BIG BAZAR bareilly

RESEARCH PROJECT REPORTON PRODUCTS AND SERVICES AT BIG BAZAR BAREILLY

Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of

Master of Business Administration Programme : 2014 -15of

Gautam Buddh Technical University, Lucknow SUBMITTED BY

MAHESH PAL SINGHMBA - 3rd SEMESTER

ROLL NO. 1401470011

Faculty of Management Science

Shri Ram Murti Smarak College of Engineering & Technology, BareillyCERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the FIELD WORK titled PRODUCTS AND SERVICE AT BIG BAZAR BAREILLY Is a Bona fide work carried out by MAHESH PAL SINGH student of Masters of Business Administration at Shri Ram Murti Smarak College of Engineering and Technology Bareilly.MR SUSHIL GUPTAASSISTANT PROFESSORS.R.M.S.C.E.T BAREILLYAcknowledgement

A successful project can never be prepared by the single effort or the person to whom project is assigned , but it also demand the help and guardianship of some conversant person who helps in the undersigned actively or passively in the completion of successful project.

With great pleasure I express my gratitude to our director and project without their help this would not have been completed. They have given their precious suggestions and constructive guidance has been indispensable in the completion of this project work.

I would also like to thank the staff of the Shri Ram Murti Smarak College of Engineering and Technology Bareilly They have supported me in this endeavor, and appreciated me in my efforts during my project.

Last but not the least I would also like to thank my friends and all the responded. Who directly and indirectly supported to me during my project work, without the help of whom this project would not have been possible.

Mahesh pal singhIIIrd SEM

IndexSr. No TitlePage No.

1Executive Summary5-6

2Objective and scope of the study7

3Company Profile8-10

4Theoretical Background11-17

5Research Methodology18-21

6Data analysis and Interpretation22-30

7Findings31-32

8Limitations33

9Conclusion34

10Recommendations35-36

11Annexure37-39

12Bibliography40

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Project Title

Consumer buying behavior while Shopping

The study of any subject is made by examining it in an organized fashion. There are three classes of variables involved in understanding consumer behavior; STIMULUS, RESPONSE and INTERVENING variables. Stimulus variables, such as advertisements, products exist in both the individuals external environment.

These generate a sensory input to consumers. Response variables are the resulting mental / or physical reactions of individuals who are influenced by stimulus variables. For e.g.: - purchasing a product or forming attitudes about it could be viewed as response variables. Many of the variables affecting consumers (such as personality, learning, and perceptions are external situations, motives, and so forth) cannot be directly observed.

The project Consumer buying behavior while shopping. Is carried out under supervision and guidance of BIG BAZAAR. The project was about studying the consumer buying behavior.

A questionnaire was prepared by us in order to conduct market survey. The questionnaire was based on different parameters to judge and understand the consumer behaviors and determine the best possible strategies which could be used to attract customers.

The research carried out in this project was descriptive in nature. The study was aimed at knowing the various eating habits of a consumer.

This project helped in understanding what exactly a customer looks in an eating joint before entering it. It gave an idea about the essential factors that are required now a day for an eating joint to attract customers in this competitive world.

We were also given a task to understand the customer eating habits, what a consumer wants while eating in a restaurant what all a consumer look for and what are their expectations, how can a mall owner satisfy the needs and wants of a consumer so that the consumer may come back and the retailer can retain its consumer.This project helped us to figure out the different consumer eating behavior and to understand the overall customer perception of eating in a restaurant as well as their demand for mall.

The trend today has been to combine shopping with various offering. For e.g. apart from shopping there are food courts, cinema theaters and even in some an amusement centre for children.Shopping has made people spend not just on their requirements of goods to be bought but to look on the totally of experience have a quick bite at McDonalds in the mall or let the kids play fun game while one is busy shopping or even taking the family out for movie and having a dinner all under one roof. The benefits of this totally offering are that many vendors get to have peoples patronize their offerings, while the

Shopping experience i.e. being enhanced, more business got by the stores at the venue. Shopping is no longer a onetime agenda for people. Various options are opening up.

OBJECTIVES & SCOPE OF THE STUDY

Objective:-

To analyze consumer buying behavior in mall at big Bazaar .

Scope of the project:-

The market survey has done in fast food restaurants; this project is useful for the better understanding of the consumer behavior. The project encompasses the various behavior of customer, their pre and post behavior when they eat. There is also overview of the consumers attraction towards fast food restaurants, mostly consumer perceptions are changing and most of the consumer now prefers to eat in fast food restaurant. The project work involves specific guidelines for the restaurant and helps the restaurants to understand better the consumer behavior in fast food restaurants.

Company profile

Big Bazaar

Pantaloon Retail (India) Limited, is Indias 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 7 millions square feet of retail space, has over 1000 stores across 53 cities in India and employs over 25,000 people.

The companys 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, Depot, Shoe Factory, Brand Factory, Blue Sky, Fashion Station, all, Top 10, bazaar and Star and Sitara. The company also operates an online portal, futurebazaar.com.

Big Bazaar is not just another hypermarket. It caters to every need of your family. Where Big Bazaar scores over other stores is its value for money proposition for the Indian customers.

At Big Bazaar, you will definitely get the best products at the best prices - thats what they guarantee. 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 prices that will surprise you. And this is just the beginning. Big Bazaar plans to add much more to complete your shopping experience.Future group

Future group is one of the countrys leading business groups present in retail, asset management, consumer finance, insurance, retail media, retail spaces and logistics. The groups flagship company, pantaloon Retail (India) Limited operates over 7 million square feet of retail space, has over 1000 stores of its leading retail formats include, Pantaloon, Big Bazaar, Central, Food Bazaar, Home Town, Ozone, Depot, future Money and online retail format, futurebazaar.com.

Future group includes, Future Capital Holding, Future Generally India Indus league clothing and Galaxy Entertainment that manages sports Bar, Brew Bar and Bowling Co. Future Capital Holding, the group s financial arm, focuses on asset management and consumer credit. It manages assets worth over $1 billion that are being invested in developing retail real estate and consumer-related brands and hotels.

The groups joint venture partners include Italian insurance major, generally. French retailer ETAM group. Us-based stationery products retailers, Staples Inc. and UK-based Lee Cooper and India-based Talwalkars, Blue Foods and Liberty Shoes.

Future Groups vision is to, deliver Everything, Everywhere, Every time to every Indian consumer in the most profitable manner. The group considers as a core value and its corporate credo is- Rewrite rules, Retain values.Theoretical BackgroundRetailing is the most active and attractive sector selling goods or services directly to final of the last decade. While the retailing industry consumers for personal, non business use itself has been present through history in our country, it is in the recent past it has witnessed so mush dynamism

Retailing one of the largest sectors in the global economy is going through a transition phase not only in India but the world over.

The study of any subject is made easier by examining it in an organized fashion. There are three classes of variables involved in understanding consumer behavior, stimulus, response and intervening variables. Stimulus variables, such as advertisement, products and hunger pangs exist in both the individuals external and internal environment. These generate sensory inputs to consumers. Responses variables are the resulting mental and/or physical reactions of individual who are influenced by stimulus variables. For ex: - purchasing a product or forming attitudes about it could be viewed as responses variables.

