Branche Vous

Brent Sampson asked:


DEFINITIONS

Retail margin is basically the difference between your book’s wholesale price and your book’s retail price. For example, a book with a cover price of $10 and a wholesale price of $5 has a 50% retail margin.

Wholesale price is the cost of your book to a retailer. To use the same rudimentary example, a book with a cover price of $10 and a retail margin of 50% will be sold to a retailer for $5.

Retail price is the same as cover price or selling price. This is the cost of the book to the end consumer (the reader). The retail price is typically printed on the cover of the book and also “embedded” within the barcode on the back. For example, a book with a wholesale price of $5 and a retail margin of 50% will have a retail price of $10.

As you can see, retail margin, wholesale price, and retail price are interconnected. By having two figures, the third can be calculated.

The fourth definition to be aware of is the trade discount, which is the percentage off the retail price that a wholesaler or distributor pays for your book. Since the retail margin is a portion of the trade discount, the trade discount always exceeds the retail margin. Distributors typically expect between 50% - 70% in order to provide an acceptable margin to the retailer.

MAKING DISTRIBUTION WORK FOR YOU

It should come as no surprise that the amount of distribution your book enjoys rests largely upon its trade discount. Generally, the higher the discount, the greater the distribution.

Think about it - distributors want to make money, too. So do retailers.

While your book’s trade discount is but a piece of your pie (albeit a big piece), it is the entire cake for distributors and retailers, who together must split the take. The greater the number, the greater incentive they have to distribute your book, sell your book, and market your book, etc.

The proper trade discount depends upon each author’s intentions, and can vary from author to author just as readily as from book to book. Obviously, the higher the retail margin, the higher the cover price, so authors interested in maintaining the lowest cover price possible will often opt for a lower retail margin.

Conversely, those authors who long for the best distribution possible will elect a higher trade discount, even though their cover price will increase accordingly (or their profit will decrease accordingly). Non-fiction or niche-markets are less affected by higher retail prices and greater distribution is often advantageous in finding those markets.

Often, the author will have little to no say in what trade discount to offer for their books — its whatever the distributor mandates.

Trade discounts can be as low as 20% to successfully get listed on Internet retailers like Amazon.com, who manage to make a profit with such low margins through EDI (electronic data interface) with distributors like Ingram and on-demand publishers like iUniverse and Outskirts Press.

By comparison, trade discounts can be as high as 75% - 80% when dealing with a niche wholesaler, or when attempting distribution for a book that does not have a proven market. In these cases, the distributor may be padding the coffers a bit in anticipation for a “harder sell” and perhaps, also, in preparation for offering an increased retail margin to close the deal.

INDUSTRY STANDARDS

Industry standards for retail margins are difficult to define because, ultimately, it comes down to negotiation between all parties involved. Publishers have the power to negotiate with distributors, who have the power to negotiate with retailers, who have the ability to negotiate with the reader, but the typical trade discount is around 55%, which allows for a typical retail margin of 40%.

Publishing-on-demand is removing some of the participants in this little dance, and as a result, the same piece of pie is being divided among fewer people, resulting in more money for the remaining players (especially the author).

Anthony Testa asked:


Where Vision become Real

(Part 4)

More retail Jungle fever…Retailer’s vision …

Here is some information we need to know about retailers. Be prepared to have everything covered, before you make your pitch…

Retailer Mark-up

Many retailers want 50% mark-up. Some mark-up their products anywhere form 30% to 50%, this is based on quantities, suggested retail price and cost, Risk + value to business. Electronics are less. You need to factor this into you final costs and your wholesale price to your retailers.

Prototypes

Retailers do not want to see work in progress/concepts or drawings with detailed explanations involving extensive imagination applied concepts. They do want to see working product with packaging developed, clear and defined to the final size. This will enable them to determine product placement on their plan-o-grams. They also want to know how fast you can deliver the product. You need to be ready for production or already have produced.

Trademarked and copyrighted

Retailers prefer to deal with products that are trademarked, copyrighted, or patented. This shows real commitment and belief in the product on the part of the supplier, as well eliminates problems with them carrying a product that may have some liability attached to it. Retailers don’t want someone walking in the store and claiming that this was their idea 6 months ago!

Plan-o-Grams

Retailers review portions of their business on pre-determined schedules. They begin in mid-summer with their suppliers, August and September, and then cut a PO with stock in Stores in February. Retailers use Plan-o-Grams to determine product placement, shelf space or peg area. These Plan-o-Grams are extensive and involve their suppliers for each product on that particular Plan-o-Gram, and are planned six months in advance.

They are detailed to how many per peg or shelf, and what product is on what shelf. Detailed sketches are produced to effectively make the most of the space used. The key here is to be ready 6 months in advance; you have to be aware of their buying cycles. Always talk to your intended retailer.

Quantities

Quantities will be determined once a retailer sees your New Opportunity presentation. In estimating what the potential quantities could be, you need to explore how big the potential market is. Potential market will be a reflection of the existing market of X product buyers. This is research information that you need to have prepare.

Questions will be asked about the market potential.

Expect to have succinct answers. If they get the feeling that you don’t know your market well they will not feel positive about carrying the product. The better you know your market the more confidence instilled in the retailer. You need to have market knowledge and drop that knowledge in front of the target retailer.

