees, with their humour and play on words, encompass the attitude of Yoga.

1.3-Future Group Awards

CNBC Awaaz Consumer Awards 2009

Most Preferred Multi Product Chain - Big Bazaar Most Preferred Multi Brand Food & Beverage Chain - Big Bazaar

Images Fashion Forum 2009

Most Admired Fashion Group Of The Year - Future Group Most Admired Private Label - Pantaloons, the lifestyle format Critics Choice For Pioneering Effort In Retail Concept Creation - Central

Coca-Cola Golden Spoon Awards 2009

Most Admired Food & Grocery Retailer Of The Year Most Admired Food Court Most Admired Food Professional 22 | P a g e

Indian Retail Forum Awards 2008

Most Admired Retail Company of the year - Future Group Retail Face of the Year - Kishore Biyani Best Retailer Of The Year ( Hypermarket) - Big Bazaar

Future Group was awarded the Most Admired Retail Company of the year by the Indian Retail Forum at a glittering ceremony organized in Mumbai. Mr Kishore Biyani also won Retail Face of the Year. India Retail Forum (IRF) is a platform for intellectual insights and information exchange for the retail business in the Indian subcontinent. The forum presents the business of retail in the region to a global audience, with the express aim of facilitating understanding about and encouraging investment in this massive marketplace. Big Bazaar, the value format of Future Group bagged the Best Retailer of the Year (Hypermarket).

The INDIASTAR Award 2008

Food Bazaar: Best Packaging Innovation Food Bazaar bagged the INDIASTAR Award for Best Packaging Innovation in India, for its private label brand Fresh and Pure Chakki Atta. INDIASTAR Award is a biennial event which aims to promote and encourage excellence in packaging design, innovation and technology. The contest was established in 1972 and is considered as the most popular and premier event for Indias packaging fraternity. This year there were around 357 entries and the participants had to submit a sample of their designs for selection.

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Retail Asia Pacific Top 500 Awards 2008

Gold Winner - Top Retailer 2008 Asia Pacific

Retail Asia Publishing Pte, the institutor of these awards, aims to set a platform that appraise raises and recognizes the development and growth of retailing throughout the Asia Pacific region.

Coca-Cola Golden Spoon Awards 2008

Most Admired Food & Grocery Retail Visionary of the Year: Kishore Biyani. Most Admired Food & Grocery Retailer of the Year Supermarkets: Food Bazaar. Most Admired Food & Grocery Retailer of the Year - Hypermarkets: Big Bazaar. Most Admired Retailer of the Year - Dynamic Growth in Network Expansion across Food, Beverages & Grocery: Future Group.

Most Admired Food & Grocery Retailer of the Year - Consumer's Choice: Big Bazaar.

The Coca-Cola Golden Spoon Awards 2008, were given away for the first time as a culmination of the Food Forum India 2008 - a two day convention which saw the participation of leading brands, retailers & retail support organizations from across the globe. The awards were presented to honour enterprise, innovation and achievement in the food retailing business as a benchmark of excellence.

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Figure1.5: Spread of Future Group

1.4-Need for the study :

Retailing is a low-margin, high-volume, commodity business where profitability gets strained as competition intensifies. It is very necessary to communicate and advertise with the people to create the awareness among them. It therefore becomes very crucial to understand the customer buying behavior. Promotion plays a very important role in the retailing as a medium for communication. Major retail players spend large amount of funds for the communication and advertisement of their brand. It is therefore important to study the impact of these promotional activities on the customers and to what extent these advertisements and communication are able to influence the consumer from which these retail players get their revenue. For increasing the sale and thus revenue, it becomes important to gain and retain the market share and identify new opportunities. Corporate Institutional tie-ups becomes a strategic decision for gaining higher market share.

Problem statement :
Indus League is one of those successful brands which serves the lifestyle needs of the consumers. In Pune, Indus League is always been challenged in its position to remain on the top due to new entrants and increasing competition. Indus League spends heavily on promotion, so it is necessary to check the effectiveness of this promotion. Is the expenditure on various promotional activities done by Pune Central successful in attracting the customer? 26 | P a g e

Without understanding the consumers need, it becomes difficult to serve them. It is important to know whether the consumers are satisfied and whether their expectations are been meet upon. Is the brand successful in understanding the consumer expectations and is it delighting the consumers?