Many of the variables affecting consumer (such as personality, learning, and perceptions of external situations, motives, and so forth) cannot be directly observed therefore, those who want to learn about the variables affecting consumer must often make inference to determine the extent to which a given variable is having an influnceThe study of consumer behavior can also be quite complex, because of the many variables involved and their throw the variables, tendency to interact with and influence each other. Models of consumer behavior have been developed as a means of dealing. With this complexity. Models can help organize out thinking about consumers into a coherent into a coherent whole by identifying relevant variables, describing their basic characteristics, and specifying how the variables relate to each other.

Consumer decisions Process

This process consists of the decision process regarding products and services. The major steps in this process are shown as problem recognition, information search and evaluation, purchasing processes, and post purchase behavior. Problem recognition occurs when the consumer is activated by awareness of sufficient difference her actual affairs and her concept of the ideal situation. This can occurs through activation of a motive such as hunger, by confronting some external stimulus such as an advertisement, or by being effected by additional variables such as social or situational influences.

Internal search a quick and largely unconscious review of memory for stored information and experiences regarding the problem. The information is in the form of belief and attitudes that have influenced the consumers preference towards bands. Often such a review results in recognizing a strong brand preference, and a routine purchase occurs. However if an internal search does not provide sufficient information about products, or how to evaluate them, the consumer continues with a more involved external search for information. This result exposure to numerous informational inputs called stimuli, which can arise from a variety of sources, including advertisement, printed products reviews, and comments from friends.

Any informational stimuli are subjected to information-processing activities, which the consumer uses to derive meaning from stimuli. The process Involves allocating attention to available stimuli deriving meaning form these stimuli and holding this meaning in what is termed in what is termed short term memory where it can be retained briefly to allow further processing.

Retailing in India

Retailing in India is one of the pillars of its economy and accounts for 14 to 15 percent of its GDP. The Indian retail market is estimated to be US$ 450 billion and one of the top five retail markets in the world by economic value. India is one of the fastest growing retail market in the world, with 1.2 billion people.

India's retailing industry is essentially owner manned small shops. In 2010, larger format convenience stores and supermarkets accounted for about 4 percent of the industry, and these were present only in large urban centers. India's retail and logistics industry employs about 40 million Indians (3.3% of Indian population).

Until 2011, Indian central government denied foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail, forbidding foreign groups from any ownership in supermarkets, convenience stores or any retail outlets. Even single-brand retail was limited to 51% ownership and a bureaucratic process.

In November 2011, India's central government announced retail reforms for both multi-brand stores and single-brand stores. These market reforms paved the way for retail innovation and competition with multi-brand retailers such as Walmart, Carrefour and Tesco, as well single brand majors such as IKEA, Nike, and Apple.[5] The announcement sparked intense activism, both in opposition and in support of the reforms. In December 2011, under pressure from the opposition, Indian government placed the retail reforms on hold till it reaches a consensus. In January 2012, India approved reforms for single-brand stores welcoming anyone in the world to innovate in Indian retail market with 100% ownership, but imposed the requirement that the single brand retailer source 30 percent of its goods from India. Indian government continues the hold on retail reforms for multi-brand stores.[7] IKEA announced in January that it is putting on hold its plan to open stores in India because of the 30 percent requirement.[8] Fitch believes that the 30 percent requirement is likely to significantly delay if not prevent most single brand majors from Europe, USA and Japan from opening stores and creating associated jobs in India.

Local termsOrganized retailing, in India, refers to trading activities undertaken by licensed retailers, that is, those who are registered for sales tax, income tax, etc. These include the publicly traded supermarkets, corporate-backed hypermarkets and retail chains, and also the privately owned large retail businesses.

Unorganized retailing, on the other hand, refers to the traditional formats of low-cost retailing, for example, the local mom and pop store, owner manned general stores, paan/beedi shops, convenience stores, hand cart and pavement vendors, etc. Organized retailing was absent in most rural and small towns of India in 2010. Supermarkets and similar organized retail accounted for just 4% of the market. BackgroundMost Indian shopping takes place in open markets or millions of small, independent grocery and retail shops. Shoppers typically stand outside the retail shop, ask for what they want, and cannot pick or examine a product from the shelf. Access to the shelf or product storage area is limited. Once the shopper requests the food staple or household product they are looking for, the shopkeeper goes to the container or shelf or to the back of the store, brings it out and offers it for sale to the shopper. Often the shopkeeper may substitute the product, claiming that it is similar or equivalent to the product the consumer is asking for. The product typically has no price label in these small retail shops; although some products do have a manufactured suggested retail price (MSRP) pre-printed on the packaging. The shopkeeper prices the food staple and household products arbitrarily, and two consumers may pay different prices for the same product on the same day. Price is sometimes negotiated between the shopper and shopkeeper. The shoppers do not have time to examine the product label, and do not have a choice to make an informed decision between competitive products.

India's retail and logistics industry, organized and unorganized in combination, employs about 40 million Indians (3.3% of Indian population).[10] The typical Indian retail shops are very small. Over 14 million outlets operate in the country and only 4% of them being larger than 500 sq ft (46 m2) in size. India has about 11 shop outlets for every 1000 people. Vast majority of the unorganized retail shops in India employ family members, do not have the scale to procure or transport products at high volume wholesale level, have limited to no quality control or fake-versus-authentic product screening technology and have no training on safe and hygienic storage, packaging or logistics. The unorganized retail shops source their products from a chain of middlemen who mark up the product as it moves from farmer or producer to the consumer. The unorganized retail shops typically offer no after-sales support or service. Finally, most transactions at unorganized retail shops are done with cash, with all sales being final.

Until the 1990s, regulations prevented innovation and entrepreneurship in Indian retailing. Some retails faced complying with over thirty regulations such as "signboard licences" and "anti-hoarding measures" before they could open doors. There are taxes for moving goods to states, from states, and even within states in some cases. Farmers and producers had to go through middlemen monopolies. The logistics and infrastructure was very poor, with losses exceeding 30 percent.

Through the 1990s, India introduced widespread free market reforms, including some related to retail. Between 2000 to 2010, consumers in select Indian cities have gradually begun to experience the quality, choice, convenience and benefits of organized retail industry.

Growth over 1997-2010India in 1997 allowed foreign direct investment (FDI) in cash and carry wholesale. Then, it required government approval. The approval requirement was relaxed, and automatic permission was granted in 2006. Between 2000 to 2010, Indian retail attracted about $1.8 billion in foreign direct investment, representing a very small 1.5% of total investment flow into India. Single brand retailing attracted 94 proposals between 2006 and 2010, of which 57 were approved and implemented. For a country of 1.2 billion people, this is a very small number. Some claim one of the primary restraint inhibiting better participation was that India required single brand retailers to limit their ownership in Indian outlets to 51%. China in contrast allows 100% ownership by foreign companies in both single brand and multi-brand retail presence.

Indian retail has experienced limited growth, and its spoilage of food harvest is amongst the highest in the world, because of very limited integrated cold-chain and other infrastructure. India has only 5386 stand-alone cold storages, having a total capacity of 23.6 million metric tons. However, 80 percent of this storage is used only for potatoes. The remaining infrastructure capacity is less than 1% of the annual farm output of India, and grossly inadequate during peak harvest seasons. This leads to about 30% losses in certain perishable agricultural output in India, on average, every year. Indian laws already allow foreign direct investment in cold-chain infrastructure to the extent of 100 percent. There has been no interest in foreign direct investment in cold storage infrastructure build out. Experts claim that cold storage infrastructure will become economically viable only when there is strong and contractually binding demand from organized retail. The risk of cold storing perishable food, without an assured way to move and sell it, puts the economic viability of expensive cold storage in doubt. In the absence of organized retail competition and with a ban on foreign direct investment in multi-brand retailers, foreign direct investments are unlikely to begin in cold storage and farm logistics infrastructure.

