CHAPTER-1

INTRODUCTION

DEFINITIONS OF MARKETING

“Marketing is defined as the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating,
communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers,
clients, partners, and society at large.”

-American Marketing Association

“Marketing is defined as the management process responsible for identifying anticipating
and satisfying customer requirements profitability”

-The Chartered Institute Of Marketing

“Marketing is defined as satisfying needs and wants through an exchange process”

-Philip Kotler
“Marketing is not about providing products or services it is essentially about providing
changing benefits to the changing needs and demands of the customer”

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 EVOLUTION OF MARKETING

1. STAGE OF BARTER :-

The pre Industrial Revolution world was characterized by an agricultural cum

Handicraft economy. The agriculturalist, whether he produced corn or cotton, meat or
butter, disposed of the surplus in his immediate neighborhood. These products were
required in the neighborhood by those who were not engaged in such activities. There
was no elaborate distribution system, as the needs and habits of the people and prevailing
technology did not demand such a system. This represented the stage of barter in the
evolution of marketing.

2. STAGE OF MONEY ECONOMY :-

The change was limited to the replacement of the barter system by the money system,
pricing becoming the mechanism of the exchange process.

3. STAGE OF INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION:-

They were many changes that took place during this stage. The industrial revolution gave
birth to a new business system. It introduced new products, new systems of
manufacturing, new modes of transportation and methods of communication. This stage
brought about sweeping changes in the physical and economic environment.

4. STAGE OF COMPETITION:-

This stage was characterized by the increasing number and size of the producing firms
which generated the phenomenon of competition.

5. EMERGENCE OF MARKETING:-

After World War two, there was a substantial increase in population. The disposable
income of the average family registered an increase. New industrial concerns sprang up
rapidly. A great variety of changes came about during this period which leads to the
emergence of marketing.

MARKETING HISTORY

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Much of traditional marketing practice prior to the twentieth century remained hidebound
by rules-of-thumb and lack of information. Information technology, especially since the
mid-twentieth century, has given the marketer new channels of communication as well as
enhanced means of aggregating and analyzing marketing data. Specializations have
emerged (especially sales versus marketing and advertising versus retailing) and re-
combined (business development) over the years.

Timeline of innovation

 1450: Gutenberg's metal movable type, leading eventually to mass-production

of flyers and brochures
 1730s: emergence of magazines (a future vector of niche marketing)
 1836: first paid advertising in a newspaper (in France)
 1839: posters on private property banned in Landon
 1864: earliest recorded use of the telegraph for mass unsolicited spam
 1867: earliest recorded billboard rentals
 1880s: early examples of trademarks as branding
 1905: The University of Pennsylvania offered a course in "The Marketing of
Products"
 · 1908: Harvard Business School opens
 · 1922: radio advertising commences
 · 1940s: electronic computers developed
 · 1941: first recorded use of television advertising
 · 1950s: systematization of telemarketing
 · 1970s: E-commerce invented
 · 1980s: emergence of relationship marketing
 · 1980s: emergence of computer-oriented spam
 · 1984: introduction of guerilla marketing
 · 1985: desktop publishing democratizes the production of print-advertising
 · 1995-2001: the Dot-com bubble temporarily re-defines the future of
marketing
 · 1996: identification of viral marketing.

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 Consumer Behaviour
Consumer buying behaviour- refers to the buying behaviors of final consumers -
individuals and households that buy goods and services for personal consumption. All of
these final consumers combined make up the consumer market. The world consumer
market consists of about 5.5 billion people, but the billion people living in North
America, western Europe and Japan make up 70 per cent of the world's spending power.1
Even within these wealthy consumer markets, consumers vary tremendously in age,
income, education level and tastes. They also buy an incredible variety of goods and
services. How these diverse consumers make their choices among various products
embraces a fascinating array of factors.

DEFINITION OF CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR

According to the American Marketing Association, Consumer Behavior is defined as "the

dynamic interaction of affect and cognition, behavior, and environmental events by
which human beings conduct the exchange aspects of their lives."
Belch and Belch define consumer behavior as “the process and activities people engage
in when searching for, selecting, purchasing, using, evaluating, and disposing of products
and services so as to satisfy their needs and desires”
Consumer behavior is the study of when, why, how, where and what people do or do not
buy products. It blends elements from psychology, sociology, social psychology,
anthropology and economics. It attempts to understand the buyer decision making
process, both individually and in groups. It studies characteristics of individual
consumers such as demographics and behavioural variables in an attempt to understand
people's wants. It also tries to assess influences on the consumer from groups such as
family, friends, reference groups, and society in general.