Objectives :
The objective of the study can be exhaustively divided as the study and understanding of three different topics. The overall study focuses on the fulfilment of following objectives : To study and understand the customer buying behavior. To study and understand the process of brand management as well as the effectiveness of the promotional activities of Indus League. To understand and design B2B marketing activities as well as the terms and norms for institutional tie-ups.

Scope of the study :

The study was conducted in the two stores of Central located in Pune city. The study was carried out to to understand the entire brand management process as well as the effectiveness of the promotional activities in creating an impact of Indus League as a brand in the minds of its customers.

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CHAPTER-2 CUSTOMER BUYING BEHAVIOR

2.1-Customer Behavior:
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Consumer behavior is the study of when, why, how, and where people do or do not buy products. It attempts to understand the buyers decision making process, both individually and in groups. It studies characteristics of individual consumers such as demographics and behavioral variables in an attempt to understand people's wants. Customer behavior study is based on consumer buying behavior, with the customer playing three distinct roles of user, payer and buyer. A greater importance is also placed on consumer retention, customer relationship management, personalisation, customisation and one-to-one marketing. Social functions can be categorized into social choice and welfare functions.

Customer Behavior Study:

Observation of consumers is often a powerful tool. Looking at how customer select products may yield insights into how they make decisions and what they look for. E.g: Indus League found out that the reason for the low sales of its newly launched brand Daniel Hechter was its lower brand awareness amongst the Indian customers. The customers would rather look for well established brands like Allen Solly and Van Heusen. Observation may help us determine how much time customer spends comparing prices. A question arises as to whether this type of spying inappropriately invades the privacy of customers. Although there may be cause for some concern in that the particular individuals have not consented to be part of this research, it should be noted that there is no particular interest in what the individual customer being watched does. The question is what customers either as an entire group or as segments do. Customer benefits, for example, from stores that are designed effectively to promote efficient shopping. If it is found that women are more uncomfortable than men about others standing too close, the areas of the store heavily trafficked by women can be designed accordingly. What is being reported here, then, are averages and tendencies in response. The intent is not to find specific observations specific to one customer only. By understanding the phenomena such as the tendency towards a right turn, the location of merchandise can be observed. It is also possible to identify problem areas where customers may have close encounter with each others.

Consumer Behavior-The Psychological thinking:

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o The psychology of how consumers think, feel, reason, and select between different alternatives (e.g., brands, products, and retailers). o The psychology of how the consumer is influenced by his or her environment (e.g., culture, family, signs, media); o The behavior of consumers while shopping or making other marketing decisions. o Limitations in consumer knowledge or information processing abilities influence decisions and marketing outcome. o How consumer motivation and decision strategies differ between products that differ in their level of importance or interest that they entail for the consumer; and o How marketers can adapt and improve their marketing campaigns and marketing strategies to more effectively reach the consumer.

Applications of Customer Behavior study: There are four main applications of customer behavior:
a)

The most obvious is for marketing strategyi.e., for making better marketing

campaigns. For example, by understanding that consumers are more receptive to cloth when new fashions & traditions come. By understanding that new products are usually initially adopted by a few consumers and only spread later, and then only gradually, to the rest of the population. - Companies that introduce new products must be well financed so that they stay afloat until their products become a commercial success and - It is important to please initial customers, since they will in turn influence many subsequent customers brand choices.
b)

can

A second application is public policy-

E.g: IndusLeague brought Daniel Hechter, a Paris brand in a conception that it will do well. But, this brand is not doing that well as per the expectations due to lower awareness. 31 | P a g e

c) Social marketing involves getting ideas across to consumers rather than selling something. In social marketing JEALOUS21 (INDUSLEAGUE) has its own tabloids where all the information regarding the brand are available. d) As a final benefit, studying consumer behavior should make us better consumers. Common sense suggests, for example, that if you buy 2 jeans or shirt you should pay less per garment than if you buy 2 jeans. In practice, however, you often pay a size premium by buying the larger quantity. In other words, in this case, knowing this fact will sensitize you to the need to check the unit cost labels to determine if you are really getting a bargain. In JEALOUS21 (INDUSLEAGUE) they have power pricing.