Until 2010, intermediaries and middlemen in India have dominated the value chain. Due to a number of intermediaries involved in the traditional Indian retail chain, norms are flouted and pricing lacks transparency. Small Indian farmers realize only 1/3rd of the total price paid by the final Indian consumer, as against 2/3rd by farmers in nations with a higher share of organized retail.[11] The 60%+ margins for middlemen and traditional retail shops have limited growth and prevented innovation in Indian retail industry.

India has had years of debate and discussions on the risks and prudence of allowing innovation and competition within its retail industry.[12] Numerous economists repeatedly recommended to the Government of India that legal restrictions on organized retail must be removed, and the retail industry in India must be opened to competition. For example, in an invited address to the Indian parliament in December 2010, Jagdish Bhagwati, Professor of Economics and Law at the Columbia University analyzed the relationship between growth and poverty reduction, then urged the Indian parliament to extend economic reforms by freeing up of the retail sector, further liberalization of trade in all sectors, and introducing labor market reforms. Such reforms Professor Bhagwati argued will accelerate economic growth and make a sustainable difference in the life of India's poorest. A 2007 report noted that 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. As of 2008, rapid change with investments to the tune of US $ 25 billion were 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 India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF), it is valued at about US$ 395.96 billion. Organised 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. Kearneys 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 predictions for 2008 is 7.9%.[16] 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. Growth after 2011Before 2011, India had prevented innovation and organized competition in its consumer retail industry. Several studies claim that the lack of infrastructure and competitive retail industry is a key cause of India's persistently high inflation. Furthermore, because of unorganized retail, in a nation where malnutrition remains a serious problem, food waste is rife. Well over 30% of food staples and perishable goods produced in India spoils because poor infrastructure and small retail outlets prevent hygienic storage and movement of the goods from the farmer to the consumer. One report estimates the 2011 Indian retail market as generating sales of about $470 billion a year, of which a miniscule $27 billion comes from organized retail such as supermarkets, chain stores with centralized operations and shops in malls. The opening of retail industry to free market competition, some claim will enable rapid growth in retail sector of Indian economy. Others believe the growth of Indian retail industry will take time, with organized retail possibly needing a decade to grow to a 25% share. A 25% market share, given the expected growth of Indian retail industry through 2021, is estimated to be over $250 billion a year: a revenue equal to the 2009 revenue share from Japan for the world's 250 largest retailers. The Economist forecasts that Indian retail will nearly double in economic value, expanding by about $400 billion by 2020. The projected increase alone is equivalent to the current retail market size of France.

In 2011, food accounted for 70% of Indian retail, but was under-represented by organized retail. A.T. Kearney estimates India's organized retail had a 31% share in clothing and apparel, while the home supplies retail was growing between 20% to 30% per year. These data correspond to retail prospects prior to November announcement of the retail reform.

The Indian Retail MarketIndian 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 (US$89,775). While India presents a large market opportunity given the number and increasing purchasing power of consumers, there are significant challenges as well given that over 90% of trade is conducted through independent local stores. Challenges include: Geographically dispersed population, small ticket sizes, complex distribution network, little use of IT systems, limitations of mass media and existence of counterfeit goods. Major Indian RetailersCheckout lanes, organized retail in Malad, Mumbai

Indian apparel retailers are increasing their brand presence overseas, particularly in developed markets. While most have identified a gap in countries in West Asia and Africa, some majors are also looking at the US and Europe. Arvind Brands, Madura Garments, Spykar Lifestyle and Royal Classic Polo are busy chalking out foreign expansion plans through the distribution route and standalone stores as well. Another denim wear brand, Spykar, which is now moving towards becoming a casualwear lifestyle brand, has launched its store in Melbourne recently. It plans to open three stores in London by 2008-end.The low-intensity entry of the diversified Mahindra Group into retail is unique because it plans to focus on lifestyle products. The Mahindra Group is the fourth largest Indian business group to enter the business of retail after Reliance Industries Ltd, the Aditya Birla Group, and Bharti Enterprises Ltd. The other three groups are focusing either on perishables and groceries, or a range of products, or both. REI AGRO LTD Retail: 6TEN and 6TEN kirana stores

Future Groups-Formats: Big Bazaar, Food Bazaar, Pantaloons, Central, Fashion Station, Brand Factory, Depot, aLL, E-Zone etc.

Raymond Ltd.: Textiles, The Raymond Shop, Park Avenue, Park Avenue Woman, Parx, Colourplus, Neck Ties & More, Shirts & More etc.

Fabindia: Textiles, Home furnishings, handloom apparel, jewellery

RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group Retail-Formats: Spencers Hyper, Spencer's Daily, Music World, Au Bon Pain (International bakery cafeteria), Beverly Hills Polo Club

The Tata Group-Formats: Westside, Star India Bazaar, Steeljunction, Landmark, Titan Industries with World of Titans showrooms, Tanishq outlets, Croma.

Reliance Retail-Formats: Reliance MART, Reliance SUPER, Reliance FRESH, Reliance Footprint, Reliance Living, Reliance Digital, Reliance Jewellery, Reliance Trends, Reliance Autozone, iStore

Reliance ADAG Retail-Format: Reliance World K Raheja Corp Group-Formats: Shoppers Stop, Crossword, Hyper City, Inorbit Mall Nilgiris-Formats: Nilgiris supermarket chain

Marks & Spencer: Clothing, lifestyle products, etc.

Lifestyle International-Lifestyle, Home Centre, Max, Fun City and International Franchise brand stores.

Pyramid Retail-Formats: Pyramid Megastore, TruMart

Next retail India Ltd (Consumer Electronics)(www.next.co.in)

Vivek Limited Retail Formats: Viveks, Jainsons, Viveks Service Centre, Viveks Safe Deposit Lockers

PGC Retail -T-Mart India [1], Switcher, Respect India, Grand India Bazaar,etc.,

Subhiksha-Formats: Subhiksha supermarket pharmacy and telecom discount chain.

Trinethra- Formats: Fabmall supermarket chain and Fabcity hypermarket chain

Vishal Retail Group-Formats: Vishal Mega Mart

BPCL-Formats: In & Out

German Metro Cash & Carry

Shoprite Holdings-Formats: Shoprite Hyper

Paritala stores bazar: honey shine stores

Aditya Birla Group - "More" Outlets

Kapas- Cotton garment outlets

Nmart Retails with 153 operating Stores till now and total 219 Stores in India and 1 to open in Dubai Shortly. (Expected to be 500 by the end of Aug-2012)(www.nmart.co.in)

Gitanjali- Nakshatra, Gili, Asmi, D'damas, Gitanjali Jewels, Giantti, Gitanjali Gifts, etc.

Entry of MNCs

The world's largest retailer by sales, Wal-Mart Stores Inc and Sunil Mittal's Bharti Enterprises have entered into a joint venture agreement and they are planning to open 10 to 15 cash-and-carry facilities over seven years. The first of the stores, which will sell groceries, consumer appliances and fruits and vegetables to retailers and small businesses, is slated to open in north India by the end of 2008.Carrefour, the worlds second largest retailer by sales, is planning to set up two business entities in the country one for its cash-and-carry business and the other a master franchisee which will lend its banner, technical services and know how to an Indian company for direct-to-consumer retail.The worlds fifth largest retailer by sales, Costco Wholesale Corp (Costco) known for its warehouse club model is also interested in coming to India and waiting for the right opportunity.Tesco Plc., plans to set up shop in India with a wholesale cash-and-carry business and will help Indian conglomerate Tata group to grow its hypermarket business.

