Addressing the challenges of Bata India Ltd

“Shifting Consumer Preferences”

MKT 731 Consumer Behaviour Arnab Kumar Nath

Roll No 18023
Table of contents

- Footwear industry, India

- Bata India Ltd – a brief overview
- The trend in consumer behavior – Indian footwear industry
- Understanding consumer behavior – Bata India Ltd
◦ - Approach of Bata in influencing consumer behavior : “Perception & Learning”

-Current issues and challenges of Bata India

-Recommended strategy
Footwear industry - India

Relevance: India ranks 2nd in terms of consumption and production of foot ware in
the world, only after China. India contributes 9% of global production with an
estimated production of 22 billion pairs. Currently the foot ware market is
estimated at $15.5 billion
Categories: Footwear products are generally classified into three major
categories - Motion control, stability, and Neutral footwear.
Types : Casual, mass, active/sport, Leather, non-leather etc.
Men’s footwear contributes ~ 55% to the market while women’s and kid’s
footwear contribute a balance 45%.
Distribution: Offline is quite a common mode of sale in India. However, with the
increase in e-commerce penetration and during covid 19 pandemic, the online Challenges: Changing fashion design, competition from
mode has become equally popular. Urban regions contribute 66% to total Chinese footwear products and competition from the
domestic sales. unorganized sector. Moreover, acceptance of the internet and
Competition: The organized sector contributes 31% to the total domestic e-commerce have also been shifting the preference of the
footwear industry. Bata India, Adidas, Clarks, Metro, Relaxo, Paragon etc are few consumers.
key players in the organized sector. The sector has shown a sign of
Opportunities: Rise in disposable income, changing life style
consolidation from 28% in 2018 to 31% in 2021
urbanization, improved brand awareness.
Bata India Ltd

Bata was originally founded in 1984 in the Moravian town, Czech

Republic. Bata group is present in five continents, 70 countries globally
with more than 5000 retail stores. More than 1 million customers are
served by Bata globally
Bata India Ltd, the leading footwear brand, enjoys the highest market Major competitors
(35%) share in India . Bata India was founded in 1931 as Bata Shoe
Company, later the name changed to Bata India. Bata India Ltd
manufactures and sells over 45 million pairs of shoes every year with an
annual turnover of more than USD 178 Mn. Segmentation, Targeting, Positioning
Product range: Footwear of different qualities including leather, rubber, Bata considers age, income, gender, occupation,
psychography as a basis of its segmentation.
canvas, and PVC shoes. Popular brands - Ambassador, Hush Puppies,
North Star, Power, Comfit etc. Apart from footwears Bata India also Bata targets men and women of all groups group, kids
above 6 years, and price sensitive middle-class
markets belts, wallets, ladies hand bags, shocks etc. population.

Bata vision: To make great shoes accessible to everyone! Bata positions itself as a company that offers durable,
comfortable yet affordable footwear for the entire family.
Major accolades: “Top 50 most trusted brands” by Brand Equity in
2013 ,“The world’s 25 Unsung Innovative Companies” by Business
Week in 2010. “Most Admired Large Format Multi Brand Footwear
Retailer of the Year” by the Images Shoes & Accessories Forum in 2013.
 The trend in consumer behaviour – footwear industry India

• The footwear industry is driven by a contemporary fashion trend. The fashion industry of India has experienced significant evolution over the past
few years. The growth of the economy, purchasing power, brand awareness, and hygiene consciousness have been driving the growth of the fashion
and footwear industry.

• The average consumption of footwear by the Indian population is ~1.7 pairs, much below the global average. This consumption is 6-7 pairs in many
developed countries.

• There has been a continuous shift in preference among footwear consumers. There has been a rising trend in adaptation to international fashion by
Indian consumers.

• Footwear consumption is heavily skewed towards male (~55%). However, there is surging demand for footwear among women owing to their
participation in the job sector. There is rising demand for designer and comfortable shoes among women.

• There is a rapidly changing trend of sportswear and athletic shoes among men and women.

• In India 55% population still prefer leather footwear and 45% prefer non-leather footwear. However, the growth is more profound in non-leather,
casual, sports shoe category. Growing environmental concerns by consumers and a limited reserve of leather may halt the growth of leather
footwear.
• More than 50% of Indian population prefer branded footwear. Price does not seem to a major parameter that affects consumer preference in
selecting footwears.
• There are various factors such as demographic, psychological and behavioural variables affect consumer behaviour in the footwear industry. While
consumers emphasize on comfort, durability, style and price in buying footwears, reference groups such as family, friends, and society in general
influence buying decisions.
 Understanding consumer behaviour – Bata India Ltd

Bata India is one of the innovative companies that have

successfully positioned its range of footwear as affordable yet durable
Bata India has used important elements of consumer behaviour
products for the middle-class population. The approach of Bata India “Perception & Learning” through its innovative
to satisfy the need of Indian consumers has aptly covered various steps marketing strategy.
of consumer buying

- Realization of product requirement Use of external stimuli to

- Relevant information elicit the response and
- Evaluate alternatives and study benefits and applications
- Post purchase evaluation reinforcement of
buying behaviour