Figure2.1: Power pricing by Jealous21

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2.2-Decision Making:

Figure2.2: Influences on the decision making process. Internal search involves the customer identifying alternatives from his or her memory. For certain low involvement products, it is very important that marketing program creates awareness. For example, consumers are aware of new traditions & fashions. In Indus League it was observed that Individual members of families often serve different roles in decision making. Some individuals are information gatherers, who seek out information about products. These individuals often have a great deal of power because they may selectively pass on information that favors their chosen alternatives. Influencers do not ultimately have the power to decide between alternatives, but they may choose from the available alternatives based on word of mouth. The decision maker(s) have the power to determine issues such as
o o o o o

Whether to buy, Which product to buy, Which brand to buy, Where to buy it and When to buy.

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Types of Consumer Buying Behavior:

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 in retail showroom but virtually ignores others. The four types of consumer buying behavior are;
1.

Routine Response/Programmed Behavior- In Indus League buying low involvement frequently purchased low cost items, need very little search and decision effort, purchased almost automatically.

2.

Limited Decision Making- Customer purchase clothes occasionally. When you need to obtain information about unfamiliar brand in a familiar product category. Requires a moderate amount of time for information gathering.

3.

Extensive Decision Making/Complex high involvement, unfamiliar, expensive and/or infrequently bought products- High degree of economic/performance/psychological risk. Spend a lot of time seeking information and deciding.

4.

Impulse buying, no conscious planning. Many a times at Pune Central customers visit without any conscious planning and this is how impulse behavior is resulted.

Categories affecting Consumer Behavior:

A consumer, making a purchase decision will be affected by the following three factors. The marketer must be aware of these factors in order to develop an appropriate strategy for its target market. 1. Personal. 2. Psychological. 3. Social.

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Personal: Personal factor includes aspects like sex, race, age and decision making ability. Young people purchase things for different reasons than older people. 2. Psychological factors: Psychological factors include: Motives Perception Ability and Knowledge Attitudes Personality Lifestyles Social Class:

Black box model:

In Retail Customer behaviour follows the Black Box Model.

ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS Marketing Stimuli Environmental Stimuli

BUYER'S BLACK BOX Buyer Characteristics BUYER'S RESPONSE Decision Process

Product, Price, Place, Promotion.

Economic, Technological, Political, Cultural, Demographic, Natural.

Attitudes, Motivation, Perceptions, Personality, Lifestyle, Knowledge.

Problem recognition, Information Product choice, search, Brand choice, Alternative Dealer choice, evaluation, Purchase timing, Purchase decision, Purchase amount. Post-purchase behavior.

Figure2.3: Black box model

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Chapter-3 Research Design AND Methodology

3.1-Research design:

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Research objective:
Study of impact of promotional activities of Indus League at Pune Central through customer analysis.

Type of research:
Descriptive Research: The type of research that was used for the project was the descriptive research. It is also known as statistical research and it describes data and characteristics about the population or phenomenon that is studied.

Sampling Design :
The sample had been designed by keeping in mind the research objective of the project. The population selected for the research were the customers coming to Central. The type of sampling that was used in this case was the non-probability sampling, where the samples to be surveyed were randomly selected from the total population i.e. sampling was done by convenient sampling. The data was collected from both the Centrals in Pune city i.e. Pune Central Bund Garden and University Road. The data was collected on weekdays, weekends as well as on day of in-store event Youthopia, an annual promotional event of Central. The data was collected from the sample size of 200 respondents over the period of 2 months amongst the customers coming to Pune Central.

Type of data:
Primary Data : A questionnaire was designed with a view to collect the requisite information. The questionnaire that was designed was the structured non-disguised type of questionnaire. The questionnaire was a direct type i.e. the objective of the study was told to the surveyed people.

Collection of data :

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The primary data was collected using a pre-designed questionnaire and by the method of observation. All the data collected was by face to face conversation with the targeted customers, and also from the observations by the response of the customers to the in-store promotion and visual merchandise in the shopping mall. Secondary data : The secondary data was collected from the website of the organisation and also from various online databases available for the retail.

Methods of Data analysis:

The analysis of the surveyed samples was done by the simple methods like tabular analysis, graphical analysis, and percentage analysis. These methods that had been used to analyze the data were the simplest methods.

Limitations of the study :

Although utmost care was taken in conducting the survey, still every survey has some limitations. So was the case in this survey on Assessing the effectiveness of the promotional activities of Indus League: Customer Analysis. These limitations are as follows: Firstly, the study was conducted only for two months, so due to the limited time period, the study was briefly conducted. The survey is subjected to the personal opinion of the respondent; therefore the responses got from them may be biased. The sample size selected was small considering the time and cost constraint.

