AN

ORGANIZATIONAL STUDY

AT

BIG BAZAAR, PATTOM,

TRIVANDRUM

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the

Award of the degree of

MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

of Mahatma Gandhi University

Submitted by

Ms. LEKSHMI VIJAYAN

Under the guidance of

PROF. JACOB GEORGE

B-Tech, PGDM, IIM(Calcutta)

FACULTY GUIDE

Saintgits College of Engineering

Department Of M.B.A.

Kottukulam Hills, Pathamuttom,

Kottayam- 686 532

(Affiliated to Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam, Kerala)

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the project report titled “AN ORGANIZATIONAL STUDY AT BIG

BAZAAR, PATTOM, TRIVANDRUM” is a bonafide record of the work done by

Ms. LEKSHMI VIJAYAN, 2nd semester M.B.A student of Saintgits College of Engineering,

Department of M.B.A., submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of the

Masters Degree in Business Administration of Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam, Kerala.

Prof. Jacob George,B.Tech, PGDM Dr. (Col.) P.S.James, Ph.D

IIM ( Calcutta) Head of the Department

Project Guide

Place: Pathamuttom Place: Pathamuttom

Date: Date:

DECLARATION

SAINTGITS COLLEGE OF

ENGINEERING

Department of MBA (SIM) (Approved by AICTE and Affiliated to Mahatma Gandhi University)

KOTTUKULAM HILLS, PATHAMUTTOM P.O.

KOTTAYAM-686532 Tel. / Fax No.91-481-2430349, 2436169, 2436170, 2435960 E-mail:saintgitsengg@sify.com

CORPORATE OFFICE: III-FLOOR, UNITY BUILDINGS, K.K.ROAD, KOTTAYAM-686002

Tel. / Fax No. 91-481-2584330/2300365 E-Mail:saintgits@sify.com

DECLARATION

I, LEKSHMI VIJAYAN, hereby declare that the project report titled “AN

ORGANIZATIONAL STUDY AT BIG BAZAAR, PATTOM, TRIVANDRUM.” submitted

to the Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam, Kerala is a record of the original work done by

me and no part of it has been submitted earlier for award of any Degree, Post Graduation or

similar title of any other University or Institution.

Place : Pathamuttom

Date : Ms. LEKSHMI VIJAYAN

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

The successful completion of this dissertation owes to the inspiration and the constant support of

so many persons. First of all , I would like to thank Almighty God for his blessings and for being

with us all the way through.

I am obliged to the various individuals below, for their crucial role in helping to transform a

bunch of disorganized ideas and crude figures into what can be called a respectable project work.

I wish to thank in particular, Mr. Rahul Balakrishnan, HR Manager, Big Bazaar, Pattom,

Trivandrum for his valuable support , guidance and giving me the opportunity to carry out the

project in the reputed organization.

I extend my heartfelt thanks to my faculty guide Prof. Jacob George for his objective guidance

during the course of the project.

I am highly indebted to Dr. (Col) P.S.James, Ph.D (Dean, Saintgits Institute of Management)

for his unreserved help and constant encouragement during the period of this study.

I sincerely acknowledge my gratitude to staff of Big Bazaar for their encouragement, support

and valuable suggestions they have rendered during the project.

I am grateful to all other staff of the MBA Department for their valuable suggestions and

encouragements.

I place a record of my sincere thanks to my family, friends and all those who directly and

indirectly helped me in this endeavor.

Ms. LEKSHMI VIJAYAN

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER TITLE PAGE

NUMBER

1 INTRODUCTION 2

2 COMPANY PROFILE

2.1 Introduction 5

2.2 History 6

2.3 Promoters 9

2.4 Corporate Statement 10

2.5 Vision, Mission and Values 10

2.6 Awards & Recognition 12

2.7 Competitors 12

3 INDUSTRY PROFILE

3.1 Industry Profile 14

3.2 Growth of Retail Industry in India 14

3.3 The india retail industry: who's who 16

3.4 Top Companies: An Analysis 16

3.5 The Indian Retail Market 18

3.6 Contribution To GDP 19

3.7 Organized Retail Models 20

3.8 The Growth Factors Of The Retail

Sector Of Indian Economy

21

3.9

The Future Trends Of The Retail

Sector Of Indian Economy

22

3.10

PESTLE Analysis

22

3.11

Regulatory Framework

24

ORGANIZATIONAL CHART

26 4

CHAPTER TITLE PAGE

5

DEPARTMENTS AND FUNCTIONS

5.1

Marketing Department

28

5.1.1 4ps Of Marketing 28

5.2

Human Resource Department

32

5.3

Visual merchandising

33

5.4

Maintenance Department

36

5.5 Administration Department

36

5.6

Logistics Department

37

5.7

Cashiering department

38

5.8

Customer Service Department

38

5.9 Information Technology Department

42

6

SWOT analysis

45

7 Conclusion

49

8 Overview 51

Reference 52

CHAPTER-1

INTRODUCTION

INTRODUCTION

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 in number of employees. The

retail industry employs more than 22 million Americans and generates more than $3 trillion in retail

sale annually. Wal-Mart is the world‟s largest retailer. Already the world‟s largest employer with

over million associates, Wal-Mart displaced oil giant Exxon Mobil as the world‟s largest company

when it posted $219 billion in sales for fiscal 2001. Wal-Mart has become the most successful retail

brand in the world due its ability to leverage size, market influence, and efficiency to create market

dominance.

India‟s retail market, which is seen as THE GOLDMINE by global players, has grabbed

attention of the most developed nations. This is no wonder to the one who knows that the total

Indian retail market is US $350bn. (16, 00,000 crore INR approx.) of which organized retailing

is only around 3 percent i.e. US $8bn (36,000 crore INR approx).

“Retailing includes all activities involved in selling goods or services directly to final consumers

for personal, non-business use. A retailer or retail store is any business enterprise whose sales

volume comes primarily from retailing.” Retail is India's largest industry, accounting for over 10

per cent of the country's GDP and around eight per cent of the employment. Retail industry in

India is at the crossroads. It has emerged as one of the most dynamic and fast paced industries

with several players entering the market.

The presence of 15 million Kirana stores brings into light the very fact that the Indian retail

industry is highly fragmented/ unorganized. Retailing in India is gradually inching its way

toward becoming the next boom industry, organized retailing in particular. The whole concept of

shopping has altered in terms of format and consumer buying behavior, ushering in a revolution

in shopping in India. Modern retail has entered India as seen in sprawling shopping centers,

multi-storeyed malls and huge complexes offer shopping, entertainment and food all under one

roof.

The future of Indian retailing may even witness the concept of 24 hour retailing. Even though

this concept has been in existence in few retail segments like pharmaceuticals and fuel, it

remains to be a challenge for other segments like food and groceries, apparel etc to adopt this

trend.

Although the organized retailing in India is coming up in a big way, it cannot simply ignore the

competition from the conventional stores because of various factors like reach, extending credit

facility and other intangible factors like the human touch, which are provided, only by the

conventional stores.

The urban retail market has been embracing various new formats and the malls turned out to be

the trendsetters by promising the concept of shoppertainment. The trends in the rural market also

have been changing from the old Haats and Melas to the rural malls like „Chaupal Sagar‟

launched by ITC, DCM Shriram Groups one-stop shopping destination called „Hariyali Bazaar‟,

Godrej groups agri store „Adhar‟ etc.