…Be prepared to answer the following questions

Retail and other competitors: USA or Canada; has this product already been on the market? How well has it done? Market Knowledge: Units annually, sales. What are your forecast figures? Who is your market? How big is your market? Is this a mass market appeal item or is it a niche market item? Market size will influence wholesale cost. (what the they are willing to pay for it ) Risk + value to business: What is the risk and value to their business? Here we are looking at costs vs. profits. Is your market sufficiently large to sustain your product? Features and benefits: What are your products features and benefits? This needs to be presented to them clear and focused. What does your product have that the competitors don’t? Cost, packaging, advertising, unique feature, what’s the product differentiation. Price point: Cost and suggested retail price. You need to have established your manufacturing price. Manufacturing: Timelines 8 to 16 weeks to production. Has your product already seen the market place in very low quantities? What was the response, are you now ready for a larger distribution network. Master pack/inner pack: what are master packs and inner packs?

When retailers purchase goods from suppliers they arrive to the store in master packs on skids. With inner packs which contain the actual product. This facilitates selling and makes inventory easy to manage.

Example; you’re selling your product in inner packs of 10 (which means that there are 10 actual products inside a box) Then 5 of these boxes are packaged inside a larger box which is now your master case. So your master contains 5 x 10 or 50 pieces.

So you’ve set up your selling parameters to sell at least a minimum of 5 pieces with each order. (One inner case)

You need to communicate with your retail outlet because master packs will be determined by the retailers that you speak with. Many have restrictions on size and weight. Another important factor is cost of the units in the master pack for the retailer. You may have to develop one size for the large outlets and another for the smaller ones. Again this depends on which markets you want to attack.

…Some additional things to consider

As a supplier how are you supporting your product?

Trade Shows: What trade shows have you attended or plan to attend. These can be given to the retailer as part of the marketing presentation. How will you educate consumers about product and where to find it Marketing plan: what is your marketing strategy? Provide as much information about the target market as possible

Competitor information you need to know …..

Competitor Corp: X product (example)

Local company called competitor X corp., produces similar product this is a $9.99 item located in the camping section with a simple packaging sleeve, sits on a lower shelf and moves extremely well.

A plastic injection molded item this item was introduced in the past through the local stores as a consignment item and has since become a regular store item. Product has been in the store for 19 years.

Quantities: Retailer has in the past sold 50 000 units @$9.99 as a start up quantity, that’s gross profits over $499,000.

X product advertises on the Weather Channel.

More Visions become real!

rakhi garg asked:


Introduction

Retailing involves all activities incidental to selling to ultimate consumer for their personnel family and household use. It does this by organizing their availability on a relatively large scale and supplying them to a customers on arelatively smallscale. Retailer is any person/organization instrumental in reaching the goods or merchandise oer services to the end users.Retailer is a must and cannot be eliminated.

The Indian retailing industry is becoming intensely competitive, as more and more payers are Vying for the same set of customers. The major retail players are Pantaloon Retail, Shoppers Stop, Reliance,etc..,

Retailing is one of the biggest sectors and it is witnessing revolution in India. The new entrant in retailing in India signifies the beginning of retail revolution. India’s retail market is expected to grow tremendously in next few years. According to AT Kearney, The Windows of Opportunity shows that Retailing in India was at opening stage in 1995 and now it is in peaking stage in 2006. India’s retail market is expected to grow tremendously in next few years. India shows US$330 billion retail market that is expected to grow 10% a year, with modern retailing just beginning. India ranks first in 2005. In fact, in 2005 and 2006, India is the most compelling opportunity for retailers, because now India is in peaking stage.

This window of opportunity is useful for executives who plan their market-specific strategies; the four stages or the lifecycle of this industry is as as follows:

Introduction:

An introduction is the opening phase of a market and is one that is just entering the GRDI, Global Retail Development Index This index is based on more than 25 macro-economic and retail –specific variables.for instance ,the country risk includes parameters like political risk,economic performance,debt indicators,credit ratings,access bank finance and business risk.The market attractiveness covers reail sales per capita ,urban population ,laws and regulations and business efficiency.

Iin this stage all, which are outside the top 30 markets, falls in this stage. At this stage, retailers should monitor and performing high-level assessments, they should plan for their entry strategies. India in the late 1990’s is a good example in the opening stage, while in 2006, Kazakhstan is the country in introduction stage.

Stategy suggested:A rapid *********** strategy is suggested at this stage i>e low price and high promotion.

Growth:

In growth stage, the market is developing quickly and also ready for modern retailing. Countries, which are in Peaking stage, are India, Ukraine and Vietnam. Retailers entering this stage have the best chance for long-term success. Retailers at this stage should enter through local representations, sourcing offices and new stores. Wal-Mart success in china in the late 1990’s and early 2000’s gives us the importance of committing to a promising high-growth market at right time.

Strategy suggested: The strategy of adopting quality and styled products with new models and shift of advertising from product awareness to product preference Eg the big bazaar advt says surf exel is cheaper than the market price.The idea behind adopting strategy is to strengthen against competitors.

Maturity:

In this stage the market is still big and growing, but the space for new entrants will become tighter and retailers should act quickly at this stage because retailers at this stage have limited time to explore, and also their margin for error is thin. In general , they should act according to the established rules and should be open to face the competition from international retailers. This stage generally lasts longer than the previous two stages.

Strategy suggested: Enter new market segments that is either enter new geographic areas eg vishal megha mart has opened stores in smaller cities tier II and III cities

Decline:

The window of opportunity is closing fast and modern retail share is reaching 40 to 60 percent. Though the opportunity is closing the existing retailers can enter with new formats such as discount models or non-food formats such as consumer electronics and apparel.

Window of opportunity ends for about 5 to 10years before a market enters the closing phase and reaches saturation level. India for example, was in the opening stage in 1995 and entered peaking stage in the year 2003 and reached number 1 rank in2005.

Strategy suggested: Identifying weak segments, maintaining investment level selectively.