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3.2-Data Analysis and Interpretation :

1. Number of people visiting for first time
Yes 78 No 122 Table3.1: People visiting for the first time. Total 200

Figure3.1:People visiting for the first time.

Interpretation :
Majority of the customer visiting the mall are repeat customer denoting good brand loyalty. Promotional activities for Central helps to retain customers as well as attract new customers.

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2. Frequency of visit to Central

Once a Month 50

Twice a Month 30

Once in Two Months 64

Once in Three Months 38

Different 18

Total 200

Table 3.2: Frequency of visit.

Figure 3.2:Frequency of visit.

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 Frequency of Various Age Groups of People Visiting Central

Frequency of Visit to Central Age <= 18 Years 19-25 Years 26-35 Years 36-45 Years > 45 Years Once a Month 2 14 23 5 6 Twice a Month 2 14 10 2 2 Once in Two Months 6 24 27 4 3 Once in Three Months 5 8 14 6 5 Different 3 4 6 3 2 Total 18 64 80 20 18

Table 3.3: Frequency, age group wise.

Figure 3.3:Frequency, age group wise

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 Gender Frequency of People Visiting Central

Frequency of Visit to Central Gender Male Female Once a Month 27 23 Twice a Month 18 12 Once in Two Months 42 22 Once in Three Months 29 9 Different 12 6 Total 128 72

Table 3.4: Gender wise frequency.

Figure 3.4: genderwise frequency.

Interpretation :
Majority of percentage of people visiting Central have buying cycle of two months. Majority of male come to Central once in two months while many others visit generally once a month. 42 | P a g e


3.

Majority of female visit Central with a gap duration of one month Youth frequently visit Central as compared other age groups.

Type of promotion stimulating people :

Press Ad 44

Radio Commercial 42

Hoardings 18

Communication Outside store 36

Self Walk In 48

Different 12

Total 200

Table 3.5: Promotions stimulating people.

Figure 3.5:Promotions stimulating people.

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 Type of Promotion Influencing Various Age Groups

Type of Promotion Influencing People Age Press Ad 3 14 17 6 4 Communica Radio Hoardings tion Outside Commercia the Store l 5 2 3 17 14 2 4 5 5 4 2 10 18 3 2 Self Walk in 4 15 21 4 4 Differen t 1 3 5 1 2 Total

<= 18 Years 19-25 Years 26-35 Years 36-45 Years > 45 Years

18 64 80 20 18

Table 3.6: Influence of the promotional activities.

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Figure 3.6: Influence of the promotional activities

Type of Promotion Influencing people of various Occupations

Type of Promotion Influencing People Occupation Press Radio Ad Commercial 16 14 6 8 20 10 4 8 Hoardings 4 10 2 2 Communication Outside the Store 12 20 2 2 Self Walk Different in 21 21 4 2 3 5 2 2 Total

Student Service Self Employed Housewife

76 80 20 24

Table 3.7:Influence of the promotion occupation wise.

Figure 3.7:Influence of the promotion occupation wise.

Interpretation :
Major effect of communication is by Radio & Press Ad. Press ads have impact on self-employed people and housewives while Radio Commercial influences housewives and students more. 45 | P a g e

Youth prefer self walk-in, they are also influenced by Radio Commercials and Communication outside the store.

4. Number of people exposed to the communication of Indus League at Central :

Yes 132 No 68 Total 200

Table 3.8:Number of people exposed to communication of Indus League.

Figure 3.8:Number of people exposed to communication of Indus League.

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 People of various age groups exposed to communication of Indus League

No of People Exposed to Communication of Indus League Yes No

Age <=18 19-25 26-35 36-45 >45 Years Years Years Years Years 12 48 55 9 8 6 16 25 11 10 Table 3.9:Exposure of the communication age group wise. Total 132 68

Figure 3.9:Exposure of the communication age group wise.

Interpretation :

Good effect of communication for Indus League.

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Majority of the influence of the promotional communication of Indus League is on the customers between the age group of 15 to 35 years.

5.

Indus League is successful to communicate the message to their target customers.

Number of people exposed to the special communication for Indus League in the store :

Standees 76

Signage 60

Gift Display 44

Other 20

Total 200

Table 3.10:People exposed to instore communication.

