ARCOT SRI MAHALAKSHMI WOMEN’S

INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT AND COMPUTER APPLICATIONS

VILLAPAKKAM

DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES

FIELD STUDY

PROJECT

2021-2022

NAME : PAVITHRA.B

REGISTER NO : 35121POTO28

TOPIC : STUDY ABOUT SALES STRATEGY OF

SUPER MARKET IN COMMON CHARACTERISTICS

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STUDY ABOUT SALES STRATEGY OF SUPER MARKET IN COMMON
CHARACTERISTICS

FIELD STUDY

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement of Thiruvalluvar University for

second semester of master’s degree
in
Business Administration

Submitted by
Name: PAVITHRA.B

Reg No: 35121POTO28

ARCOT SRI MAHALAKSHMI WOMEN’S

INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT AND COMPUTER APPLICATIONS
VILLAPAKKAM
(AFFILIATED TO THIRUVALLUVAR UNIVERSITY)
May-2022

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 ARCOT SRI MAHALAKSHMI WOMEN’S

INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT AND COMPUTER APPLICATIONS

VILLAPAKKAM

DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES

CERTIFICATE

This is certified to the Bonafide filed study done by PAVITHRA.B and Register
No 35121POTO28 during the Academic year 2021 -2022.

Mentor Head of the Department

Submitted for field study on the topic of STUDY ABOUT SALES STRATEGY OF
SUPER MARKET IN COMMON CHARACTERISTICS

Staff in charge Principal

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 Table of content

S .no Content Page no

1 INTRODUCTION 5

2 AREA OF THE STUDY 6

3 OBJECTIVES 7-8

4 OBSERVATION OF STUDY 9-22

5 FINDINGS 23

6 CONCLUSION 24

7 BIBLIOGRAPHY 25

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 1. INTRODUCTION

The Sales Strategy of Supermarket in common characteristics is a project that deals

with supermarket automation, and it includes both purchasing a selling of items. This
project is designed with a goal to making the existing system more informative,
reliable, fast and easier. There are many reasons for the starting of the project
because in the selling of items through the manual system of salesperson faces a lot of
inefficiencies. It requires handling of large record books that consist of both
irrelevant and important information’s thus making it difficult to find out the
required information as per necessity.

This is also a clumsy and untidy process that disturbs the smooth flow of work. But
this system introduced by us will reduce the huge number of papers works while on
the other side there are many more problems that persist in the manual system. They
reduce efficiency as well as the productivity level of human. Administrative module,
purchase module, employee module, sales module and billing module are some of the
various modules that make up our project.

The administrators consist of a unique password and names of the employees. It

helps the employees to make secure login. The ids and passwords are kept secret
from others. The modules of sales and purchase include all the details of selling and
purchasing. In the billing module the details of payments are clearly shown.

This is one of the best systems that can be introduced in the supermarket for
efficient management. It will also reduce the cumbersome job of finding the most
accurate data from the huge log books. It also helps the management to keep efficient
records of all the purchases and sales.

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 2. AREA OF THE STUDY

I conducted “STUDY ABOUT SALES STRATEGY OF SUPER MARKET IN

COMMON CHARACTERISTICS” in DAAS Supermarket can be found by the following address:
DAAS Complex, Thirupattur Main Road, Okkur, Sivaganga — 630557.

Going to the shop to refresh home stock or to make an unexpected purchase should
be productive. Establishments like Daas Supermarket are waiting for likely customers to provide
them with available products and help, whenever required.

Food, cleaning supplies and many other consumer goods from diverse trademarks can
be found here. Display racks are divided into sections that contain categorized sets
of merchandise. Consumers are offered with trolleys for comfortable shopping. Be sure to write
down a list of items you're planning to get and be aware of periodic promotions and discounts!

Here you can purchase bakery products, canned food, non-alcohol drinks.

Type
department store

Type of establishment
juice bar, confectionery shop, fast food

Products
Snack Products

Delivery of goods
Grocery Delivery

Goods
bakery products, spices, soft drinks, canned food, dietary and soy products, flour and grains

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 3. OBJECTIVES

3.1 Objective of the Study

 To Study customer perception towards supermarket

 To analyses the customer satisfaction level regarding the product and service
offered by supermarket.
 To learn factors affecting the customer’s attitudes regarding the store choice
decision.
 To study the customer demographic profile who visit and shop at
supermarket.