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Model of buyer behaviour

In earlier times, marketers could understand consumers well through the daily experience
of selling to them. But as firms and markets have grown in size, many marketing decision
makers have lost direct contact with their customers and must now turn to consumer
research. They spend more money than ever to study consumers, trying to learn more
about consumer behaviour. Who buys? How do they buy? When do they buy? Where do
they buy? Why do they buy?

The central question for marketers is; how do consumers respond to various marketing
stimuli that the company might use? The company that really understands how
consumers will respond to different product features, prices and advertising appeals has a
great advantage over its competitors. Therefore, companies and academies have
researched heavily the relationship between marketing stimuli and consumer response.
Their starting point is the stimulus -response model of buyer behavior shown This shows
that marketing and other stimuli enter the consumer's 'black box1 and produce certain
responses.

Marketers must figure out what is in the buyer's black box.2. Marketing stimuli consist of
the four Ps: product, price, place and promotion. Other stimuli include significant forces
and events in the buyer's environment; economic, technological, political and cultural.
All these stimuli enter the buyer's black box, where they are turned into a set of
observable buyer responses: product choice, brand choice, dealer choice, purchase timing
and purchase amount.

The marketer wants to understand how the stimuli are changed into responses inside the
consumer's black box, which has two parts. First, the buyer's characteristics influence
how he or she perceives and reacts to the stimuli. Second, the buyer's decision process
itself affects the buyer's behaviors.

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Characteristics Affecting Consumer Behaviour

Consumer purchases are influenced strongly by cultural, social, personal and

psychological characteristics, as shown. For the most part, marketers cannot control such
factors, but they must take them into account. We illustrate these characteristics for the
ease of a hypothetical customer, Anna Flores. Anna is a married graduate who works as a
brand manager in a leading consumer packaged-goods company. She wants to buy a
camera to take on holiday. Many characteristics in her background will affect the way she
evaluates cameras and chooses a brand.

Cultural Factors

Cultural factors exert the broadest and deepest influence on consumer behavior. The
marketer needs to understand the role played by the buyer's culture, subculture and social
class.

Culture:
Culture is the most basic cause of a person's wants and behaviour. Human behavior is
largely learned. Growing up in a society, a child learns basic values, perceptions, wants
and behaviours from the family and other important institutions. Like most wisent people,
in childhood observed and learned values about achievement and success, activity and
involvement, efficiency and practicality, progress, material comfort, individualism,
freedom, humanitananism, youthfulness, and fitness and health. Sometimes we take these
values forgranted, but they are not cultural universals. Marketers are always trying to spot
cultural shifts in order to imagine new products that might be wanted. For example, the
cultural shift towards greater concern about health and fitness has created a huge industry
for exercise equipment and clothing, lower-calorie and more natural foods, and health
and fitness services.

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This allowed Snapple to change the face of the US soft-drinks market with its 'new age'
iced teas and fruit-flavored drinks. The shift towards informality has resulted in more
demand for casual clothing, simpler home furnishings and lighter entertainment. And the
increased desire for leisure time has resulted in more demand for convenience products
and services, such as microwave ovens, fast food and direct line financial services such as
First Direct and Direct Line. Concern for the environment is influencing consumer
behavior both through legislation and through demand for less wasteful goods.

Subculture:

Each culture contains smaller subcultures or groups of people with shared value Systems
based on common life experiences and situations. Subcultures include Nationalities,
religions, racial groups and geographic regions. Many subcultures make up important
market segments and marketers often design products and marketing programmers
tailored to their needs," The huge US market of 260 million people has Hispanic
(approaching 40million) and black (over 30 million) subcultures that are bigger than most
national markets.
In all developed economies the graying population is growing rapidly. Marketers often
have a poor understanding of these over-55s who will be a huge market force in the next
millennium.7 Like all other people, Anna Florcs' buying behavior will be influenced by
her subculture identification.
It will affect her food preferences, clothing choices, recreation activities and career goals.
Subcultures attach different meanings to picture taking and this could affect both Anna's
interest in cameras and the brand she buys.

Social Factors:
A consumer's behaviour is also influenced by social factors, such as the consumer's small
groups, family, and social roles and status. Because these social factors can strongly
affect consumer responses, companies must take diem into account when designing their
marketing strategies.

Groups
Groups influence a person's behaviour. Groups that have a direct influence and to which a
person belongs are called membership groups. Some are primary groups with whom there
is regular but informal interaction - such as family, friends, neighbors and fellow
workers. Some are secondary groups, which are more formal and have less regular
interaction. These include organizations like religious groups, professional associations
and tradeunions.Reference groups are groups that serve as direct (face-to-face) or indirect
points of comparison or reference in forming a person's attitudes or behaviour.