Figure 3.10:People exposed to instore communication.

Interpretation:
In store communication has good recall power. 48 | P a g e

Customer pays attention to whatever is communicated, so message should be designed as per the trend.

6.

Number of people liking communication for Indus League :

Yes 144

No 56 Table 3.11: People liking the communication

Total 200

Figure 3.11: People liking the communication

Interpretation:

Majority of people visiting Central liked the in-store communication for Indus League. 49 | P a g e

Visual Merchandise ( VM ) team plays important role in In-store communication.

7. Ratings for Indus League:

Aspects Brand Awarene ss Brand Image Quality

Unsatisfac tory (1) 10 12 10

Average unsatisfac tory (2) 28 21

Average Avera satisfact Tota satisfact ge (3) ory (5) l ory (4) 72 85 55 62 35 20 44 200 200 200

39 82 25 Table 3.12: Ratings for IndusLeague.

Figure3.12: Ratings for IndusLeague. 50 | P a g e

Interpretation:
The brand awareness of IndusLeague is not very well satisfactory. The Image of the brand in the minds of its customers is average to satisfactory. Customers perception about IndusLeagues quality is average.

8. Peoples opinion about offers on Indus League :

Good 110

Average 50

Not Good 40

Total 200

Table 3.13:Peoples opinion on the offers.

Figure 3.13:Peoples opinion on the offers. 51 | P a g e

Opinion of people of various age groups about offers on Indus League

People Opinion About Offers on Indus League Good Average Not Good

Age <=18 Years 19-25 Years 26-35 Years 36-45 Years >45 Years Total 110 50 40

9 30 50 9 12 5 24 12 8 1 4 10 18 3 5 Table 3.14:Opinions of the people on offers, age-group wise.

Figure 3.14:Opinions of the people on offers, age-group wise.

Interpretation :
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Major percentage of customers is of the opinion that offers at Indus League are average to good which can be a reason for good brand loyalty.

Greater percentage of customers in age group 26-35 years and customers above 45 years liked the offers on Indus League.

9.

People describing shopping experience with Indus League :

Excellent 74

Good 96

Average 20

Poor 10

Total 200

Table 3.15: Shopping experiences.

Figure 3.15: Shopping experiences. 53 | P a g e

Shopping experience of people of various age group with Indus League

Shopping Experience of People with Indus League Excellent Good Average Poor

Age
<=18 Years 19-25 Years 26-35 Years 36-45 Years >45 Years

Total 74 96 20 10

9 6 2 1

25 34 3 2

26 41 9 4

8 7 4 1

6 8 2 2

Table 3.16: Shopping experiences, age-group wise.

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Figure 3.16: Shopping experiences, age-group wise.

Gender wise shopping experience of people with Indus League

Shopping Experience of People at Central Gender

Excellent Good Average Poor

Total 44 30 62 34 14 6 8 2 128 72

Male Female

Table 3.17: Shopping experiences, gender wise.

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Figure 3.17: Shopping experiences, gender wise.

Interpretation :

Indus League is still one step behind of customer delight. Majority of customer think the experience as good, so efforts should be taken to convert them into excellent.

Teens have better shopping experience as compared to youth and elderly customers. Majority of females shared their shopping experience with Indus League as excellent, while majority of males shared their shopping experience as good.

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CHAPTER-4 B2B MARKETING AND INSTITUTIONAL TIE-Ups.

Business-to-business marketing:
These includes organizational sales and purchase of goods and services to support production of other goods and services for daily company operations or for resale. Like a final consumers, organizations purchase products and services to fill needs. Their primary need is meeting the demands of their own customers. The business buying decisions : o Are more formal. 57 | P a g e

o Involve complex interactions among many people. o Must consider the organizations goals.

Components of the Business Market:

o

Commercial Market: Individuals and firms that acquire goods and services to support,

directly or indirectly, production of other goods and services.

o

Trade Industries: Retailers and wholesalers who purchase goods for resale to others. o Reseller: often used to describe the wholesalers and retailers that operate in the trade sector. o Government Organizations: Include domestic units of federal, state, local and foreign governments. o Institutions: includes a wide variety of organizations, both public and private, such as hospitals, churches, universities, museums, and not-for-profit agencies.

Segmenting B to B marketing:
o Demographic Segmentation: Demographic characteristics define the useful

segmentation criteria for business markets. e.g: Hinjewadi is a proper segmentation and positioning for Indusleague.

