Professional Documents
Culture Documents
TECHNOLOGY
AMITY UNIVERSITY
Project Report
On
SUBMITTED TO:
SUBMITTED BY:
SHIKHA CHANTIYA
VISHWA VARUN
A7820413001
MA-FRM, 2nd SEM
Content
Chapter: 1-Introduction
1-27
Merchandising Organization
Responsibilities of the buying line
Responsibilities of buying line
Buying Preparations
Buying & Merchandise planning
28-35
29-38
39-53
Chapter: 2-Objective
54-54
Chapter: 3-Hypothesis
55-55
56-60
61-61
Chapter: 6- Findings
62-62
Chapter: 7-Reccomendation
63-63
Chapter: 8-Bibliography
64-64
Chapter: 9-Conclusion
65-65
Chapter: 10-Glossary
66-68
DECLARATION
RESEARCH ON
MERCHANDISE
Carried out at
RETAIL
MERCHANDISING
STRATEGY
FOR
FASHION
Pradesh has been submitted during the academic year 2013-14 under the valuable guidance of
Ms.Pooja Verma, Director, Amity School of Fashion Technology, Lucknow, Amity University and
keen supervision of Ms. Shikha Chaintia in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the MAFashion Retail Management (MA-FRM) degree of Amity University. Further I extend my declaration
that this report is my original work and was previously not formed the basis for the award of any
degree or diploma.
VISHWA VARUN
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Amity University,
Verma,
Director, Amity School of Fashion
Technology ,Amity University Lucknow Uttar Pradesh, for his encouragement, guidance
and assistance in availing this opportunity of practical training.
It gives me immense pleasure to acknowledge and thank all those who have given consistent guidance like my
family member Surabhi Singh, My Father, Shishram Shivrayan, Advice and encouragement in my endeavor. I
would also like to thank all those persons who have spent their Valuable time to contribute the required
information to me and gave me support while doing this project.
I indebted to the reports published on RETAIL MERCHANDISING STRATEGY FOR FASHION MERCHANDISE. All data
and graph belongs to the above reports, wherever used have been duly acknowledged.
VISHWA VARUN
Executive Summary
Research provides a basic understanding of the merchandising concept to
underline the relevance of merchandise planning in a retail organization. To
provide information on merchandise grouping, defining the concept of
merchandise hierarchy. It explains what is meant by merchandise buying and
replenishment planning.
This research also covers the planning and carrying out of buying and selling
activities including the responsibilities of buyers. It follows the flows of
merchandise from arrival in the store to purchase by the customers. Today, stores
use aggressive merchandising techniques for mens and children clothing too.
Fashion influence has also spread to all other areas of retailing from cosmetics
and home furnishings to cookware.
The merchandise managers and buyers of the buying line must do all the planning
and other activities necessary to bring the right merchandise in to the store at the
right time to satisfy the store customers.
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Chapter-1-Introduction
Merchandising is the term used to signify articles for sale; it derives from the
word merchant, the actual seller or retailer. Fashion merchandising includes all
the planning and activities necessary to supply the fashion wants and needs of
retail customers. In the past fashion merchandising was usually associated only
with womens apparels and accessories.
Today, stores use aggressive merchandising techniques for mens and children
clothing too. Fashion influence has also spread to all other areas of retailing from
cosmetics and home furnishings to cookware.
This research covers the planning and carrying out of buying and selling activities
including the responsibilities of buyers. It follows the flows of merchandise from
arrival in the store to purchase by the customers
Merchandising Organization:
Every area of merchandising responsibility needs planning and organization to
make it function properly and to ensure successful buying and selling.
Merchandising responsibilities are usually divided between two chains of
command .The buying line has responsibility for merchandise content and
assortment; the store line is the liaison between the merchandise organization
and customers. The buying line works behind the scenes; the store line interface
with customers on a daily basis. The goal is to sell merchandise.
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Buyers:
Each division is composed of departments. These departments may be based on
life style, styling categorizes, price ranges or vendors. According to life style,
womens dresses might be divided into social occasion and career. If categorized
by price ranges the departments might be divided into designer, bridge
better,contemporary,moderate,and budgeting a large chain, buying
responsibilities may be further subdivided, Accessories are subdivided into
handbags,hosiery,hats,jewellery and so on.
Each department is further segmented into classifications, a related group of
merchandiser. A buyer is responsible for the success of one or more
classifications, one department or several departments. One buyer may buy just a
few bridge or designer collections. Each retailer has its own unique breakdown of
classifications and buyer responsibilities.
