Bar Codes have simplified our lives!

 

During my maiden trip in 2008, when my best friend took me to a JUSCO store at Whampoa in downtown Hong Kong, what impressed me first was the boat shaped structure of the building. Given the general ambience in the island town, it looked as though a large ferry had crashed into the inland areas! The five storeyed structure had a supermarket, restaurant, bars, etc.  “There’s more inside than what you see”, he quipped. And when I walked inside, I was amazed to see the way the neighbourhood store was maintained – bright lighting, wide aisles, sparsely populated store staff though they were extremely friendly, cheerful and helping around, low height shelves (culturally appealing to the region I guess!) and over 15 check-out counters; and this was for a 3,000 sft store which stocks grocery, household, fresh items, basic apparel, a bakery and a liquor store. Our main purpose was to buy some snacks and beer, so just after that he walked straight, even beyond the check-out counters without paying.

“I can use Octopus, my charge card to pay, you see, and I don’t have to wait in those queues” he said. He scanned all those items that we had intended to buy, the bill amount appeared on the screen and he punched his Octopus, took a copy of the bill and we moved out! There was no security guard at the exit and he told me that they didn’t need one! Shoppers respected the fact that someone else would lose money if they shop-lifted and hence, “Retail Shrinkage” is one of the lowest in the region. If someone broke the law, no questions asked, straight to the jail, it seems. That was the first time I was seeing something like that. And for the next few days, either at the nearby Ferry station or at a vending machine to buy Coke & Water, I saw him only use the Octopus.

What surprised me and I kept thinking about it later too was that the check-out queues though long, were moving faster than I have ever seen elsewhere. The “beep” of scanning each item was so quick that the staff didn’t have to reconfirm even once, so sure they seemed to be. I was stunned at the efficiency of these staff, more or less similar in age and other attributes to those who work back home in India. Back in 2001, when I used to work at Musicworld Kolkata, anxious customers used to peep into the cash tills area – they were quite intrigued by how the price of the Audio Cassette was being recorded into the computer desktop. And we actually had to explain to quite a few of them regularly. Well, “Bar Code” was not so popular and is still not, probably across the country. The technology has made billing more accurate and faster than before, although its original intent why it was invented in the US, is still a far cry as far as Indian Retail is concerned. The main purpose of using “Bar Codes” by the Supermarkets was to reduce labour costs amid rising inflation, back in the early 1970s in the US. Tens of millions of different objects have acquired bar codes over the years; each day, more than five billion of the codes are scanned in retail establishments worldwide, according to GS1 US, the non-profit organization based in Lawrenceville, N.J., that issues and administers the codes. This transformation, industry experts say, is largely because of the work of one person, a supermarket executive from Massachusetts named Alan L. Haberman, who died on Sunday at 81.

At 8:01 a.m. on June 26 of that year, a 10-pack of Wrigley’s Juicy Fruit gum slid down a conveyor belt and past an optical scanner. The scanner beeped, and the cash register understood, faithfully ringing up 67 cents. That purchase, at a Marsh Supermarket in Troy, Ohio, was the first anywhere to be rung up using a bar code. Alan Lloyd Haberman was born in Worcester, Mass., on July 27, 1929. He earned a bachelor’s degree in American history and literature from Harvard in 1951 and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School in 1953. Mr. Haberman led the industry committee that chose the bar code over other contenders — circles, bull’s-eyes and seemingly random agglomerations of dots — in 1973. By all accounts, he spent years afterward cajoling manufacturers, retailers and the public to accept the strange new symbol, which resembles a highly if irregularly compacted zebra. His efforts helped cement the marriage between the age-old practice of commerce and the new world of information technology. The design would print crisply, which meant scanners could read it clearly. Through its varying patterns of thick and thin bars, it could efficiently represent the 11 digits needed to encode data about manufacturer and product. (Today, U.P.C. codes typically have 12 digits.)

 

In India, usage of “Bar Codes” has been misused, abused and what not, over the years. There are various reasons why the technology has not been put to full use here. To name a few;

• Most of the products’ surface where the Bar codes are pasted, get erased partially – due to dust, wear and tear or transportation, thus making it unrecognisable
• The Scanners are practically never cleaned or periodically maintained; mostly serviced only after they become unusable
• Information Technology Vs. Manual Intelligence: The store staff, including some senior members in the team believe that it would be faster to key in the details of the product or search on the database!

