Sync-ing customers with Technology

Smartphones have come a long way in India over the years. Until about ten years ago, the most popular phones for business purposes were BlackBerry followed by Nokia Feature Phones for personal uses. Others like Samsung, LG, Motorola, etc. had very limited models and therefore very less sales (penetration) as well. Things started changing with the launch of the Apple iPhone in 2007. The iPhone revolutionised the way people used mobile phones with its remarkable technology, style and utilities. As is quite famous about Apple Founder Steve Jobs, the company doesn't conduct much of surveys about user's needs - it rather provides features that users never thought they would need one - the most recent being the finger print scanner for unlocking the iPhone 5S which was the most recent launch in 2013. Samsung Electronics, which is one of the leading Electronics companies in the world has surged past others in less than half a decade to dominate the world's number one position in Smart Phones across the world as well as in India. According to a recent report on NDTV Profit, Sales of Smartphones rose by 84 per cent in the quarter ending June 2014. Local and Foreign companies alike are sacrificing profit margins to build market share in India, which counts 914 million mobile users, according to Government of India data.
Technology Consultancy IDC India projects annual smartphone sales growth of around 40 per cent for the next five years in this price-sensitive nation.

This is a delightful news for Retailers selling mobile phones and accessories. Univercell, Chennai based Retailer of technology products including smart phones, feature phones and related gadgets has grown consistently over the years and is rated No. 1 in terms of their network, Strategic Locations, Innovative Marketing, Friendly service and most importantly, a wide array of products across various brands. The Retailer, recently launched its newest format, rightfully called "Univercell Sync" at the tony Nungambakkam neighbourhood in Central Chennai. The store, spread over about 800 sft is strategically located to enthuse passersby to drop over. While the brand is quite popular in the city, the new "Sync" suffix is sure to attract a lot of people to get inquisitive and enquire the details about the new initiative.

The store layout is interestingly divided as various zones for purposes such as Photography, Music, Work, Accessories and Kids. Gadgets are displayed utility-wise rather than Brand-wise, which is a great way to encourage customers to choose the right gadget according to their uses. Global giants such as Apple, Samsung and LG share the display space with home grown Micromax and Karbon. However, the phones are still displayed price wise within the display areas so buyers can choose within the price range they require.

I was pretty impressed with the Music zone, especially. If CDs killed Music Cassettes fifteen years ago, the iPod killed the CD players a decade ago. Today, most of music is stored and played digitally and handphones have most of them, since people prefer to have a single gadget for making calls, taking photos and for listening to music. The display also includes music gadgets such as speakers, bluetooth devices to stream music, ear phones, head phones and cables to connect. With the touch of a button, its quite easy to connect one's phone to many of the devices and have a live display, which would aid buying the right product quite easily.

I was also quite intrigued with the kid's zone - a special area for interaction with the young ones - kids can hang around and explore various interesting things about the gadgets and the friendly staff are also helpful to teach them a thing or two.

Overall, the store is a notch above the hundreds of retail stores across the city that also "sell" mobile phones. The Univercell Sync stores dont just sell, they rather provide a very unique experience that the next-gen is looking for. Do drop over at the store in the coming days and enjoy a world class experience and share your thoughts.

The store is located at:
New No. 103, Old No. 52,
Nungambakkam High Road,
Chennai.
Landmark: diagonally opp Basics Store.

Bye Bye Employment! Hello Entrepreneurship…

July. 31, 2014 will be a big day in my life, personally and professionally since I called it a day at my full time employment and chose to tread a more difficult path that is Entrepreneurship. I have had a keenness to do something on my own since my college days. But I was very clear that I would get into something on my own only after learning substantially in the professional world. Not that I have learned much in the past 15 years, but I think I am now ready to drive things my way.

I started my career 17 years back, as a scoop boy at Baskin Robbins’ first store in Chennai, way back in 1997. It was a part time job and I earned Rs. 400 a month for working 5 hours a day, 6 days a week. I quite enjoyed my work. It was one of the first modern retailers in India who inculcated a habit of removing the cups (of ice cream) after eating the same. Ever since then, I’ve had a liking for consumer businesses. My first full time job was with RPG Retail, initially at Musicworld Calcutta (as it was then known) followed by Foodworld Chennai. Standing on the shop floor, observing how consumers touched, felt and bought products, I realised that Retailing was my first love. And there has been no looking behind ever since.

I moved to Bangalore on 14 Jan. 2004 with just four bags and a big dream at heart – to excel in the field of Retailing and to build a career that I can be proud of. I was part of the core team that set-up the first seamless Mall in India, Bangalore Central at Bangalore, Hyderabad and Pune. I was inclined towards the Fashion Industry and that pushed me towards finding the role of Area Manager for South India at United Colors of Benetton. Then, I got a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to join a team that was building an airport! Joined BIAL and contributed towards setting up the first ever Organised Travel Retail Business in India.