3.2 Long Term Objectives

 To always be the first choice of customers

 To make sure that customers stick with Primark and should not opt any other

store that is competitor of Primark

 The business within the organization will always be customer centric.

 The remain the leader of the market all the way

 To train all the employees up to international standards and let them aware of

customer relationship management.

 To train the employees for managerial levels.

 Encourage, drive and support initiatives, innovation and creativity, capitalizing

on opportunities to support operational goals and strategies.

 To achieve international standards all along

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  Drive and support ISO standards throughout the Organization

 Foster an open and positive team environment to receive and disseminate

direction, ideas and changes to all store levels and appropriate business

partners.

3.3 Specific objectives

 To provide cheap products

 Control shrinks, expenses, and payroll.

 Ensure sales floor is adequately stocked, signed, and merchandised to brand

presentation.

 Continually evaluate and react to performance issues while proactively hiring,

developing and retaining the store’s team in a timely manner.

 Analyze and measure business trends; develop and implement plans to

maximize sales and meet or exceed goals and objectives.

 Keep the environment within the organization conflict free.

 Never ever compromise on rules and regulations.

 provide best possible services

 To keep the environment clean ant tidy so that customers doesn’t get any

messy view.

 Provide high quality, fashion basics at value for money prices.

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 4. OBSERVATION OF STUDY

A supermarket is a self-service shop offering a wide variety of food, beverages,

and household products, organized into sections. This kind of store is larger and has a
wider selection than earlier grocery stores, but is smaller and more limited in the
range of merchandise than a hypermarket or big-box market. In everyday U.S. usage,
however, "grocery store" is synonymous with supermarketand is not used to refer to
other types of stores that sell groceries.

The supermarket typically has places for fresh meat, fresh produce, dairy, deli
items, baked goods, etc. Shelf space is also reserved for canned and packaged goods
and for various non-food items such as kitchenware, household cleaners, pharmacy
products and pet supplies. Some supermarkets also sell other household products
that are consumed regularly, such as alcohol (where permitted), medicine, and
clothing, and some sell a much wider range of non-food products: DVDs, sporting
equipment, board games, and seasonal items (e.g., Christmas wrapping paper in
December).

A larger full-service supermarket combined with a department store is

sometimes known as a hypermarket. Other services may include those of banks, cafés,
childcare centers/creches, insurance (and other financial services), mobile phone
services, photo processing, video rentals, pharmacies, and gas stations. If the eatery in
a supermarket is substantial enough, the facility may be called a "grocerant", a blend
of "grocery" and "restaurant".

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4.1 OVERALL CHALLENGES

Owners and managers of grocery stores are keen to build sales and profits.
They constantly strive to offer quality products that customers demand at reasonable
prices. Additionally, retailers must constantly be improving customer service
satisfaction in their units. While specific sales and customer service goals are
common with all retailers, certain retail management challenges can hinder a grocery
store’s chance of achieving these objectives.

Compared to the overall retail

segment, grocery retailers face unique
challenges when it comes to e- Commerce
and driving sales through online and mobile
channels. Some of these challenges are in
areas of logistics and delivery, while others
are in the areas of business processes and
consumer behavior. Challenges faced by
grocery delivery start-ups are multiple
ranging from maintaining quality of their
products to managing the inventory to
logistics to customer satisfaction and retention to even fundraising. These niche
businesses also have requirements of the right talent for vendor acquisition and
fulfilment, especially for those who are not keeping their own inventory, tapping into
the right local stores for supply is a critical but a tough task.

Hands down, all grocery e-commerce companies agree that the market itself
needs to be tamed first. Even though a number of parameters are in favour of e-
commerce in general like increasing Internet penetration, smartphone users, online
shoppers, logistics support and so on, grocery remains a vertical that requires special
treatment due to the perishable nature of the inventory. Moreover, with India having
multiple grocery stores in or near every neighborhood, a majority of the population
doesn’t have to go far for its daily grocery requirements.