Indian retail sector is witnessing one of the most hectic marketing activities of all times. The

companies are fighting for mind share and heart share, which can finally be converted to market

share. There is always a „first mover advantage‟ in an upcoming sector. In India, that advantage

goes to “Big Bazaar.” It has brought about many changes in the buying habits of people. It has

created formats, which provide all items under one roof at low rates, or so it claims

Big Bazaar‟s main competitors are other business houses, which are planning to enter the market

as well as long established „Kirana‟ stores, which feel threatened by huge retail chains. Kirana

stores are indispensible part of everyday life which provide major necessities „just around the

corner‟ of the street.

CHAPTER-2

COMPANY PROFILE

2.1 INTRODUCTION

Big Bazaar is a chain of department stores in India, currently with 92 stores. It is owned by the

Pantaloon Retail India Ltd, Future Group. Pantaloon Retail (India) Limited, is India‟s leading

retailer that operates multiple retail formats in both the value and lifestyle segment of the Indian

consumer market. It works on the same economy model as Wal-Mart and has considerable

success in many Indian cities and small towns. Entrepreneur Kishore Biyani, the CEO of Future

Group, pioneered the idea. Pantaloon Retail (India) Limited, is India is leading retailer that

operates multiple retail formats in both the value and lifestyle segment of the Indian consumer

market. Headquartered in Mumbai (Bombay), 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.

The company‟s leading formats include Pantaloons, a chain of fashion outlets, Big Bazaar, a

uniquely Indian hypermarket chain, Food Bazaar, a supermarket chain, blends the look, touch

and feel of Indian bazaars with aspects of modern retail like choice, convenience and quality and

Central, a chain of seamless destination malls. Some of its other formats include Brand Factory,

Blue Sky, aLL, Top 10, Star and Sitara.

A subsidiary company, Home Solutions Retail (India) Limited, operates Home Town, a large-

format home solutions store, Collection i, selling home furniture products and eZone focused on

catering to the consumer electronics segment.

Big Bazaar is not just another hypermarket. Where Big Bazaar scores over other stores is its

value for money proposition for the Indian customers. At Big Bazaar, the best products at the

best prices are available. With the ever-increasing array of private labels, it has opened the doors

into the world of fashion and general merchandise including home furnishings, utensils,

crockery, cutlery, sports goods and much more at surprising prices.

In 2001, the company changed its focus to family retailing in the large mega-store format.

Today, PRIL has expanded its business incorporating joint ventures and subsidiaries across six

verticals under the Future Group umbrella: real estate, asset management, logistics, brand

management, home solutions, and retail which is the nucleus.

2.2 COMPANY HISTORY

Future Group, led by its founder and Group CEO, Mr. Kishore Biyani, is one of India‟s leading

business houses with multiple businesses spanning across the consumption space. While retail

forms the core business activity of Future Group, group subsidiaries are present in consumer

finance, capital, insurance, leisure and entertainment, brand development, retail real estate

development, retail media and logistics.

Led by its flagship enterprise, Pantaloon Retail, the group operates over 12 million square feet of

retail space in 71 cities and towns and 65 rural locations across India. Headquartered in Mumbai

(Bombay), Pantaloon Retail employs around 30,000 people and is listed on the Indian stock

exchanges. The company follows a multi-format retail strategy that captures almost the entire

consumption basket of Indian customers. In the lifestyle segment, the group operates Pantaloons,

a fashion retail chain and Central, a chain of seamless malls. In the value segment, its marquee

brand, Big Bazaar is a hypermarket format that combines the look, touch and feel of Indian

bazaars with the choice and convenience of modern retail.

PRIL is the pioneer of the India‟s first modern retail in the hypermarket format and is recognized

as an organized multi-format retailer. The firm‟s business strategy is to capture a greater share of

the consumer wallet by covering all customer segments in all age-groups, in all product

categories through multiple retail formats nationwide. The Pantaloon Retail business model also

incorporates strategic tie-ups and joint ventures with some of the leading foreign brands. In 2006,

the company generated Rs. 19.3 million in business sales and is directly accountable for

employment of 14,500 people. Additionally, the company‟s array of private labels across several

product categories, indirectly create supply demand for small-scale domestic suppliers. At

present, the company operates nearly 13428 stores in over 25 cities across the nation and

occupies an aggregate area of 3.2 million sq. ft. PRIL is penetrating the market through

aggressive store roll-out plan and projects nearly 2,422 stores occupying 30 million sq. ft. by

2010. One of PRIL‟s vertical, “Future Capital Holding Limited”, with a corpus of nearly US$

850 million, manages the company‟s real estate needs by investing in real estate properties. The

real estate vertical of PRIL supplements the company‟s strategy to acquire front-end retail stores

in tier-two towns like Jaipur, Indore, Vishakhapatnam, and Pune.

In 2008, Big Bazaar opened its 100th store, marking the fastest ever organic expansion of a

hypermarket. The first set of Big Bazaar stores opened in 2001 in Kolkata, Hyderabad and

Bangalore.

The group‟s specialty retail formats include, books and music chain, Depot, sportswear retailer,

Planet Sports, electronics retailer, Ezone, home improvement chain, Home Town and rural retail

chain, Aadhar, among others. It also operates popular shopping portal, futurebazaar.com.

Future Capital Holdings, the group‟s financial arm provides investment advisory to assets worth

over $1 billion that are being invested in consumer brands and companies, real estate, hotels and

logistics. It also operates a consumer finance arm with branches in 150 locations.

Other group companies include, Future Generali, the group‟s insurance venture in partnership

with Italy‟s Generali Group, Future Brands, a brand development and IPR company, Future

Logistics, providing logistics and distribution solutions to group companies and business partners

and Future Media, a retail media initiative.

The group‟s presence in Leisure & Entertainment segment is led through, Mumbai-based listed

company Galaxy Entertainment Limited. Galaxy leading leisure chains, Sports Bar and Bowling

Co. and family entertainment centres, F123. Through its partner company, Blue Foods the group

operates around 100 restaurants and food courts through brands like Bombay Blues, Spaghetti

Kitchen, Noodle Bar, The Spoon, Copper Chimney and Gelato.

Future Group‟s joint venture partners include, US-based stationery products retailer, Staples and

Middle East-based Axiom Communications. Future Group believes in developing strong insights

on Indian consumers and building businesses based on Indian ideas, as espoused in the group‟s

core value of „Indianness.‟ The group‟s corporate credo is, „Rewrite rules, Retain values.‟

THE PANTALOON KNOWLEDGE GROUP -THE JOURNEY SO FAR

1987 Company incorporated as Manz Wear Private Limited. Launch of

Pantaloons trouser, India‟s first formal trouser brand.

1991 Launch of BARE, the Indian jeans brand.

1992 Initial public offer (IPO) was made in the month of May.

1994 The Pantaloon Shoppe – exclusive menswear store in franchisee format

launched across the nation. The company starts the distribution of

branded garments through multi-brand retail outlets across the nation.

1995 John Miller – formal shirt brand launched.

1997 Pantaloons – India‟s family store launched in Kolkata.

2001 Big Bazaar, „Is se sasta aur accha kahi nahin‟ - India‟s first

hypermarket chain launched.

2002 Food Bazaar, the supermarket chain is launched.

2004 Central – „Shop, Eat, Celebrate In The Heart Of Our City‟ - India‟s first

seamless mall is launched in Bangalore.

2005 Fashion Station - the popular fashion chain is launched

aLL – „a little larger‟ - exclusive stores for plus-size individuals is

launched

2006 Future Capital Holdings, the company‟s financial arm launches real

estate funds Kshitij and Horizon and private equity fund Indivision.

Plans forays into insurance and consumer credit.

Multiple retail formats including Collection i, Furniture Bazaar, Shoe

Factory, eZone, Depot and futurebazaar.com are launched across the

nation.