The urge to see the country at large and learn from its diversity drove me to join Cafe Coffee Day as General Manager – Business Development. While I travelled across the metros and mini-metros extensively, I also drank lots of coffee, which has been one of my favourite beverages all my life and made a number of friends in the Retail world all over the country. The E-Commerce bug bit me too and I joined Indiaplaza.com where I set-up the Lifestyle vertical ground-up in a very short period of time. In 2012, I moved back to Chennai to join Royal Enfield where I was responsible for various roles, most importantly building a robust Dealer Network all across the country. I travelled 3 days a week, four times a month for over 100 weeks and visited some of the most far-off places in the country from Bettiah to Baruch, Kapurthala to Karur.

And now, I am on a sojourn which I have dreamt off all my life. In my new role, I would be spearheading my own Retail Venture named Smiling Baby which is a store that caters to young parents and would sell products for newborn kids up to 6 years of age. I have a vision to take this concept across the state and spread modern retailing in this category; let’s see how far I am able to reach. I have also been teaching at B-Schools for the past 8 years and I plan to take this more seriously now. And lastly, I intend to play a role of a Retail Consultant and share my skills and knowledge to help small and medium Retailers.

I have reached this far with the blessings of my parents and elders, support of friends and extended family, encouragement of my Bosses and colleagues, a bit of hard work and of course abundant grace of God. I don’t consider having achieved considerably yet and the journey has just begun. And I have Miles to Go before I sleep.

Online Dining

I have enjoyed my pizzas better at the restaurant that at home, all along. It is more to do with the fun of dining – you plan a trip to the pizzeria, a walk or a short drive usually, or even at a Mall after finishing retail therapy. I fondly remember the bottomless Coke and unlimited Pizzas at Pizza Corner in Chennai in the late 90s during my most cherished college days with my gang of friends. Have ever since been a fan of pizzas and the love has only been growing. Frankly, I like pizzas from different places, be it Dominos or Pizza Hut, California Pizza Kitchen or standalone indie restaurants. One of my most favourite of course has been from “Italia”, the fine dine restaurant at The Park, Bangalore. For me, Pizza is an all time snack. I am usually game for a pizza at any time of the day (or evening) although I avoid a heavy dinner of pizzas. In fact, the love of pizza is more because of the yummy accompaniments, the cheese garlic bread and an array of toppings, especially the gherkins and olives. Am not a big fan of coloured flavoured colas and would rather prefer a strong coffee if not a lemon ice tea to drown the heavy food.

What I like best is food to be served hot and fresh from the kitchen. Haven’t been a big fan of home delivery or takeaways since I feel that the freshness is somehow lost, especially the international fare such as pastas, pizzas etc. although Indian food is still doable – we have an option to reheat the curries and biryanis at home once again which can’t be done with pizzas and pastas. Have avoided ordering pizzas at home for a long time now since I have had not-so-great experiences in the past, but that was probably because I used to live in Bangalore where the ambient temperature outside is not conducive to serve hot food by road.

This Football season, I decided to order pizzas at home. No, I don’t follow the game but why not enjoy the delicious offers provided by F&B Retailers! So, first it was Dominos followed by Pizza Hut. On the first occasion, the pizza arrived pretty late, almost 45 minutes since I ordered. I was very disappointed with all the promises made by the company on various media, but gave a benefit of doubt to the delivery boy – he must have had a lot of orders to fulfil and mine was probably the last one. So, I didn’t make an issue about it and just left it there. Yes, I would give them a try once again in future and I hope they live up to expectations.

On the next occasion, the pizzas were served hot and were in a consumable condition even after 20-30 minutes of being delivered at home. What was surprising was it was a Sunday and was the day of the “Final” match between the two teams. And yet, the pizzas were sent on time, well ahead of the promised time. They have a future customer for sure!

In both occasions, I used the mobile applications of both these companies. The UI for Dominos is a bit confusing while the one for Pizza Hut seemed much better. In fact, I had to switch over to the website while ordering for Dominos since that seemed to be a better option. The UI is perhaps not designed by retail experts and with consumer feedback, it lacks the sensibilities that customers look for, especially people of the older age and for women, both of these segments may not be very mobile savvy. Also, one of my friends quipped on his Facebook post recently how the delivery boys call a number of times to take directions. The Pizza companies can take a cue from Uber, the taxi service guys who have a GPS enabled map on their cell phones that help the drivers reach their destination without even calling once.

Mobile App Zomato also integrates Home Delivery along with providing reviews about restaurants and they are growing rapidly not just in India, but also internationally. Overall, I guess online dining, or rather online ordering is a great way to reach out to customers. It is also non-intrusive in a way. There is no need to call a number and go through the menu being repeated often – the menu is just there on the mobile app or on the website and helps users to choose what they want quickly and easily. Once customers are used to it, they would rather prefer this option instead of calling on the phone, whenever they desire to order food home. So, go ahead and try ordering on your phone next time. And yes, do take a minute to share your feedback. Happy Dining…