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 There has been much consolidation in the grocery stores in recent years. The
surviving grocery stores have realized that they cannot offer all things to all
people. Instead, they are attempting to do the things they can do better than their
competition. Nearly every survey consistently indicates what today customers are
looking for in their shopping experience:

o Sell what they need and have it in stock when they want it.
o Make it easy for them to shop and find what they are looking for.
o Provide all the information they need in order to quickly decide what to
buy.
o Have friendly helpful people available to make the shopping experience
a pleasant one.

4.1.1 Labour cost:

Controlling operational costs is certainly one of the biggest challenges that any
retailer faces. Since grocery stores typically run on extremely low profit margins, the
need for a lean and efficient operation is critical. Labour costs are the single greatest
controllable expense. Some grocery store managers have a tendency to cut labour
during tough times. If labour cost reduction is not managed properly, customer
service and store conditions may suffer. This, of course, results in lost customers and
sales. Retailers that do not properly budget for necessary training programs will most
likely see both increased employee turnover, which becomes very costly over time, as
well as reduced customer service, due to a lack of training.

4.1.2 Knowing the inventory:

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 The grocery store manager must understand the inventory inside and out. In
addition to knowing what the product is, the manager also has to know how often it
ships from the producer, how big the packages are, the most cost-effective quantity to
order, etc. Above all, the manager must know at all times exactly what is on hand,
where it is located, and when it will be replenished.

4.1.3. Customer demand:

Most grocery store managers prefer to manage products for customers

according to their needs and expectations. It is the responsibility of the grocery store
manager to understand what the customer expects and to deliver the results they
require. Otherwise, the manager can expect to lose business quickly as customers are
quick to switch to other grocery stores.

4.1.4. Increasing competition:

With emergence of the grocery store chains or supermarkets in developed

countries, its becoming more difficult for new grocery store owners to establish and
survive in competitive environment. With low labor costs, material costs, and low
currency values, these emerging grocery stores can easily undercut established
supermarkets. With the availability of fast international shipping, established grocery
stores are constantly challenged to compete.

4.1.5. Higher productivity requirements and fewer resources:

Grocery stores are always looking for ways to squeeze extra expenses out of
every part of the profit and loss. One of the places they squeeze is in logistics and
Inventory. Retail software help and hurt this aspect of the business. It helps by finding
those extra expenses, but hurts by making it appear as if there are more and more
places to squeeze. They need to focus of the profit loss ratio of the expenses they are
making and what are the benefits they are achieving from that investment. Cost
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benefit ratio is very much important while choosing a process and software for your
business.

4.1.6. Customer demand:

Most grocery store managers prefer to manage products for customers

according to their needs and expectations. It is the responsibility of the grocery store
manager to understand what the customer expects and to deliver the results they
require. Otherwise, the manager can expect to lose business quickly as customers are
quick to switch to other grocery stores.

4.1.7 Low margin game:

Grocery business is the one where the key driver to growth is scale. As the
margins are relatively lower in this category, the game is all about increasing the
number of orders and the ticket size. Unlike the pure play online retail giants (namely
Amazon and Flipkart) who are relying on the high discounts strategy to acquire more
consumers, the e-grocery players cannot use it for their growth as the ticket sizes are
not that high and the margins are quite low to pass on huge benefits to the
consumers.

4.2. FUTURE OF THE SUPER MARKETS

As consumers distance themselves from the supercenter model, stores are

becoming more intimate, with emphasis on prepared foods and local merchandise.
Imagine a grocery store where you can receive personal recommendations and offers
the moment you step in the store, where checkout takes seconds and you can pay for
groceries without ever taking out your wallet.

Online grocery stores is a format increasingly gaining interest and consumer

acceptance. With a number of such well-funded businesses in India offering

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competitive pricing and freebies with every order, there would be increased interest
and more shoppers will turn to such format due to the convenience it offers. Also
aiding to this phenomenon is the growth of internet in India which is yet to reach a
tipping point and offers immense hope to this format of grocery shopping.

In the consumer-packaged goods industry, change has been more

evolutionary than revolutionary, but digital is redefining what it means to “go”
shopping. Lines between the physical and digital worlds are blurring. Shoppers are
growing accustomed to the benefits of digital in other retail settings and are
beginning to expect them in grocery as well. Savvy retailers are winning by leveraging
technology to enhance the shopping experience and meet consumers‟ evolving
desires.