Group enters into joint venture agreements with ETAM Group and

Generali.

2.3 PROMOTERS

Mr. Kishore Biyani, CEO Future Group & MD, PRIL

Kishore Biyani is the Chief Executive Officer of Future Group and Managing Director,

Pantaloon Retail India Ltd. He started his entrepreneurial career with manufacturing and

distribution of branded men‟s wear products. In 1997, Kishore Biyani led the group‟s foray into

modern retail with the opening up of the first department store Pantaloons in Kolkata. In 2001,

he created and evolved a pan-Indian, class-less model – Big Bazaar, a hypermarket chain,

followed by „Food Bazaar‟, a supermarket chain, which blended the look, touch and feel of

Indian bazaars with western hygiene. This was followed by Central, a first of its kind seamless

mall located in the heart of major Indian cities.

Name Designation

Rakesh Biyani CEO – Retail

Anshuman Singh CEO Future Logistics

Arvind Chaudhary CEO Aadhar

Damodar Mall Group Customer Director

Hans Udeshi CEO - General Merchandising

Kailash Bhatia CEO - Integrated Merchandising

Rajan Malhotra President-Strategy&

Convergence

Sadashiv Nayak CEO - Food Bazaar

Sanjeev Agrawal CEO – Pantaloons

Vishnu Prasad CEO - Central & Brand Factory

2.4 CORPORATE STATEMENT

“Future” – the word that signifies optimism, growth, achievement, strength, beauty, rewards and

perfection. Future encourages them to explore areas yet unexplored, write rules yet unwritten;

create new opportunities and new successes. “To strive for a glorious future brings to us our

strength, our ability to learn, unlearn and re-learn our ability to evolve”.

“We, in Future Group, will not wait for the Future to unfold itself but create future scenarios

in the consumer space and facilitate consumption because consumption is development.

Thereby, we will effect socio-economic development for our customers, employees,

shareholders, associates and partners”.

“Our customers will not just get what they need, but also get them where, how and when they

need”.

“We will not just post satisfactory results, we will write success stories”.

“We will not just operate efficiently in the Indian economy, we will evolve it”.

“We will not just spot trends; we will set trends by marrying our understanding of the Indian

consumer to their needs of tomorrow”.

“It is this understanding that has helped us succeed. In addition, this will help us succeed in the

Future. We shall keep relearning. And in this process, do just one thing...Rewrite Rules Retain

Values”

2.5 VISION

Future Group shall deliver Everything, Everywhere, Everytime for Every Indian Consumer in the

most profitable manner.

2.6 MISSION

Big Bazaar shares the vision and belief that the customers and stakeholders shall be

served only by creating and executing future scenarios in the consumption space

leading to economic development.

Big Bazaar will be the trendsetters in evolving delivery formats, creating retail realty,

making consumption affordable for all customer segments - for classes and for

masses.

Big Bazaar shall infuse Indian brands with confidence and renewed ambition.

Big Bazaar shall be efficient, cost- conscious and committed to quality in whatever

they do.

Big Bazaar ensures positive attitude, sincerity, humility and united determination

shall be the driving force to make them successful.

2.7 VALUES

The values the Pantaloon Group highlighting are;

Indianness: “Confidence in ourselves”.

Leadership: “To be a leader, both in thought and business”.

Respect and Humility: “To respect every individual and be humble in our

conduct”.

Introspection: “ Leading to purposeful thinking.”

Openness: “To be open and receptive to new ideas, knowledge and information”.

Valuing and Nurturing Relationships: “To build long term relationships”.

Simplicity and Positivity: “Simplicity and positivity in our thought, business and

action”.

Adaptability: “To be flexible and adaptable, to meet challenges”.

Flow: “To respect and understand the universal laws of nature”

2.8 AWARDS & RECOGNITION 2008

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

2.9 COMPETITORS

1. Hyper market: Spencers, Vishal Retail, Magnet, Star India Bazaar, Shop Rite.

2. Department stores: Shoppers‟ Stop, Pyramid Mega Store, Lifestyle, Globus,

Westside and Central Mall.

3. Convenience stores: Trumart, Nilgiris, Food World, Subhishka, Reliance Fresh,

Tirtenthra, Spencers Daily and Spinach.

4. Speciality stores: M.A.C, Titan, Bata and Tanishq.

5. Speciality formats: Archies, Landmark, Crossword and Planet M

6. Furniture Retailing: Concept, Living Room, Style Spa and Tangent

7. Consumer Durable Chains: Viveks, Tata Croma, Vijay Sales, Sumaria and Sony

Mony.

CHAPTER-3

INDUSTRY PROFILE

3.1 INDUSTRY PROFILE

Indian retail industry is one of the largest industries in India, with an employment of around 8%

and contributing to over 10% of the country's GDP. Retail industry in India is expected to rise

25% yearly being driven by strong income growth, changing lifestyles, and favorable

demographic patterns. Indian retail market is the fifth largest retail destination globally and it

has one of the largest numbers of retail outlets in the world.

In India, the retail sector is the second largest employer after agriculture. The retailing sector in

India is highly fragmented and consists predominantly of small, independent and owner managed

shops. There are about 12 million retail outlets in India. The growth in the Indian organized retail

market is mainly due to the change in the consumer behavior. This change has risen as a result of

increased income, changing lifestyles, and favorable patterns of demography. Now the consumer

wants to shop at a place where he can get food, entertainment, and shopping all less than one

roof.

There has been a boom in the retail trade in India owing to gradual increase in the disposable

income of the middle class households. More and more players are venturing into the retail

business in India to introduce new attractive retail formats like malls, supermarkets, discount

stores and even changing the traditional look of the bookstores, chemist shop etc. Food sales

constitute a high proportion of the total retail sales. The share was 62.7% in 2001, worth

approximately rs.7039.2 billion, while non food sales were worth Rs 4189.5 billion. However,

the non-food retailing sector registered faster year on year growth than food sales.

3.2 GROWTH OF RETAIL IN INDIA

An increasing number of people in India are turning to the services sector for employment due to

the relative low compensation offered by the traditional agriculture and manufacturing sectors.

The organized retail market is growing at 35 percent annually while growth of unorganized retail

sector is pegged at 6 percent.

The Retail Business in India is currently at the point of inflection. Rapid change with

investments to the tune of US $ 25 billion is being planned by several Indian and multinational

companies in the next 5 years. It is a huge industry in terms of size and according to management

consulting firm Technopak Advisors Pvt. Ltd., it is valued at about US $ 350 billion. Organized

retail is expected to garner about 16-18 percent of the total retail market (US $ 65-75 billion) in

the next 5 years.

India has topped the A.T. Kearney‟s annual Global Retail Development Index (GRDI) for the

third consecutive year, maintaining its position as the most attractive market for retail

investment. The Indian economy has registered a growth of 8% for 2007. The prediction for

2008 is 7.9%. The enormous growth of the retail industry has created a huge demand for real

estate. Property developers are creating retail real estate at an aggressive pace and by 2010, 300

malls are estimated to be operational in the country.

With over 1,000 hypermarkets and 3,000 supermarkets projected to come up by 2011, India will

need additional retail space of 700,000,000 sq ft (65,000,000 m²) as compared to today. Current

projections on construction point to a supply of just 200,000,000 sq ft (19,000,000 m²), leaving a

gap of 500,000,000 sq ft (46,000,000 m²) that needs to be filled, at a cost of US$15-18 billion.

1. The Retail Sector in India can be split up into two, the organized and the unorganized.

The organized sector whose size is expected to triple by 2010 can be further split up

into departmental stores, supermarkets, shopping malls etc.