Unorganized retailing in India

In India, the most of the retail sector is unorganized. In India, the retail business contributes around 11 percent of GDP. Of this, the organized retail sector accounts only for about 3 percent share, and the remaining share is contributed by the unorganized sector. The main challenge facing the organized sector is the competition from unorganized sector. Unorganized retailing has been there in India for centuries, theses are named as mom-pop stores. The main advantage in unorganized retailing is consumer familiarity that runs from generation to generation. It is a low cost structure, they are mostly operated by owners, has very low real estate and labor costs and has low taxes to pay.

Organized retailing in India

In late 1990’s the retail sector has witnessed a level of transformation. Retailing is being perceived as a beginner and as an attractive commercial business for organized business i.e. the pure retailer is starting to emerge now. Organized retail business in India is very small but has tremendous scope. The total in 2005 stood at $225 billion, accounting for about 11% of GDP. In this total market, the organized retail accounts for only $8 billion of total revenue. According to A T Kearney, the organized retailing is expected to be more than $23 billion revenue by 2010.

In organized retailing will grow faster than unorganized sector and the growth speed will be responsible for its high market share, which is expected to be $ 17 billion by 2010-11.

Retailing will show good prospects in cities like Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, kolkata, Banglore and Kanpur. After Dubai, Singapore and Hong Kong, In India Delhi will be the next big retail destination, According to Confederation of Indian Industries whose findings have shown that Delhi has the good resources and good conditions for the retail sector. Out of the total earnings of the Government of Delhi Rs 11,000 crore, Rs 6,500 crore is achieved from the retail sector.

- Share of Organised Retail

1999 2002 2005

Total Retail (in billion INR) 7000 8250 10000

Organized Retail (in billion INR) 50 150 350

% Share of Organized Retail 0.70% 1.80% 3.5%

The organized sector is expected to grow faster than GDP growth in next few years driven by favorable demographic patterns, changing lifestyles, and strong income growth. This organized retail sector mix includes supermarkets, hypermarkets discounted stores and specialty stores, departmental stores. For example, Spencer network has 69 stores, which includes seven Spencer hypermarkets, three Spencer super markets and 49 Spencer Dailys. Now the company is planning to open 20 stores in 10 cities in six months. The top 10 retailers account only for 2% of total market, today modern retailing is expected to enter a boom phase, which has major players and these players might capture 10% of total market, within next five years. The retail sales in India for future are shown below (data from 2005-2008 is based on estimates):

PRESENT INDIAN SCENARIO

* Unorganized market: Rs. 583,000 crores

* Organized market: Rs.5, 000 crores

* 5X growth in organized retailing between 2000-2005

* Over 4,000 new modern Outlets in the last 3 years

* Over 5,000,000 sq. ft. of mall space under development

* The top 3 modern retailers control over 750,000 sq. ft. of retail space

* Over 400,000 shoppers walk through their doors every week

Growth drivers in India for retail sector

• Rising incomes and improvements in infrastructure are enlarging consumer markets and accelerating the convergence of consumer tastes.

• Liberalization of the Indian economy

• Increase in spending Percapita Income.

• Advent of dual income families also helps in the growth of retail sector.

• Shift in consumer demand to foreign brands like McDonalds, Sony, Panasonic, etc.

• Consumer preference for shopping in new environs

• The Internet revolution is making the Indian consumer more accessible to the growing influences of domestic and foreign retail chains. Reach of satellite T.V. channels is helping in creating awareness about global products for local markets.

• About 47% of India’s population is under the age of 20; and this will increase to 55% by 2015. This young population, which is technology-savvy, watch more than 50 TV satellite channels, and display the highest propensity to spend, will immensely contribute to the growth of the retail sector in the country.

• Availability of quality real estate and mall management practices

• Foreign companies’ attraction to India is the billion-plus population.

Employment opportunities in retail sector in India

India’s retail industry is the second largest sector, after agriculture, which provides employment. According to Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM), the retail sector will create 50,000 jobs in next few years.

Retail companies are starting retail manamgent courses in partnership with management institutes, roping in talent from other sectors and developing comprehensive career growth and loyalty plans for existing employees.

Top players like Pantaloon Retail India Limited, Trent, Shopper’s Stop, RPG Group and ebony are virtually on their toes.

Consider the plans of largest player, The Pantaloon Retail India Ltd, the company has developed a comprehensive strategy, where in it expects that in 2years, it will not recruit any new managers from outside.

“The estimated need is 1 lakh of employees till 2011″, said Mr. Sanjoy Jog, HR Head at Pantaloon Retail India Ltd. Pantaloon has the concept of partnership with educational Institute to run retail courses across the entire chain. The company has tied up with 11-B schools including K J Somaiya , Welinkars, Narsee Monjre and IISWBM. “The students joins the course and they are given an appointment letter by Pantaloon to become employees” said Mr. Jog, Pantaloon. Pantaloon is also planning to tie up with Ahmedabad-based National Institute of Design to start a course in visual merchandising. “The apex body of Indian organized retailers, Retailers Association of India( RAI) is also lending help hand to tide over the shortage of employees in organized retail sector.

Trent has also started in-house learning programmes and now goes to under graduate colleges to recruit students.

Since, the job market is hugely receptive to this with more and more business schools focusing on the sector and large retailers setting up retail academics.

Challenges of Retailing in India

In India the Retailing industry has a long way to go,and to become a truly flourishing industry, retailing needs to cross the following hurdles:

* The first challenge facing the organized retail sector is the competition from unorganized sector.

* In retail sector, Automatic approval is not allowed for foreign investment.

* Taxation, which favors small retail businesses.

* Developed supply chain and integrated IT management is absent in retail sector.

* Lack of trained work force.

* Low skill level for retailing management.

* Intrinsic complexity of retailing- rapid price changes, threat of product obsolescence and low margins.