The past was tough for small and few of the big grocery stores and the near
future won’t be much easier. Differentiation was, and will be, key for retailers in
upcoming years. Grocery stores need to increase focus on creating a unique shopping
experience, store design and product selections, and provide excellent customer
service for their customers.

 Data and data management – The amount of data available today and the
increased customer expectation to have access to a lot of product information
has made data management a priority.

 Inventory visibility and availability – Stores are trying to maximize the

inventory they have and to ensure that it is accessible via all selling channels
and customer engagement points.

 Technology and innovation- Organizations are leveraging technology that

needs updated or replaced. Technology and system capabilities are changing.
While brick-and-mortar stores.

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 Dominate the grocery shopping experience, e-commerce is a growing business
that is still in its nascent stage in many parts of the world.

 Establish credibility and exceed expectations: Many consumers are hesitant to

try online shopping, so it’s critical that retailers exceed consumers‟
expectations during every interaction, especially the first. To ease concerns
about product quality, retailers should offer quality assurance programs that
provide recourse for items damaged in transit or that do not meet consumers‟
expectations. Orders must be delivered or ready for pick-up within the
specified time period, and retailers must alert consumers immediately if their
order cannot be fulfilled as expected.

 Know the market: Demographics, operating costs, the competitive landscape

and consumer preferences vary greatly by market. One size doesn’t fit all, so
retailers should consider the operating environment and cater strategies to the
local market.

 Understand shopping occasions and consider specializing: Many modern retail

models take a “full-service” approach, attempting to serve all trip types and
categories. Settling for a smaller piece of the pie may be more profitable.
Retailers should consider a limited.

 Consider alternative approaches to ordering and distribution: Experiment with

formats and features that boost basket size while adding value for customers.
Also, the costs and logistics of home delivery and click and collect models can
be extremely daunting. Retailers should consider alternative approaches to
distribution, such as working with third-party specialists. Similarly,
manufacturers should experiment with order placement services, and carefully
weigh distribution options to determine if they should own fulfilment or leave
it to distribution experts.

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4.3. STRATEGIES TO INCREASE
SALES IN SUPERMARKET

In today’s competitive world, how to
manage a supermarket successfully is a
question running on top of all owners? If the
cash in-flow deteriorates, you better figure
out what is wrong fast. The key to success
here in boosting your supermarket sales is to provide the customer, an experience
that he/she will cherish and talk about. This will ensure repeat business and also
bring in new customers through referrals.

4.3.1 Know your customer:

Make it a habit of giving your customers what they want, they will do business
and buy from you. The services you provide should reflect your customer’s needs and
wants to let them talk about you in your city which is an effective supermarket
marketing idea. Think from your customer’s perspective; show, sell and say things
that interest them, not just what interests you. So start knowing your customers that’s
how you start to improve the supermarket business. It is a crucial factor that
determines whether you succeed or not.

4.3.2 Offer Suggestions:

People respond best when they are offered various options to choose from.
Train your salesmen to build a rapport with a customer, understand their needs,
and suggest the offers and benefits in your store. Start using a good CRM to manage
the purchase history of a customer. You can start suggesting products or giving
options to customers while they are at the counter.

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4.3.3. Reduce wait time at counters:

Long queues at billing

counters are one of the biggest fears for
every customer during peak hours and
festive seasons. Use these simple
supermarket ideas to make the best
supermarket sales at peak hours. An
effective queue buster, a mobile POS solution for the supermarket that is powerful
and efficient would be the need of the hour for every growing supermarket in the
market. Don’t let your customers search for your salesperson every time to enquire
about the product.

4.3.4. Create combo packs:

How to improve retail sales for non-moving products? Assembling/Bundling

products together as a combined offering using the demand for the primary product
to sell the secondary product. Eg: A promo pack of 3 soaps at 100 INR would sell
better than 1 soap at 35 INR each. The impact of bundling as a kit can be powerful. It
normally leads to higher engagement and a longer life cycle for the customer.
Configuring combos or kit items in the retail grocery store management software
helps you track the ROI accurately resulting in maximum margin protection as well
increased customer loyalty.