Over the years Bata India Ltd has tried hard to influence its
consumers to continue purchasing through generations. Bata has
thoughtfully captured the psychological and emotional aspects
of its consumers. Unique shopping environment – Bata store
Convenience, enjoyment, and price are the three most important
Adequate information to consumers, trained sales team to assist
determinants that motivate consumers to make a purchase decision. Bata
India Ltd has successfully capitalized these three elements in creating new Display of products across different sections
customers and retaining them for generations.
BIL addressed value-expressive function and knowledge function.
Approach of Bata India to influence consumer behaviour –
perception & learning

Classical conditioning by pairing two Perception through hedonic elements

stimuli
Bata India thoughtfully created its stores as footwear solutions for
families. In fact, more than 40% of consumers of Bata have at Bata always tried to touch the
least two members in the family using Bata footwear. The multisensory and emotional
advertisement was also targeted to capture family emotions and aspects of consumer interaction.
values. While the mother entered the store for purchasing school Bata used to provide gift hampers
shoes for their kid, she could have a glance of the different to kids before festivals such as
varieties of footwear arranged in the store. This could create a cartoon masks, balloons, pencils
etc. All these used to attract
desire to purchase for herself.
children to Bata stores
Approach of Bata India to influence consumer behaviour –
perception & learning

Exposure of Bata through media Instrumental conditioning by

grabbed consumers’ attention
Initial advertisements of Bata India
were pretty straight forward depicting
comfort and durability. Gradually they
started connecting with family
emotions, comfort, style etc. Bata has
successfully aligned its marketing
campaign considering the culture,
values, beliefs, customs, and rituals of
Indian consumers. Bata always
connected with consumers by
celebrating local festivals such as
Diwali, Durga Puja, New Year etc.
In the contemporary advertisement
campaign, Bata has tried to connect
with younger generation of India.
highlighting comfort
Bata has smartly captured the need
of the consumers with respect to
comfort through its marketing
campaign. The company has tried to
grab the attention of the younger
generation as well.
Loyalty point to grab consumers’
attention
Bata also has tried to engage its customer by attaching a utilitarian function
to its promotion such as reward points. Bata Club is a unique loyalty programme
that continuously engages its existing customers.
Current challenges of consumer preferences– Bata India Ltd
Bata has been suffering from declining market
share in India. Bata India was quite successful in
consolidating its position among middle class
consumers by emphasizing on durable yet
affordable shoe. Historically Bata has
emphasized on store experience. It has never
focused much on advertisement campaign.
Historically, the advertisement of Bata used to be
straight forward with just pairs of shoes with
rational benefits. Moreover, Bata lack variety in
casual/ sports shoe category where Reebok,
Adidas started making inroads.
Weak consumers’ perception in casual/ sport shoe/ women
foot wear category
• 66% consumers prefer Bata for formal category and only 18%
prefer for casual/sportswear category.
• Weak consumer perception in women’s foot wear.
• Since, 2015 Bata India has tried to revamp its marketing strategy
with respect to product offering, store lay out etc, however, it
might take longer time to get the mind share from the
competitors.
Weak perception among younger generation (Millennials &
generation Z)
Lack of advertisement failed to create top-of-the-mind awareness
among new customers and maintain existing customers.
Diverse product offerings, technological advancement,
endorsement by famous athletes by Adidas, Nike, Puma captured
the mind share of younger generation.
Since, 2015 Bata has tried to align its strategy to connect with
younger population through vibrant advertisement campaign.
 Recommended strategies to improve consumer preferences– Bata India Ltd

Strategies to improve consumer perception in casual, sport shoe and women footwear
category

Increase product offerings in casual, sport shoe, Advertisement campaign to change the positioning – from affordable
women footwear category. durable footwear to contemporary, stylish, comfortable yet affordable
1 Bata India can launch smart shoes, shoes with 2 footwear. Endorsement by athletes and women celebrities.

technology to absorb shock etc.

Store lay out:

Increase reach:
- Trained sales team to impart knowledge to Contemporary style and
Aggressive distribution through
customers and help them make buying decision design. Wide variety so
new outlet and franchise
3 - Revamp store lay out for casual, sports shoe 4 network in order to create 5 that customers can
section with powerful advertisement exercise their choice and
awareness among consumers
- Dedicated section for women footwear with vibrant express values
advertisement. Special reward point system for
women consumers in order to engage them
with utilitarian function
 Recommended strategies to improve consumer preferences– Bata India Ltd

Strategies to improve penetration among millennials and generation Z

Revitalize marketing campaign with powerful

1 advertisement targeting this segment

- Emphasize on style, comfort, variety, and technology Aggressive marketing thru e-commerce sites
Tatacliq, Myntra etc:

There has been an emerging trend of e-commerce

Personalized experience in the store 3
in India.
options
Millennials and Genera Z want to evaluate various
through these sites. Moreover, they enjoy the
convenience of shopping through e-commerce sites. Bata India
- Digital kiosk to help customers select
should aggressively promote its offering through its own
right shoe
website and other famous e-commerce site.
2 - Use of 3D technology to customize
design for customer
- Delivery at door step by ordering through
digital kiosk in case the product is not
available
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