* Organized retail sector has to pay huge taxes, which is negligible for small retail business.

*Cost of business operations is very high in India.

Conclusion

Many agencies have estimated differently about the size of organized retail market in 2010. The one thing that is common amongst these estimates is that Indian organized retail market will be very big in 2010. The status of the retail industry will depend mostly on external factors like Government regulations and policies and real estate prices, besides the activities of retailers and demands of the customers also show impact on retail industry.

As the retail market place changes shape and competition increases, the potential for improving retail productivity and cutting costs is likely to decrease. Therefore it is important for retailers to secure a distinctive position in the market place based on values relationships or experience.

Finally it is important to note that these strategies are not strictly independent of each other; value is function of not just price quality and service but can also be enhanced by personalization and offering a memorable experience

Candy Ross asked:


Maybe you’ve heard some retailers say that at one time–way back when–they used a pencil and paper as a method of tracking inventory? Times have changed, yes, but just how far have retailers gone to make the advancements they need to keep up?

Systems administrator Ken Sweeney has been around retail for over ten years and witnessed the antiquated methods of tracking inventory. He is responsible for the technology of one of the leading sports and entertainment presenters in the world, AEG Merchandising. Before the installation of a modern day retail point of sale system in 1997, the only methods for tracking inventory and keeping income and products organized were kept with pencil and paper.

It took considerable research to find a technology solution suitable for the needs of AEG. After using retail service provider One Step Data, Sweeney was able to make the right choice for his company.

But do retailers really know what they need without help of a service provider?

Today’s retail point-of-sale technology needs to have certain key features that allow flexibility, as well as total functionality for the retailer.

* A system that is scalable. It needs to scale smoothly from a single store to a chain of stores. It needs to be deployed with a stable and scalable database.

* A system that is easy to learn. It needs to have an architecture that is familiar to employees and easy to use.

* A system that is integrates with other applications. It needs to operate on a platform that allows users to move easily from one application to another, and ties information together without manually re-entering it.

* A system with dynamic inventory control. It needs to have superior inventory data structures that preserve inventory history.

* A system that provides easy analysis and reporting. It needs to provide unlimited custom reporting capability and allow users to get the reports they want, how they want it.

* A system that is easy to customize. It needs to support unique retail methods, adaptable to fit changing needs.

The future of retail technology needs to exist in today’s technology. There have been many advancements however many software solutions require constant upgrades to stay current with changing needs.

The most cutting-edge retail technology breakthrough is the recently released Retail Teamwork™. It’s the first all-in-one retail solution built on the Microsoft Dynamics platform and delivers real-time reporting.

According to a news article in Women s Wear Daily, The real-time sales reporting capability of Retail Teamwork brought one sports store in Mesa, Arizona a 25 percent increase in sales over the holiday season. The new integrated retail system boosted sales at this $14 million company. “It gave us an edge we were never able to have,” said Just Sports owner Kevin Palmer.

Another software solution One Ste Data offers is Retail Pro®. This software has long established itself as the standard in store management software for retailers and has been the leading inventory control /POS system for small to medium sized retailers.

Kenco Retail Shops (DBA Famous Brands) had switched from using a cash register to the modern day point of sale system Retail Pro when owner Ken Sanchez could not keep up with managing inventory. Kenco opened its first store in 1992 is now a 12 store women’s, men’s and children’s apparel chain located in the New York metropolitan area.

In the beginning, owner Sanchez managed his stores the “old way” by using cash registers and eye-balling the inventory. Our business had grown to a level where we could no longer keep up. We needed a system that would give us the ability to quickly and accurately replenish our inventory,” explained Sanchez.

When you think of a retail management system, think “total control.” That means you need a system that puts you in control of your inventory and prices, helps you manage trends, and provides you with tools to build customer loyalty.

It’s the only way to stay ahead of the game.

For more information, visit www.onestepdata.com.

C. Hand asked:


These are the times that try retailers’ souls. Unemployment is at a 14-year high, consumer confidence is at an all-time low, and the stock market has yet to mellow out. If you own a retail store, you’re not sure what sales numbers to expect this holiday season. Should the stronger-than-expected Black Friday sales give you hope that holiday goodwill could trump the much-vaunted bad economy and surprise savvy retailers with a healthy (if not spectacular) shopping season? Or will shoppers stay away from stores now that the Black Friday deals have come and gone?

Why not ignore all of this economic bad news, let your more positive way of thinking win out, and just say “no” to the recession?

I’ve been noticing lately that the restaurants I go to are still full of patrons. And when the ski shop in my town had its preseason sale, its parking lot was full. And a good friend of mine, a real estate broker, just told me she had one of her best months in three years. My point? People are still buying stuff, big and small. And it’s not like Christmas was cancelled this year, so people will keep on buying. It’s your job to make sure they are buying stuff from you.

In other words, you can no longer use the bad economy as an excuse for not doing well. In fact, overall retail sales are much better than recorded because of two simple reasons:





Gift cards have become a best-selling gift. However, they are not counted as retail sales until they are redeemed. So, many of these sales will not show up on the books until after the holidays, and as we know, not everyone redeems all of their gift cards.





The biggest growth in retailing has been from the Internet. Those numbers are never included when retailers report same store sales.





Retailers who have a successful holiday season will be the ones who simply tune out the bad news and do everything they can to keep their doors open.

Poor management puts stores out of business, not economic climates. Recessions reward the flexible and nimble. There is business out there to be had, and I believe sharp retailers can achieve great sales numbers now despite the economy. They need to adopt the attitude displayed by a store owner who recently posted in response to my weekly Q&A session, Retailer’s Advantage. He said, “We choose NOT to participate in the recession.” The more store owners who mimic his resolve the better.

