frm assignment

8/10/2019 Frm Assignment

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NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF FASHION TECHNOLOGY,

KOLKATA

ASSIGNMENTI

SUBJECT

FASHION RETAIL MANAGEMENT

NAME OF THE ASSIGNMENT

Study a retail store with respect to its corporate history, organizational structure,

annual reports, target customers, store locations, store formats and product line.

TOPIC OF THE ASSIGNMENT

STUDY A RETAIL STORE- WESTSIDE

SUBMITTED BY:

Shreshtha Soni

Roll no: 10

Sakshi Prerna

Roll no: 13

Priyanka Suman

Roll no: 16

Noopur Singh

Roll no: 17

Dinesh Das

Roll no: 26


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The Tata group was founded by Jamshedji Tata in 1868 and now is the

largest private corporate group in India, in terms of market capitalization and

revenues.

The total revenue of the Tata group, taken together, in 2009-10 was estimated

at $67.4 billion (around Rs319, 534 crore).

The group has operations in more than 80 countries in various fields

including: Communication and information technology, engineering material,

services, energy, consumer products and chemicals.

Tata in the retail sector

The tata group operates some of Indias largest and fastest growing retail

chains.

Tatas retail chains are run by its subsidiaries like Trent Ltd, Infiniti Retail and

Titan.

The retail chains include: Croma, Landmark, Casa Dcor, Star Bazar,

Westside, Tanishq and the latest addition to this list is Taashi.

These chains provide products ranging from electronic items, fresh food, and

jewelry to clothing and accessories.


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CORPORATE HISTORY

This story began circa 1998 when the Tatas acquired little woods a London

based retail chain. This acquisition was followed by the establishment of

Trent ltd (A Tata enterprise that presently operates Westside). Littlewoods

was subsequently renamed as Westside In a rapidly evolving retail scenario, Westside has carved a niche for its brand

of merchandise creating a loyal following. Currently, the company has 69

Westside stores measuring 15,000-30,000 square feet each across 28 cities.

With a variety of designs and styles, everything at Westside is exclusively

designed and the merchandise ranges from stylized clothes, footwear and

accessories for men, women and children to well-co-coordinated table linens,

artefacts, home accessories and furnishings. Well-designed interiors,sprawling space, prime locations and coffee shops enhance the customers

shopping experience.

Turnover year ended 31.03.2011 was 4303.71 lakhs.

Westside was awarded the 'The Most Admired Private Label Fashion Retailer

of the Year at the Images Fashion Awards 2010, organized by the IMAGES

Group.

Westside has 90 per cent of its merchandise as private label brands andwitnessed a growth of nearly 28 per cent in the retail space, despite the

downturn.

Westside is ahead in profitability because 85% of its merchandise is in-house

brands.

Westside is mostly popular because of a wide range of products which include

Menswear, Womens wear, Kids wear, Footwear, Cosmetics, Perfumes and

Handbags, Household Accessories, lingerie, and Gifts.


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It is also going to house an extensive designer prt collection by the countrys

leading designers Wendell Rodricks, Narendra Kumar, Priyadarshini Rao,

Manish Gupta and Vivek Kumar.

Italian kids wear brand Chicco will introduce parents to the safe and testedworld of baby products.

Between financial year ended 2008 and 2009-10, Trents stand-alone (largely

Westside) revenue grew 8.6% to Rs 542.60 crore against Shoppers Stops

30% growth to Rs 1, 478 crore.

Westside has garnered numerous accolades

Ba lanced Scorecard Ha l l o f Fame

Ind ia Brand Summi t Brand Leadersh ip Reta i l

IFA Visionary of the Year Award, 2002Mrs. Simone N. Tata

Most Admired Large Format Retail Chain of the Year - Lycra

Images Fashion Awards 2005

NDTV Profit Business Leadership Awards 2006 - Retail Category


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ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE OF WESTSIDE

The basic organizational structure of the organization is-

The function of store manager is to look after the functions of all the stores of

Westside in that particular area/city. He is responsible for all the sales and

sales related activities for all stores in city.