ChallengesA McKinsey study claims retail productivity in India is very low compared to international peer measures. For example, the labor productivity in Indian retail was just 6% of the labor productivity in United States in 2010. India's labor productivity in food retailing is about 5% compared to Brazil's 14%; while India's labor productivity in non-food retailing is about 8% compared to Poland's 25%.

Total retail employment in India, both organized and unorganized, account for about 6% of Indian labor work force currently - most of which is unorganized. This about a third of levels in United States and Europe; and about half of levels in other emerging economies. A complete expansion of retail sector to levels and productivity similar to other emerging economies and developed economies such as the United States would create over 50 million jobs in India. Training and development of labor and management for higher retail productivity is expected to be a challenge.

To become a truly flourishing industry, retailing in India needs to cross the following hurdles: Automatic approval is not allowed for foreign investment in retail.

Regulations restricting real estate purchases, and cumbersome local laws.

Taxation, which favours small retail businesses.

Absence of developed supply chain and integrated IT management.

Lack of trained work force.

Low skill level for retailing management.

Lack of Retailing Courses and study options

Intrinsic complexity of retailing rapid price changes, constant threat of product obsolescence and low margins.

In November 2011, the Indian government announced relaxation of some rules and the opening of retail market to competition.

India retail reformsUntil 2011, Indian central government denied foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand Indian retail, forbidding foreign groups from any ownership in supermarkets, convenience stores or any retail outlets, to sell multiple products from different brands directly to Indian consumers.

The government of Manmohan Singh, prime minister, announced on 24 November 2011 the following: India will allow foreign groups to own up to 51 per cent in "multi-brand retailers", as supermarkets are known in India, in the most radical pro-liberalisation reform passed by an Indian cabinet in years;

single brand retailers, such as Apple and Ikea, can own 100 percent of their Indian stores, up from the previous cap of 51 percent;

both multi-brand and single brand stores in India will have to source nearly a third of their goods from small and medium-sized Indian suppliers;

all multi-brand and single brand stores in India must confine their operations to 53-odd cities with a population over one million, out of some 7935 towns and cities in India. It is expected that these stores will now have full access to over 200 million urban consumers in India;

multi-brand retailers must have a minimum investment of US$100 million with at least half of the amount invested in back end infrastructure, including cold chains, refrigeration, transportation, packing, sorting and processing to considerably reduce the post harvest losses and bring remunerative prices to farmers;

the opening of retail competition will be within India's federal structure of government. In other words, the policy is an enabling legal framework for India. The states of India have the prerogative to accept it and implement it, or they can decide to not implement it if they so choose. Actual implementation of policy will be within the parameters of state laws and regulations.

The opening of retail industry to global competition is expected to spur a retail rush to India. It has the potential to transform not only the retailing landscape but also the nation's ailing infrastructure. A Wall Street Journal article claims that fresh investments in Indian organized retail will generate 10 million new jobs between 20122014, and about five to six million of them in logistics alone; even though the retail market is being opened to just 53 cities out of about 8000 towns and cities in India. It is expected to help tame stubbornly high inflation but is likely to be vehemently opposed by millions of small retailers, who see large foreign chains as a threat. The need to control food price inflationaveraging double-digit rises over several yearsprompted the government to open the sector, analysts claim. Hitherto India's food supplies have been controlled by tens of millions of middlemen (less than 5% of Indian population). Traders add huge mark-ups to farm prices, while offering little by way of technical support to help farmers boost their productivity, packaging technology, pushing up retail prices significantly. Analysts said allowing in big foreign retailers would provide an impetus for them to set up modern supply chains, with refrigerated vans, cold storage and more efficient logistics. "I think foreign chains can also bring in humongous logistical benefits and capital," Chandrajit Banerjee, director-general, Confederation of Indian Industry, told Reuters. "The biggest beneficiary would be the small farmers who will be able to improve their productivity by selling directly to large organised players," Mr Banerjee said.

Indian retail reforms on holdAccording to Bloomberg, on 3 December 2011, the Chief Minister of the Indian state of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee, who is against the policy and whose Trinamool Congress brings 19 votes to the ruling Congress party-led coalition, claimed that Indias government may put the FDI retail reforms on hold until it reaches consensus within the ruling coalition. Reuters reports that this risked a possible dilution of the policy rather than a change of heart. India Today claimed that the resistance to Indian retail reforms is primarily because it has been badly sold, even though it can help fix the exploitation of Indian farmers by the decades-old "arhtiya" and "mandi" monopoly system. India Today claims the policy is good for the small Indian farmer and the Indian consumer. Pratap Mehta, president of the Centre for Policy Research, claimed any U-turn or postponement of retail reforms will cause an immense loss of face to the Congress-led central government of Manmohan Singh. The mom-and-pop farmers of India support these reforms. The consumers of India want the reforms. The government has already annoyed those who oppose change and innovation in retail. By putting retail reforms on hold, the government will additionally alienate much larger segment of India's population supporting FDI. So they will now have the worst of both worlds, claims Mehta. Deepak Parekh, Ashok Ganguly and other economic policy leaders of India, on 4 December 2011, called placing investment and innovation in retail on hold for the sake of vested interests as unfair and detrimental to vast majority in India. They urged farmers, consumers and the common people to raise their voice against this false drama of apprehension against investment and modernising trade in organised retailing. They called upon Indians to come out and strongly support progressive measures and reforms with the same spirit and gusto with which we take the liberties to criticize policies or issues we do not appreciate. Several newspapers claimed on 6 December 2011 that India parliament is expected to shelve retail reforms while the ruling Congress party seeks consensus from the opposition and the Congress party's own coalition partners. Suspension of retail reforms on 7 December 2011 would be, the reports claimed, an embarrassing defeat for the Indian government, suggesting it is weak and ineffective in implementing its ideas. Anand Sharma, India's Commerce and Industry Minister, after a meeting of all political parties on 7 December 2011 said, "The decision to allow foreign direct investment in retail is suspended till consensus is reached with all stakeholders.Single-brand retail reforms approvedOn January 11, 2012, India approved increased competition and innovation in single-brand retail. The reform seeks to attract investments in production and marketing, improve the availability of goods for the consumer, encourage increased sourcing of goods from India, and enhance competitiveness of Indian enterprises through access to global designs, technologies and management practices. In this announcement, India requires single-brand retailer, with greater than 51% foreign ownership, to source at least 30% of the value of products from Indian small industries, village and cottage industries, artisans and craftsmen.

Mikael Ohlsson, chief executive of IKEA, announced IKEA is postponing its plan to open stores in India. He claimed that IKEA's decision reflects Indias requirements that single-brand retailers such as IKEA source 30 percent of their goods from local small and medium-sized companies. This was an obstacle to IKEA's investment in India, and that it will take IKEA some time to source goods and develop reliable supply chains inside India. Ikea announced that it plans to double what it sources from India already for its global product range, to over $1 billion a year, within three years. IKEA in the near term, plans to focus expansion instead in China and Russia, where such restrictions do not exist. Social impact and controversy with retail reformsThe November 2011 retail reforms in India have sparked intense activism, both in opposition and in support of the reforms.