To make the most of the slow economy, retail store owners should get back to the basics. Here are a few suggestions:

Bring them in with hot items. To get customers into your store this holiday season and after, you must offer them merchandise they simply can’t turn down. Stock your shelves with items that have the Wow Factor and thus send customers into an “I have to have that” or an “I must give that as a gift this year” buying frenzy. Once you’ve identified the “hot” items for the season, determine which ones are the best fit for your store. Then research which other stores in your area sell those products. If you can become the sole seller of a certain “hot” item in your area, you will be in great shape. Providing great merchandise that’s heavy on the “hot” items for a given period will be your trump card for surviving any recession. Don’t you forget it!

Make your store the place to get the best stuff. Too many retailers put price first and item second. Reverse it—always put the item first and the price second. But do remember, this doesn’t mean that you can stick your head in the sand about price. I was at the airport in Louisville recently, and as I was walking past the PGA store, I noticed they had a table out in front with some terrific buys. I was shocked when I saw a sweater I liked for only $9.99. I quickly tried it on and decided at that price I had to buy it. As I was checking out, a store employee suggested another sweater that was $39.99. And since I already had my wallet out I figured I might as well buy it too.

My point is that pretty much everyone has a hard time resisting a good sale. So, get in touch with your vendors and see what buys they’re offering for cheap these days. And don’t be afraid to do some negotiating if necessary. Many of your vendors will be willing to sell cheap because of the slow economy. By including items in your inventory that you’ve purchased from your vendors on the cheap, you’ll be able to tempt your customers to part with their cash.

Give them something to talk about. Strong businesses are built on word-of-mouth advertising. The kicker is that in order for word-of-mouth advertising to work, you have to get people talking about your store. A great way to do that is through creative promotions, eye-catching window displays, in-store contests, and of course, all that great merchandise. All of these things are what make you different from the competition and what make your store stand out in the eyes of your customers.

The holidays are a great opportunity to use promotional activities to excite your customers and generate enthusiastic word of mouth. For example, offer a discount on a certain weekend to anyone brave enough to come to your store dressed as a holiday-related personality or character. Or partner with a nearby bakery and offer delicious holiday treats for shoppers along with a coupon that gives a discount at the bakery to every customer who buys in your store that day.

Stay in front of your customers. If you don’t already ask your customers for contact information when they buy from you, now is the time to start. Simply following up with past customers to ask how they like an item they recently purchased, to inform them about an upcoming sale, or to offer them special discounts is a great way to capture the fruit closest to the ground during a tough economy. You’ll tempt them into coming in again and making a purchase without giving away the store.

The key to having your existing customers come back to your store lies in you and your salespeople mastering the Art of the Friendly Reminder. I have seen stores have huge increases just by requiring their employees to make follow-up phone calls to customers. For example, if a customer recently purchased new cookware from your store, have a sales associate follow up with her to see how she is enjoying it and let her know that you just received a great shipment of cooking utensils or cookbooks.

Introduce the discount-later sales technique. There is a relatively new promotional idea that is being adopted by many retailers with a great deal of success. Here’s how it works: A customer makes a purchase for a certain amount, let’s say it’s $105. Because she’s reached the sales mark of $100 or more, you, the store, give her a coupon for 15 or 20 percent off of her next purchase. The kicker is the coupon cannot be used the day of the initial sale and is valid for only the next six days.

These kinds of deals are proving to be very effective. They give customers a compelling reason to come back to you and come back soon, while that sweater or purse or espresso machine she thought about but didn’t buy is still fresh on her mind. In fact, studies show that the return rate on these discounts is over 70 percent. That is a pretty significant success rate that will help you bring in a bunch of customers who may not have come back at all.

Sell every person who walks through the door. Remember, it is your job to maximize every customer who walks through your doors. You might be rolling your eyes at the impossibility of that proposal, but these tough times require a change in attitude. And yes, you can do this without being too aggressive or pushy.

Keep in mind that if someone enters your store, the potential exists for him to buy simply because he is in your store. Take the time to train your sales associates on how to engage your shoppers without alienating them. Remind them that just selling one item to one customer is not good enough and that the store benefits the most when a customer buys multiple items. So, make sure the phrase “May I also show you our fill-in-the-blank?” becomes second nature to them.

I believe we are about to observe an unprecedented period of growth. But in order to take part in that growth, you have to be around to see it, and that means taking the right steps now. Block out the naysayers who say you can’t be successful in this economic climate and ignore your own negative thoughts. If you take on a positive attitude and stay focused on doing everything you can to please and impress your customers, you will weather the economic storm.

# # #

About the Author:

Rick Segel, CSP, a seasoned retailer of 25 years, owned one of New England’s most successful independent women’s specialty stores. He is the marketing expert for Staples.com, a contributing writer for numerous national publications, and a founding member of the Retail Advisory Council for Johnson & Wales University. Rick is the director of retail training for the Retailers Association of Massachusetts. He is the creator of the Retailers Association of Massachusetts Awards of Excellence Program (RAMAEs) that has recognized over 50 of the most innovative retailers in the state.

Rick is currently serving on the Boards of Directors for five corporations and associations. After authoring and developing The Retail Technology Assessment Survey and The Retail Store Assessment Survey, online assessment applications designed for small- to medium-sized retailers, he created The Retailer’s Advantage, a membership website devoted to helping independent retailers improve their businesses.

CSP (Certified Speaking Professional) designation from the National Speakers Association, an elite rank held by only 7 percent of professional speakers. Rick is a past president of the New England Speakers Association, and he has been a featured speaker in 49 states, and on four continents, delivering over 1,900 presentations.