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Reference groups to which they do not belong often influence people. For example, an
aspirational group is one to which the individual wishes to belong, as when a teenage
football player hopes to play some day for Manchester United. He identifies with them,
although there is no face-to-face contact between him and the team. Marketers try to
identify the reference groups of their target markets. Reference groups influence a person
in at least three ways. They expose the person to new behaviors and lifestyles. They
influence the person's attitudes and self-concept because he or she wants to 'fit in'. They
also create pressures to conform that may affect the person's product and brand choices
The importance of group influence varies across products and brands, but it tends to be
strongest for conspicuous purchases.
A product or brand can be conspicuous for one of two reasons. First, it may be noticeable
because the buyer is one of few people who owns it-luxuries, such as a vintage Wurlitzer
juke box or a Rolex, are more conspicuous than necessities because fewer people own the
luxuries. Second, a product such as Carlsberg ICE beer or Perrier can be conspicuous
because the buyer consumes it in public where others can see it. It shows how group
influence might affect product and brand choices for four types of product -public
luxuries, private luxuries, public necessities and private necessities. A person considering
the purchase of a public luxury, such as a yacht, will generally be influenced strongly by
others.
Many people will notice the yacht because few people own one. If interested, they will
notice the brand because the boat is used in public. Thus both the product and the brand
will be conspicuous and the opinions of others can strongly influence decisions about
whether to own a boat and what brand to buy. At the other extreme, group influences do
not much affect decisions about private necessities because other people will notice
neither the product nor the brand.

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Family
Family members can strongly influence buyer behaviour. We can distinguish between
two families in the buyer's life. The buyer's parents make up the family of orientation.
Parents provide a person with an orientation towards religion, politics and economies,
and a sense of personal ambition, self-worth and love. Even if the buyer no longer
interacts very much with his or her parents, the latter can still significantly influence the
buyer's behaviour. In countries where parents continue to live with their children, their
influence can be crucial. The families of procreation - the buyer’s spouse and children -
have a more direct influence on everyday buying behaviour. This family is the most
important consumer buying organization in society and it has been researched
extensively. Marketers are interested in the roles and relative influence of the husband,
wife and children on the purchase of a large variety of products and services. Husband-
wife involvement varies widely by product category and by stage in the buying process.
Buying roles change with evolving consumer lifestyles. Almost everywhere in the world,
the wife is traditionally the main purchasing agent for the family, especially in the areas
of food, household products and clothing. But with over 60 per cent or more women
holding jobs outside the home in developed countries and the willingness of some
husbands to do more of the family's purchasing, all this is changing. For example, in the
United States women now buy about 45 per cent of all cars and men account for about-40
per cent of expenditure on food shopping.1" Such roles vary widely among different
countries and social classes. As always, marketers must research specific patterns in their
target markets.

CONSUMERS' BUYING ROLES:

Group members can influence purchases in many ways. For example, men normally
choose their own newspaper and women choose their own tights. For other products,
however, the decision-making unit is more complicated with
People playing one or more roles:

Initiator. The person who first suggests or thinks of the idea of buying a particular
product or service. This could he a parent of friends who would Like to see a visual
record of Anna's holiday.

Influencer. A person whose view or advice influences the buying decision, perhaps a
friend who is a camera enthusiast or a salesperson.

Decider. The person who ultimately makes a buying decision or any part of it -
Whether to buy, what to buy, how to buy or where to buy.

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Buyer. The person who makes an actual purchase. Once the buying decision is made,
someone else could make the purchase for the decider.

User. The person who consumes or uses a product or service. Once bought, other
members of her family could use a digital camera.

Personal Factors

Age and Life-Cycle Stage

People change the goods and services they buy over their lifetimes. Tastes in food,
clothes, furniture and recreation are often age related. Buying is also shaped by the family
life cycle - the stages through which families might pass as they mature over time. Table
6.2 lists the stages of the family life cycle. Marketers often define their target markets in
terms of lifecycle stage and develop appropriate products and marketing plans for each
stage.

Occupation
A person's occupation affects the goods and services bought. Blue-collar workers tend to
buy more work clothes, whereas white-collar workers buy more suits and ties. Marketers
try to identify the occupational groups that have an above-average interest in their
products and services. A company can even specialize in making products needed by a
given occupational group. Thus computer software companies will design different
products for brand managers, accountants, engineers, lawyers and doctors.

Economic Circumstances
A person's economic situation will affect product choice. Consumer considers buying an
expensive Olympus auto focus super zoom camera if she has enough disposable income,
savings or borrowing power. Marketers of income sensitive goods closely watch trends in
personal income, savings and interest.