Controversy over Indian retail reformsA horticultural produce retail market in Kolkata, India; produce loss in these retail formats is very high for perishables Critics of the Indian retail reforms announcement are making one or more of the following pointsIndependent stores will close, leading to massive job losses. Walmart employs very few people in the United States. If allowed to expand in India as much as Walmart has expanded in the United States, few thousand jobs may be created but millions will be lost.

Walmart will lower prices to dump goods, get competition out of the way, become a monopoly, then raise prices. We have seen this in the case of the soft drinks industry. Pepsi and Coke came in and wiped out all the domestic brands.

India doesn't need foreign retailers, since homegrown companies and traditional markets may be able to do the job.

Work will be done by Indians, profits will go to foreigners.

Remember East India Company. It entered India as a trader and then took over politically.

There will be sterile homogeneity and Indian cities will look like cities anywhere else.

The government hasn't built consensus.

Supporters claim none of these objections has merit. They claim: Organized retail will need workers. Walmart employs 1.4 million people in United States alone. With United States population of about 300 million, and India's population of about 1200 million, if Walmart-like retail companies were to expand in India as much as their presence in the United States, and the staffing level in Indian stores kept at the same level as in the United States stores, Walmart alone would employ 5.6 million Indian citizens. Walmart has a 6.5% market share of the total United States retail. Adjusted for this market share, the expected jobs in future Indian organized retail would total over 85 million. In addition, millions of additional jobs will be created during the building of and the maintenance of retail stores, roads, cold storage centers, software industry, electronic cash registers and other retail supporting organizations. Instead of job losses, retail reforms are likely to be massive boost to Indian job availability.

KPMG - one of the world's largest audit companies - finds that in China, the employment in both retail and wholesale trade increased from 4% in 1992 to about 7% in 2001, post China opening its retail to foreign and domestic innovation and competition. In absolute terms, China experienced the creation of 26 million new jobs within 9 years, post China announcing FDI retail reforms. Additionally, contrary to some concerns in China, post retail reforms, the number of traditional small retailers also grew by 30% over 5 years. India needs trillions of dollar to build its infrastructure, hospitals, housing and schools for its growing population. Indian economy is small, with limited surplus capital. Indian government is already operating on budget deficits. It is simply not possible for Indian investors or Indian government to fund this expansion, job creation and growth at the rate India needs. Global investment capital through FDI is necessary. Beyond capital, Indian retail industry needs knowledge and global integration. Global retail leaders, some of which are partly owned by people of Indian origin, can bring this knowledge. Global integration can potentially open export markets for Indian farmers and producers. Walmart, for example, expects to source and export some $1 billion worth of goods from India every year, since it came into Indian wholesale retail market. Walmart, Carrefour, Tesco, Target, Metro, Coop are some of over 350 global retail companies with annual sales over $1 billion. These retail companies have operated for over 30 years in numerous countries. They have not become monopolies. Competition between Walmart-like retailers has kept food prices in check. Canada credits their very low inflation rates to Walmart-effect. Anti-trust laws and state regulations, such as those in Indian legal code, have prevented food monopolies from forming anywhere in the world. Price inflation in these countries has been 5 to 10 times lower than price inflation in India. The current consumer price inflation in Europe and the United States is less than 2%, compared to India's double digit inflation.

The Pepsi and Coke example is meaningless in the context of Indian beverage market. More competition is lacking because of limited demand. Indian consumer has limited interest in soft drinks. Soft drinks represent less than 5% of Indian beverage market. Indian consumer prefers milk-based, tea and coffee and these account for 90% of Indian beverage market. In these markets, Coca Cola and Pepsi have plenty of competition. The next most important market in India is bottled water, that outsells combined soft drink sales of the Pepsi and Coca Cola. Bottled water, milk, coffee and tea market in India are big markets, and have plenty of domestic brands, European brands like Nestle, as well as Pepsi and Coca Cola. Organized retail too will have numerous brands and strong competition.

Comparing 21st century to 18th century is inappropriate. Conditions today are not same as in the 18th century. India wasn't a democracy then, it is today. Global awareness and news media were not the same in 18th century as today. Consider China today. It has over 57 million square feet of retail space owned by foreigners, employing millions of Chinese citizens. Yet, China hasn't become a vassal of imperialists. It enjoys respect from all global powers. Other Asian countries like Malaysia, Taiwan, Thailand and Indonesia see foreign retailers as catalysts of new technology and price reduction; and they have benefitted immensely by welcoming FDI in retail. India too will benefit by integrating with the world, rather than isolating itself. With 51% FDI limit in multi-brand retailers, nearly half of any profits will remain in India. Any profits will be subject to taxes, and such taxes will reduce Indian government budget deficit. Many years ago, China adopted the retail reform policy India has announced; China allowed FDI in its retail sector. It has taken FDI-financed retailers in China between 5 to 10 years to post profits, in large part because of huge investments they had to make initially. Like China, it is unlikely foreign retailers will earn any profits in India for the first 5 to 10 years. Ultimately, retail companies must earn profits with hard work and by creating value.

States have a right to say no to retail FDI within their jurisdiction. States have the right to add restrictions to the retail policy announced before they implement them. Thus, they can place limits on number, market share, style, diversity, homogeneity and other factors to suit their cultural preferences. Finally, in future, states can always introduce regulations and India can change the law to ensure the benefits of retail reforms reach the poorest and weakest segments of Indian society, free and fair retail competition does indeed lead to sharply lower inflation than current levels, small farmers get better prices, jobs created by organized retail pay well, and healthier food becomes available to more households.

Inbuilt inefficiencies and wastage in distribution and storage account for why, according to some estimates, as much as 40% of food production doesn't reach consumers. Fifty million children in India are malnourished. Food often rots at farms, in transit, or in antiquated state-run warehouses. Cost-conscious organized retail companies will avoid waste and loss, making food available to the weakest and poorest segment of Indian society, while increasing the income of small farmers. Walmart, for example, since its arrival in Indian wholesale retail market, has successfully introduced "Direct Farm Project" at Haider Nagar near Malerkotla in Punjab, where 110 farmers have been connected with Bharti Walmart for sourcing fresh vegetables directly, thereby reducing waste and bringing fresher produce to Indian consumers. Indian small shops employ workers without proper contracts, making them work long hours. Many unorganized small shops depend on child labour. A well-regulated retail sector will help curtail some of these abuses. Organized retail has enabled a wide range of companies to start and flourish in other countries. For example, in the United States, an organized retailer named Whole Foods has rapidly grown to annual revenues of $9 billion by working closely with farmers, delighting customers and caring about the communities it has stores in. The claims that there is no consensus is without merit. About 10 years ago, when opposition formed the central government, they had proposed retail reforms and suggested India consider FDI in retail. Retail reforms discussions are not new. More recently, retail reforms announced evolved after a process of intense consultations and consensus building intiative. In 2010, the Indian government circulated a discussion paper on FDI retail reforms. On July 6, 2011, another version of the discussion paper was circulated by the central government of India. Comments from a wide cross-section of Indian society including farmers' associations, industry bodies, consumer forums, academics, traders' associations, investors, economists were analyzed in depth before the matter was discussed by the Committee of Secretaries. By early August 2011, the consensus from various segments of Indian society was overwhelming in favor of retail reforms.[54] The reform outline was presented in India's Rajya Sabha in August 2011. The announced reforms are the result of this consensus process. The current opposition is not helping the consensus process, since consensus is not built by threats and disruption. Those who oppose current retail reforms should help build consensus with ideas and proposals, if they have any. The opposition parties currently disrupting the Indian parliament on retail reforms have not offered even one idea or a single proposal on how India can eliminate food spoilage, reduce inflation, improve food security, feed the poor, improve the incomes of small farmers.