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Customer-Based Segmentation: Dividing a B2B market into homogenous groups

based on buyers product specifications. o Segmentation by End-Use Application: Segmenting a business-to-business

market based on how industrial purchasers will use the product. o Segmentation by Purchase Categories: -Centers on the purchasing situations. -Organizations may use complicated purchasing procedures. -Firms also structure their purchasing functions in specific ways (e.g. centralized purchasing departments).

Characteristcs of B2B marketing:

o Retail business market is more geographically concentrated. o Manufacturers concentrate in certain regions of the city. o Certain industries locate in particular areas to be close to their customers. o o o B2B customers often must work with multiple sellers. Decision-makers at several layers may influence final orders. Process is more formal and professional than with consumers.

Market Demand Categories:

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Copyright 2006 by South estern, a division of Thomson Learning, Inc. All rights reserved. -W

6-18

Figure4.1: Demand categories o Derived Demand: Demand for a resource that results from demand for the goods and services that are produced by that resource. o Volatile Demand: Changes in demand that are disproportionate to normal trends. o Joint Demand: Demand for a product that depends on the demand for another product used in combination with it. o Inelastic Demand: Demand that, throughout an industry, will not change significantly due to a price change. o Inventory Adjustments: Just-in-time inventory policies (JIT & JIT II)

Organizational buying decision making

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Figure4.2:Buying decision making process.

Buyer-Seller Relationships:
-More intense than consumer relationships. -Require better communication among the organizations personnel. -Primary goal of B2B relationships is to provide advantages that no other seller can, for instance: Lower-prices, quicker delivery, Better quality and reliability, Customized product features and more favorable financing terms.

Steps involved in Institutional buying Process:

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Stage 1: Anticipate a Problem/Need/Opportunity and a General Solution e.g: Need to provide employees with a good t-shirt to motivate them and increase productivity. Stage 2: Determine the Characteristics and Quantity of a Needed Good or Service. e.g: Offering a t-shirt with the companys logo and of different colors according to each employees preference. Stage 3: Describe Characteristics and the Quantity of a Needed Good or Service. Stage 4: Search for and Qualify Potential Sources. -Choice of supplier may be fairly straightforward or very complex. Stage 5: Acquire and Analyze Proposals. -May involve competitive bidding, especially if the buyer is the government or a public Institution. Stage 6: Evaluate Proposals and Select Suppliers. -Buyers choose proposal best suited to their needs. -Final choice may involve trade-offs between feature such as price, reliability, quality, and order accuracy of t-shirts. Stage 7: Select an Order Routine. -Buyer and vendor work out best way to process future purchases. Stage 8: Obtain Feedback and Evaluate Performance. -Buyers measure vendors performance. -Larger firms are more likely to use formal evaluation procedures. -Some firms rely on outside organizations to gather quality feedback and summarize results.

Types of B2B buying:

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Business buying behavior involves degree of effort involved in the decision and the levels within the organization in which these decisions are made. Straight Rebuying: -A recurring purchase decision in which a customer reorders a product that has satisfied needs in the past. -Purchaser see little reason to assess competing options. -Marketers who maintain good relationships with customers can go a long way toward ensuring straight rebuys. E.g: Infosys straight rebuys Indus Leagues garments. Modified Rebuying: -Purchaser willing to re-evaluate available options. -May occur if supplier has let a rebuy circumstance deteriorate because of poor service or delivery performance. New-Task Buying: -First-time or unique purchase situations that require considerable effort by the decision makers. -Most complex category of business buying. -Often requires purchaser to consider alternative offerings and vendors. Value analysis: -Examines each component of a purchase in an attempt to either delete the item or replace it with a more cost-effective substitute. Vendor analysis: -An ongoing evaluation of a suppliers performance in categories such as price, EDI capability, back orders, deliv ery times, liability in B2B customers.