The function of assistant store manager (ASM) to look after the function of a

single store. Hence, there are individual ASMs for individual stores. He is

responsible for collecting daily report from the DMs and reportingto the SM.

He is also responsible for the staff welfare of the store.

Each store has been divided into two departments one for apparel and other

for the cosmetics. Hence, there are two DMs in every store. The DM is

responsible for the daily sales and customer relation activities in store.

There are two training and development managers (TDM) in each store. They

are responsible for training of the sales assistants (SA).

Sales officers are the senior sales assistants. The not only involved in sales

activities but also helps the SAs in selling activities.

Store Manager

Assistant Store

Manager

Department Manager

Training and

Development manager

Sales Officer

Sales Assistant


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Sales assistants are the persons who are in direct contact of the customers.

They are responsible for the customer satisfaction.

EMPLOYEE BEHAVIOUR

Employees are specially trained for helping out their customers in reducing

dissonance.

Each SA gives personal attention to the customer in selection and buying of

their product, thereby building a good customer relationship.

The employees also learn how to work in a team to perform, during their

commencement of work as everybody has been assigned their job by the DM.

They are trained to control their emotion even if they have to deal with

customers who are very choosy and sometimes ridicule the collections

available at store.

ANNUAL REPORT

The Westside stores, the predominantly private label fashion apparel format,

continue to be the mainstay of the retailing business of the Company. This format

over the years has been rolled out across the country and currently covers over 38

cities. In the year under review, thirteen stores were opened including the following -

Bhopal (DB City Mall), Pune (Phoenix Market City), Mumbai (Infinity Mall), Varanasi

(Dhanushree Complex), New Delhi (Moments Mall), Mumbai (R-City Mall), Bilaspur

(City Mall), Udaipur (Rkay Mall) and Bangalore (Orion Mall).

In the first quarter of the current financial year two further stores have been opened

in Jalandar (Model Town) and Vizag (R K Estate) taking the total number of

operational Westside stores to 69.

During FY11-12, as can be observed from the above chart the Company recorded

thirteen new store openings - being the highest in any year since the inception of this

format. However, from an operating perspective, the period under review was difficult

for the Westside format.


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Significant costs pressures, including on account of the 10% excise duty

imposed on branded apparel; this compelled price increases in the region of

15% to 20%;

Customer off-take declined in volume terms especially in the first half andsales were skewed significantly to discounted end of season sale periods;

this play-out implied lower realized gross margins;

Inventory build up was on the higher side vis--vis target levels given that

same-store-sale growth was significantly below budgeted levels; essentially,

slowing demand and customer resistance to accept new price points resulted

in higher inventory days;

Some of the stores opened (especially those in larger malls) in the FY11 and

during the period under review witnessed slower ramp up in sales and on the

other hand involved higher operating costs including on account of common

area maintenance cost charge-outs.

The conviction of the Board and the management on the attractiveness of the

Westside format as a business model was one of the primary reasons to

continue significant expansion of the chain during this period. Further, during

the year under review, key steps were initiated to refresh the product offering

and also the look and feel of the stores. The initial response from customers

in these respects has been encouraging.


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Westside is ranked to be in the top quartile in terms contribution of private label

merchandize to overall revenues. It allows for a better competitive position over the

medium term. At the same time, the intent is to make the offering complete and

collectively more attractive through the inclusion of select brands that account for up

to 15% of the overall merchandize range on offer.

Further, during the period under review, we have continued to emphasize improving

the efficiency of our supply chain to effectively replenish our store network and

significantly improve merchandize availability levels in stores. While we seek to

exercise restraint on costs, we consciously continue to invest in areas like

significantly refurbishing the look and feel of certain stores in the portfolio and have

concluded implementation of a warehouse management system. We believe

incurring of these additional costs on the above initiatives is warranted especially

from a long term business model sustainability perspective, and we expect to realize

tangible benefits over the medium term. From a cost perspective, in the period under

review, there have been pressures across line items including:

Sharply higher merchandize input costs given the rally in commodity prices in

the second half of FY10-11.