Opposition to retail reformsWithin a week of retail reform announcement, Indian government has faced a political backlash against its decision to allow competition and 51% ownership of multi-brand organized retail in India.

Despite the fact that Salman Khurshid, Indias law minister, claiming that many opposition parties, including the Bharatiya Janata Party, had privately encouraged the government to push through the retail reform, the intense criticism now targets Congress-led coalition government, and its decision to push through one of the biggest economic reforms in years for India. Opposition parties claim supermarket chains are ill-advised, unilateral and unwelcome. The opposition claims the entry of organized retailers would lead to their dominance that would decimate local retailers and force millions of people out of work.

Mamata Banerjee, the chief minister of West Bengal and the leader of the Trinamool Congress, announced her opposition to retail reform, claiming Some people might support it, but I do not support it. You see America is America and India is India. One has to see what ones capacity is. Other states whose Chief Ministers have either personally announced opposition or announced reluctance to implement the retail reforms: Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh.

Chief Ministers of many states have not made a personal statement in opposition or support of India needing retail reforms. Gujarat, Kerala, Karnataka and Rajasthan are examples of these states. Both sides have made conflicting claims about the position of chief ministers from these states.

A Wall Street Journal article reports that in Uttar Pradesh, Uma Bharti, a senior leader of the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), threatened to "set fire to the first Wal-Mart store whenever it opens;" with her colleague Sushma Swaraj busy tweeting up a storm of misinformation about how Wal-Mart allegedly ruined the U.S. economy. On 1 December 2011, an India-wide "bandh" (close all business in protest) was called by political parties opposing the retail reform. While many organizations responded, the reach of the protest was mixed. The Times of India, a national newspaper of India, claimed people appeared divided over the bandh call and internal rivalry among trade associations led to a mixed response, leaving many stores open day-long and others opening for business as usual in the second half of the day. Even Purti Group, a network of stores owned and operated by Nitin Gadkari were open for business, ignoring the call for bandh. Gadkari is the president of BJP, the key party currently organizing opposition to retail reform. The Hindu, another widely circulated newspaper in India, claimed the opposition's call for a nation wide shutdown on 1 December 2011, in protest of retail reform received a mixed response. Some states had strong support, while most did not. Even in states where opposition political parties are in power, many ignored the call for the shutdown. In Gujarat, Bihar, Delhi, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab and Assam the call evoked a partial response. While a number of wholesale markets observed the shutdown, the newspaper claimed a majority of kirana stores and neighborhood small shops for whom apparently the trade bandh had been called remained open, ignoring the shutdown call. Conflicting claims were made by the organizers of the nation wide shutdown. Contrary to eyewitness reports, one Trader union's secretary general claimed traders across the country participated wholeheartedly in the strike. The political parties opposing the retail reforms physically disrupted and forced India's parliament to adjourn again on Friday 2 December 2011. The Indian government refused to cave in, in its attempt to convince through dialogue that retail reforms are necessary to protect the farmers and consumers. Indian parliament has been dysfunctional for the entire week of November 28, 2011 over the opposition to retail reforms. Support for retail reformsIn a pan-Indian survey conducted over the weekend of 3 December 2011, overwhelming majority of consumers and farmers in and around ten major cities across the country support the retail reforms. Over 90 per cent of consumers said FDI in retail will bring down prices and offer a wider choice of goods. Nearly 78 per cent of farmers said they will get better prices for their produce from multi-format stores. Over 75 per cent of the traders claimed their marketing resources will continue to be needed to push sales through multiple channels, but they may have to accept lower margins for greater volumes. Farmer groupsVarious farmer associations in India have announced their support for the retail reforms. For example:

Shriram Gadhve of All India Vegetable Growers Association (AIVGA) claims his organization supports retail reform. He claimed that currently, it is the middlemen commission agents who benefit at the cost of farmers. He urged that the retail reform must focus on rural areas and that farmers receive benefits. Gadhve claimed, "A better cold storage would help since this could help prevent the existing loss of 34% of fruits and vegetables due to inefficient systems in place." AIVGA operates in nine states including Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Bihar, Chattisgarh, Punjab and Haryana with 2,200 farmer outfits as its members. Bharat Krishak Samaj, a farmer association with more than 75,000 members says it supports retail reform. Ajay Vir Jakhar, the chairman of Bharat Krishak Samaj, claimed a monopoly exists between the private guilds of middlemen, commission agents at the sabzi mandis (India's wholesale markets for vegetables and farm produce) and the small shopkeepers in the unorganized retail market. Given the perishable nature of food like fruit and vegetables, without the option of safe and reliable cold storage, the farmer is compelled to sell his crop at whatever price he can get. He cannot wait for a better price and is thus exploited by the current monopoly of middlemen. Jakhar asked that the government make it mandatory for organized retailers to buy 75% of their produce directly from farmers, bypassing the middlemen monopoly and India's sabzi mandi auction system. Consortium of Indian Farmers Associations (CIFA) announced its support for retail reform. Chengal Reddy, secretary general of CIFA claimed retail reform could do lots for Indian farmers. Reddy commented, India has 600 million farmers, 1,200 million consumers and 5 million traders. I fail to understand why political parties are taking an anti-farmer stand and worried about half a million brokers and small shopkeepers. CIFA mainly operates in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu; but has a growing members from rest of India, including Shetkari Sanghatana in Maharashtra, Rajasthan Kisan Union and Himachal Farmer Organisations.

Prakash Thakur, the chairman of the People for Environment Horticulture & Livelihood of Himachal Pradesh, announcing his support for retail reforms claimed FDI is expected to roll out produce storage centers that will increase market access, reduce the number of middlemen and enhance returns to farmers. Highly perishable fruits like cherry, apricot, peaches and plums have a huge demand but are unable to tap the market fully because of lack of cold storage and transport infrastructure. Sales will boost with the opening up of retail. Even though India is the second-largest producer of fruits and vegetables in the world, its storage infrastructure is grossly inadequate, claimed Thakur.

Sharad Joshi, founder of Shetkari Sangathana (farmers association), has announced his support for retail reforms. Joshi claims FDI will help the farm sector improve critical infrastructure and integrate farmer-consumer relationship. Today, the existing retail has not been able to supply fresh vegetables to the consumers because they have not invested in the backward integration. When the farmers' produce reaches the end consumer directly, the farmers will naturally be benefited. Joshi feels retail reform is just a first step of needed agricultural reforms in India, and that the government should pursue additional reforms.

Suryamurthy, in an article in The Telegraph, claims farmer groups across India do not support status quo and seek retail reforms, because with the current retail system the farmer is being exploited. For example, the article claims: Indian farmers get only one third of the price consumers pay for food staples, the rest is taken as commissions and markups by middlemen and shopkeepers

For perishable horticulture produce, average price farmers receive is barely 12 to 15% of the final price consumer pays

Indian potato farmers sell their crop for Rs. 2 to 3 a kilogram, while the Indian consumer buys the same potato for Rs. 12 to 20 a kilogram. Economists and entrepreneursMany business groups in India are welcoming the transformation of a long-protected sector that has left Indian shoppers bereft of the scale and variety of their counterparts in more developed markets. B. Muthuraman, the president of the Confederation of Indian Industry, claimed the retail reform would open enormous opportunities and lead to much-needed investment in cold chain, warehousing and contract farming.

