Creating categories – Way forward for successful Retailing

Looking at the eagerness of a family to see how a Compact Disc works was amazing – this was in the year 2001 at the Musicworld store at Park Street in Kolkata. The middle-class Bengali family was a regular at the then largest MW Store in India, spread all of 8,000 sft and among the first Retail Stores in India to be designed in bright yellow and blue by Fitch PLC. After all, RPG Management had wanted none other than among the best in the world to design their first and the largest music store in the city. Over to the family – they were wondering how a small CD with a diameter of 10 cm could play music with such clarity while the erstwhile vinyl records that used to be played on the gramophones were thicker, heavier and the voice clarity not as clear as this one. I remember chatting with my colleagues about this insight – that it is as much the responsibility of Retailers to create newer categories to grow the pie and what I was referring in this case was that the market needed more CD players, affordable and better quality, so more consumers could buy them and in times to come, would buy or should I say invest on CDs. Who would know that 10 years later not only my words would come true (in terms of cheaper options of CD players) but we would also have alternate forms of listening to music – internet, mobile phones, mp3 players, iPods and most recently I read Apple is planning to launch Watches!

Successful Retailers worldwide have created newer categories and introduced them to their core customers – usually first timers within the spectrum who could spread the good word around. Central Malls, a division of The Future Group that operates over a dozen malls in India has been the pioneer in seamless retailing in the country since their launch of Bangalore Central in 2004 (of which I was lucky to be an integral part of) is doing exactly the same. One of their recent campaigns is the “Kurti Festival”. Keeping the most popular trend, Central has launched a festival that focuses on the theme – Kurtis. As part of this festival, Central will have a mix and match section where customers could experience interesting pairing which would be displayed at the Malls. Kurti is a form of apparel – a mix of western-styled Indian-design tops mainly focussed on women. The basic difference between a Kurti and a Salwar or Churidhar is that the length in the former is shorter and the core audience are the teens and tweens (those in their twenties). While the Kurtis have been made popular thanks to our beautiful heroines in Bollywood and other Indian languages, the more popular ambassadors are the customers themselves. It’s quite common to see the college goers wearing such clothing as it is comfortable for their daily routine – travelling by public transport, self-drive in two-wheelers, attending many other chores during the day such as college sessions and mall-hopping, etc. A versatile garment, kurtis are an essential part of every woman’s wardrobe and they can create the latest fashion statement with funky styles like bohemian, bling, graphic, festive, floral, tribal, jig saw & many more. Women shoppers can create these styles by mixing and matching with different bottoms like leggings, capris, denims, shorts, short skirts and harem pants. Customers can twist their style at Central’s Kurti festival for a brand new fashion statement.

This is expected to attract more footfalls into their Malls and while the incremental conversions are high single-digit, the time spent by the clientele and their word-of mouth is as important. Many a time, these festivals indeed pull in additional footfalls and benefit other retailers within the Mall such as Cafe Coffee Day, McDonalds, Food Courts, etc. While many retailers keep experimenting with such ideas, very few succeed in pulling them off well and needless to say, Central Malls is one of them indeed. So, visit the near Central close to your and enjoy the surprises!

Show-stopper - Shoppers Stop!

There used to be a time during the late 80s and even early 90s when this part of Bangalore was the most preferred area to settle down for the older generation, mainly due to the lush greenery and minimal traffic. After all, why would any one pass through Koramangla – an erstwhile nondescript part of south Bangalore that connects the city towards Hosur, Chennai. Etc. However, all this changed, thanks to the IT revolution and what followed was concrete invasion. Large tracts of empty lands gave way to huge constructions – corporate offices, residential block and of course, Retail stores. In India, one thing is peculiar, if not common. It’s always the unorganized retailers who enter a locality sensing consumption opportunities. The Kirana stores that sell everything from tooth paste to grocery, the Hardware stores that sell all that one would need in their homes, from door handles to curtain rods and the ubiquitous furniture stores – large shell shops that stock cots and mattresses, dining tables and other loose furniture. After a few months, if not a few years of the area settling down with people, the Organized Retailers start swamping the localities. What’s natural is that when a locality is on the verge of getting popular (from a consumption perspective), most of the big players enter together, if not in shorter bursts, thus unsettling the small kiranas.

And the same happened to Koramangla as well. After a lull for many years, organized players started penetrating this area – RPG Foodworld (now Spencer’s), Monday to Sunday (from Jubilant Retail), Viveks – the Electronics store, MegaMart (from the house of Arvind) and most notably, Big Bazaar (BB), a Future Group concept. Interestingly, this was one of the earliest outlets for the now ubiquitous value-retailer in India, a mere 35,000 sft store that was supposed to be a Pantaloon Fashion Store! There was a last minute change in the concept and thus was born BB. The store is located in a building that also houses many corporate offices and hence parking for 2/4 wheelers weren’t too many. Anyway, value-retail stores were expected to bring their shoppers by Bus and thankfully, there was a Bus-stand just outside the store. Rest as they say, is history. This BB store attracts as many people driving their own fancy 4 wheelers as much as those coming by buses and autos and is supposedly the highest in terms of returns per sft, a key metric for Retailers.