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CHAPTER-5 FINDINGS AND SUGGESTIONS

Findings :
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1. Brand Awareness Problem: After the marketing research activity that we undertook and

during the times when we were meeting the organisational clients, we observed that the Indus League brand awareness was very poor. Most of the organisations and institutions were not even aware of Indus League being a parent brand. 2. Market Penetration for Future group apparels: During our activity of B2B marketing it was brought to our notice that the penetration of our brand was very less and there were still many institutions who look for local vendors for the manufacturing of there uniforms and other apparels. 3. Most preffered time for placing the order: It was found out that the most of the institutions orders only once in a year. Moreover, the colleges and schools would order only at the start of there academic year. 4. Need of high promotional activities: Offering corporate discounts, giving free membership cards to employees, giving high discounts schemes such as buy 100 and get 10 free can probably help us targeting our target customer and to retain and gain maximum market share. 5. Delivery time: The longer delivery time is also one of the reasons because of which the penetration of our brand is low as compared to our competitors. Getting the approval from the Bangalore office and again the transportation time involved in getting the order from Bangalore results in a longer delivery time. 6. High end customization: There is a need for the high end customisation while delivering the goods to the organisational customers. Customisation includes the company logo printed on the shirt, the shirt color and design. 7. Post purchase benefits: It was noted that the post-purchase benefits that the customers receives and the long-term relation that is been maintained with the customers are some of the reasons for high customer satisfaction and also results in customer delight most of the times. 8. Price consciousness: The majority of the Pune region are price conscious and Indus League has very well capitalised on such customers. It has segmented its customers and then positioned its various brands acoording to the classes of the people. They have tried to cater to every kind of need in the market. 9. Some of the other findings from the marketing research activity conducted to understand the impact of promotional activities of Indus League includes;

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o It was found that majority of customers visiting Pune Central are repeat customers, denoting a good brand loyalty towards customers towards Central. o It was also found that majority of percentage of people visiting Pune Central have buying cycle of two months, i.e. generally customers revisit Central within two months.
o

From the study on Indus League, it was found that major effect of promotion is by radio commercials and press advertisements, where promotions through hoardings found to be less effective. It was also found that many people come to buy Indus League without any acquaintance with any of the promotional mediums but they are self walk-ins.

It was found that the in-store communication has very good recall power; customers pay attention to various medium of in-store promotion. Visual merchandise(VM) plays a very important role in in-store promotion.

From the study it was found that opinion of majority of customers of Indus League is the offers are very good which is a reason for customer loyalty towards Indus League.

Indus League is one step behind of customer delight. Majority of customers describe their shopping experience as good as compared to excellent. There was very less number of customers who describe their shopping experiences with Indus League as average or poor.

Also majority of customers for Indus League are between the age group of 19 to 35 years, it means Indus Leagues promotion is effective in getting its target customer.

From the study it is found that most of the customers coming for Indus League are students and from service occupation, where the number of house wives and businessmen is very less as compared to students and servicemen.

o Also it was found that majority of the customers visiting are the residential near Pune Central Bund Garden and Pune Central University Road, also these customers are found to be repeat customers.

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Suggestions :
1. Promotional Activities: Follow the various promotional activities like advertisement on TV, Radio, Newspaper, Internet, etc more rigourously so as to add-up to the brand awareness in the market. 2. Quality: Maintain the quality of the apparels as per the requirements of the customers in order to attain customer satisfaction and then delight. It is also equally important to understand the customer insights. 3. Time Management: Time management should be strictly followed in providing the ordered consignment on time and reduce the delivery time. 4. Training to the sales staff: A proper training should be provided to the sales executives about the detailed information of the products and schemes in order to avoid the chances of hampering the companys image and reputation in long term and build as well as maintain the companys image in the eyes of the customers. 5. Feed backs: The feedback taken should be considered and thoroughly studied and the customers grudges should be properly addressed.

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6. The following few suggestions can be given to the company based on the research findings:

More detailed promotion at store level can be planned in order to increase the overall effectiveness of the promotional activities by Indus League.

Indus League can introduce some Loyalty programs and schemes such as Loyalty Cards, which will result into repeat visit of the customer to store and hence customer loyalty.

Number of female customers buying Indus League garments is much less than male customers, so more promotional activities can be planned keeping women section in the mind to increase the number of female customers for the brand.

Majority of the customers visiting the Pune Central are residential of the zone near both the Central stores in the city, so more promotions can be planned in the zones other than those nearer to both the stores so as to increase the foot-falls to the store and attract customers for Indus League.