Organized retailers will reduce waste by improving logistics, creating cold storage to prevent food spoilage, improve hygiene and product safety, reduce counterfeit trade and tax evasion on expensive item purchases, and create dependable supply chains for secure supply of food staples, fruits and vegetables. They will increase choice and reduce Indias rampant inflation by reducing waste, spoilage and cutting out middlemen. Fresh investment in organized retail, the supporters of retail reform claim will generate 10 million new jobs by 2014, about five to six million of them in logistics alone. Organized retail will offer the small Indian farmer more competing venues to sell his or her products, and increase income from less spoilage and waste. A Food and Agricultural Organization report claims that currently, in India, the small farmer faces significant losses post-harvest at the farm and because of poor roads, inadequate storage technologies, inefficient supply chains and farmer's inability to bring the produce into retail markets dominated by small shopkeepers. These experts claim India's post-harvest losses to exceed 25%, on average, every year for each farmer. Unlike the current monopoly of middlemen buyer, retail reforms offer farmers access to more buyers from organized retail. More buyers will compete for farmers produce leading to better support for farmers and to better bids. With less spoilage of staples and agricultural produce, global retail companies can find and provide additional markets to Indian farmers. Walmart, since its arrival in India's wholesale retail market, already sources and exports about $1 billion worth of Indian goods for its global customers.

Not only do these losses reduce food security in India, the study claims that poor farmers and others loose income because of the waste and inefficient retail. Over US$50 billion of additional income can become available to Indian farmers by preventing post-harvest farm losses, improving transport, proper storage and retail. Organized retail is also expected to initiate infrastructure development creating millions of rural and urban jobs for Indias growing population. One study claims that if these post-harvest food staple losses could be eliminated with better infrastructure and retail network in India, enough food would be saved every year to feed 70 to 100 million people over the year. Supporters of retail reform, The Economist claims, say it will increase competition and quality while reducing prices helping to reduce India's rampant inflation that is close to the double digits. These supporters claim that unorganized small shopkeepers will continue to exist alongside large organized supermarkets, because for many Indians they will remain the most accessible and most convenient place to shop. Amartya Sen, the Indian born Nobel prize winning economist, in a December 2011 interview claims foreign direct investment in multi brand retail can be good thing or bad thing depending on the nature of the investment. Quite often, claims Professor Sen, FDI is a good thing for India. Chief Ministers of Indian statesSupporters of retail reform who have voiced the need to promote organized retail include Chief Ministers of several states of India, several belonging to political parties that have no affiliation with Congress-led central government of India. The list includes the Chief Ministers of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat. In a report submitted earlier in 2011, these Chief Ministers urged the Prime Minister to prioritize reforms to help promote organized retail, shorten the retail path from farm to consumer, allow organized retail to buy direct from farmers at remunerative produce prices, and reduce farm to retail costs. Similarly, the Chief Minister of Delhi has come out in support of the retail reform, as have the Chief Ministers of the two farming states of Haryana and Punjab in north India., The Chief Ministers of Haryana and Punjab claim that the announced retail reforms will immensely benefit farmers in their states.

The Chief Minister of the state of Maharashtra - the state with the highest GDP in India and home to its financial capital Mumbai - has also welcomed the retail reform.

Tarun Gogoi, the Chief Minister of Assam, an eastern state in India, announcing his support to the retail reform, claimed "this will go a long way in bringing about a sea change in rural economy. The decision will boost agriculture and allied sectors, manufacturing, logistics, integrated cold chains, refrigerated transportation and food processing facilities in a big way." Criticising the BJP-organized opposition, Gogoi claimed that these parties who had just a few years ago dubbed opening up retail as good for India, are now singing a different tune. Current supermarketsExisting Indian retail firms such as Spencer's, Foodworld Supermarkets Ltd, Nilgiri's and ShopRite support retail reform and consider international competition as a blessing in disguise. They expect a flurry of joint ventures with global majors for expansion capital and opportunity to gain expertise in supply chain management. Spencer's Retail with 200 stores in India, and with retail of fresh vegetables and fruits accounting for 55 per cent of its business claims retail reform to be a win-win situation, as they already procure the farm products directly from the growers without the involvement of middlemen or traders. Spencers claims that there is scope for it to expand its footprint in terms of store location as well as procuring farm products. Foodworld, which operates over 60 stores, plans to ramp up its presence to more than 200 locations. It has already tied up with Hong Kong-based Dairy Farm International. With the relaxation in international investments in Indian retail, Indias Food world expects its global relationship will only get stronger. Competition and investment in retail will provide more benefits to consumers through lower prices, wider availability and significant improvement in supply chain logistics. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Research Methodology ill common parlance refers to a search for knowledge. One can also define also research as a scientific and systematic research for pertinent information a specific topic. Research is an art of systematic investigation. Some people consider research as a movement, a movement to the known to the unknown.

According to Clifford Woody: -

Research comprises defining and redefining problems, formulating hypothesis or suggested solutions, collecting, organizing and evaluating data, making deductions mil reaching conclusion, and at last carefully testing the conclusion to determine whether they fit the formulating hypothesis.

Marketing research is defined as a systematic gathering and analysis of the data concern with an objective. The whole activity is divided into various parts and after compilation of that we reach at certain findings, which enable us to marketing decision. It involves the diagnosis of information needed and the selection of the relevant and inter-related variables.

Research Plan: -

Research Approach: SURVEY METHODPrimary Source

Primary data consists of original information gathered for specific purpose. The primary data is collected through questionnaire. The questionnaire is through common instrument collecting primary collection. I collected the data through questionnaire from different small eating joints.Research Instrument

The research instruments used for collecting the primary data were the questionnaire.

Questionnaire

The questionnaire was carefully developed tested and debugged before they were administered on a large scale. Each questions contributed to the research objective here questionnaire is structured types means there are concrete, definite and predetermined questions.

The questions are presented are exactly same wording and in the same an order to all respondents. The questionnaire had a mix type of open ended, closed ended and multiple choice questions. The questions were limited in numbers simple direct and unbiased technology was adopted Data Source:Primary:

The data was collected through questionnaire comprising of 17 questions.

Secondary: The data was collected through:

Data Collection Instrument:

QuestionnaireSampling Procedure:

1. Sample Unit

: Consumer visited Small Eating Joints

2. Sample Size

: 50 Respondents3. Sampling Method

: Random Sampling Method

DATA ANALYSISQuestion No. 1

Do you Visit mall?

Do you visitYesNo

No. of Respondents (%)100%0%

No. of Respondents (in no.)500

Interpretation

All the candidates interviewed visited mall.Question No. 2With whom you prefer to visit mall?

Prefer to visit mallsFriendSpouseColleaguesAlone

No. of Respondents (%)60%20%4%16%


InterpretationOut of 50 respondents:-

60% preferred to visit malls with Friends.

20% preferred to visit malls with their spouse. Question No. 3

How much time you spend in a mall?