Rick has authored nine books, two training videos, and a six-hour audio program. Retail Business Kit For Dummies, published by Wiley, Inc., became the #1 selling retail how-to book in the United States in January 2002 and is now in its 2nd edition. Laugh & Get Rich: How to Profit from Humor in Any Business, published by Specific House, has been critically acclaimed as a must-read for its insightful outlook at our entertainment-based society and has been translated into Japanese, Chinese, and Korean. The Essential Online Solution: The Five Step Formula for Small Business Success, published by Wiley, Inc., is a primer for business owners on creating e-commerce success. He is also the author of Rick Segel’s Retail Inventory Control Solution: Open to Thrive and The 5,000 BEST Sale & Promotional Names & Ideas Ever Compiled and co-author of Retailing in the 21st Century. Most recently, he authored WOW Them Into Your Store: The Art and Science of Creating Powerful Promotions and Sensational Sales and Becoming the Vendor of Choice: The Secrets to Powerful Retail Relationships, both published by Specific House.

Rick also has tons of experience with the media and has appeared on TV, radio, and in many print articles. His down-to-earth, street-smart approach to business makes him a crowd pleaser wherever he goes.

About the Book:

Retail Business Kit For Dummies®, 2nd Edition (Wiley, September 2008, ISBN: 978-0-470-29330-0, $34.99) is available at bookstores nationwide and from all major online booksellers.

For more information, please visit www.RickSegel.com.

Aleeswari A & Jayanthi B asked:


RECENT TRENDS IN RECRUITMENT IN RETAILING

                                INDUSTRY

 

“Its not the strongest of the species and not the wisest that survice, but the ones that are most responsive to change.”

–     Charles Darwin

“Retail – What lies Beneath

          Of the people, by the people, for the people.”

Retailing is a fascinating, people oriented business, based on service to consumers.  It operates in an environment of attractive products and helpful services.  Wherever you turn in retailing, you can find something interesting to look at, to explore, and often to purchase.  We live in an age that is rich with products and services for most people to buy.  Products are goods grown or manufactured and available for sale; services are benefits or satisfactions that improve the appearance, health, comfort, or peace of mind of their users.  

It is easy to take for granted the impact retailing has on a nation’s economic growth.  In fact, retailing has made a significant contribution to the economic prosperity that we enjoy so much.  The nations that have enjoyed the greatest economic and social progress have been those with a strong retail sector.  Retailers have become valued and necessary members of society.  Although some may argue that we have too many retailers with too many stores operating today, we must not forget the social benefits that “over storing” provide an economy.  Some of the benefits that a vibrant retailing sector provides are easier access to products, having to settle to a second or third choice less often when shopping for a particular product, greater customer satisfaction, and higher levels of customer service.

What is Retailing?

Retailing consists of the final activities and steps needed to place merchandise made elsewhere in the hands of the ultimate consumer or to provide services to the consumer.

 

The Nature of Change in Retailing

                        Retailing is not staid and stable; rather it is an exciting business sector that effectively combines an individual’s skills to make a profit in an ever-changing market environment.  That is why some retailers are successful and others, who are either unwilling or unable to adapt to this changing environment, fail.

 

                                  Behaviour of

                                  Consumers

 

Socio –

Economic                                                   Behaviour

Environment                                                  

RetailFirm

of

                                                               Competition

 

 

 

State of                                                         

Technology                                                 Behaviour

                                                                      Of

                                                                      Channel

 

                                  Legal and

                                  Ethical System

External Environmental Factors Affecting Retail Firms

 

 What is involved in a Retailing Career?

                        In the long run, a retailing career can offer salary comparable with other careers, definite career advancement, and geographic mobility.  In addition, a career in retailing incorporates the knowledge and use of all the business activities or disciplines – accounting, marketing, finance, human resources, etc. Besides, in retailing “no two days are alike; each offers its own set of opportunities and problems.”  The prerequisites for the success in retailing besides hard work include analytical skills, creativity, decisiveness, flexibility, initiative, leadership, organization, risk taking, stress tolerance, perseverance and enthusiasm.  Though these are important, but it is especially important for the retail manager to work at developing an attitude of openness to new ideas and a willingness to learn because the market is always changing.

Planning for Human Resources

                        The role of administrative management is to acquire, maintain and control of retail resources.  One of the most important resources of all the other is human resources.  Human resources make things happen.  After all, customers don’t care who owns a retail store, they just want their questions answered, their problems solved, and their money for their purchases taken by the “first person they see.”  For many retailers, labour productivity has been declining over the past two decades.  These retailers appear to be caught in a vicious circle in which the relatively low wages that they offer salespersons have attracted low-quality employees, which tends to perpetuate the low-wage-low-quality cycle.  Not all retailers are in this vicious circle; many have gotten out by investing time and money in their employees.  

                        The hired human resources must be empowered.  Empowerment simply means that the employee has the “power to make things right for the customer.”  An empowered retail employee seeks to understand the customer’s problem, desires to develop a relationship with the customer, understands the value of customer loyalty and is encouraged by management to solve the customer’s problem.

                        The profit impact of empowering employees in retailing is dramatic.  Before being able to empower their employees, retailers must first decide what human resources will be needed to achieve their firm’s goals and objectives.  Next, retailers must make sure that only the right types of employees are hired, that they are managed properly, and that they are fairly compensated for their efforts.  Of all the activities recruitment is important for retailers to be successful.

Recruitment

                        Recruitment is an important part of an organization’s human resource planning and their competitive strength. Competent human resources at the right positions in the organization are a vital resource and can be a core competency or a strategic advantage for it.