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increase in wage bill (with minimum wage levels witnessing sharp increase in

several States); also fuelled by improved hiring sentiment across industries at

the entry level

higher energy costs in States like Maharashtra and escalating Common AreaMaintenance charges in select malls

Increase in tax costs (service tax on rentals, higher VAT in most States and

the 10% excise on branded garments).

These pronounced cost pressures across several line items and the significant

inflation levels in various categories in the recent quarters continues to be a cause

for concern. However, moderation in input prices for apparel in recent quarters is

providing some relief.

In summary, despite various challenges, including the current difficult economic

backdrop and the cost pressures, Westside as a format continues to be sustainable

and as stated previously, the intent is to further scale up presence by opening as

many new stores in the near to medium term, subject to availability of acceptable

retail locations and estimated viability of economics at the store level.


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TARGET CUSTOMERS

Westside has continued to build on these lessons by staying in touch with fashion

trends, architecting a distinct store identity, understanding the inclinations of its

customers, and continually enhancing their shopping experience. That explains how

Westside has emerged as a successful business, with a customer base of over

800,000 people, many of whom swear by the cut and fit, style and price of the

chains offerings

The age group of people visiting the store is in between 18-40. (Upper middle and

middleclass) The attraction of the shopping is basically the female population. The

movement of mens apparels is also due to the ladies buying for the men.

STORE LOCATIONS

There are more than 50 Westside stores established in various cities and states of

India which includes Jammu, Vadodra, Delhi, Pune, Mumbai, Surat, Rajkot, Nagpur,

Mysore, Lucknow, Jaipur, Indore, Noida, Gurgaon and Ghaziabad are few among

others. With immense growth in the retail sector, Westside has become one of the

leading outlets to cater to the needs of potential buyers.

The Westside modelWestsidesaccomplishments can be attributed to its strategy of establishing stores in

what can be described as catchment areas, adopting a private-label format and

fashioning, so to speak, a selling proposition that connects quality and affordability.

These factors have been such strong differentiators that even though the Westside

chain is smaller than some of its competitors it has 69 stores it is one of the

most successful and consistently profitable formats in the organised retail segment.

Despite the recent economic slowdown, Westside has managed to ride the waves by

concentrating on optimising costs, tightening inventory control and taking a

disciplined approach with aging merchandise. These and other endeavours fetched

Westside the Asia Retail Congress 2008 Retailer of the Year, Private Label award,

an honour bestowed by the retail industry. Westside has also recently won the

Images Retailer of the Year Department Store at the Images Retail Awards of

2009.


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Another critical aspect for Westside has been a central warehousing system that

controls products sourced from over 300 vendors, ships merchandise to all of the

chains outlets, and monitors each stores requirements. Products are refreshed

every week, a fact that enthuses Westside loyalists and gets them to make regular

visits to their area stores.

STORE FORMAT

Format: Mid-price offerings, private label fashion

Launch: 1998, in Bangalore (erstwhile Littlewoods, a UK-based store)

Selling proposition: Affordable style and quality merchandise

Key categories: Apparel and footwear

Store size: 8,000-34,000 square feet

Present: 69 stores

Plans: To open eight-ten stores in the current financial year

SERVICE AND STORE ATMOSPHERE IN WESTSIDE

Pre purchase services include accepting telephone and mail orders,

advertising, window and interior display, fitting rooms, fashion shows. It provides post purchase service including shipping and delivery, gift

wrapping, adjustments and returns, alteration and tailoring.

It also provides ancillary services including general information, check

cashing, parking, restaurants, repairs, interior decorating, credit etc.

The Westside stores wear a bright, festive look and, in keep with the mood of the

season, hosting a festival bright.