2. In terms of value, the size of the retail sector in India is $300 billion. The organized

sector contributes about 4.6% to the total trade.

3. The retail sector in India contributes 10% to the Gross Domestic Product and 8% to

the employment of the country.

4. In terms of growth, the FMCG retail sector is the fastest growing unit and the retail

relating to household care, confectionery etc, have lagged behind.

5. The foreign retail giants were initially restricted from making investments in India.

Now FDI of 51% is permitted in India only through single branded retail outlets.

Multi brand outlets are still beyond their reach. Again they can only enter the market

through franchisees,. This was how Wal-Mart had entered joining hands with Bharati

Enterprises.

6. On line retailing is still to leave a mark on the customers due to lacunae that which is

already mentioned.

3.3 THE INDIA RETAIL INDUSTRY: WHO'S WHO

The Indian retail sector has been euphoria over the last five years. India topped the A.T.

Kearney's Global Retail Development Index for two consecutive years and this has infatuated

Indian as well as foreign retail players to go gaga on the merchandising track. According to

geographical expansion, Delhi/NCR and Mumbai are the felicitated regions as the top companies

have rated the spending potential of consumers near the national capital and the financial capital

as excellent. Other metros such as Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad and Bangalore have caught the

sight of investors but their fortunes are yet to be illuminated. Companies like The Future Group,

Reliance, Bharti-Walmart, DLF etc. have shown the way for other to enter. The countries are

expecting a surge in the growth sprint and let us hope for the best.

3.4 TOP COMPANIES: AN ANALYSIS

1. Big Bazaar

Big Bazaar is a chain of department stores owned by the Pantaloon Group (Future Group),

headed by Kishore Biyani, and headquartered at Mumbai. It offers all types of household items

such as home furnishing, utensils, fashion products etc. It has a grocery department and

vegetable section known as the Food Bazaar and its online shopping site is known as

FutureBazaar.com. The real estate fund management company promoted by the Future Group

expects to develop more than 50 projects across India covering a combined area of more than 16

million sq. ft. On April 1 2007, Big Bazaar had to shut its outlets in Mumbai as the 120

retrenched employees called a strike with the support of Bhartiya Kamgar Sena (the trade Union

wing of Shiv Sena). Later the management agreed to reinstate the sacked workers.

2. Bharti Retail

Bharti Retail a wholly owned subsidiary of Bharti Enterprises has announced two joint ventures

(JV) with the international retailing behemoth, Wal-Mart. The first JV ensures cash and carry

business, in which 100 percent FDI is permitted and it can sell only to retailers and distributors.

The second JV concerns the franchise arrangement. Sunil Mittal, Chairman of the Bharti Group

assured that the ventures would use “low prices every day” and “best practices for the

satisfaction of the customer”. Bharti Field Fresh, Bharti‟s JV with Rothschild, will deliver

processed foods and vegetables. Bharti Retail aims to foray every city with a population

exceeding 1 million. It has plans to come up with an investment of more than $2 billion in

convenience stores, supermarkets and hypermarkets spread over an aggregate 10 million sq. ft.

The expansion drive looks ambitious but analysts are worried that Bharti may face stiff

competition from Pantaloon and Reliance as they too have sanguine plans to flood the markets

with thousands of retail outlets in the coming five years. Bharti Telecom also has plans to offer

all its fixed and mobile telecom products and services from a single window to the SMB (Small

and Medium Business) enterprises under the Bharti Infotel division.

3. Reliance Retail

Reliance claimed last year to start a retail chain that will be unique in size and spread, will lead

to the welfare of all ranging from Indian farmers, manufacturers and ultimately consumers. It is

known as Reliance Retail Ltd.(RRL) and is a 100 percent subsidiary of Reliance industries

Ltd.(RIL). Soon after the Bharti-Wal Mart tie up, there was the news that RIL (Reliance

Industries Ltd.) Chairman Mukesh Ambani met Commerce Minister Kamal Nath to discuss the

apprehension of cheap imports from China. Reliance Retail has plans to open 4,000 outlets

across 1,500 towns for an investment of $5.6 billion. Reliance is not away from agro-business.

According to Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, Chief Minister of West Bengal, “Reliance will hold

demonstration farming, produce good quality seeds and give inputs to farmers”. Its most

significant participation has been in the food procurement business in Madhya Pradesh and

Punjab. This has in fact compelled the government to import wheat this year. Reliance Retail has

also been reported to enter into an agreement with footwear manufacturer Bata India Ltd. so that

they will involve in selling each other's products.

4. DLF Shopping Malls

DLF Retail Developers Ltd. is one of the troikas of the DLF Group. Besides being India's largest

real estate developer, DLF is also of the leaders in innovating shopping malls in India. It caught

public eye when it launched the 2,50,000 sq ft. shopping mall in Gurgaon. It has brought a

dramatic change in the lifestyles and entertainment with its City Centres and DT Cinemas. DLF

has plans to invest Rs. 2000-3000 crore in all the emerging areas from metros to A class cities in

the next two years. Until last year, the company was involved in building 18 malls out of which

10 were in the NCR region. Plans of DLF involve opening up of 100 malls (speciality malls, big

box retailing and integrated malls) across 60 cities in next 8-10 years. They are slowly

transforming into 'lease' and 'revenue share' models.

Local players like ITC, the A.V. Birla Group and Tatas have given the hints to enter organised

retail. France‟s Carrefour SA and Britain‟s Tesco too were recently in news for their plans to

explore the Indian retail market.

3.5 THE INDIAN RETAIL MARKET

Indian market has high complexities in terms of a wide geographic spread and distinct consumer

preferences varying by each region necessitating a need for localization even within the

geographic zones. India has highest number of outlets per person (7 per thousand) Indian retail

space per capita at 2 sq ft (0.19 m²) person is lowest in the world Indian retail density of 6

percent is highest in the world. 1.8 million Households in India have an annual income of over

45 lakh. Delving further into consumer buying habits, purchase decisions can be separated into

two categories: status-oriented and indulgence-oriented. CTVs/LCDs, refrigerators, washing

machines, dishwashers, microwave ovens and DVD players fall in the status category.

Indulgence-oriented products include plasma TVs, state-of-the-art home theatre systems, iPods,

high-end digital cameras, camcorders, and gaming consoles. Consumers in the status category

buy because they need to maintain a position in their social group. Indulgence-oriented buying

happens with those who want to enjoy life better with products that meet their requirements.

When it comes to the festival shopping season, it is primarily the status-oriented segment that

contributes largely to the retailer‟s cash register.

The break-up of organized retailing sales into various product categories such as

Books, Music & Gifts: 3% Mobile Handsets: 3% Clothing & Textile: 39% Food & Grocery:

11% Consumer Durables: 9% Footwear: 9% Furniture & Furnishings: 8% Catering Services: 7%

Jeweler & Watches: 7% and Others: 4%.

3.6 CONTRIBUTION TO GDP

Retail Sector is the most booming sector in the Indian economy. Some of the biggest players of

the world are going to enter the industry soon. It is on the threshold of bringing the next big

revolution after the IT sector. Although organized retail market is not as strong as of now, it is

expected to grow manifolds by the year 2010. The sector contributes 10% of the GDP, and is

estimated to show 20% annual growth rate by the end of the decade as against the current growth

rate of 8.5%. A CRISIL report says that the Indian retail market is the most fragmented in the

world and that only 2% of the entire retailing business is in the organized sector. This suggests

that the potential for growth is immense. There are about 300 new malls, 1500 supermarkets and

325 departmental stores currently being built in the cities across India.