Buying Preparations:
Careful planning is done to help merchants buy merchandise efficiently and
successfully
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plan within the framework of the policy, goals and fashion direction set my
management. Actual sales figures and evaluations from the corresponding season
of the previous year, recorded in computer based forecasting and planning
systems, are used as a basis for the new plan.
The merchandising plan is a financial plan for allocating specific amounts of
money to each department or division for the purchase of an appropriate
assortment of fashion merchandise that will meet consumer demand ad sales
goals. Usually management determines financial plans for the company as a
whole, divides the totals and assigns sale goals to general merchandise managers.
These plans are then further subdivided to divisional managers and buyers who
also work on developing their part of the plan.
Merchandise plans are based on a fiscal calendar, are determined four months to
a year before the selling season, and cover a six month or one year period, the
spring season (February through July) and the fall season (August through
January).The plans are developed on computer spreadsheets which show what
needs to be purchased and sold per month to reach sales and profit goals.
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Promotional Plans
Stock Turn: Figured by sales /Average stock
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The effect of casual dress in the workplace, causal cloths are less expensive than
dress cloths which mean average sales are lower.
Units:
In many cases, the plan also exactly specifies the units, number of garments and
accessories, to be purchased to meet these sales goals. Accessory units are
divided according to the number of handbags, belts, scarves and so on, that
should meet demand. The scarf classification would be further broken down into
the numbers of shapes, prints and solids and desired fabrications. The
merchandise plans may be directed by management or buyers. Unit plans are
recorded into merchandising information system that is used for ordering,
allocation and unit control.
Planning Stock:
The next step in planning is to determine the amount of stock, in terms of rupees
investment, necessary to meet consumer demand and thereby to support
planned sales. Stock must be brought to a peak just before the expected time of
peak selling and enough units must be available to fill the floors. Stock plans are
part of the retailers computer organized financial systems.
The Buying Plan:
The buying plan is a description of the types, quantities, prices and sizes of
merchandise that a buyer expects to purchase from vendors within a specific
period of time. The totals state exactly how much may be spent on merchandise
in each category in line with sales goals and the financial merchandise plan.
The more detailed the buying plan, the less confusing buying decisions will be,
allowing the buyer to concentrate on the fashion aspects of the merchandise
during the seasonal market. The plan must be flexible enough, however, to allow
for revision if conditions change, for example should buyers not find what they
want in the market.
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Assortment Planning:
A merchandise assortment is a collection of various styles, quantities and prices of
related merchandise, usually grouped under one classification within a
department. The buyer plans to buy a balanced assortment of merchandise to
meet consumer demand and appeal to a particular group of target customers.
Open To-Buy:
Considering stock on hand at the beginning of any month, the buyer has to
calculate the amount of purchases that can be made if stock and sales are to be
kept in balance. The difference between actual stock and planned stock equals to
Open-T-Buy, the value of planned purchases.
Buying:
The buyer purchases merchandising accordance with merchandising
plan and sales and profit goals.
Buyers role:
A buyers knowledge of merchandise stems from both experience and education.
The ability to evaluate merchandise and judge whether it is suitable for a
customer develops over year of examining all type of merchandise for quality,
styling and price.
It is very important for buyers to have store line experience; they need to be on
the sales floor to learn about customers wants and needs.
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Research:
Market and trend research becomes second nature to the buyer; buyers must
constantly research the following influences.
Demographics and Psychographics.
The effect of economic conditions on demand for certain types and prices
of merchandise.
Global influence on styling and sourcing.
Market and fashion trends.
Influence of the media and celebrities on fashion.
The competitors merchandise offerings.
The buying process is analytical and creative part. The mechanics involve
knowledge of sales histories and the development of merchandising plan.
Buyer-Planner system:
Some retailers separate buying functions into a buyer planner system. Under this
system buyers are able to focus on shopping the market and merchandise
selection as well as financial control, while planers concentrate on distribution.
Planners shape the buy, monitor adherence to the plan, plan distribution to
individual stores, and team up with buyers to maximize their business. Planners
analyze regional differences, designating appropriate merchandise for particular
stores based on sales histories of color preferences, life style needs, climate
variations, and ethnic tastes and so on. They also relocate merchandise to stores
where it is selling best and make sure basic merchandise is kept I stock. Most
stores now have computer based forecasting and panning systems that include
allocation.