The Consumer Decision-Making Process

What consumers think and the social environment they live in determine what they buy
and how that purchase decision is made. Typically, the decision process is described as a
series of five stages. The first stage, need recognition, occurs when consumers perceive a
difference between their ideal and actual states. Need recognition is often prompted by
persuasive advertising. Consumers then begin with the second stage, the Information
Search process by conducting an internal search of their own knowledge structures,
followed by an external search for information from friends, family members,
salespeople, and advertisements. This step can clarify the problem, providing criteria to
use for assessing product alternatives and resulting in a subset, or "consideration set," of
potential choices. These options are then assessed more completely in the third stage,
alternative evaluation.

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In the third stage namely Alternative Evaluation, products in the consideration set are
compared with one another. Sometimes a simple heuristic rule of thumb, such as "I'm
going to buy the cheapest product" is used. At other times a more complex strategy, such
as a weighted-average model that compensates for product strengths and weaknesses, is
used. After examining each alternative, consumers are ready to purchase. The fourth step
is the Decision Process during which the consumer makes his final decision about the
purchase and goes ahead to make the purchase.
Finally, after buying, the consumers enter the Post-purchase Phase of the process, during
which the performance of the chosen alternative is evaluated in light of prior
expectations.
Consumers will be satisfied with the product if it meets or exceeds expectations;
dissatisfaction occurs if the product does not meet expectations. This model of consumer
behavior, while very useful, is highly simplified and does not always accurately reflect
the decision process consumers follow. Consumers may not always proceed linearly
through the five steps as described, and sometimes they may skip certain steps entirely.
However, the model is a close approximation of the process for most consumers for most
purchase occasions. We are all consumers. Understanding why we behave as we do is
integral to an efficient transfer of goods and services in a market-driven economy.

APPAREL INDUSTRY
Retail is India's largest industry. It accounts for over 10 per cent of the India's GDP and
around eight per cent of the employment. Retail sector is one of India's fastest growing
sectors with a 5 per cent compounded annual growth rate. India's huge middle class base
and its untapped retail industry are key attractions for global retail giants planning to
enter newer markets. Driven by changing lifestyles, strong income growth and favorable
demographic patterns, Indian retail is expected to grow 25 per cent annually. It is
expected that retail in India could be worth US$ 175-200 billion by 2016. The organized
retail industry in India had not evolved till the early 1990s. Until then, the industry was
dominated by the un-organized sector. It was a sellers market, with a limited number of
brands, and little choice available to customers. Lack of trained manpower, tax laws and
government regulations all discouraged the growth of organized retailing in India during
that period. Lack of consumer awareness and restrictions over entry of foreign players
into the sector also contributed to the delay in the growth of organized retailing.
Foundation for organized retail in India was laid by Kishore Biyani of Pantaloon Retails
India Limited (PRIL). Following Pantaloon's successful venture a host of Indian business
giants such as Reliance, Bharti, Birla and others are now entering into retail. . A number
of factors are driving India's retail market. These include: increase in the young working
population, hefty pay-packets, nuclear families in urban areas, increasing workingwomen
population, increase in disposable income and customer aspiration, increase in
expenditure for luxury items, and low share of organized retailing. India's retail boom is

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manifested in sprawling shopping centers, multiplex- malls and huge complexes that
offer shopping, entertainment and food all under one roof.

But there is a flip side to the boom in the retail sector. It is feared that the entry of global
business giants into organized retail would make redundant the neighbourhood kiryana
stores resulting in dislocation in traditional economic structure. Also, the growth path for
organized retail in India is not hurdle free. The taxation system still favours small retail
business. With the intrinsic complexities of retailing such as rapid price changes, constant
threat of product obsolescence and low margins there is always a threat that the venture
may turn out to be a loss making one. A perfect business model for retail is still in
evolutionary stage. Procurement is very vital cog in the retail wheel. The retailer has to
fight issues like fragmented sourcing, unpredictable availability, unsorted food provisions
and daily fluctuating prices as against consumer expectations of round-the-year steady
prices. Trained human resource for retail is another big challenge. The talent base is
limited and with the entry of big giants there is a cat fight among them to retain this
talent. This has resulted in big salary hikes at the level of upper and middle management
and thereby eroding the profit margin of the business. All the companies have laid out
ambitious expansion plans for themselves and they may be hampered due lack of
requisite skilled manpower. But retail offers tremendous for the growth of Indian
economy. If all the above challenges are tackled prudently there is a great potential that
retail may offer employment opportunities to millions living in small town and cities and
in the process distributing the benefits of economic boom and resulting in equitable
growth. Apparel is one of the basic necessities of human civilization along with food,
water and shelter. The Apparel Industry reflects people’s lifestyles and shows their social
and economic status. The Apparel and Textile industry, is India’s second largest industry
after IT Industry. At present, it is amongst the fastest growing industry segment and is
also the second largest foreign exchange earner for the country. The apparel industry
accounts for 26% of all Indian exports. The Indian government has targeted the apparel
and textiles industry segments to reach $50 billion by the year 2015 . China on the other
hand, has already reached their target of $52 billion in 2004, and therefore, it is very
possible for India to reach its target soon. One of the most interesting features of the
apparel industry is that, it migrates from high cost nations to the low cost nations. The
growth of the domestic demand for clothing in India is linked with the success of the
retailing sector. India presently has entered the second phase of growth and is witnessing
a massive rise in the domestic demand. This is primarily due to the rise in the standard of
living caused by the rise in the middle-income groups.