Having said all of that, Bar Codes have definitely simplified our lives. From bread packets at supermarkets to new-born babies being identified at hospitals, they form an intrinsic part of our lives. Just that we haven’t taken full advantage of them yet. The speed of billing benefits Customers and Retailers – check-out is faster and hence shorter queues at Billing counters and hence customers may prefer to go to a particular shop and thus the retailer gets repeat footfalls and maximises the business opportunity. But beyond the obvious, Retailers can stock their merchandise better, by maintaining their inventory accordingly. Even today, the neighborhood local Retailer who uses Bar Codes and Scanners maintains better stock levels than the much-respected National players in the Food & Grocery Industry. However, Retail Managers are giving its due importance to Bar Codes these days and one can see the cashiers, especially at Hypermarkets taking the additional few seconds to rescan a few times, rather than typing the code manually. It’s up to us, as Retailers and as Consumers how we want the Bar Codes to help us. So, next time you see a staff typing the code, insist him or her to rescan – whether you see it as an employee or a shopper. And if it still doesn’t work, then complain. Sooner than later, things should indeed fall in place. I trust it will.

Photo Courtesy and inputs – NYTimes.com

Hypermarkets–The latest poster boy of Modern Retail

The first thought that came to my mind was – “Will this store be THE game changer for this Mall?” Not that it had weak anchors otherwise, but somehow this store, I believe would attract most number of footfalls. Time will prove, and I hope my assessment would be correct in this case too. I am referring to HyperCITY from the K Raheja Group which opened a few weeks back at Royal Meenakshi Mall - Hulimavu, a lesser known suburb in South-East Bangalore which houses one of the largest new-age residential settlements of those who are employed in IT, ITES and the BPO Industries, mainly due to the cost effective availability of housing requirements as well as reasonable accessibility in terms of time and distance to their respective workplaces. A maiden attempt by a group of enterprising entrepreneurs, I would say this is another brilliant model for Neighbourhood malls – self sustained with most aspects of modern retail within its precincts. Other anchors include Cineapolis, the Mexico based multiplex chain with its first cinema in South India, CROMA – the electronics store from Tata Retail (TRENT) and many others.

The store is located on the upper ground floor facing the main entrance and the lower ground floor of the mall with direct access to the basement parking areas – a smart move by the Retailer to encourage shoppers to enter the store directly after they park their vehicles.  However, after finishing their shopping from the Upper ground floor, one would have to pass through the lower floor to access their cars – a bit of walking around the store though, which could be inconvenient during peak shopping hours. The store is well laid out – the lower ground floor offers Grocery and other Home needs while the upper ground floor with all other categories including Electronics, Toys, Apparel, Furniture, even Bicycles and many more. My guess is that the lower ground would remain more crowded – for two reasons; one that it has brilliant view from outside and would naturally attract mall visitors, and two that it houses the core categories which shoppers would come looking to save for – grocery, fruits and vegetables and household items. What I liked the most was the “fresh section” – Maybe it was the first day and hence everything looked very nicely displayed but still, the way the categories were planned was commendable. Also, they are located deep within the store, another smart idea to pull customers inside and thereby making them walk through the store. Meat & Poultry located close by could prove to be a disadvantage if the exhausts and HVAC are not maintained well – an issue that many retailers are trying to grope with.

The store interiors are typical of a Hyper – no false roofing, basic tiles on the floor, tube-lights running through the length and breadth of the store and focus lights on merchandise that’s on offer. While it does reduce the Capex to a large extent, it also showcases the store as being simple and straightforward – a stark contrast to the luxury stores at high-end malls that sometimes stink of grandeur and austerity! After all, hypermarkets should also look what they profess – savings, savings and savings. And HyperCITY is indeed very good at it. On the store launch, Mark Ashman, CEO, HyperCity Retail (India) Ltd, told the media, “HyperCity is committed to fulfilling the aspirations of the local people by providing them a world-class shopping experience. Our customers will enjoy the convenience of international shopping from over 44,000 products at great value under one roof.” And all this over a mere 60,000 sft.!

With their continued focus on convenience, experience, quality and savings, there is something that this Retailer has been doing right. Apart from stacking the right merchandise, I guess its the speed at which they have been growing. Often accused (not in a real sense though) of being slow in terms of store expansion and growth, HyperCITY has got its act right. With only 10 stores across the country, the group has managed to understand the business well – they have opened at interesting catchments across cities to ensure that they are not just in the race to grab market share but also to make money at the store level. With an investment of upto INR 2 Crores per store, the Retailer has been cautious about its overall Operational profitability which seems to be getting better by the day. Specific to this Mall, none other than the Hyper is going to be the the main anchor that would attract thousands of shoppers every month! Those who come to shop would indeed pass through the other Retail stores, Food Courts & Restaurants and m\Movies would complete the entertainment bit as well. This store is not an exception, but Hypers would become the Poster boy of Modern Retail and the Darling of Mall Developers soon.

Paribartan! Retail revival in West Bengal?