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Buyers as editor:
Buyer can influence consumers buying to a large degree by their selection of
merchandise, which narrow the choice for the consumer. By determining what
parts of a collection will be sold in store and in what quantity. Buyers affect the
consumer perception of a manufacturers line .However they have to show
enough of a line or collection to represent them properly.
Advertising:
Buyers request ads on the basis of their merchandise plans and negotiate with
vendors for co-op money. They must provide complete information about
merchandise concerning fabric, colors, styling details, price, sizes, to the
advertising copywriter. The garment or accessory itself must be given to the
illustrator, layout artist, and photographer. The buyer helps determine the
proportion and position of the ad and must carefully check ad copy for accuracy.
He or she must then make sure that the merchandise has delivered and is on the
selling floor with appropriate sign copy when ad runs.
Visual Merchandising:
Buyers may also request window and in store displays for particular merchandise.
They must also make sure that a good selection of that merchandise is on the
selling floor for possible customer purchase.
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Special Events:
Buyers may initiate special events and fashion shows. For example, the buyer of a
designer collection might arrange with the fashion office for a designer to make a
personal appearance to introduce a new collection.
To evaluate marketing strategies, buyers compare sale statistics two weeks
before ad, presentation, events, the day of, and two weeks after. They try to
determine if these strategies were successful in promoting sales.
Target customers:
The buyer tries to select the right styles, color assortment and fabrics at
acceptance prices for their target customer. Buyers need to keep in touch with
their customers Lifestyle to buy merchandise to fit their needs.
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Panning Promotions:
Buyers have to plan for ahead for promotions, special buys at low prices. When a
particular item is popular, such as cashmere sweaters, for instance, a buyer might
arrange for a volume purchase at a special price and then pass the savings on to
customers. Many retailers would like to cut down on the practice of constant
sales and promotions, but it is difficult because consumers now expect them.
Planning Markdowns:
Buyers hope to select merchandise with full sell through; they also have to plan
ahead for inevitable markdowns .many stores mark down prices after the
merchandise has been on the selling floor for appropriately eight weeks. Retailers
are speeding inventory turn by marking down to clear the stock.
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Matrix System:
Some retailers are requiring that 80 to 90 % of all merchandise be purchased from
core vendors. The most restrictive is the matrix system, strict centralized
merchandising developed by the many companies.
Buyers are limited to a list of this system cuts out small manufacturers who
cannot supply all the store of large group of retailers.
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Trend Buying:
Buying merchandise for its innovative styling is referred to as trend buying. Trend
buying is especially important for leading fashion stores. Because buyers do not
always have limit to seek out new resources, some retailer is providing vendor
days when manufacturers can come to the store to show their merchandise.
Finding an exciting unique resource can mean an important merchandising
statement for a fashion store.
There is increased focus on fashion, newness and uniqueness so that all stores
should do some trend buying.
Corporate buying:
In the case of major store making a large purchase, buying is often done
management to management by a group of executives including the buyer.
WALMART for example tries to do all of its buying in this manner. In this case, the
buyer is part of buying team.
Purchase Orders:
Placing an order for merchandise is considered a contract between the store and
the vendor. Therefore writing an order commits the store to taking the
merchandise if it meets quality expectations and delivery requirements .Standard
purchase orders specify the date of the order, the name and address of the
resource, the term of sale, shipping instructions, the store address, the name of
the department, the quantity ordered, descriptions, prices of styles ordered and
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obligations between buyer and seller. Purchase orders are most efficiently done
by internet vendor linked computer system, which can instantly supply
information on what goods are available or are in work and what shipping dates
are expected.
The purchase order information becomes part of the retailers total merchandise
information system, which keeps track of merchandise as it is ordered, received
and finally sold. Deliveries are timed so that sufficient quantities or merchandise
are in the store to meet various peaks in the customer demand cycle. The vendor
is committed to meeting these delivery dates or the order may be cancelled or a
discount required.
Automatic Replenishment:
In an effort to maintain stock of basic merchandise, retailers use automatic
replenishment, made possible by electronic data interchange systems that link
them to vendors. This system sends sales and inventory information directly to
vendors so they can plan production.
To implement automatic replenishment, retailers must be willing to adopt a
continuous open-to-buy position for basic merchandise to let suppliers replenish
without any retail management approval. The use of automatic replenishment is
especially important for hosiery and shoes, to make sure that all sizes, colors and
so forth are in stock. The use of automatic replenishment is also growing for other
merchandise.
