truth is out !

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"The consumer is still cautious. He is spending, but not splurging," says Govind Shrikhande, managing director, Shoppers Stop Ltd. The chain has seen 17% less shoppers this festive season compared with last year. Still, Shrikhande says there are signs of things returning to normal by December.

“The Diwali month can make or break a brand or retailer,” says Nilesh Gupta, managing partner, Vijay Sales, which runs a chain of outlets selling products such as television sets and washing machines in western India.

"For makers of consumer products such as television sets and washing machines, the proportion of annual sales is 30-35%. It is a third for apparel makers and a fourth for firms in the jewellery business."

Above positions are not my words but people who consider themselves as experts are mouthing these recently ! It just sums up the mood of market at present !

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I have been long advocating ethical practices in retail specially in garment and clothing business in India. I have been telling clothing retailers to practice genuine discount and premium price must give value for money to attaract customers.
Recession or no recession the customers perception is very important to induce and close sales. It is ridiculous in name of discount what retailers are doing is selling repackaged old stocks, hiking the price 2-3 times and then offering upto 70 % discount, resorting to gimmicks like putting a big banner announcing discounted items and when you lead in only to find a very small proportion and useless stocks on discount. All of these have gravely eroded potential customer trust and confidence in branded apparel retail or for that manner even in other product retails. There are very few players on the top level brands who are close to being honest about discount and having used discounts to actually clear old season stocks rather increasing sales.

Recession has also made our generation learn a hard lession that is to use money wisely and not to indulge splurge or impulsive buying unnecessarily. In this light optimism shown by some retailers that good old time will come back soon is misplaced ! Forget it. You got to work out a sales model which is grounded to reality.

There is no other way to win the customer back other than being transparent, avoiding cheap gimmicks, giving honest value for money and being innovative in product and services. For this require change of mindset of promotors, top managers who should realise that building customer base is a serious business and retaining those customers into repeat buys harder still.

So stop looking at short term gain, dig in for long battle ahead !!!

Beware when you buy Fashion articles from Branded Desi retailers !

This coming festive season Indian consumers will be exposed to dead stocks and leftover freshly packaged as old wine in new bottle ! The reasons are not difficult to find !!

Past one year due to economic slowdown the stocks have built up at incredibly high rate due to stagnant sales. Where will these stocs go...? Certainly not to charity as western retailers do when they have dead stocks. Indian companies will push these stocks as fresh significantly eroding the value for money.

How can a customer make out if this is fresh retail or old stock ?

In India there is no concept of colours or trend in a season precisely because except a miniscule percentage of fashion fraternity, "Aam Aadmi" is blissfully unaware of trend, fashion,fabrics and colours....which ought to be specific to specific season ! Just visit any top brand garment retailers the colour concept is so restricted to winter colours and summer colours which is dark colurs and light colours. There is a very limited coordination of colour concept and visual merchandising. You imagine Tommy Hilfiger showroom you will instantly associate with its colours, Lilly Pulitzer....you will know their colur story. Same is with Next, Gap, Zara, Monsoon....they all have identity very specific to them and people in western countries closely associates their colour affinity with these brands.

Contrast this with Indian Retailers like Shopper Stop, Pantaloon, Max, Life style, Spncers etc. Their product range looks like coming from a similar source or similar stabal ! Only choice perhaps is the selling price of each of these brands otherwise they offer no value preposition.

This brings to the opportunity these retailers can tap and can increase sales in forthcoming festive season in India when sales remail at yearly high.

They got to liquidate their stocks by offering Genuine Discounts rather indulging in gimmicks like UPTO 50 % discount which you will find when you once to step in that you have been taken for a ride. The 50 % discounted stuff will be perhaps 0.01 % of articles in showroom !!! Similarly a standard trick is 50% discount + 20 % discount ! It is a mathematical trickery again. Another trick is to increase selling price to 100 % and then offer above mentioned discounts. This does not make sense unless these retailers have run out of ideas and totally mental bankrupt in offering innovative menthod to increase sales. This way Mr. Retailers you cannot build brand loyalty...it does not pay to fleece customer in the long run.

There are ways and means to genuinely increase sales and retain loyal customers and to know that contact me !

MARKETFEST '2008 ORGANISED BY AMITY INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SCHOOL

I was invited to do a guest lecture on Global Meltdown and marketing where I gave my lecture based on my experience of International marketing. This took place in November 2008 but I received these photographs recently and adding to this Blog. I do not know how to upload power point presentation that I gave for benefit of visitors to my blog......when I know how it is done I will add to it. Until then some photographs recording the event.