4.3.5. Update regular customers with offers:

Value a regular customer by giving them offers, loyalty points and

notifying them ahead of a flash sale on their mobile phone. Reach out to customers via
SMS and emails with your offers a week before a festival or their birthday and

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anniversary. This is a great supermarket marketing idea and makes it convenient for
a customer to plan out a happy shopping experience.

4.3.6. Value customer’s feedback:

Everyone wants customer feedback, but many times we fail to do the best thing
that gets good feedback: Ask if your customer has everything they need or find out
comments that they would like to share. If they hesitate, give them time to give you a
genuine answer before you move on to a different activity or question. Get the best
customer feedback solution which the leading supermarkets prefer MyPulse – Get
Customer Feedback.

4.3.7. Change item locations:

Every retailer keeps
working on how to increase sales
in the retail grocery store without
doing an additional investment.
Here is a simple trick that could
improve your supermarket sales.
Keep changing the location of popular items every month or quarter so that shoppers
who are motivated to buy them will have to look for them. This is to make them pass
by and notice other products, stimulating impulse buys. You will be surprised to see
how an old product becomes popular again, just because you’ve moved it to a
different shelf.

4.3.8. Go Digital:

The COVID-19 pandemic has been evident to go digital to sustain your

business. As more and more shoppers are using their phones during their shopping
experience to keep track of their grocery list, look up ingredients for recipes, and use
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digital coupons. In today’s digital world, with the emergence of wallets and cash
cards, it’s high time for the shop-owners to step into the digital world and flow with
the current trend. Digitized information of inventory and shelf stocks, cash, and
accounts along with multiple payment options makes it an effortless check out for the
shopper. In today digital world most of the peoples likes to order the order in online
So we sell our product through online it will increase our sales.

4.3.9. Stay updated about your inventory stocks:

All retail stores need to manage inventory. It is your money sitting on a shelf
and represents a large portion of your business investment. The retailer who merely
watches the store’s shelves can’t maintain a proper balance between the right amount
of stocks and customer demand. Manage your business operations on-the-go with the
WhatsNow, the best mobile solution that lets you carry your business in your pocket.
And have complete control over your inventory with the GoSure to ensure the right
stock, manage goods inward and ensure hassle-free stock picking in your store that is
how you manage a supermarket successfully.

4.3.10. Be Omni-Channel:

Gone are those days were driving customers to your store was a barrier in your
sales. Your sales depend on the experience you deliver to your customers. Connecting
with your customers from the physical to the digital world by providing a complete
self-service shopping experience to a complete assisted shopping experience is an
effective supermarket idea. Offer exposure of multiple channels to your customers.
That exposure provides convenience for your customers to browse or buy in-store, on
mobile, and offline.  Such multi-channel needs to support all types of purchase
behaviors from BOPIS (buy online and pick up in-store), ROPO (Research Online and
Pickup offline), BIMBO (Browse In-store in mobile and buy online) ISU (Instore Pick-
up, the traditional model) to BORIS (Buy online and Return in Store). Never make
your customers wait long for deliveries, manage same-day deliveries, or faster

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delivery with your delivery platform. All such is possible with a friendly ERP that
provides integrations to marketplaces, online ordering, delivery platform, and
payment backed up with comprehensive real-time inventory.

4.4. HOW TO SUCCESSFULLY RUN A SUPERMARKET BUSINESS

The trends in supermarket business are changing continually due to

technological advancements, growth of online grocery (Amazon and Wholefoods),
varying consumer choices and continuous changes in quality standards. In order to
keep up with the fluctuating trends, supermarkets have to adapt in order to thrive
and survive in the industry.

According to survey-based research conducted by Relex solutions, 82% of the

respondents consider fresh products as critical to the supermarket business. As the
importance of fresh products increases, spoilage of inventory turns out to be a critical
challenge for the supermarkets. The availability of fresh products is closely inter-
linked to optimizing their inventory levels.

4.4.1. Have an in-depth knowledge of the customer needs and preferences:

The highly competitive supermarket sector of retail industry provides slow

growth opportunities, and the stores vie fiercely for the market share. In order to
succeed in such an industry, tracking customer needs and relationship building is
essential to enhance their satisfaction and improve the reputation of the business.