3.7 ORGANIZED RETAIL MODELS

RETAILER

Subhiksha

Trent Limited

SEGMENT

Value

Lifestyle and

Value

BUSINESS STRATEGY

Low-price high-volume strategy: by

keeping no fancy frills front-end and by

becoming an intermediary at the back

end advantages on discounted prices on

bulk purchases and cash payments.

Single- brand strategy: leverages on high

margins in private labels, and targets

consumers in socio-economic class B and

C.

Future Group:

PRIL

Lifestyle &

Value

Strategic JVs and subsidiaries around

retail has enabled PRIL to develop

retailing across age groups, all product

categories, the entire customer segments

under multiple retail formats.

ITC Choupal

Sagar & Choupal

Fresh

Spencer’s Retail

NDDB: Mother

Dairy

Value

Value

Value

Backward integration through IT-based

business model: leverages by building

direct relationship with the supply

source, the farmers, to sell as well as

purchase products and services.

The “duck and the duckling” model: by

having two- or three- value segment

stores, backed by a cluster of small-sized

Fresh, Daily, and Express stores, to

leverage on economies of scale at back-

end value chain.

Operates on a co-operative model with

the objective of increasing farmers’

welfare. Has a strong presence in Delhi’s

NCR region.

Strategically located in residential areas

and follows a low-price strategy for fruit

and vegetables.

3.8 THE GROWTH FACTORS OF THE RETAIL SECTOR OF INDIAN

ECONOMY:

Increase in per capita income which in turn increases the household consumption

Demographical changes and improvements in the standard of living

Change in patterns of consumption and availability of low-cost consumer credit

Improvements in infrastructure and enhanced availability of retail space

Entry to various sources of financing

The infrastructure of the retail sector will evolve radically. The emergence of shopping malls is

going steady in the metros and there are further plans of expansion, which would lead to 150 new

ones coming up by the year 2008. As the count of super markets is going up much faster than

rate of growth in retail sector, it is taking the lions share in food trade. The non-food sector,

segments comprising apparel, accessories, fashion, and lifestyle felt the significant change with

the emergence of new stores formats like convenience stores, mini marts, mini supermarkets,

large supermarkets, and hyper marts. Even food retailing has became an important retail business

in the national arena, with large format retail stores, establishing stores all over India. With the

entry of packaged foods like MTR, ITC Ashirbad, fast foods chains like McDonald's, KFC,

beverage parlors like Nescafe, Tata Tea, Café Coffee and Barista, the Indian food habits has been

altered. These stores have earned the reputation of being 'super saver locations'.

With the arrival of the Transnational Companies (TNC), the Indian retail sector will confront the

following round of alterations. At present, the Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) is not

encouraged in the Indian organized retail sector but once the TNC'S get in they would try to

muscle out their Indian counterparts. This would be challenging to the retail sector in India.

3.9 THE FUTURE TRENDS OF THE RETAIL SECTOR OF INDIAN

ECONOMY

The retail sector of Indian economy will grow up to 10% of total retailing by the year

2010.

No one single format can be assumed as there is a huge difference in

Cultures regionally.

The most encouraging format now would be the hyper marts

The hyper mart format would be further encouraged with the entry of the TNC's

It is very important that an organization consider its environment before beginning the

marketing process. In fact, environmental analysis should be continuous and feed all

aspects of planning.

3.10 PESTLE ANALYSIS OF THE INDUSTRY

The following factors are significant for the industry

a) Political Factors

- Current taxation policy

- Future taxation policy

- The current and future political support

- Grants, funding and initiatives

- Trade bodies

- Effect of wars or worsening relations with particular countries

b) Economic Factors

- Overall economic situation

- Strength of consumer spending

- Current and future levels of government spending

- Ease of access to loans

- Current and future level of interest rates, inflation and unemployment

- Specific taxation policies and trends

- Exchange rates

c) Sociological

- Demographics

- Lifestyle patterns and changes

- Attitudes towards issues such as education, corporate responsibility and the

environment.

- Social mobility

- Media views and perceptions

- Ethnic and religious differences

d) Technological

- Relevant current and future technology innovations

- The level of research funding

- The ways in which consumers make purchases

- Intellectual property rights and copyright infringements

- Global communication technological advances

e) Legal

- Legislation in areas such as employment, competition and health & safety

- Future legislation changes

- Changes in European law

- Trading policies

- Regulatory bodies

f) Environmental

- The level of pollution created by the product or service

- Recycling considerations

- Attitudes to the environment from the government, media and consumers

- Current and future environmental legislative changes.

3.11 REGULATORY FRAMEWORK

There are four types of policy regulations that can be seen in countries, which have experienced

advanced retail expansion. They are:

• Competition policy that limits concentration and collusion.

• Zoning and hours regulations to limit the diffusion, market penetration, and convenience of

organized retail.

• Pricing regulations that prevent modern retail companies from pricing below cost and prompt-

payment regulations to secure speedy payment to suppliers.

• Policies to strengthen traditional retailers and suppliers through technology and practice

upgrading, enhancing organizational capacity, and financial access

CHAPTER-4

ORGANIZATION CHART

ORGANIZATION STRUCTURE

Store Manager

Assistant Store Manager

Support Team Operation Team

I T CSD

Security House Keeping

Administration Cashiering

Department

Maintenance

Visual Merchandise

Marketing

H R

Depot & General Merchandising

Watches& sunglass Shringar

Home linen and Home Decor

Apparels P U C

Food Bazaar

Luggage & footwear

Car Accessories

Electronics & Furniture

Star & Sithara

Purchase Department

Logistics

CHAPTER-5

DEPARTMENTS

AND

FUNCTIONS

5.1 MARKETING DEPARTMENT

The main functions of marketing department at Big Bazaar are as follows:

Store level marketing

Implementing marketing strategy at store

Needs at store level

Local tie up

Store Walking

Advertisements

Getting offer known to public

5.1.1 4Ps OF MARKETING

Marketing mix is a deciding factor in formulating marketing techniques for the success of a

particular brand, commodity or company. The components of marketing mix are:

Product

Price

Promotion

Place

1. PRODUCT:

Big Bazaar offers the maximum variety for each category of product and this is cited by the

customers as one of the main reasons why they like shopping at the hypermarket. The product is the

same in every store in the city but the brand options are more in Big Bazaar. In addition, the

quantity for each product is not limited to large packs only. In addition, local brands of popular

commodities, like diapers, sugar, wheat flour garments etc, are very popular in Big Bazaar stores.

These products are never advertised but offer huge margin on sales. In this way, lower middle class

customers are targeted well. The commodities sold by the retail chain also includes its “own

products” which get a ready distribution network. The own products of Big Bazaar include “My

World fashion” magazine which is not available anywhere else. Therefore, costs are low for such

products. So,

Big Bazaar scores high on the product part of marketing mix.

Customer has more choices of brand in Big Bazaar rather than other store.

Customers like touching the product and selecting it themselves before buying.

The customers trust retail chains with quality of the product. They feel food

products of Big Bazaar will have no adulteration. Other stores do not assure this

quality.

Cheap and local brands are heavily stocked in Big Bazaar, which makes it easier

to attract lower-middle class category of customers.

2. PRICE:

Price is the critical point in a competitive industry. Big Bazaar works on a low cost model. It

considers its discounted price as its USP. There is an average discount of 7-8% on all items in

respect to their MRP. Prices of products are low because it is able to secure stock directly from the

manufacturer. There are huge synergies in terms of bulk purchasing, central warehousing and

transportation. These all factors help the retailer to keep low prices. Survey indicated that low prices

were the biggest factor in customers‟ mind while coming to Big Bazaar. It has never focused on

giving great services, but laid emphasis only on low prices to attract crowd.