The year 2004 saw the opening up of Forum Mall, the most notable Retail landmark in Bangalore till date and rightly so, located adjacent to Prestige Acropolis, a residential dwelling that houses the crème de la crème of Bangalore. The Mall has such a unprecedented opening that the U-turn on this road had to be removed, thankfully! The first outlet for McDonalds in South India opened here and without exaggeration, there were queues waiting outside the store just to get in and have a grub. I was among the last to enjoy the frenzy, when I first entered the store almost three months after they opened. The Mall had many other firsts as well, the largest stores for Fashion Brands such as Benetton and Tommy Hillfiger, the first Apple store through its distributor aptly named “Imagine”, the largest (then) foodcourt in town with over a dozen different cuisines, and the first and among the largest cinemas in Bangalore operated by PVR. The retail chain from the house of Tatas, Westside was the anchor and Landmark Books & Leisure (which was also bought out by Tatas) was another anchor. There wasn’t a multi-brand Department store and thus all the Mono Brands present in the mall perform very well. There wasn’t anything that wasn’t amiss and the Mall ably run by a professional team from the Prestige Group went to win accolades for their achievements, in design, tenant mix, zoning and most importantly managing the multi-level car parking, among the largest & the first in the city.

The area started getting a lot of attention from construction companies as this was the closest locality for those who were working in Bangalore’s own Silicon Valley area – The Electronics City. Real estate prices of land holding soared so high that the area was and still among the most premium residential areas in the city. Almost every Retailer has a presence in this area and the only brand to have multiple locations due to its business model is Cafe Coffee Day – yes, there are five cafes within a three km radius and there are two more in the offing. Recent retail concepts such as E-Zone (also from the Future Group) and Star Bazaar (a hyper-store from Tatas) have found their own spaces and are serving their customers quite well. The one Retail concept that was conspicuously missing was Shoppers Stop (SS), India’s largest multi-brand Department Store chain. And that too was fulfilled recently. While operating three other locations in the city and one at the Bangalore International Airport, the retailer took over the same location earlier occupied by fellow retailer and similar business house “Globus”. There were many reasons why Globus wasn’t doing well; many experts felt it was the location that was the main one at fault apart from the depressing merchandising at the store level. In Retail, there are three main factors to consider before opening a store – Location, Location and Location. And that’s exactly what SS has tried to revisit. They have chosen one of the most complicated locations ever possible for a Retailer but I am sure the decision was conscious and would prove to work to their advantage. After all, who knows this business as well as they do. The store is located in one of the busiest stretches in Bangalore, just ahead of an important traffic signal where the waiting time could range from 10-30 minutes during peak hours to crawl through a 300 meter stretch. Entering and Exiting the store is not just difficult but would need sharp driving skills. The store, which is spread across 40,000 sft is self-sufficient to that catchment since most of the brands have their own stores independently or within the mall close by. The well-maintained and well-merchandised store has almost everything that a harried customer needs, but for a cafe which I guess should soon be there too.

But why one more Retail concept for a locality that already has a substantial penetration of retail formats? Well, one reason is that there is no Shoppers Stop! The unique shopping experience that the Retailer provides is not just consistent across the country but also amongst the most superior in its own form. Secondly, when an area has as many shopping formats, it becomes a natural destination for shoppers. It’s not just the Retailers who benefit due to the presence of a large number of consumers but also the shoppers – they benefit from the wider offering that they are offered and not to mention the innumerous promotions and special offers through the year. So, lets hope this outlet of Shoppers Stop is indeed going to become a show-stopper!

Much ado about nothing...

It is quite common to see radically minded political parties create ruckus during cultural celebrations such as Valentine’s Day, Friendship Day, etc. citing them as western concepts which India can do without. Although most of them forget that ours is a Democracy and one is free to live the way they want to, provided they fall within the legal purview of our constitution. Retailers had initially taken advantage of such events, creating a lot of hype around and managing to attract customers. While the trend still continues, many of them have toned down the way it is celebrated and have started focussing on other days of national importance. In Western countries where Organized Retail has evolved much, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day and even Thanksgiving are celebrated with glee and harmony. In India, while we have been celebrating Children’s Day (birthday of former and first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru), Teacher’s Day (birthday of freedom fighter and academician, Dr. S. Radhakrishnan) and regional festivals like Akshaya Trithiya (most auspicious day to buy gold), Raksha Bandhan (sibling’s day) and Karva Chouth (prayers for the husband) for many decades now, Independence Day and Republic Day are celebrated since 1947 and 1951 respectively, ever after achieving Independence from the British Rule and since becoming a republic country. Although earlier, these days were usually celebrated with national fervour and devotion, they have been converted into social events which also include personal and family celebrations, since they are usually preceded or succeeded by a weekend.