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In our present economic world of demand and supply, price and quality are the key
factors, which determine the success of any business. The key element here though, is the
cost of labor. India and China have a comparative advantage in this industry though, their
vast labor forces and the relatively low cost of labor.
Since, India and China have the advantage of making textiles and so fabric costs are
lower than in other countries, they have become the Apparel sourcing choice for many
international companies. Sourcing choices arise from profitability. This includes
considering costs, such as, buying factors of production, like land, buildings and
machines versus factors affecting revenues, including pricing, marketing, and
distribution. The issues of labor, material, shipping costs and tariffs structure also affect
the sourcing choices. Since, apparel production is a labor-intensive activity, wage rates
are also a major factor in sourcing decisions. This gives immediate competitive
advantage to producers in countries like India and China to export to more developed and
high cost countries like the United States and the European Union.

OVERVIEW OF THE RETAIL APPAREL INDUSTRY

The global fashion apparel industry is one of the most important sectors of the economy
in terms of investment, revenue, trade and employment generation all over the world.
Apparel industry has short product life cycles, tremendous product variety, volatile and
unpredictable demand, long and inflexible supply processes. The industry has been in a
transition over the last 20 years. Some of the its major contributors are:

· Significant consolidation in retail,

· Increasing use of electronic commerce in retail, and
· Wholesale trade

The clothing and apparel industry produces finished clothing products made from both
natural and manmade fibers like cotton, silk, wool, lenin, polyester, rayon, lycra and
denim. The important segments covered in apparel industry include kids clothing, mens
clothing, clothing for women, bridal wear, mens wedding wear and intimate apparel. The
apparel is sold through three major channels, which includes, brick & mortar, catalog and
through internet. The market share of the different channels is shown below

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STATE OF THE INDUSTRY: RETAIL APPAREL

HISTORY
· There are many social and political influences that have influenced the development of
the retail fashion industry as we know it today, from social reforms and interactions with
other cultures through travel, to the women’s rights movement, technology, industrialism,
and war.
· Of these factors, war, specifically the Civil War, has perhaps played the largest role in
the development of the retail aspect of today’s fashion industry. In pre-industrial
America, clothing was made for individuals at home or by tailors/dressmakers. When the
Civil War began to stretch out for a longer period than the few months originally
anticipated, a need for mass produced uniforms became apparent. Very quickly,
manufacturers of these uniforms began to realize that standardized sizes would be
necessary in order to enhance the speed of uniform production. Many soldiers were
measured, and standards agreed upon, many of which we still use today in the sizing of
men’s apparel.
· There was not a strong demand for mass-produced women’s clothing until the early
20th century and the development of many social, political, cultural, and governmental
factors that worked together to create a welcoming environment for bulk produced
women’s fashions:

i. Rise of a middle class of urban professionals

ii. Improved textile manufacturing technologies and production methods
iii. Growth of the advertising industry
iv. Development of national markets and chain stores, in addition to mail
Order catalogues)

· Although the above factors combined to create the right atmosphere for the
development of the women’s retail fashion industry, demand for mass produced apparel
was low at first. Because the first mass-produced apparel items did not have the benefit of
standardized sizes of men’s apparel, women often had to have ready-made clothes altered
by tailors and dressmakers at additional cost. Manufacturing companies also experienced
losses through returned merchandise and imperfections in their distribution systems.
· Many soon realized that size standardization was necessary; the first work to create such
as scale was done by the USDA’s National Bureau of Home Economics’ 1939-1940
study to women’s body measurements. From1949- 1952, the mail order association of
America and NIST conducted a survey of women’s body measurements to develop
standards for sizing of ready to wear clothing. The results of both studies are still being
used today to create sizing standards for women’s clothing, although there is a movement
to update the sizing (due to women’s changing body types created by changes in our
diets) through technologies like body scanning.