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Merchandise Planning
In order to satisfy every customer needs the retail store must have the right
product in the right place, in the right quantity with the right quality at right price
with the right mix with the right sizes and at the right time. The function of
merchandising is to achieve all the rights so that sales are high with an ideal level
of inventory holding and thus more profits.
Merchandise Hierarchy:
While planning the merchandise mix, a retail organization has to start with a clear
definition of its merchandise hirerarchy.The merchandise hierarchy is a
disciplined way of grouping the merchandise mix at different levels, starting from
a high level grouping to the lowest level of the stock keeping unit. The grouping
may at times have even more than four five levels as shown in the following
example.
The merchandise hierarchy forms the platform needed to create the store
merchandise mix.
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HIRERARCHY
DIVISSION
EXAMPLES
Apparel
Supermarket
Electronics
DEPARTMENT
-Trousers, Suits
Shirts
CATEGORY
-Half sleeves
Full sleeve Formals
SUB CATEGORY
BRAND
STYLE
OPTIONS
SAIZE
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COLOR
DESIGN
PRICE
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Attributes in product:
Attributes can be classified into two categories-
B-Customer Specific
A-Product Specific
Category
Sub Category
Color
Texture
Region
Theme
Design Description
Material Used
User
Occasion
Look
Design Style
Price
Product Category:
Different types of product categories are offered under each product group.
Mens wear
Womens wear
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Mens wear:
Formal wear
Casual wear
Suits and Coats
Track pants
Shorts
Denim shirts
Ethnic wear
Innerwear
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Womens wear:
Formal Shirts
T-shirts and Tops
Denim Skirts
Cargoes
Shorts
Denims
Belts
Slips and spaghettis
Kids wear:
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Category Management
Category Review
Category Balance
Category Strategies
Category Tactics
Category Implementation
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Category Vision:
This refers to the top managements view of what each category out to achieve in
terms of customer satisfaction or value offering and the differentiation thus
achieved for leadership.
Category definition:
This is made based on customer segmentation and the specific SKUs that belong
to the category. For example a broad category definition can be soft drink a
narrower can be aerated soft drink and one of the SKUs within the same can be
Pepsi 500ml.
Category Role:
This defines the objective of the category in the entire merchandise mix and
determines its relative importance. Some categories may play a destination role
in the product mix-as in the case of the grocery category in a supermarket-and
some an impulse role.
Category Assessment:
The category assessment is done to identify gaps if any between the category
vision and the existing contributing SKUs to the category. This assessment helps
improve the categorys business by identifying opportunity gaps in sales, stock
turns and profits.
Category Strategies:
This aim at achieving the customer off take from the shelves, ringing the
maximum number of transactions, earning maximum margin other objectives.
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Category Tactics:
Category tactics refer to the tactical requirements to achieve the score card
targets. These tactics are compared with those of the competition to attain the
best advantage and edge and many centre on the areas of assortment, pricing,
space planning, promotions etc.
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Problem: What is the markup percentage for a dress that cost is 200 rupees and
retails for 400 rupees?
Markup %= MRPCost/Cost *100
=400200
=200/200*100
=100%
Sometime the retailer needs to look at the cost of an item and determine what
the item should retail for. It is fixed if the target customer is willing to pay that
price.
Markdown is the amount reduced from the MRP to arrive at the new retail price.
Markdown is calculated as a percentage of MRP.
Problem: What is the markdown percentage for address whose original MRP is
400 and the new MRP after markdown is 200.
Markdown % = Difference b/w old MRPNew after markdown/old MRP*100
=400-200/400*100
=50%
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The merchandise budget plan aims to setup specific merchandise objectives and
to plan financial aspects of the merchandise side of the business. It involves
bellow steps.
Planning Data:
Assortment Plan: Historical precedence is the starting point for developing
assortment plan for any season.
Sale Forecast: It is a simple way to adjust past sales to make projections into
the future. Sources of information for sales forecast could be
Previous sales volumes with real trends are identified.
Published sources
Customer information-Through observation, sales people and market
research.
Observing competition.
Vendors, Distributors, Channel partners and expert judgments.
Method of forecast is mainly
A. Time series-Moving average-Average of several months sales, as each new
period sale data is added the average the oldest period is removed from total.
B .Time sales-exponential smoothing-often used for short range forecasting.