Sensing an opportunity, one of the first retailer in the country to take advantage was The Future Group. Way back in 2004, the company which operates the largest Hypermarket chain under the trade name “Big Bazaar” created a unique concept “Sabse Sasta Teen Din”, which translated into English means “the cheapest three days”. When they first experimented this concept on 26^th January, India’s Republic Day which also happens to be a National Holiday, the queue outside the store located at Lower Parel in downtown Mumbai was miles long and the store had to be shut for a few hours to ensure safe exit of those who had already walked into the store! Ever since, there was no looking back. Founder & CEO Kishore Biyani who is known as the pioneer of Organized Modern Retail in India has experimented more and more – a mantra that he and his company lives by. The three days became longer and usually were tagged to the closest weekend and over a period of time, more such events were created. As always, many others in the business followed suit and started following their own trends – creating marketing concepts that suited their respective business models.

2010 was a bit special though. To celebrate the 63^rd Independence Day on 15^th Aug., almost all the large Retail players in India attempted such a concept in their own way. Newspapers were abuzz with articles, write-ups, advertorials and full-page advertisements. Needless to say, news publishing houses would have cashed in on this opportunity; after all, they have been quite starved over the past two years with minimal ads by Retailers who pulled back their spending after the global recession which impacted Indian consumers more psychologically than financially. The message from players across product categories ranging from apparel to electronics, grocery to home furnishing was loud and clear – discounts ranging from 10-60% over the weekend. The hype was carefully built-up over a period of time and the buzz in the minds of shoppers was clear – visit the stores at the earliest and get the best out of the season. Erstwhile popular but now dormant retailers like Viveks, one of the oldest and trusted electronics dealers with a strong presence in South India bounced back with amazing offers. In fact, this was the very place where my parents purchased our first prized possession, a Crown Colour Tv in 1981 at a nondescript location called Luz Corner in Madras, (now known as Chennai). Over the weekend, my mother went there again, this time to buy a Microwave Oven, a reasonably new gadget in the life of Indian homemakers that promises comfortable yet delicious cooking. Well, she visited the store for just one reason – her trust in the brand “Viveks” continues to remain strong, where almost all our household items have been purchased for the past three decades.

One of the most exciting concepts created this year was again from Big Bazaar, aptly titled “war on inflation” – helping housewives to fight the price rise in the economy. While everyone from the Prime Minister to my car driver have been talking about the rise in prices of essential commodities and the measures that must be taken to curb them, The Future Group was the first one to create an impact. It has been running various campaigns in the media, highlighting the fact how Big Bazaar can together fight with the middle-class households by offering products at lower prices and shoppers can buy large quantities and store them for future usage – a form of hedging, if one could say so. Expectedly, all the stores in the country, numbering over 125 were over flowing with eager shoppers who started thronging the stores since as early as 9 in the morning until 10 in the night.

Somehow, the focus of shopping during the season remained on categories such as Grocery & Household and Electronics & Appliances. E-Zone (another Future Group format) and Croma (from the house of Tatas), both of which operate in the premium consumer durables space and target SEC A & A+ went ballistic about their offering, by providing never before prices coupled with freebies. Most notably, both were offering spot loans from Bajaj Finance, wherein select products could be purchased on EMI – Equated Monthly Instalment after paying a token sum as down payment. The processing of loans was quite simple – in just a few minutes after obtaining some basic documents such as an address proof and an identity proof, loans are sanctioned on the spot if one holds a credit card. I was amazed at the speed at which loans ranging from Rs. 10,000 – Rs. 60,000 was being sanctioned, without any collaterals or scrutiny. It is anyone’s guess what happens if the loan is not paid back or the borrower vanishes once for all.  Reliance Retail which operates multiple formats kept its communication straight – highlighting the number of stores and thereby the inherent foothold it holds in the business. Some traditional local retailers tried their best to match up with their national peers. While they successfully demonstrated their presence in the business and their respective leadership positions among their target customers with full-page ads in national dailies, they also showed that they could offer at prices similar to those offered by national players thereby conforming their positioning – they remain equal if not cheaper compared the newer larger entrants within the business.

One question that came to my mind over the weekend – why so much fuss to offer the best to customers! Do we need special days in a year to pass on the benefit of margins to shoppers? Is it just a trend that’s getting started or would we evolve as we move forward? Many in the Industry already agree that in India, we just can’t rely on Thanksgiving and Christmas Shopping like in the West, since we have more than 300 days of festivals all through the year across six major religions, a dozen national holidays and many more regional excuses for shopping. Isn’t it better to maintain a momentum and build shopping behaviour all through the year rather than just creating hype during a one-off period? Am sure, the answers could be mixed and diverse, just like our Retail environment. Well, that’s the best thing about us. Incredible India. Jai Hind.