The objective of the recruitment process is to obtain the number and quality of employees that can be selected in order to help the organization to achieve its goals and objectives. With the same objective, recruitment helps to create a pool of prospective employees for the organization so that the management can select the right candidate for the right job from this pool. Recruitment acts as a link between the employers and the job seekers and ensures the placement of right candidate at the right place at the right time. Using and following the right recruitment processes can facilitate the selection of the best candidates for the organization.

In this competitive global world and increasing flexibility in the labour market, recruitment is becoming more and more important in every business. Therefore, recruitment serves as the first step in fulfilling the needs of organizations for a competitive, motivated and flexible human resource that can help achieve its objectives.

According to Edwin B. Flippo, “Recruitment is the process of searching the candidates for employment and stimulating them to apply for jobs in the organisation”.

Recruitment Needs are of Three Types

v     PLANNED

i.e. the needs arising from changes in organization and retirement policy.

v     ANTICIPATED

Anticipated needs are those movements in personnel, which an organization can predict by studying trends in internal and external environment.

v     UNEXPECTED

Resignation, deaths, accidents, illness give rise to unexpected needs.

Purpose and Importance of Retailing

Ø      Attract and encourage more and more candidates to apply in the organization.

Ø      Create a talent pool of candidates to enable the selection of best candidates for the organization.

Ø      Determine present and future requirements of the organization in conjunction with its personnel planning and job analysis activities.

Ø      Recruitment is the process which links the employers with the employees.

Ø      Increase the pool of job candidates at minimum cost.

Ø      Help increase the success rate of selection process by decreasing number of visibly under qualified or overqualified job applicants.

Ø      Help reduce the probability that job applicants once recruited and selected will leave the organization only after a short period of time.

Ø      Meet the organizations legal and social obligations regarding the composition of its workforce.

Ø      Begin identifying and preparing potential job applicants who will be appropriate candidates.

Ø      Increase organization and individual effectiveness of various recruiting techniques and sources for all types of job applicants.

Ten-step Programme for sensible Recruitment

ü      Segment the target audience and direct the recruiting message to that audience.

ü      Use messages that sell.  Analyze what the candidates want and try and meet those needs.

ü      Make it easy for candidates to explore the opportunities being offered to them by facilitating, among other things, the ease of accessing applications and gathering information.

ü      Treat the candidate like a customer, for he is, in fact, shopping for a job with you.

ü      Never send a desperate message regardless of the urgency of the vacancy.

ü      Work with others to achieve your goals.

ü      Know what your competitors offer and be prepared to define your unique competence vis-à-vis that of a competitor.

ü      Company should never be scared to be imaginative or creative.  Candidates respond quite positively to unique and appealing messages.

ü      Don’t try just one source or method.  Use a variety of options to attract the best talent.

ü      Be persistent and patient while working towards your goals.

 

Recent Trends in Recruitment

 

The following trends are being seen in recruitment:

A) RECRUIMENT PROCESS OUTSOURCING (RPO)

In India, the HR processes are being outsourced from more than a decade now. A company may draw required personnel from outsourcing firms. The outsourcing firms help the organization by the initial screening of the candidates according to the needs of the organization and creating a suitable pool of talent for the final selection by the organization. Outsourcing firms develop their human resource pool by employing people for them and make available personnel to various companies as per their needs. In turn, the outsourcing firms or the intermediaries charge the organizations for their services.

RPO is a form of business that is processed forms various business resources for cost effective purpose.  It is a BPO in the field of human resource management and selection procedure.  In this employer, outsource their non-core jobs like recruitment activities to an external or third party service provider.  This involves whole process of recruitment in a channel wise and step by step procedure.

RPO is very different from staffing process in its proceedings.  In RPO, the whole process is owned and controlled by the same organization but in staffing process it is controlled by the service buying and completing it.

Advantages of outsourcing are:

·        Company need not plan for human resources much in advance.

·        Value creation, operational flexibility and competitive advantage

·        Turning the management’s focus to strategic level processes of HRM

·        Company is free from salary negotiations, weeding the unsuitable resumes/candidates.

·        Company can save a lot of its resources and time.

·        Economies get boosted through outsourcing recruitment processing.

·        Handles database of candidates’ profile, total recruitment tools investments and networking.

B) POACHING / RAIDING

“Buying talent” (rather than developing it) is the latest mantra being followed by the organizations today. Poaching means employing a competent and experienced person already working with another reputed company in the same or different industry; the organization might be a competitor in the industry. A company can attract talent from another firm by offering attractive pay packages and other terms and conditions, better than the current employer of the candidate. But it is seen as an unethical practice and not openly talked about. Indian software and the retail sector are the sectors facing the most severe brunt of poaching today. It has become a challenge for human resource managers to face and tackle poaching, as it weakens the competitive strength of the firm.

C) E-RECRUITMENT

            The buzzword and the latest trends in recruitment is the “E-Recruitment”. Also known as “Online recruitment”, it is the use of technology or the web based tools to assist the recruitment process. The tool can be either a job website like naukri.com, the organization’s corporate web site or its own intranet. Many big and small organizations are using Internet as a source of recruitment. They advertise job vacancies through worldwide web. The job seekers send their applications or curriculum vitae (CV) through an e-mail using the Internet. Alternatively job seekers place their CV’s in worldwide web, which can be drawn by prospective employees depending upon their requirements.

Many big organizations use Internet as a source of recruitment. E- Recruitment is the use of technology to assist the recruitment process. They advertise job vacancies through worldwide web. The job seekers send their applications or curriculum vitae i.e. CV through e mail using the Internet. Alternatively job seekers place their Curriculum Vitae’s in worldwide web, which can be drawn by prospective employees depending upon their requirements.

The internet *********** in India is increasing and has tremendous potential. According to a study by NASSCOM – “Jobs is among the top reasons why new users will come on to the internet, besides e-mail.” There are more than 18 million résumé’s floating online across the world.