New forecast =Old forecast+ f (Actual demand Old forecast) where f is constant
between 0 and 1 that determine influence actual demand on the new forecast.
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Supplier selection
Supplier contracts designing
Product design collaborations
Procurement of material
Performance evaluation of suppliers.
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Some of the scoring points while identifying the right supplier using supplier
scoring and assessment are noted bellow.
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Supplier A
2
3
4
2
2
2
Supplier B
5
4
1
4
4
4
Supplier C
3
1
3
3
4
3
2.5
3.6
2.8
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Vendor Management
The use of the following sourcing practices makes sourcing easier and managing
vendors efficiently resulting in order costs and increasing the overall profitability
of firm.
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Inventory Management
Inventory is very large and costly investment that every stage of the supply chain
needs to incur. Every stage works independently to
make supply chain
profitable. Thus it is very important that every stage of supply chain co-ordinates
and together forms the inventory policy. A large number of firms make use of
following two approaches in combination when managing the inventory in order
to meet profitable variability.
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Types of Inventory:
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
Cycle Inventory
Safety stock
Speculative Inventory
Seasonal Inventory
Dead Stock
a) Cycle Inventory:
Defined as average inventory that exists in the supply chain either due to
production or purchase of products in lot sizes that are larger than those
demanded by the customers.
b) Safety Stock
Safety inventory can be defined as inventory carried for the purpose of satisfying
the demand that exceeds the amount forecasted for a given period of time. Due
to the uncertainty in the demand a product shortage may result. The table bellow
shows the summary of alternate service labels, safety stock levels and also the
total average inventory to be maintained. Fill rate represents the magnitude of a
stock out .It represents the percentage of units demanded that are on hand to fill
the customers orders.
Safety Level
84.20%
90.30%
94.50%
97.70%
98.90%
99.50%
99.90%
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Of Std.devi
requirement
1.0
1.3
1.6
2.0
2.3
2.6
3.0
Safety Stock
Requirement
176
230
280
350
406
450
530
Average cycle
Stock
500
500
500
500
500
500
500
Total Average
Inventory
676
730
780
880
906
950
1030
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C) Speculative Inventory:
Stock held for reason other than satisfying current demand .Reasons can be bulk
purchases larger than demand to get bulk discounts of a failure of a future price
increase or future shortage expected.
D) Seasonal Inventory:
Form of speculative demand accumulation of inventory before a season begins.
E) Dead Stock:
Products which have no demand registered over a large period of time. Products
are obsolete and block working capital.
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Handling cost:
Include receiving and storage cost of products.
Occupancy cost:
Show an incremental charge in the space cost due t the change n the cycle
inventory. If a firm is charged on of units stored we call it direct occupancy costs.
Miscellaneous costs:
Deal with large number of costs such as costs due to theft, damage, tax and
insurance that may be incurred by the company.
Ordering costs:
Cost associated with placing or receiving an extra order independent of the size of
the order.
Transportation cost:
A fixed transportation cost is often incurred by firms regardless of the size of the
order.
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IT would help retail in providing the right product at the right place at the right
time with a price tag acceptable to customers. It provides hardware and software
capabilities to cover end to end retail business operations and also critical in
efficiently and effectively carrying out all the core functions which would include
global sourcing ,procurement, merchandising compliance,logstics,demand
forecasting ,product innovation, point of sale data management, property
management,marketing,CRM,Loyality Management.
It can leverage sales history and anticipated demand to create an accurate
forecast of customer demand.
Simulate midterm and long term planning options allocate resources and
make strategic sourcing decisions in a timely fashion to best meet
operational goals.
Integrate sourcing, purchasing, production, distribution and transportation
to create a demand plan.
Create a calculated, time phased replenishment plan based on customer
demand forecast and using automated state of the art algorithms within
the supply chain.
Institute real time inventory tracking across all channels enabling the
retailers to manage and monitor stocks and values and minimize the
inventory levels while avoiding out of stock situations.
Ensure an efficient warehouse management system, picking and packing,
controlling logistics documents and in bound monitoring.
Move from a product push to a customer pull approach and reap the
rewards of reduced operating costs and larger profit margins.
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Point of Sale:
POS system capture data about orders at the POS are frequently found in fast
food chains and grocery stores. The POS provide immediate update to sale and
inventory systems and allow firms to monitor sales trends as they happen.
The information available from POS becomes input to the financial accounting
systems which then supply data to marketing information systems.