With the sole objective of rewarding its loyal customers for their patronage, Westsidehas lined up a bonanza of surprise gifts. Every shopper gets a scratch and win card

which entitles the, entry into a contest. Those making purchases above Rs.1500 are

also entitled to receive other pleasant surprises.

ARRANGEMENT

Ground floor

Cosmetics

Jewellery


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Watches

Bags

First floor

Women section

Children section

Household item

Second floor( men section)

Casual clothing

Formal wear

Ethnic wear

Shoes

The Promotion technique used by Westside:

Club West Card Programme

Fashion Logy

It also provides 4 levels of services:

Self Service

Self Selection

Limited Service

Full Service

PRODUCT LINE

Style, affordable prices, quality: these are the factors that have shaped

W e s t s i d e s s u c c e s s s t o r y i n t h e r e t a i l f a s h i o n s t o r e s

b u s i n e s s . The Westside chain has, ever since, been setting the standards

for other fashion retailers to follow. Westside stands out from the competition for a

variety of reasons. One is that a majority of the brands the chain stocks and sells are

its own, u n l i k e r e t a i l e r s w h o s t o r e m u l t i p l e l a b e l s . A b o u t 9 0

p e r c e n t o f W ests ide s o f fe r ings a re home-grown, and they ca te r


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to different customer segments. The other 10 per cent includes toys, cosmetics

and lingerie.

Westside has recently expanded its range of merchandise by offering outfits from

some of Indias best known fashion designers, among them Wendell Rodericks,

Anita Dongre, Krishna Mehta and Mona Pali. This is an interesting market shift, since

it means moving away from the chains only-our-own-brands concept.

Westside is a departmental store having several product line.

PRIVATE BRANDS IN WESTSIDE

2 F 4 U

SRC

Gia

Urban angel

Intima

David jones

Ascot

Blackberry

Lee

Spykar

Provogue

The trendy household section has a complete new range of bed linen in elephant

motifs, floral motifs and paisley designs. The color palette for the festive collection

includes flaming orange, royal blue and other vibrant colors to depict festivity.

The store has also introduced a new range of furniture and other household goods

including cabinets, butler trays and mirrors in wood with antique finish


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Facing the challenge

The greatest challenge for Westside in its quest for a place in the retail sun is not the

competition from similar organized players, but from the unorganized sector (98 per

cent of Indias retail garment industry operates in theunorganized sector).The

other cha l lenge fo r Wests ide is tha t the re ta i l fash ion bus iness in

th e co un t ry is becoming increasingly crowded with new players, Indian

and foreign. Among the new entrants have been Wills

Sport, Lifestyle, Raymonds(Be), Globus, Nike, Crocodile ,Mango and, the

latest, Marks & Spencer

REFERENCES

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/16142957/Study-of-organizational-behavior-at-

westside

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/16142957/Study-of-organizational-behavior-at-

westside

http://www.mywestside.com/aiding.aspx

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trent_%28Westside%29
http://www.docstoc.com/docs/16142957/Study-of-organizational-behavior-at-westsidehttp://www.docstoc.com/docs/16142957/Study-of-organizational-behavior-at-westsidehttp://www.docstoc.com/docs/16142957/Study-of-organizational-behavior-at-westsidehttp://www.docstoc.com/docs/16142957/Study-of-organizational-behavior-at-westsidehttp://www.docstoc.com/docs/16142957/Study-of-organizational-behavior-at-westsidehttp://www.docstoc.com/docs/16142957/Study-of-organizational-behavior-at-westsidehttp://www.mywestside.com/aiding.aspxhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trent_%28Westside%29http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trent_%28Westside%29http://www.mywestside.com/aiding.aspxhttp://www.docstoc.com/docs/16142957/Study-of-organizational-behavior-at-westsidehttp://www.docstoc.com/docs/16142957/Study-of-organizational-behavior-at-westsidehttp://www.docstoc.com/docs/16142957/Study-of-organizational-behavior-at-westsidehttp://www.docstoc.com/docs/16142957/Study-of-organizational-behavior-at-westside

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