My initial happiness started worrying me after sometime – after all who wouldn’t want to achieve their Sales targets! When I was told earlier in the day that the store would close by 4pm, I was a bit happy as I could go home early. But that day, I stayed on, for I wanted to see the people’s leader who would be walking down Park Street with her followers. Yet another protest; yet another reason to bunk work, thus grinned Mr. Bannerjee, my senior colleague in his typical Bengali accent- not that he was complaining, but he was more concerned about reaching home which was at suburban north Calcutta since most taxi drivers would take off from work and those plying would demand double charges. Along with Musicworld, where I was the Operations manager 10 years ago, most other retail stores & F&B outlets along the stretch downed their shutters early due to a protest march organized by a relatively lesser known regional party, The Trinamool Congress. “So where is their leader”, I asked my colleague Sandeep Mallick. “There you see, that short lady in hawai slippers, she’s the one” he replied. I was stunned that such a simple looking person could lead a party and a few thousand followers –for her party as well as her protest march that particular day. I was more familiar with an erstwhile woman Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu where I came from, who would adorn more jewelry than that of a model who poses for Jewelry brands would until she vowed never to wear any ornaments after the ruling DMK put her behind the bars citing various scams. After 10 years, she is back in power today and is expected to run the state in a few days, hopefully more efficiently than the decade that passed by.

Just a few months back (in 2001), the Communist Government had assumed power, this time with a new Chief Minister though, Mr. Buddhadeb Bhattacharya, after the octeganerian former CM Jyoti Basu relinquished the seat of power. Buddhadeb, over the next 10 years tried his best to bring reform and change the business landscape but the fundamentals of his party would not allow him to take brave steps too often. And the rest, as they say is History. Singur and Nandigram were bitter memories that the industry would like to forget. Prestigious projects moved out of the state due to government apathy and the worker’s lethargy. The overall mood in the Retail Industry which peaked all over the country in mid-2000s didn’t have much impact in the state, thanks to a workforce that quite didn’t enjoy working in the modern retail formats. Though money was good, many felt that the jobs were lowly and probably they deserved better. A typical middle class Bengali who reads atleast two newspapers every day, one in English and one in the local lingua, is quite updated with the latest within the Organized Retail set-up across the country. Recently, I was a speaker at the “East India Retail Forum”, organized by IMAGES Retail, India’s premier retail publication in Jan’11. There were over 100 retail honchos across the spectrum who attended the event and the mood was upbeat about the impending Retail transformation that’s on the anvil. Miracles are certain, they believed and I too did, given the slow but steady change in mindset that I had seen over the past year – on my first visit to Kolkata after 10 years since I moved in 2001, I wrote on my twitter (@shri611) “so much has changed, yet nothing much has actually changed here!” What I meant was while there were new high rises and a strong immigrant workforce that had moved in, the old-timers remain what they were, reluctant in some cases to change and a few even questioning why they should.

All that is about to change thanks to the latest verdict in the state elections where the Trinamool Congress has won a 4/5^th majority, ousting the Communist rule after 34 years. It was a shocker to see the outgoing Chief Minister, the Finance minister and many others losing their seats in their respective bastions. Just goes to show that the average Bengali was fed-up – and probably wants a change urgently. He deserves, that’s my belief too. I started my career in Kolkata, way back in June 2001 when I reached the Howrah station all alone, with four bags and loads of dreams, to build a successful professional career. Wasn’t sure if Retail was my cup of tea (or coffee, as I am responsible these days for increasing the café count for India’s largest coffee retailer) but I stayed on. I had just one friend, Hemanth Subramaniam, a former classmate at college who lived in Calcutta those days with his parents who came to pick me from the railway station. The city was over crowded by my Madrasi standards, I thought. And the city roads were congested and there wasn’t even a supermarket to buy toothpaste and shaving cream, I thought. But my first few days at Musicworld changed all my thoughts – that Retail was indeed where I would remain. My circle of friends and well wishes grew over time, so much so that I was hosted four farewell parties when I departed in just a year! 37 Chowringhee, a building that stands proudly, built during the British era was one of my favorite inspirations that housed the Corporate Office of ITC Ltd. at whose factory near Chennai my father toiled for over 30 years to build a family and careers of my sister and myself. I had a lot to give back to the city of joy, where the loner in me was treated every other weekend by someone or the other at Someplace Else or Flury’s, at Tantra or London Pub! During my recent visits and interactions with so many people including those from Government functions as well as those in private establishments, I see an urge, an immediate intention for embracing modern ideas, Organized Retail included.

I am neither a political analyst such as those who feature in “We the People” or “Breaking at 9” nor a mediocre journalist who screams on Tv or writes sensational headlines in newspapers to grab attention – just a Retailer at heart, by profession and choice. Apart from Musicworld & Spencers from the home grown RPG Group, The Ambuja Group and Forum have built several malls in the state while national retailers including Café Coffee Day, The Future Group (Big Bazaar, Food Bazaar, Home Town, Brand Factory), Shoppers Stop, Reliance Retail, PVR Cinemas, Pizza Hut, KFC and many others are all expanding rapidly across the state. A Central Mall is expected to open in Kolkata soon! What I look forward is just a better Retail scenario – one that the Bengali deserves and one which can change their lives and lifestyle quite well. Hoping for a “Paribartan” that would put Kolkata on top in the Indian Retail Map in times to come.