4.4.2. opt for the best storage techniques:

Supermarket businesses should incorporate storage techniques for optimal

warehouse efficiency. Keeping inventory organized leads to reduction in bottlenecks
and spoilage costs. The warehouse should implement the suitable stacking method

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depending upon the inventory types. The layout of the warehouse should be
rearranged followed by routine clean-ups and stock counts.

4.4.3. Adopt the most suitable inventory management technique:

Low inventory turnover and unhealthy current ratios are detrimental to the
supermarket’s performance and financial health. Whereas, high inventory turnover
might lead to insufficient inventory for sales. In order to strike a balance between
spoilage cost and shelf placement of products, the supermarkets have to adopt a
suitable inventory management technique. This results in improved sales and lower
cost of inventory. Various inventory management techniques that might be suitable
for the business would include ABC analysis, Just in Time method, Economic Order
Quantity (EOQ) model, VED analysis, Minimum safety stocks and Fast, Slow and Non-
moving (FSN) method.

4.4.4. Day-level forecasting and forecast-driven automatic replenishment:

Striking a balance between fulfillment of customer demands and minimizing

out-of-stocks is crucial for the supermarket business. Forecast accuracy and
automatic replenishment are the solutions for responding to the demand signals
more quickly and accurately. Walmart (largest retailer in the world) had effectively
collaborated with some of its largest suppliers so that the inventory balances were
monitored and replenished on regular intervals. The stores should use the forecast-
driven store replenishment based on min-max and re-order points.

4.4.5. Promotions, coupons and discounts

Supermarket business can attract customers through promotions and

discounts on its products. The policies on discounts should be adjusted so that the
store does not lose its major share of profit. Moreover, the stores should also keep a
check on the re-order levels when offering promotions to the customers. In order to

21
avoid spoilage of products, the slow-moving items should be included in the
promotional deals and discounts.

4.4.6. Scheduling of workforce for supermarket business:

Long lines in the supermarkets and unavailability of support staff for guidance
leads to loss of customers and reputation of the business. During the key business
hours, more employees should be scheduled for assistance in the aisles and at the
cash counters. A reliable workforce increases the smooth operations of a business
and enhances profitability.

4.4.7. Advancements in technology

Nowadays, convenience has become one of the foremost priorities for the
customers in addition to the availability of fresh products. Technological
advancement has paved the way for new shopping styles including online shopping.
In order to meet with these advancements, supermarkets have to integrate
information technologies and link them to the inventory system of the store.

In the highly competitive retail industry with slow growth prospects,

successful retailers have to focus on the food safety, inventory management,
reduction of spoilage costs, effective storage techniques as well as on sustainability of
the business in order to capture a sufficient share of the supermarket sector. The
business should also focus on adopting effective strategies and making smart
business decisions for the benefit of their customers.

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 5. FINDINGS

 The study Show the parking facility of the supermarket and now it’s too
important for consumer to park easily their vehicles
 Majority of respondent shop once in a week at supermarket and some
respondents ship every fortnight. So, the customer is very regular for the shop
 The Majority of respondent (36%) purchase food items at supermarket and
29% purchase vegetables and fruits. It shows customer are not concerned for
one department.
 Regarding age wise classification it was noticed that majority of respondents
belong to the middle age group
 Regarding gender wise classification of respondent, it was found that the ratio
of respondents is almost same. It shows a change in shopping trend. A Job
which was considered earlier as the job of women is done now a days by man
also.

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 6. CONCLUSTION:

The supermarket industry is being regulated regularly with new legislations

being imposed to improve quality of foods sold. This industry needs to constantly
adapt to the needs of consumers which are ever changing based on population,
lifestyle, and buying power of consumers. This industry would continue to see growth
due to consumers welcoming organic foods. Product placement is carefully noted in
the science of constructing a good grocery store. You have to be careful and avoid
these methods to get you to walk around a store and picking up pointless goods that
you did not intend to pick up. Carefully examine the so called “bargains” you are
getting from certain store and price check with the other competitors. If you follow
these steps, you will keep tons of money in your pocket from this grocery store trying
to eat your money up.

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 7. Bibliography

 www.Wikipedia.org
 www.journalresearchijf.com
 www.foodnavigator-asia.com
 Www.1library.net
 https://nicelocal.in/tamil-nadu/shops/daas_supermarket/

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