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CURRENT SOCIAL, POLITICAL, TECHNOLOGICAL,ECONOMIC
AND GOVERNMENTAL FACTORS INFLUENCING THE SECTOR

· Implementation of information technology; enhancing communication networks and

systems to facilitate interaction between customers and companies
· Movements to better track consumer trends, and create custom made clothes
Quickly
· Computer aided design and automated manufacturing plants
· Seamless integration through technology of each step in the manufacturing
process
· Internet sales
· Consumers demanding quality rather than lowest price/brand loyalty weak
· Most stable markets were for high-end luxury goods
· Outsourcing for lower production.
· Movement to stop manufacturing seasonally, rather by clothing type
· Internationalizing production/alliances formed between countries involved in
production of fashion goods
· Movement to market products in non-traditional areas, like Russia, S. Korea,
Turkey and S. America
· Many large, traditional companies having trouble (e.g., UK’s Marks and
Spencer, U.S.’s J.C. Penny
· Licensing brand names to stay afloat-Massimo’s agreement with target-3
Years, 1 billion dollars
· Increasing monitoring of the industry and certification of manufacturers-e.g.
UK’s ethical trade initiative, Australia’s Fair Ware Campaign
· Movement of higher wage textile jobs overseas (outsourcing) to lower wage
jobs in developing world (Asia and South America)
· Smaller companies that can’t compete with larger companies’ outsourcing
methods have closed or merged- like other sectors of the economy, mergers
are very common and large conglomerate corporations are growing
· De-regulation and lifting of quotas with china has had a huge impact on the
market- see quotes
· Three sectors within the industry: designers/jobbers, manufactures, and
retailers
· International agreements impact the industry: GATT-general agreement on
tariffs and trade- agreement began with negotiations 1986-1994) to reduce
tariffs that “hinder foreign competition” and established the WTO to develop
“fair, systematic trade policies”and NAFTA- 1994 which eliminated tariffs
among north American countries.

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 CHAPTER-2

RESEARCH DESIGN

INTRODUCTION

Research design is like the foundation for a building. Research design helps the
researcher to carry out the research in a planned and systematic manner. It comprises of
objectives of the study, title, statement of the problem etc. Every research needs an
efficient plan for it to be successful. Thus, it is vital to clearly define the research design
before going further with the study. Let us take a look at the skeleton or framework of the
research design.

TITLE OF THE PROJECT

The title of the project is “Consumer Behaviour towards Pantaloons Retail India Ltd.”

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Consumers are dynamic in nature, and it is not easy to understand their needs, wants,
desires, satisfaction levels etc, and hence it’s difficult to exactly determine their
behaviour, because there are many factors which influence consumer behaviour. The
retail apparel industry today has many big and small players and with the emergence of
new competitors the amount of competition is building up rapidly in the market. To
assess the ability of Pantaloons to cater to customer needs as well as identify solutions to
increase the conversion rate. Taking all this into consideration, this study has been
conducted on Consumer Behaviour towards Pantaloons Retail India Ltd

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

To know consumer needs and wants, tastes and Preferences.
To find out the awareness level of the consumers
To find out the factors that have influenced the customers, like location of the
store, ambience and layout, staff behaviour and other facilities.
To find out the frequency of visit of consumers
To measure the effectiveness of advertising
To find out what adds on to a consumers shopping experience
To find out if the reference group behaviour was practiced by the consumers
To find out the satisfaction level of the consumers, towards Pantaloon Retail India Ltd
To offer suggestions based on the findings

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SAMPLE SIZE
A total of 100 respondents were drawn as sample size randomly.

METHODS OF DATA COLLECTION

There are two methods used for data collection namely primary method and secondary
method. In Primary data collection, data is collected by ones own self using methods such
as interviews and questionnaires. The key point here is that the data collected is unique
and also the research because until it is published, no one else can have access to it. There
are many methods of collecting primary data and the main methods include:

 Questionnaires
 Interviews
 Focus group interviews
 Observation
 Case-studies
 Diaries
 Critical incidents
 Portfolios

Questionnaires
Questionnaires are a popular means of collecting data, but are difficult to design and
often require many rewrites before an acceptable questionnaire is produced.
Secondary data is data that has already been collected by someone else for a different
purpose to yours. For example, this could mean using:
· Data collected by a hotel on its customers through its guest history system
· Data supplied by a marketing organization
· Annual company reports
· Government statistics.

TOOLS OF DATA COLLECTION

Primary and secondary data has been used for the collection of data for this project.
Primary data or first hand information was collected with the help of questionnaire
method which was designed based on the objective of the study. The questionnaire
consisted of about 20 questions in total along with personal information, which was
optional. The questions were primarily objective type with a few open ended questions.
The survey was conducted only in the city of Delhi.
Secondary data has been taken from various sources including books, articles, magazines,
Internet etc.