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APPENDICES

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QUESTIONNAIRE :
Q1. Is this your first visit to Central? A) Yes B) No Q2. How often do you visit Central? A) Once a month B) Twice a month C) Once in two months D) Once in three months E) If different please specify Q3. Which of the following communications did stimulated your visit? A) Press ad B) Radio commercial C) Hoardings D) Communication outside the store E) No, Self walk in F) If different please specify Q4. Did you see any communication on Indus League? A) Yes B) No Q5. Which communication/ displays did you see for Indus League during your visit? A) Standees B) Signage C) Gift display D) Other Q6. Do you like the in store communication for Indus League? A) Yes B) No Q7. How will you rate the brand Indus League? (5 being highly satisfactory)

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1 Brand Awareness Brand Image Quality

Q8. What is your opinion on the offers available for Indus League? A) The offers are very good B) The offers are average C) The offers are not good Q9. How would you describe the shopping experience with Indus League? A) Excellent B) Good C) Average D) Poor Please help us with your personal information 11) Name: 12) Gender: 13) Age Group A) <= 18 B) 19-25 years C) 26-35 years D) 36-45 years E) > 45 Years 14) Occupation: A) Student B) Service C) Self Employed D) Housewife 15) Address: (Please tick the below mentioned zone) A) Zone 1 B) Zone 2 C) Zone 3 D) Zone 4 E) Outstation Male Female

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Zone 1- Yerwada, Viman Nagar, Chandan Nagar, Kalyani Nagar, Koregaon Park, Camp, and Dhole Patil Road, Bund Garden, Vishrantwadi, Shastri Nagar, Kharadi, Deccan College, Vadgaon Sheri. Zone 2- Hadapsar, Kondhawa, Mundhwa, NIBM Road, Dhankavadi, Bibvewadi, Swarget, Katraj. Zone 3- Peth Area, Deccan, Karve Road, Kothrud, Sinhgad Road. Zone 4- Aundh, Baner, Pashan, PCMC Area (viz Khadki, Pimpri, Wakad, etc), Senapati Bapat Road, Model Colony.

List of the organisations for B2B marketing and Institutional Tie-ups:

S No 1 2 3 4 5 Company Name Kobe Restaurant Kimberley clerk Infosys knorr Kaya skin Clinic Adress of the Company Parihar chowk,Aundh PhaseII, Hinjewadi phase-II, Hinjewadi Phase-II, Hinjewadi Parihar chowk,Aundh West avenue,Kalyani Nagar Wakedewadi New Mumbai Pune Highway, Tathwade Contact Person Mr.Sainath (Manager) Ms.Preeti (HR) Mr.Mahindra Hitkal Mr.Nilesh (HR) Ms.Aishwariya Mrs.Riya santani (HR Executive ) Mr.Preetam Mr.Nandlal Prasad, (Purchase Manager)

Email id mps@bom5.vsnl.net.in preeti.bhatnagar@kcc.com

kayapunelc@kayaindia.com

6 7

Cybage Hero Honda Indira Institute Of Management, Shree Chanakya Education Society INTOX Private BAJAJ ALLIANZ GENERAL INSURANCE

rheas@cybase.com gurjeetsingh@herohonda.com nprasad@indiraedu.com

8 9 10

Kothrud road Paud Road

Mr.Vilas Patil Ms.Sharmila

intox@vsnl.com shreeraj.deshpande @bajajallianz.co.in

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COMPANY LTD Oasis restaurant and bar Baner link road, Aundh, Pune, Mr.Shankar Maharashtra Habbu cluboasis@vsnl.net Figure :List of organisations

11

REFERENCES :

Books :

1. Swapna Pradhan , Retailing Management, 2nd edition, 2004, Tata McGraw-Hill Publication

Company Ltd., New Delhi.

2. P. Kotler, K Keller, A. Koshy, M. Jha, Marketing Management: South Asian Perspective,

13th edition, 2009, Dorling Kindersley (India) Pvt Ltd., licensees of Pearson Education Inc., New Delhi.
3. C. R. Kothari, Research Methodology, 2nd edition, 2004, New Age International (P) Ltd,

Publishers, New Delhi.

4. Rajendra Nargundkar, Marketing Research, 3rd edition, 2009, Tata McGraw-Hill Publication

Company Ltd., New Delhi.

5. Prof. M. V. Kulkarni: Marketing research (Text & Cases), 8th edition 2008, Everest.

Web-reference :

1. www.pantaloon.com

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2. www.futuregroup.in 3. www.retailworld.com 4. www.businessworldindia.com 5. www.indus-league.com

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