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RFID:
Radio frequency identification is a wireless barcode which provides wireless
communication between objects and readers. FID uses embedded microchips
containing information about item, location. It has the ability to identify and track
products and equipment in real time without contact or line of sight. Its offers
reading, waiting, transmitting and storing and updating information. It can track
inventory and tasks performed by employees in store, customer profiles,
transaction history and levels of stock.
VPN:
Virtual private network is a secure connection between 2 points across internet,
enables private communications to travel securely over public infrastructure. It
saves long distance communication costs.
EDI:
Electronic data interchange is the in charge of business information through
standard interfaces by using computers without requiring re-keying information.
Main benefits are saves time and data transmission is immediate, reduced
manual errors, no paper handling.
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POSITIONING
FORMAT TYPE
PITCH
TARGET
CUSTOMER
SHOPERS STOP
LIFESTYLE
WESTSIDE
Excellent shopping
experience
Multi brand
Trendy, Vibrant
,Youth Brand
Multi brand
Shopping
Latest Fashion
Affordable Style
experience
Affluent consumers Affluent consumers Affluent consumers
Positioning
Product
Price
Promotion
People
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Positioning
Parameters
How started
Shoppers Stop
Lifestyle
Westside
Lifestyle is part of
the
landmark
group, a Dubai
based retail chain
which made its
way
in
India
through fashion
retailing.
What they
did
Present
positioning
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Ultimate
shopping
experience
Second
idea
Feel
the
experience while you
shop New idea Start
something new
Started
its
loyalty Started its loyalty
program in 1994: First program in Jan
citizen card.
2001: The inner
circle.
First citizen member The inner circle
base is 1100000.
has a customer
Contribution to sales base of 750000.
66%
Contribution to
sales 40%.
Currently operating
more than 24 store
Currently
operating more
than 13 store
affordable price
New idea Keep
your style alive
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Store ambience:
Well designed, beautiful and air conditioned ambience
Gives a classy royal feeling, round decorative staircase in the centre of the
store.
Aisle Space:
Maximum aisle space for convenient movement of both customer and CSA
(during stock replenishment)
Signage:
Sale signages in green color.
Other signages in black white
Signages depicting styles and size not properly arranged.
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Lifestyle:
Trial room:
More than that of Westside but lesser than that of shopper stop.
Mirrors on three sides aligned from edge to edge which makes it look
spacious.
Store ambience:
Well designed beautiful ambience
AC not sufficient as per the footfalls in the store.
Aisle space:
Sufficient aisle space for convenient movement of both customers and CSA
(during stock replenishment).
Signage:
Less use of signages
Only signages denoting different sections present
Westside:
Trail room:
Least in no, only 4 in each floor.
Biggest in size but mirror on one side only.
Store ambience:
Well designed interiors, sprawling space and air-conditioned ambience.
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Aisle space:
Cluttered arrangement of merchandise and less aisle space.
Arrangement of merchandise in a circular format to give an attractive
display.
Signage:
Proper and effective use of signage denoting sizes, segment etc.
Special offers like BEST BUY highlighted.
For kids swear distinction made clearly by mention of the relevant age
group.
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Product
It is noted that in most of the categories the no. of style option available in
lifestyle is 20-25% lesser than that of shoppers stop: except footwear category
Lifestyle shoe mart collection far exceeds that of shopper stop.
In most of the categories the no of style options available in Westside is almost
half of Lifestyle.
4-5 colors are available for most of the styles like for T-shirts, Tops, and Kurtis.
Style option available in formal trousers in shoppers stop, lifestyle and Westside
and almost equal.
Value pack of 3 T-shirts in a set in different colors was being promoted in both
shoppers stop and lifestyle whereas it was not present in Westside.
Innerwear was mostly available in sets.
More of singles counts are used for sport /casual wear shirts across all the brands.
Fast moving sizes 40 & 42 in shirts. 32 &34 in Trousers
Least moving 44 & 46 in shirts and 38& 40 in Trouser.
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Cargoes
Track pants
Shorts
Denim Skirts
Category SKD in lifestyle and Westside had almost similar style option.
IKAT, Khadi, mangalgiri are popular among kurtis and SKDs.
Style options available in lifestyle and shoppers stop are almost same in
categories.
Formal shirts
T-shirts and Tops
Denim Skirts
Cargoes
Shorts
Denims
Belts
Slips and spaghettis
Style options available in lifestyle are more than that of shoppers stop for
categories.