In Big Bazaar,

Almost everything has some kind of discount.

It clubs small quantities to make bigger packs and then lower prices which other

stores are unable to do.

It considers price to be the biggest attraction for all customers.

Consumers accept the fact that they come from faraway places because it is cheap

in Big Bazaar for bulk shopping.

It is not possible for other stores to give hefty discounts on all items.

Customers feel same price for all customers as a plus point of Big Bazaar as

compared to differential price policy of other stores.

Some customers feel cash discount is fine but bulk offer deals are of no use

because you end up getting more than you want which is a waste.

3. PROMOTION:

Big Bazaar has huge promotion budgets. The biggest idea behind all advertisements is to make

people do bulk shopping. There are two types of promotional strategies, one is the holistic

advertisement, which promotes the brand and creates awareness among people. It is not targeted at

promoting each store but only creates an image of Big Bazaar as low-cost shopping option. The

store has advertised through TV, road shows and started reality show-typed promotional campaign

“The Big Bazaar Challenge.” Promotions like “Sabse Sasta Din” are a very successful strategy to

get footfall.

Other type of promotion is the particular store oriented promotion, which includes speaking on the

loudspeaker in nearby blocks. Leaflets are given in local newspaper. There are promotional efforts

even inside the store. During the survey, it was noticed that Buy 2 Get 1 Free type of promotions

are very common. Original prices are cut down and new prices are shown, of which customer takes

quick notice. There are loyalty schemes, which reward regular clients. Promotion is also done

through co-branded credit cards with ICICI bank.

FUNCTIONS OF RETAIL ADVERTISING

Retail advertising takes place on national, international as well as local levels. The local retail

advertising is meant for people who live in the proximity of the outlet and is usually done on a

smaller scale as compared to national and international retail advertising. As far as the functions of

retail advertising are concerned, there are a great many functions, some of which are explained

below.

The first function of retail advertising revolves around the prospect of generating sales of products

and / or services. Although the retailer is craving the popularity of his retail outlet, the objective

that builds in relation to the erstwhile rationale is the generation of sales. Then another factor that

retail advertising aims at is to generate a profuse store traffic. This, in turn, would ignite the

prospect of referral and recommendation, which would increase the customer base for the retail

outlet. Another function of the retail advertising is the delivery of sales promotion messages from

various manufacturers. However, the most important function of retail advertising is to establish

and communicate the brand image of the retail outlet by creating a retail brand that harmonizes with

the target market.

Big Bazaar has realized that

Retail chain Big Bazaar cannot survive without promotions on national or

regional level.

A big ad budget helps it to get large scale of operations.

Customers accept the fact that advertisement campaign of Big Bazaar did

influence them in their buying behavior.

Its Buy 2 Get 1 Free strategy influences the customer mindset a lot once they

enter the store.

Customers feel loyalty card schemes make them come repeatedly to the store.

4. PLACE:

Place means the location of the business. Big Bazaar has always worked on low-cost locations. It

targets semi-urban population with its placement. Its strategy is to find a cheap location and it never

goes for hot spots in the city. The Teghoria store was opened when it was scarcely populated. Even

in Gurgaon, Big Bazaar chose Sahara Mall instead of Metropolitan or City Centre, which are more

popular than Sahara Mall. It relied on promotional activities to make up for unattractive locations.

The channel of place is company owned stores to have complete control.

Another strategy used by Big Bazaar to overcome location disadvantage is use of internet. It has

launched a merchandise-retailing website www.futurebazaar.com that targets high-end customers

ready to use credit cards. Therefore, Big Bazaar has made headway into a potentially high-yielding

sector of online trade. Internet as place has put them in a profitable position because there is

minimal expense of maintaining a website. The promotion of this website is done through

advertisement on Google. The website is put as sponsored link.

Location is something which is permanent. So cautious decisions are taken while

selecting place.

Big Bazaar refrains from high-end locations for its business.

Some customers travel from far places to the store. Therefore, place factor has

less influence on them.

Semi-urban customers still prefer Kirana shops, so location of retail chain should

be near to them because they will not travel too far.

PROFITABILITY

Profit is the basic motive behind the running of any business. Both retail formats have their own

budgets, future projections and financial limitations. Profitability measures the efficiency of

operations. It also helps us decide the better option amongst the two. Big Bazaar and local

departmental stores work on different scales of operation. The deciding factor here is investment

capability.

5.2 HUMAN RESOURCE DEPARTMENT

Like any other service organization, the HR function in retailing (as practiced by both HR

functionaries as well as managers in operations/ retail) is extremely important. However, as the

industry evolves, some special issues have emerged. In fact Hr managers may find themselves

focusing on just a few activities almost 90% of time. These constitute:

Recruitment

Selection

Manpower planning

Motivation and retention and building reward systems that ensure performance

orientation

Payroll management

Up keeping the employee morale

Organizing training for employees

To develop plans and policies which will guide the growth and development of

the industry

To process all applications in accordance with stated timeframe objectives.

To promote a working environment where learning is encouraged, new ideas are

welcome, and a friendly atmosphere prevails as the most productive team

approach to business.

Staff strength:

175 members are there including managers, Team Members, security, housekeeping etc.

RETENTION PRACTICES

Good salary

Employee discount card

ESI benefit,PFand other statutory benefits

LIC coverage

Good working conditions

Good relations and support

Performance appraisal

ROLE OF RETAIL SALES PERSONNEL

The behavior of the salesperson towards customer is an important aspect in retailing. Retail

salespeople always look for opportunities to serve customers. A personal greeting when he enters

the store gives the customer a feeling of belonging there. Guiding the customer through the store,

assisting him/her in locating the products required, presenting features and models of various

products as well as demonstrating their use are all part of the salesperson‟s job. Salesperson,

especially selling expensive items, needs special knowledge and selling skills.

Duties of salesperson in Big Bazaar are;

1. Be a resource for information as he or she is knowledgeable about the store‟s

merchandise, services and policies.

2. Be a value counselor, assisting the customer with value comparisons with items in the

store or competing brands.

3. Be a public relations representative for the store

4. Be a custodian of merchandise and services, ensuring effective stock turns for the store

and selling the inventory, which is the primary objective of the business.

5. Be able to advice customers with good selling suggestions that will improve customer

satisfaction and build sales.

6. Ensure the customer‟s needs are met so that complaints are kept to the minimum.

7. Develop by virtue of his or her attitude knowledge and skills, and ensure that the store‟s

merchandise has a loyal customer following.

5.3 VISUAL MERCHANDISING

Visual merchandising is also known as the „silent sales man‟, is the science and art of suggestive

selling by display and presentation. Visual merchandising focal points are located strategically to

circulate the customer in the store, and communicate the features and benefits of the merchandise

besides the in-store promotion in vogue. This is done by converting a passerby to a browser with

an effective window display, a browser to a browser to a spender through the process of

conversion, a spender to big spender by increasing the „ticket size‟ assisted by the process of

cross- merchandising.

Visual merchandising is an artistic method to ensure that retailers merchandise moves off the

shelves faster. It is a tool to appeal to the visual sensory elements of the customer. Visual

merchandising is an unknown skill which is fastly becoming popular nowadays with the

introduction of self service in retail stores in recent years and the number of changes taking place

in super market merchandising methods, there has been increased emphasis on the kind of store

layout, store building, fixtures, and equipment, color displays, silent communication tools,

window display and finally opinion building through in store displays which has taken the art of

retailing the higher applications frames.