Time spent on visiting malls Hour1-2 hrsMore than 3 hours

No. of Respondents (%)20%50%30%


Interpretation Out of 50 respondents 25 respondents spend approx.1-2 hrs in a mall.

Out of 50 respondents 15 respondents spend approx.more than 3 hrs in mall.

Out of 50 respondents 10 respondents spend approx. less than 1hrs. In mall.

Question No. 4Does the person with whom you visit mall influence you?

Person who influenceYes No

No. of Respondents (%)40%60%


Interpretation

Humans are social being, different person has different perception and attitude, so they purchase according to their own need like.Question No. 5Do you visit the mall, by advertising influence?

Advertisement influenceYesNoSometime yesCant say

No. of Respondents (%)40%24%16%20%


InterpretationOut 50 respondents:- 20 respondents responded that they come to know things through advertisement. 12 respondents responded that they are not affected by advertisement. 08 respondents responded that sometime yes and sometime they dont know.Question No. 6

Why do you choose mall for shopping?Choosing malls for shoppingLess timeEconomicalBrandsVarietyQualityAll under one roofConvenient

No. of Respondents (%)14%24%26%8%14%6%8%


Interpretation7 respondents said less time, 12 respondents said its economical, 13 respondents said they get brands.Question No. 7Do you go for unplanned (spot Purchases) shopping / Purchases?

Unplanned purchases or spot purchasesYesNoCant say

No. of Respondents (%)54%32%14%

No. of Respondents (in numbers)27167

Interpretation

Out of 50 respondents 54% respondents made unplanned purchases.

32% respondents said they dont make unplanned purchases.

14% respondents said that they were not sureQuestion No. 8Which of the following media you find the ads of any shopping mall?

Mode of advertisementNewspaperT.VRadioHoardingsOthers

No. of Respondents (%)30%50%10%8%2%

No. of Respondents (in numbers)1525541

Interpretation

Out of 50 respondents 30% respondents get aware through Newspaper.

25% respondents get aware of the ads through T.V.

10% respondents get aware through Radio channels.

8% respondents get aware through hoardings.FINDINGS AND OBSERVATIONS

1. Almost every person contacted or interviewed said that he/she has visited malls. Maximum number of respondents said they are aware of malls.2. From analysis we found out that most of the people were affected and attracted with offers and schemes.3. It has been found out that most of the people in Pune city visit malls for refreshment and enjoy.4. Consumers choose malls to stop because they all want variety and brands and shopping at malls according to the consumers is economic as compared to shopping at other places.5. Most of the people who were interviewed by me responded that brand loyal and most of them stack to the brand they like.6. Advertising plays a very crucial part in the consumer decision making process.7. Most of the respondents take on the spot decision of buying different products because of the various attractive product displays and pretty combination which the store tries on the mannequins is mostly dependent by the customers, show that most of the consumers are attracted towards different fancy displays.8. For most of the respondents quality plays a very important role because most of the respondents said that they want quality products and thats also one reason for most of the respondents sticking to particular brands.9. We can also say that location, variety convenience and economical products are not the only things which attract the customer but there are some other factors which play a major role in attracting the customers as mentioned.

LIMITATION

Time constraint

The allotted time to conduct the survey was 15 days. Therefore it became a bit difficult to cover the entire city of Pune. However, the key areas were aptly covered.

Availability of data:

Most of the restaurants and eating joints were not in favor of us conducting the survey inside their premises as it would disturb their customers. Non-willingness of the respondents to answer the questionnaire was also a hurdle.

Reliability of data:-

Reliability of data always remains a prime concern when humans are surveyed. Mon-interest, poor understanding, unclear questions, inability to think instantly and customer biases creeps in apprehensiveness in the minds of the researcher while tabulating and analyzing the data.

CONCLUSION

Consumers behavior is often studied because certain decisions are significantly affected by their behavior or expected actions. For this reason consumer behavior is said to be applied discipline.

1. In a general sense, the most important reason for studying consumer behavior is the significant role it plays in our lives. Much of our time is spent directly in the market place, eating or engaging in other activities. A large amount of additional time is spent thinking about products and services, talking to friends about them, and seeing or hearing advertisements about them. In addition, the goods people eat and the manner in which they use them significantly influence how they live their daily lives. These general concerns alone are enough to justify our study of consumer behavior. However, many seek to understand the behavior of consumers for what are thought to be more immediate and tangible reasons.2. The main reason behind this project was to find out the behavior of the consumer buying behavior while shopping at mall because most of the population surveyed preferred to shop at malls and how day by day the consumers demands are increasing and through this project I came to know that what are the various behavior of a typical customer who shops at mall.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Customers are becoming price conscious they are having many options in the market considering the consumer buying behavior the malls and other shopping centers should take certain definite steps like retaining customers by giving those schemes discounts and better service.

The trend today has been to combine shopping with various offerings for ex in a mall apart from shopping a customer enjoys food courts and many others services which todays modem malls provide.

Shopping has made people spend not just on their requirements of goods to be bought but to look on the totality of the experience have a quick bite at Mc Donalds in the mall are let the kids play fun games while one is busy shopping or even taking the family out to movie and having a dinner ALL UNDER ONE ROOF

The benefits of this totality offering are that many vendors get to have people patronized their offerings while the shopping experience i.e. being enhanced more business is got by the stores at the venue. Shopping is no longer a onetime agenda for people. Various options are opening up.

During the analysis it was found that customers become loyal to few malls and department stores and visit them often as compared to other. Although it was found all of them keep approximately same kinds of brands and products and the same pleasing environment. All this in mind we need to differentiate our mall from others in the city to build up our own set of customers. It was found that the major problem faced by the customers is the crowed at the cash counter. The life of todays generation has become very fast. They dont want to wait in a queue for a longer period. Thus we must provide more cash counters in our mall.

One advantage is that there is only one mall in the city that is magnum mall others are the department stores. So enhance it and make it better to make it different i.e. by having special attraction like body spa, Gym in the mall. There should be a provision for ATMs in the mall too.

AnnexureQuestionnaire on Consumer shopping behavior in BIG BAZAAR

Hi..!! Please spare some time to fill in this survey. The survey is voluntary and will help us to gather more information to make our project. Do you visit mall?

a. Yes

b.No

With whom you prefer to visit malls?

a. Friendsb.spousec.Colleagued.Alone How much time do you usually spend in a mall?

a. Hourb.1-2 hoursc.More than 3 hours Does the person with whom you visit mall influence you?

a. Yes

b.No Do you visit the mall, by advertisement influence?a. Yesb.Noc.Sometimes yesd.Cant say Why do you choose mall for shopping?

a. Less time b.Economicc.Brandsd.Variety

e.Qualityf.All under oneg.Convenience

Which of the following media you find the ads of any shopping mall?a. Newsb.T.V.c.Radio d.Hoardings How frequently do you visit mall?

a. Weeklyb.Monthlyc.Occasionally Why you opt for a particular mall?a. Qualityb.Servicesc.Brand named.word of mouth Do you go for unplanned (spot) shopping / purchases?

a. Yesb.Noc.Cant say Feed back / Suggestions:-..

..

..

Name..

Occupation.

Thanking you Bibliography

Books and magazines:

Consumer Behavior

Fourth edition by David L. London & Albert J. Delia Bitta.

Research methodology (Methods & Technology)

Revised Second edition by C.R.Kothari

Through net surfing:

www.google.com www.wikipedia.com www.answers.com

Documents

BIG BAZAR bareilly