Scarfs
Kurtas
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Price
Price points of lifestyle and shoppers stop are almost head on head: except
Mens Jacket
Womens slippers
Womens sports shoe
The price point of Westside is prominently low as it comprises only of private
labels.
Formal shirts
Jackets
Ethnic wear
Scarf
It was observed that there was a vast difference in price points of private labels
and those national brands in shoppers stop and life style for
Suits and coats
Kurtas with yolks (priced at 549) were present in lifestyle and not in shoppers sop
and Westside.
Kurtas with bet at 399 were present in Westside while not in shoppers and
Lifestyle
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Promotion
Generally sales promotions used in red color but Shoppers stop is doing in normal
black at white colors, because Black and white became the identity of shoppers
stop.
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90
80
70
60
50
84.5
40
30
60.75
62.5
Shpper Stop
Lifestyle
Series1
20
10
0
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Westside
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People
Shoppers stop:
CSA Intensity:
Per 2 brand 3 CSA
CSA capability:
Strong knowledge base.
Proper training for 3 months at the time of joining.
Good PR and communication.
Well groomed and emphasis on customer satisfaction.
No direct recruitment for senior CSA .Juniors are promoted as seniors based on
their performance.
Lifestyle:
CSA intensity:
Per brand 1 CSA.
CSA capability:
Strong knowledge base
Proper training for 6 months at the time of joining.
Good PR and communication skill.
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Westside:
CSA intensity:
Per segment 3-4 CSAs
CSA capability:
Basic knowledge of the particular segment.
Proper training for 6 months at the time of joining.
Good PR and communication skills.
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Chapter: 2-Objective
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Chapter-3: Hypothesis
During my research I found that Merchandising is a significant function of
retailing. It deals with merchandise planning, presentation and management in a
retail store with the objective of having the right product in the right place, in the
right mix, in the right price at the right time.
The merchandise range and mix in a store has to be planned meticulously and
grouped in a merchandise hierarchy for a better understanding and analysis of
sales and stock.
Merchandise presentation too is important for a retail store. Hence a planogram
depicting the placement of merchandise in the right places and right quantities
requires to be worked out.
Category management with a strategic business unit approach helps manage
merchandise profitably besides enabling a speedy response to customers
requirements.
Carefully planning of markdowns and prevention of shrinkage will yield better
margins for a store.
Today market is full of competition, same product offered by various brand, so
need to understand the trends and taste of consumer, for that proper
merchandise and assortment plan is needed. All the finding and
recommendations may be or may not be true; this research is based on data
available as today.
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40
30
Series1
50
20
30
10
20
0
Shoppers stop
Lifestyle
Westside
60
50
40
30
Series1
50
20
30
10
20
0
Shoppers Stop
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Lfestyle
Westside
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Series1
50
20
27
23
10
0
Shopper Stop
Lifestyle
Westside
Series1
20
30
10
20
0
Shopper Stop
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Lifestyle
Westside
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Series1
50
20
35
10
15
0
Shopper Stop
Lifestyle
Westside
50
Series1
20
30
10
20
0
Shopper Stop
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Lifestyle
Westside
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Series1
20
10
26
24
Shopper Stop
Lifestyle
0
Westside
40
Series1
35
25
10
5
0
Shopper Stop
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Lifestyle
Westside
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Series1
45
20
15
10
5
20
10
0
Color
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5
Fabric
8
Price
12
Quality
Style
Brand
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Chapter-6: Findings
Why Merchandising is important for retail business.
Crisis of unorganized retail in Inventory control.
The lead time between the order and the delivery of different SKUs was not
too high (about 1-2 days). However, in the case of beverages, the lead time
needs to be brought down.
The outlets used the option of buying on credit and sometimes they bought
the merchandise on cash also. As regards the credit period available for the
retailers, the period varied and mostly one month credit period was
common.
Premium brands do not have much growth. It is the higher priced
merchandise which is contributing to the overall Gross Margin.
Despite being a bottoms centric brand, the Tops market shows some
potential.
Frequent replenishments lead to less cycle inventory.
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Chapter-7: Recommendations
The new retail store should be positioned in between lifestyle and shopper
stop with emphasis on quality and fashion and latest trends that provides
value for money to the customer giving them a wonderful shopping
experience.
The upcoming store should have loyalty program.
Te outlet should emphasis on brand building as people buy product not as a
brand but as a store product.
Same color story should be used both for nesting table as well as for wall
display.
The nesting table should be stacked low or else it creates an effect of a
hypermarket.
