Since 1960s, the retail market of the grocery industry in the Europe and the U.S. A. started experiencing the surge in distribution and concentration of private label products. Private label commenced in some grocery shops in the Europe and the U.S. A. Some retailers decided to sell their wares under their own brand names. The process gradually developed into complicated process. Retailer such as Wal-Mart begun to expand their range of brand names to develop into range of products with sub-niches. These involved developing their own products and test them on the market in the same way manufacturers do and later selling them under their own brand names or brand controlled by them. Products for the branding are obtained from manufacturers who supply them under a different brand name. This implies that the brand of the producer is discarded and the brand of retailer appreciated or emphasized. Whoever even if Continue reading
Strategic Retail Management
Key Elements of Retail Displays
A retailer must carefully consider and plan each element of retail displays. Display elements include the merchandise, shelf display areas or window displays, props, colors, background materials, lighting and signs. The retailer is to compare contrast, repetition, motion, harmony, balance, rhythm and proportion of each display to draw the consumer’s attention to it. Display elements must be evaluated to determine how well and if they attract and hold the attention of the passersby. “Contrast” is one way to attract attention. Contrast is achieved by using different colors, lighting, form i.e., size and shape, lettering or textures. “Repetition” attracts consumer attention by duplicating an object to reinforce and strengthen the impression. For instance, by displaying 20 tennis rackets, the image is created of a store with a wide assortment of merchandise in that category. “Physical motion” is a powerful attention getter, as is dominance. If an item is much larger than Continue reading
Trading Area Adequacy for Retail Layouts
Trading area adequacy is the ability of a trading area to support proposed and the existing retail operations. The support capability may be viewed in a “Gross” as well as “Net” form. Here Gross adequacy is the ability of a trading area to support a retail operation without any consideration of retail competition. That is, the gross adequacy measures the total amount of business available to all the competing retailers within a defined trading area. Contrary to this, “net adequacy” is the ability of a trading area to provide support for a retailer after competition has been taken into account. The Gross Adequacy of Trading Area Measurement of gross adequacy determines the trading area’s total capacity to consume. The capacity of a retail market to consume is the function of the total number of consumers within a trading area at a given time and their need, willingness and the ability Continue reading
Planning Reductions in Merchandise Budgeting
This is a very significant stage in developing the merchandise budget namely planning of reductions. “Retail reductions” are the difference between the merchandise item’s original retail value and its actual final sales value. This difference is the result of three major factors namely, mark-downs, discounts and shortages. “Mark downs” are the reductions in the original retail price for the purpose of stimulating the sale of merchandise. The amount of markdown can vary considerably depending on the type of merchandise and the condition under which it is sold. “Discounts” are reduction in the original retail price that are granted to store employees as special fringe benefits and to special customers in recognition of their special status say senior citizens, disadvantaged customers and religious personalities like clergy, priests, and so on. “Shortages” are the reductions in the total value of the retailer’s inventory as a result of shoplifting, pilferage and merchandise being Continue reading
The Concept of Retail Sites and it’s Classification
A retail site is the actual physical location from which a retail business operates. According to retail specialists, retail site is one of the principal tools obtaining and maintaining a competitive advantage through spatial monopoly. A given site is unique when its “positional qualities” serve a particular trading area consumer in way that no other site can match. That is why, retailer’s site problem has solution in its identification evaluation and final decision of perfectly matching site. The first step in appraising retail site locations is to identify all potential site alternatives. The number of site alternatives in any given trading area can range from an extremely limited to a very large selection. Therefore, before a retailer attempts to have any formal evaluation, he should scan and screen the alternatives by asking three crucial questions. These are : Availability. Is the site available for rent or out-right purchase? Suitability. Are Continue reading
Retail: Meaning and Definition
The distribution of consumer products begins with the producer and ends at the ultimate consumer. Between the producer and the consumer there is a middleman—the retailer, who links the producers and the ultimate consumers. Retailing is defined as a conclusive set of activities or steps used to sell a product or a service to consumers for their personal or family use. It is responsible for matching individual demands of the consumer with supplies of all the manufacturers. The word ‘retail’ is derived from the French work retailer, meaning ‘to cut a piece off’ or ‘to break bulk’. A retailer is a person, agent, agency, company, or organization which is instrumental in reaching the goods, merchandise, or services to the ultimate consumer. Retailers perform specific activities such as anticipating customer’s wants, developing assortments of products, acquiring market information, and financing. A common assumption is that retailing involves only the sale of Continue reading