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PLAN OF ANALYSIS
Analysis and interpretation of the data is shown with the help of charts and tables. The
data furnished by the questionnaires was tabulated to deduce the information and was
used for the purpose of analysis based on which the inferences and conclusions were
drawn.

LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

Utmost care was taken to complete the survey with accuracy, but there are a few
limitations of the study, they include: The study suffers from time and cost constraints, as
it is an academic study. It lacks specialization or expertise since the survey was
undertaken for academic purpose. The study suffers from geographical constraints as it
was conducted only Delhi whereas the other branches include Hyderabad, Ahmedabad,
Kolkata, Guwhati and many more. The study also suffers from time constraints since it
was supposed to be completed within a specific period of time.
The researcher being an undergraduate student may not be well versed with the
techniques of collecting and conducting a research. Hence there could be lack of required
information.

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 CHAPTER-3

COMPANY PROFILE

BACKGROUND
Pantaloon Retail (India) Limited (PRIL) was incorporated on October 12, 1987 as Manz
Wear Private Limited under the stewardship of Mr. Kishore Biyani. It then forayed into
modern retail in August 1997 with the launch of its first department store, Pantaloons in
Kolkata. It later changed its name to Pantaloon Retail (India) Limited on 7th July 1999.

LISTING
The Company was converted into a public limited company on September 20, 1991 and
on September 25, 1992 the name was changed to Pantaloon Fashions (India) Limited and
the same time it went public and today it has approximately 14,000 shareholders.
Pantaloon Retail is a listed company on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE, Scrip Code:
523574) and National Stock Exchange (NSE, Symbol: PANTALOON®).

OVERVIEW
Pantaloon Retail (India) Limited is India’s leading retailer with gross sales of Rs. 2,019
crores for the financial year ending June 2006. The company operates across multiple
segments including –Food, Books & Music, Fashion, Telecom & IT, Home &
electronics, General Merchandise, Leisure & Entertainment, Wellness, Health & Beauty
and E-tailing and that helps the company cater to every Indian customer. Pantaloon Retail
(India) Limited, is India’s leading retailer that operates multiple retail formats in both the
value and lifestyle segment of the Indian consumer market. Headquartered in Mumbai
(Bombay), the company operates over 12 million square feet of retail space, has over
1000 stores across 71 cities in India and employs over 30,000 people The company’s
leading formats include Pantaloons (department store), a chain of fashion outlets, Big
Bazaar(a uniquely Indian hypermarket chain), Food Bazaar(a supermarket chain), blends
the look, touch and feel of Indian bazaars with aspects of modern retail like choice,
convenience and quality and Central, Central(a chain of seamless destination malls).
Some of its other formats include Brand Factory, Blue Sky (fashion accessories),
all(fashion apparel for plus size individuals), Top 10 and Star and Sitara. The company
also operates an online portal, futurebazaar.com

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A subsidiary company, Home Solutions Retail (India) Limited, operates Home Town, a
large-format home solutions store, Depot (books and music), Shoe factory (footwear),
Collection I (home furnishings) and eZone focussed on catering to the consumer
electronics. Pantaloon Retail was recently awarded the International Retailer of the Year
2007 by the US-based National Retail Federation (NRF) and the Emerging Market
Retailer of the Year 2007 at the World Retail Congress held in Barcelona.

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FUTURE GROUP
Future Group, led by its founder and Group CEO, Mr. Kishore Biyani, is one of India’s
leading business houses with multiple businesses spanning across the consumption space.
While retail forms the core business activity of Future Group, group subsidiaries are
present in consumer finance, capital, insurance, leisure and entertainment, brand
development, retail real estate development, retail media and logistics. Led by its flagship
enterprise, Pantaloon Retail, the group operates over 12 million square feet of retail space
in 71 cities and towns and 65 rural locations across India. Headquartered in Mumbai
(Bombay), Pantaloon Retail employs around 30,000 people and is listed on the Indian
stock exchanges. The company follows a multi-format retail startegy that captures
almost the entire consumption basket of Indian customers. In the lifystyle segment, the
group operates Pantaloons, a fashion retail chain and Central, a chain of seamless malls.
In the value segment, its marquee brand, Big Bazaar is a hypermarket format that
combines the look, touch and feel of Indian bazaars.
In 2008, Big Bazaar opened its 100th store, marking the fastest ever organic expansion of
a hypermarket. The first set of Big Bazaar stores opened in 2001 in Kolkata, Hyderabad,
Bangalore.
The group’s specialty retail formats include, books and music chain, Depot, sportswear
retailer, Planet Sports, electronics retailer, Ezone, home improvement chain, Home Town
and rural retail chain, Aadhar, among others. It also operates popular shopping portal,
futurebazaar.com.
Future Capital Holdings, the group’s financial arm provides investment advisory to assets
worth over $1 billion that are being invested in consumer brands and companies, real
estate, hotels and logistics. It also operates a consumer finance arm with branches in 150
locations. Other group companies include, Future Generali, the group’s insurance venture
in partnership with Italy’s Generali Group, Future Brands, a brand development and IPR
company, Future Logistics, providing logistics and distribution solutions to group
companies and business partners and Future Media, a retail media initiative. The group’s
presence in Leisure & Entertainment segment is led through, Mumbai-based
listed company Galaxy Entertainment Limited. Galaxy leading leisure chains, Sports Bar
and Bowling Co. and family entertainment centres, F123. Through its partner company,
Blue Foods the group operates around 100 restaurants and food courts through brands
like Bombay Blues, Spaghetti Kitchen, Noodle Bar, The Spoon, Copper Chimney and
Gelato. Future Group’s joint venture partners include, US-based stationery products
retailer, Staples and Middle East-based Axiom Communications. The group’s flagship
company, Pantaloon Retail was awarded the International Retailer of the Year 2007, by
the US-based National Retail Federation, the largest retail trade Future Group believes in
developing strong insights on Indian consumers and building businesses based on Indian
ideas, as espoused in the group’s core value of ‘Indian ness.’ The group’s corporate credo
is, ‘Rewrite rules, Retain values.’