The two kinds of e- recruitment that an organization can use is –

ü      Job portals – i.e. posting the position with the job description and the job specification on the job portal and also searching for the suitable resumes posted on the site corresponding to the opening in the organization.

ü      Creating a complete online recruitment/application section in the companies own website. - Companies have added an application system to its website, where the ‘passive’ job seekers can submit their resumes into the database of the organization for consideration in future, as and when the roles become available.

Resume Scanners: Resume scanner is one major benefit provided by the job portals to the organizations. It enables the employees to screen and filter the resumes through pre-defined criteria’s and requirements (skills, qualifications, experience, payroll etc.) of the job.

Job sites provide a 24*7 access to the database of the resumes to the employees facilitating the just-in-time hiring by the organizations. Also, the jobs can be posted on the site almost immediately and is also cheaper than advertising in the employment newspapers. Sometimes companies can get valuable references through the “passers-by” applicants. Online recruitment helps the organizations to automate the recruitment process, save their time and costs on recruitments.

Online recruitment techniques

·     Giving a detailed job description and job specifications in the job postings to attract candidates with the right skill sets and qualifications at the first stage.

·     E-recruitment should be incorporated into the overall recruitment strategy of the organization.

·     A well defined and structured applicant tracking system should be integrated and the system should have a back-end support.

·     Along with the back-office support a comprehensive website to receive and process job applications (through direct or online advertising) should be developed.

Therefore, to conclude, it can be said that e-recruitment is the “Evolving face of recruitment.”

 

 

Advantages of e-recruitment are:

o    Low cost.

o    No intermediaries

o    Reduction in time for recruitment.

o    Recruitment of right type of people.

o    Efficiency of recruitment process.

Conclusion

                        India’s one billion populations make the country the second largest in the world in terms of population which is the very basis for successful organized retailing.  We should take heart from the fact that most of the world’s successful retail stories in the developed as well as in the developing countries have shaped up in small towns and villages.  These have not only proved as independent profit centers but have also brought gainful opportunities and success for all.  India’s Retailing industry has seen some hectic activity and growth in the last five years.  In 2008, retail sales in India could top one billion dollars ($1 bn.) a day ($365 billion per year) according to a study released by ASSOCHAM.  Thus it is required for the retailers to go ahead with the proper recruitment policy for recruiting the employees for their firms.

 

R.Yuvarani asked:


An Overview of  Retail Marketing in India

 

 INTRODUCTION

Retailing is the world’s largest private sector contributing to 8% of the GDP and it employs one sixth of the labor force. The estimated retail trade is expected to be 7 trillion US $. Many countries have developed only due to retailing and presently we see there is a vast change in the retail industry. As far as India is concerned it contributes to 14% of our GDP and it is the second largest sector next to agriculture which provides employment to more number of persons. Now according to a survey, India is classified in to the fifth most attractive retail destination and second among the countries in Asia. Worldwide it is ranked as fifth most attractive retail destination. Before proceeding further, let me tell you the functions of retailing.

OVERVIEW

Today our topic will be on one of the interesting areas of Service Marketing – Retail Marketing. First we will see what is meant by Retail. This word has come from a French word Retailer which means to cut off a piece. Retailing includes all activities involved in selling the products and services to the ultimate consumers. So this is said to be the last person in the channel of distribution. In this discussion I will be introducing the concept world wide as well as in the national context. Next our discussion will be on the functions of retailing, then we proceed to why there is retail revolution at present, and finally we will study about the challenges faced by the retail industry.

 

FUNCTIONS OF RETAILING

Retailing is supposed to provide:

• Product Utility

• Place utility

• Time Utility

• Ownership Utility

It provides final end products to the consumers, not raw materials, end products in usable form to the consumers. Thereby it creates product utility. Second one, it is given in the place where it is required by the consumer. That is, retailing outlets are open in the places according to the convenience of the customer and also based on the demand of the consumer. Third One, it creates Time Utility. In the sense that, the shops are open as per the requirement of the consumer that is between 10 and 8 or 10 to 5. Whenever the consumers want to go and shop they can go and shop at a particular period convenient to the customer. Next one, when the product is sold finally it creates Ownership Utility. So, we can conclude that retailing is a marketing intermediary which creates Product Utility, Place Utility, Time Utility and Ownership Utility in providing goods and services to the consumers

CLASSIFICATION OF RETAIL INDUSTRY

Retail Sector can basically be classified in to two segments. One is organized segment and another one is unorganized segment. As far as India is concerned this organized segment contributes only to 3% of the retail trade and the unorganized segment contributes to remaining 97% of the retail trade. Why is it so?? Because all these days we have been purchasing only from the street vendors and from the local shops and organized retailing was not in vogue in India. Only after 1991, after opening up of economy and due to liberalization, this organized sector has come to light and presently it exists in various formats.

• Super markets

• Hypermarkets

• Departmental stores

• Specialty stores

REASONS FOR RETAIL REVOLUTION

. With double salaries and nuclear families, disposable income in the hands of middle income group people is high and that is one reason why retail revolution has taken place. The second one is a very interesting feature. Now there is a customer called New Age Customer.

Conclusion.

Retailing is the world’s largest private sector contributing to 8% of the GDP and it employs one sixth of the labor force. The estimated retail trade is expected to be 7 trillion US $. Many countries have developed only due to retailing and presently we see there is a vast change in the retail industry.  Discretionary income is the income left with a person apart from providing for his basic facilities. So this discretionary income he can utilize in any manner as he wants. So he is one person who is being aimed at by the retail industry, who is being trapped by the retail industry for purchases.

R.Yuvarani

m.phil research scholar

periyar university,salem