Fast moving sizes should be determined and provisions should be made for
stock replenishment.
There should be sufficient style options across all segments and categories.
Merchandise should cover a wide range in terms of price points so that it
caters to different customer segments having different disposable income.
Since in different parts of India festivals are important, the store should
promote its merchandise according its demography to Ancash on the
festive mood of the customers.
New offerings should be clubbed and displayed in reasonably size and
place.
An increase in forecast error accuracy decreases both overstocked and
under stocked quantity and increases firm profit.
There are a number of cases of bar code mistakes due to wrong printing or
tagging. Ruggers are the performing brand of the store and Bay Island is a
non performing brand for the store.
The store is facing problem of stock out in certain brands and excess stock
in other which needs to be balanced.
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Chapter-8: Bibliography
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Chapter-9: Conclusion
Merchandising is the term used to signify articles for sale; it derives from the
word merchant, the actual seller or retailer. Fashion merchandising includes all
the planning and activities necessary to supply the fashion wants and needs of
retail customers. In the past fashion merchandising was usually associated only
with womens apparels and accessories.
Today, stores use aggressive merchandising techniques for mens and children
clothing too. Fashion influence has also spread to all other areas of retailing from
cosmetics and home furnishings to cookware.
Implementation of Retail Intelligence software to address the lacunas identified in
the current buying process. Proposed and implemented Retail Performs to
increase operational efficiency in the Retail Environment. Monitoring of Key
performance Indicators. Tracking planned vis--vis Actual store wise sales data.
Comprehensive Rating methodology for front end sales staff.
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Chapter-10: Glossary
Action Alley: The sales area of a store located immediately after entering.
Ad Slick: Ad slicks refer to the final, camera-ready advertisement. It gets its name
from the glossy paper on which it is printed.
Anchor Store: A major retail store used to drive business to smaller retailers that
physically surround it. These larger department stores or grocery stores are
generally part of a retail chain and are the prominent business in a shopping mall.
ANSI: American National Standard Institute
Average Inventory Cost: Average inventory cost is found by adding the beginning
cost of inventory for each month plus the ending cost inventory of the last month
in the period. If calculating for a season, divide by seven. If calculating for a year,
divide by thirteen.
Big Box Stores: Large stand-alone store with varying market niches.
Bill of Lading: A bill of lading is a document used as evidence that a transport
company or carrier received goods from a shipper.
Black Friday: Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving- it's the biggest shopping
day of the year.
Brand: A brand is a name, symbol, or other identifying mark for a vendor's goods
or services. It is distinct from other vendors.
Break pack: A carton received in the warehouse with two or more inner selling
units that can be broken down and shipped to the stores.
Break-even Point: The point in business where the sales equal the expenses.
There is no profit and no loss.
Brick and Mortar: Brick-and-mortar store are retail shops with permanent
physical locations.
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Business Plan: A detailed document describing the past, present, and future
financial and operational objectives of a company.
Case Pack: Merchandise shipped in full cases. Cartons cannot be broken into
smaller cases.
Cash Discount: A percentage reduction in price for payment within a specified
period of time.
Cash Flow: The movement of money in and out of a business and the resulting
availability of cash.
Category Killer: A large retail chain store that is dominant in its product category.
This type of store generally offers an extensive selection of merchandise at prices
so low that smaller stores cannot compete.
Chain Store: One of a number of retail stores under the same ownership and
dealing in the same merchandise.
Comp Sales: Comparable-store sales are a measurement of productivity in
revenue used to compare sales of retail stores that have been open for a year or
more. Historical sales data allows retailers to compare this year's sales in their
store to the same period last year.
Contribution Margin: Contribution margin is the difference between total sales
revenue and total variable costs. The term is applied to a product line and is
generally expressed as a percentage.
CO-OP: An advertising allowance offered by a vendor, payable upon proof of an
ad having been run.
Cost of Goods Sold: The price paid for the product, plus any additional costs
necessary to get the merchandise into inventory and ready for sale, including
shipping and handling.
Coupon: A promotional tool in the form of a document that can be redeemed for
a discount when purchasing goods or services. Coupons feature specific savings
amount or other special offer to persuade consumers to purchase specific goods
or services or to purchase from specific retailers.
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People
are fretful about lifestyle retailing because the idea that anyone's
immortal soul and deepest longings can be quite so readily anticipated and
consolidated with several hundred thousand other like-minded types is worrying.
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