This aims at making awareness among customers about different products of the store by the

way of

a) Graphics and signage: attention grabbing yet clear graphics by way to communicate visually

the brand and these graphics when compiled with the right signage become the stalls complete

instruction manual. Signages are the paper boards hanged in front of the product, which gives the

information regarding price of the product and different offers

b) Trends and moot boards: This is misunderstood by many as mere decorations for the stall.

The brand sources and moot boards convey the source, in fact the mere need of the product for

the consumer to the buyer. A good trend storyboard display can exhibit a thought process nursing

for the inspirations (research, to swatch development of the final usage of the product.

c) Dresiforms and mannequins: The dresiforms communicate the three dimensional form of

the product. Along with the fit a good mannequin can also be customized to communicate, a

character, for example, special kids wear mannequins with caricatured faces conveys the playful

mood of the collections.

d) Synergy among the different stalls: A stall look should complement the mood the whole fair

too. Therefore, some visual elements from the fair are it a color scheme or some material used

should also be incorporated in the stall.

e) Out of the box thinking: With so many stalls around, it sometimes focus some stock value to

grab the attention of the buyers. Innovative ideas in displaying the mannequins, swatches etc can

invite many more people to the stall.

f) Merchandise planning: The first function of merchandising planning is making a strategic

plan, which is normally for five years or more and is used to set the critical success factors for

merchandising in terms of sales, margins and stocks. Next in a channel sales budget to take into

account the effect of the new channels, new stores, closures, and refits. In simple words

merchandising planning is a systematic approach and aiming at maximizing return on

investment, through planning sales and inventory in order to increase profitability. It does think

by maximization sales potential and minimizing losses from marked down and stock cuts.

g) Range planning: Begin with assortment plan. In assortment plan, the goal of merchandise

plan are divided into specific lines and such a way that the division results in the increase of

overall marginal mix. Then a distributions planning is done. The link between available physical

space and ranging done here is a key determinant of merchandising performance.

Visual merchandising enhances the shopping experience by providing he rich ambience, besides

creating an image of the store in the minds of the customers. Such an enjoyable ambience is

created through a combination of colors, display presentations, graphics, lighting, forms and

fixtures. If done by the store in an exciting and dynamic fashion, the shopping experience would

be pleasurable for the consumer and make him come repeatedly.

VM communicates with customer the right message about the merchandise by projecting the

latest trends, colors, and fashion in apparel retailing. VM often communicates the latest arrivals

in the store.

FUNCTIONS

Visual merchandising helps in:

a) Establishing a creative medium to present merchandise in 3 D environment, with

which a long lasting impact and recall value.

b) Combining the creative, technical, and operational aspects of a product and the

business.

c) Educating the customers about the product/services in an effective and creative or

innovative manners.

d) Drawing the attention of the customer to enable him to purchase decisions in the short

space of time and this augmenting the selling process.

5.4 MAINTENANCE DEPARTMENT

Deals with the following functions;

Maintenance of power supply

Keeping complaints register

Keeping maintenance register

Preventive measures

Maintenance of lift and escalator

Ensure proper lighting in the store

Ensure proper ventilation and air conditioner in the store.

5.5 ADMINISTRATION DEPARTMENT

Some General Safe Work Practices in Big Bazaar under the control of administration department

are

1. Practice safe lifting.

2. Find ways to minimize musculoskeletal disorders on the job.

3. Take all safety precautions when working on ladders.

4. Follow or establish safety procedures for working alone, or for avoiding working alone

wherever possible.

5. Follow company safety rules.

6. Know how to report a hazard

7. Follow good housekeeping procedures.

This department deals with the data maintenance regarding the following matters.

House keeping

Security

Printing and stationary

Shoplifting issues

Legal matters

FUNCTIONS

Protection to customers

Prevents shrinkage

Merchandise handling and replenishment

House keeping

Customer service

Provide facilities to customers.

FACILITIES OFFERED TO CUSTOMERS

The important facilities provided to customers are.

Trolley facilities

Basket

Lift

Escalator

Toilet

Drinking water

Gift-wrapping

Baggage facilities

5.6 LOGISTICS DEPARTMENT

The goods received from warehouses and local vendors firstly received by logistics Department.

The received goods are entered into the goods inwarded book. These goods are also inspected

for damages and then checked and issued to concerned departments respectively.

FUNCTIONS

Reducing store damages

Vendor scheduling

Managing stock on the floor

Keeping goods inwards book

Keeping goods outwards book

Keeping separate book for Home Solutions Retail India Ltd

Discrepancy note

Keeping Non saleable goods

Keeping scrap register.

5.7 CASHIERING DEPARTMENT

Managed by head cashier

Handles only commercial functions

Done petty cash payments only

Accepts different modes of payment as in SOP

Billing and accepting cash, credit card, gift voucher, coupons, EDC etc

Removal of tags from merchandise

Maintain high billing speed

Avoiding billing errors

Provide E-top ups

Collecting children‟s fund

5.8 CUSTOMER SERVICE DEPARTMENT

Big Bazaar gives more priority to customers, their needs, desires, service etc. so customer service

can be considered as one of the prime responsibility. Primary role would be to handle all

activities related to the department and customer service of the store.

Customer interaction

Share with Us

Alteration to products if change in need

Exchanges

Gift Wrapping

Baggage counter

Instore communication

Telephone calls

Facilities

Free gifts

Gift Vouchers

Home delivery

(a) Managing Section Efficiently:

Ensures Excellent Service is provided to the Customer before purchase and after

Sales.

Training staff regarding the importance of customer service and methods of

implementing them.

Ensuring that Share With Us forms regarding customer suggestion and experience,

Share With Us Book regarding customer complaints are solved within 24 hrs and

Customer Product Complaints reports are send to the H.O on every Monday.

(b) Ensuring a Great Shopping Experience:

Check if the stocks are neatly arranged on the racks and the section is dust-free.

Ensure that the ambience and cleanliness in the store were up to the comfort level of

the customers.

Confirming that are customers are happy with the quality of products and its price.

Ensuring that the customers are comfortable with the service and billing experience

with our store associates.

By collecting the feedback from the customers regarding their overall shopping

experience and ensuring that they would visit our store again.

(c) Providing feedback:

Collate the feedback given by the team on products and provide inputs for preparing

feedback report.

Create the various reports that are required by store manager / H.O.

To ensure that any serious negative feedback is passed on to the Store manager / H.O.

CUSTOMER INTERACTION

Our business largely encourages a self-service culture among our customers. Everything is well

communicated and displayed in the store, and this helps the customers to shop on their own.

However, customers would still like to get help when they need from somebody who is

courteous, helpful & effective. Every customer interaction is an opportunity for us to contribute

to the customer‟s satisfaction. The customer maybe looking for something specific, or have a

question about our products, our store or our policies. Alternatively, the customer may just be

looking around. Sometimes a customer could have dissatisfaction against our system, have

experienced some incident where we went wrong, or have a suggestion for us to improve.

At all these times, effective and courteous interactions with all our customers go a long way in

ensuring the success of our store. An effective customer interaction is about communication and

problem solving. If we are able to provide a solution to them, we win a loyal customer for life.

HANDLING FREE GIFTS COUNTER

Free Gifts are inevitable in the retail industry. An effective management of free gifts ensures

passing the benefits of promotions and free gifts to customers. This document covers:

The systematic receipt of free gifts at store warehouse

Distribution of free gifts

a) Requirements at the store

Free Gift Counter

Rubber Stamp – “Free Gift Issued”

Free Gift Registers

b) Process

Free gifts can be classified as:

Consumer offer: The free gift is printed on the product and is part of a National

promotion being run by the supplier. In this case, the free gift could be inside the product,

taped with the product or in loose form.