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CORPORATE STATEMENTS

FUTURE GROUP MANIFESTO

“Future” – the word which signifies optimism, growth, achievement, strength, beauty,
rewards and perfection. Future encourages us to explore areas yet unexplored, write rules
yet unwritten; create new opportunities and new successes. To strive for a glorious future
brings to us our strength, our ability to learn, unlearn and re-learn our ability to evolve.
We, in Future Group, will not wait for the Future to unfold itself but create future
scenarios in the consumer space and facilitate consumption because consumption is
development. There by, we will effect socio-economic development for our customers,
employees, shareholders, associates and partners. Our customers will not just get what
they need, but also get them where, how and when they need. We will not just post
satisfactory results, we will write success stories. We will not just operate efficiently in
the Indian economy, we will evolve it. We will not just spot trends, we will set trends by
marrying our understanding of the Indian consumer to their needs of tomorrow.It is this
understanding that has helped us succeed. And it is this that will help us succeed in the
Future. We shall keep relearning. And in this process, do just one thing. Rewrite Rules.
Retain Values.

GROUP VISION
Future Group shall deliver Everything, Everywhere, Every time for Every Indian
Consumer in the most profitable manner.

GROUP MISSION
· We share the vision and belief that our customers and stakeholders shall be served only
by creating and executing future scenarios in the consumption space leading to economic
development.
· We will be the trendsetters in evolving delivery formats, creating retail realty,
making consumption affordable for all customer segments – for classes and for masses.
· We shall infuse Indian brands with confidence and renewed ambition.
· We shall be efficient, cost- conscious and committed to quality in whatever we do.
· We shall ensure that our positive attitude, sincerity, humility and united
determination shall be the driving force to make us successful.

CORE VALUES
· Indian-ness: confidence in ourselves.
· Leadership: to be a leader, both in thought and business.
· Respect & Humility: to respect every individual and be humble in our conduct.
· Introspection: leading to purposeful thinking.
· Openness: to be open and receptive to new ideas, knowledge and information.

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· Valuing an d Nurturing Relationships: to build long term relationships.
· Simplicity & Positivity: Simplicity and positivity in our thought, business and action.
· Adaptability: to be flexible and adaptable, to meet challenges.
· Flow: to respect and understand the universal laws of nature.

During its evolution the company achieved various milestone and demonstrated
innovativeness and leadership by pioneering concepts that has now become industry
standards. Some of the major milestone achieved by the company during its life span is
enumerated below.

Major Milestones

1991 Launch of BARE, the Indian jeans brand.

1992 Initial public offer (IPO) was made in the month of May.
1994 The Pantaloon Shoppe – exclusive menswear store in franchisee format launched
across the nation. The company starts the distribution of branded garments through multi-
brand retail outlets across the nation.
1995 John Miller – Formal shirt brand launched.
1997 Pantaloons – India’s family store launched in Kolkata.
2001 Big Bazaar, ‘Is se sasta aur accha kahi nahin’ - India’s first hypermarket chain
launched.
2002 Food Bazaar, the supermarket chain is launched.
2004 Central – ‘Shop, Eat, Celebrate In The Heart Of Our City’ - India’s first seamless
mall is launched in Bangalore.
2005 Fashion Station - the popular fashion chain is launched all – ‘a little larger’ -
exclusive stores for plus-size individuals is launched
2006 Future Capital Holdings, the company’s financial arm launches real estate

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