Special Offer: Free gift, which is not printed on the product but given free of cost

from vendor. This would usually come in loose form.

c) Receiving Free Gifts at the store

The warehouse in-charge at the store is responsible for keeping record of the free gifts

received at the store

CUSTOMER FEEDBACK PROGRAM - SHARE WITH US

Customers are the reason we are in business. So being able to listen to more customers more

often and more easily is critical to our short and long-term success. A Customer Feedback

Program through which the customer can communicate with us is essential. If we do not satisfy

and delight our customer-, the competitor will. Therefore, the Share with Us (SWU) program.

The purpose in measuring Customer Satisfaction is to see where a company stands in the eyes of

its customers, thereby enabling service and product improvements, which will lead to higher

satisfaction levels. Feedback vehicles give customers the opportunity to provide comments.

Evaluating each comment will be helpful in understanding the needs of individual customers.

OBJECTIVE

To provide the customers with a medium to express their feelings about the store/their

experience at our store and to ensure that we revert to the customers who have taken the effort to

share their concerns with us. Further, we aim to use the customer feedback for understanding and

catering to the needs of the customer.

IN STORE ANNOUNCEMENTS

To ensure better shopping experience for customers through in store announcements by

updating customers about on-going schemes discounts and offers prevailing in the store.

5.9 INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT

Pantaloon looks at IT as the key enabler of decision-making. Day end operations are done at all

the retail stores and the Internet transfer the data to the Head Office. The data is processed

overnight and the Auto Replenishment System is in operation. Forecasting is done at the store

level, weekly.

Over the years as the consumer demand increased and Big Bazaar geared up to meet this

increase, technology evolved rapidly to support this growth. The hardware and software tools

that have now become almost essential for retailing can be into two broad categories.

i. CUSTOMER INTERFACING SYSTEMS:

Bar Coding and Scanners

Point of sale systems use scanners and bar coding to identify an item, use pre-stored data

to calculate the cost and generate the total bill for a client. Tunnel Scanning is a new

concept where the consumer pushes the full shopping cart through an electronic gate to

the point of sale. In a matter of seconds, the items in the cart are hit with laser beams and

scanned. All that the consumer has to do is to pay for the goods.

Payment

Payment through credit cards has become quite widespread and this enables a fast and

easy payment process. Electronic cheque conversion, a recent development in this area,

processes a cheque electronically by transmitting transaction information to the retailer

and consumer's bank. Rather than manually process a cheque, the retailer voids it and

hands it back to the consumer along with a receipt, having digitally captured and stored

the image of the cheque, which makes the process very fast.

Internet

Internet is also rapidly evolving as a customer interface, removing the need of a

consumer physically visiting the store.

ii. OPERATION SUPPORT SYSTEMS :

ERP System

Various ERP vendors have developed retail-specific systems, which help in integrating

all the functions from warehousing to distribution, front and back office store systems

and merchandising. An integrated supply chain helps the retailer in maintaining his

stocks, getting his supplies on time, preventing stock-outs and thus reducing his costs,

while servicing the customer better.

CRM Systems

The rise of loyalty programs, mail order and the Internet has provided retailers with real

access to consumer data. Data warehousing & mining technologies offers retailers the

tools they need to make sense of their consumer data and apply it to business. This, along

with the various available CRM (Customer Relationship Management) Systems, allows

the retailers to study the purchase behavior of consumers in detail and grow the value of

individual consumers to their businesses.

Advanced Planning and Scheduling Systems

APS systems can provide improved control across the supply chain, all the way from raw

material supplier‟s right through to the retail shelf. These APS packages complement

existing (but often limited) ERP packages. They enable consolidation of activities such as

long term budgeting, monthly forecasting, weekly factory scheduling and daily

distribution scheduling into one overall planning process using a single set of data.

CHAPTER 6

SWOT ANALYSIS

The following are the strength, weakness, opportunity and threat of the company.

STRENGTH

1. High Brand Equity

2. Infrastructure

3. Product Diversity

4. Supply Chain

5. Own brands

6. High inventory

7. Affordable prices

8. Potential customers

9. Parking space

10. Greater availability of quality retail space

11. Changing consumer habits and lifestyles.

WEAKNESS

1. Falling Revenue/ Sq Ft.

2. Unable To Meet Store Opening Target

3. Perception Amongst Consumer

4. Cost

5. Shrinkage

6. Rent

7. High employee turn over

8. Decrease in average bill rate

OPPORTUNITIES

1. Organized Retail

2. The Indian middle class is already 30 Crore & is projected to grow to over 60 Crore

by 2010 making India one of the largest consumer markets of the world. The IMAGES-

KSA projections indicate that by 2015, India will have over 55 Crore people under the

age of 20 - reflecting the enormous opportunities possible in the kids and teens retailing

segment.

3. Percolating down:

In India, it has been found out that the top 6 cities contribute for 66% of total organized

retailing. While the metros have already been exploited, the focus has now been shifted

towards the tier-II cities. The 'retail boom', 85% of which has so far been concentrated in

the metros is beginning to percolate down to these smaller cities and towns. The

contribution of these tier-II cities to total organized retailing sales is expected to grow to

20-25%.

4. Understanding Consumer Preferences

5. Targeting Area More Prone To Development

6. Global Expansion

7. In Store Experience Improvements

8. Use innovative retail formats to enhance shopping experience

9. Understand the regional variations in consumer attitudes to retailing.

10. Improve the advertising, promotions, and campaigns to attract customers

11. Building loyalty by identifying regular shoppers and offering benefits to them

12. Efficiently managing high-value customers.

THREAT

1. Competitors

2. Government Policies

3. Unorganized Retail

4. Economic Conditions

5. Unavailability of land

6. Rising real estate prices

7. Absence of developed supply chain and integrated IT management.

8. Lack of trained work force.

9. Intrinsic complexity of retailing – rapid price changes, constant threat of product

10. Obsolescence and low margins.

CHAPTER-6

CONCLUSION

CONCLUSION

Organized retailing in India has been maturing by passing through many trends with the entry of

many big players trying to build and strengthen their retail muscle by pumping in a lot of money

in the retail space. And in the light of this situation some feel that the conventional stores may

lose out their existence. But the very fact that the US unorganized retail market accounts to only

20% of its entire retail market which is still bigger than the Indian retail market reveals that the

conventional stores and the modern retail formats will co-exist. Once the FDI is allowed into the

Indian retail market, there may be drastic changes in the Indian retailing and its focus may shift

to the vast untapped rural market, which needs huge investments to build the infrastructure. All

these changes in the Indian retail market are finally going to end up by benefiting the Indian

consumer.

CHAPTER 7

OVERVIEW

AN OVERVIEW

This Organization Study helped me to understand:-

Work under pressure and against a target.

Time management to meet the targets.

Understanding the customer behavior.

Stress management while working to meet a target under competition

Relationship management with customers.

Relate the theoretical aspects with real practices.

How to mingle with others

Problem solving capacity

Leadership ability

Organizational structure

In short, the project training helped me a lot in relating the academics with the real corporate

situations. It is a great pleasure for me to do a project work with a retail sector like Big Bazaar.

By the end of this project training, I am able to understand the economic situation, market

structure, financial service, and corporate culture. From my experience I can understood that

attitude makes difference, if we ready to take any challenge, we will succeed, and otherwise we

cannot.

REFERENCE

1. Gibson G. Vedamani, Retail Management functional principles and practices, Third

Edition, Jaico Publishing House.

2. Swapna Pradhan, Retailing management, Second Edition, The McGraw-Hill companies

3. www.bigbazaar.com

4. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Bazaar

5. http://www.pantaloon.com