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Service Marketing Project

Comparative Study on
Shoppers Stop and
Westside

By:

The Warriors

 Sunita Chowdhury
 Imran Khan

 Amit Kumar

 Devesh Kumar
  Jyoti Kumari

Service Marketing:
Services marketing is marketing based on relationship and value. It may be
used to market a service or a product. Marketing a service-base business is
different from marketing a goods-base business.

There are several major differences, including:

1. The buyer purchases are intangible

2. The service may be based on the reputation of a single person
3. It's more difficult to compare the quality of similar services
4. The buyer cannot return the service

The major difference in the education of services marketing versus regular

marketing is that apart from the traditional "4 P's," Product, Price, Place,
Promotion, there are three additional "P's" consisting of People, Physical
evidence, and Process. Service marketing also includes the servicewomen
referring to but not limited to the aesthetic appearance of the business from
the outside, the inside, and the general appearance of the employees
themselves. Service Marketing has been relatively gaining ground in the
overall spectrum of educational marketing as developed economies move
farther away from industrial importance to service oriented economies.

Characteristics of a Service:
What exactly are the characteristics of a service? How are services different
from a product? In fact many organisations do have service elements to the
product they sell, for example McDonald’s sell physical products i.e. burgers
but consumers are also concerned about the quality and speed of service, are
staff cheerful and welcoming and do they serve with a smile on their face?

There are five characteristics to a service which will be discussed below.

1. Lack of ownership.

You cannot own and store a service like you can a product. Services are used
or hired for a period of time. For example when buying a ticket to the USA
the service lasts maybe 9 hours each way , but consumers want and expect
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excellent service for that time. Because you can measure the duration of the
service consumers become more demanding of it.

2. Intangibility

You cannot hold or touch a service unlike a product. In saying that although
services are intangible the experience consumers obtain from the service has
an impact on how they will perceive it. What do consumers perceive from
customer service, the location, and the inner presentation of where they are
purchasing the service?.

3. Inseparability

Services cannot be separated from the service providers. A product when

produced can be taken away from the producer. However a service is
produced at or near the point of purchase. Take visiting a restaurant, you
order your meal, the waiting and delivery of the meal, the service provided
by the waiter/waitress is all apart of the service production process and is
inseparable, the staff in a restaurant are as apart of the process as well as the
quality of food provided.

4. Perishibility

Services last a specific time and cannot be stored like a product for later use.
If traveling by train, coach or air the service will only last the duration of the
journey. The service is developed and used almost simultaneously. Again
because of this time constraint consumers demand more.

5. Heterogeneity

It is very difficult to make each service experience identical. If traveling by

plane the service quality may differ from the first time you traveled by that
airline to the second, because the airhostess is more or less experienced.
A concert performed by a group on two nights may differ in slight ways
because it is very difficult to standardize every dance move. Generally
systems and procedures are put into place to make sure the service provided
is consistent all the time, training in service organisations is essential for
this, however in saying this there will always be subtle differences.

Indian Retail Sector

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 The Indian Retail Sector has undergone rapid transformation by setting
scalable and profitable retail models across various categories and formats.
Traditional markets are making way for departmental stores, hypermarkets,
supermarkets and specialty stores. The modern malls cater to shopping,
entertainment and food, all under one roof. It was estimated that India will
have over close to 50 million square feet of quality retail space by the end of
2007. The growth in mall space has been over ten fold in four years: from
about 2 million square feet in 2002 to 28 million square feet in 2006. The
Indian Retail market is estimated to be worth around Rs. 14,100 billion. The
organized retail market has increased its share from 3 % in 2004 to around 4
% in 2006 and is valued at Rs. 511 billion.

Overview of Retailing in India

The Indian Retail market is estimated to be worth around Rs. 14,100 billion.
The organized retail market has increased its share from 3 % in 2004 to
around 4 % in 2006 and is valued at Rs. 511 billion (source: India Retail
Report 2007). Food and grocery is estimated to be the largest single block,
but the contribution of the organized sector is at 0.8 %. The clothing, textile
and fashion accessories constitute the second largest block where nearly 17.5
% is contributed by the organized sector. Footwear has the highest
contribution from organized retail (36 %).

SHOPPERS STOP:
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Shopper’s Stop Ltd., has redefined retail in India, taking it to the next level.
From being just the sale of goods to consumers, the company has created a
unique aura around retail and turned it into an experience, an indulgence.
The pioneer of organized retail in India, Shopper’s Stop Ltd., has been
instrumental in bringing about a retail revolution in the country and has
become the highest benchmark for the industry. With its growth plans firmly
in place and undeniable leadership in the field, Shopper’s Stop Ltd., is well
on its way to raise the bar of performance even higher. Shopper’s Stop Ltd.
has made this purchase of goods extremely pleasurable. The stores have
redefined shopping by making it more than just a transaction. The entire
shopping process is the coming together of an amazing array of offerings,
warm but unobtrusive service and special privileges and benefits that
translate every visit into customer delight.

Since its inception in 1991, Shopper’s Stop Ltd., which was founded by the
K Raheja Corp. Group (Chandru L Raheja Group), one of the leading
players in the country in the business of real estate development and hotels,
has been offering premium and luxury value for the entire family. Its first
store was in Andheri, Mumbai. Shoppers Stop Ltd has been awarded "the
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Hall of Fame" and won "the Emerging Market Retailer of the Year Award",
by World Retail Congress at Barcelona, on April 10, 2008. Shoppers Stop is
listed on the BSE. With the launch of the Navi Mumbai departmental store,
Shoppers Stop has 27 stores in 12 cities in India. Shopper’s Stop Ltd. has
metamorphosed from being a chain of retail stores to emerging as a Fashion
& Lifestyle destination, which now includes retail concepts such as
bookstores, cafés and high-end lifestyle merchandise for the growing
affluent middle class in India. Today, its name is synonymous with superior
quality product, services and above all, an international shopping
experience.

Store:

Shoppers Stop is one of the leading retail stores in India. Shoppers Stop
began by operating a chain of department stores under the name “Shoppers’
Stop” in India. Currently Shoppers Stop has twenty seven (27) stores across
the country and three stores under the name HomeStop. Shoppers Stop has
also begun operating a number of speciality stores, namely Crossword
Bookstores, Mothercare, Brio, Desi Café, Arcelia.

Shoppers Stop retails a range of branded apparel and private label under the
following categories of apparel, footwear, fashion jewellery, leather
products, accessories and home products. These are complemented by cafe,
food, entertainment, personal care and various beauty related services.

Shoppers Stop launched its e-store with delivery across major cities in India
in 2008. The website retails all the products available at Shoppers Stop
stores, including apparel, cosmetics and accessories.

Products:
Shoppers Stop retails products of domestic and international brands such as
Louis Philippe, Pepe, Arrow, BIBA, Gini & Jony, Carbon, Corelle, Magppie,
Nike, Reebok, LEGO, and Mattel. Shoppers Stop retails merchandise under
its own labels, such as STOP, Kashish, LIFE and Vettorio Fratini, Elliza
Donatein, Acropolis etc. The company also licensees for Austin Reed
(London), an international brand, who’s men's and women's outerwear are
retailed in India exclusively through the chain. In October 2009, Shoppers

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Stop has bought the license for merchandising Zoozoo the brand mascot for
Vodafone India.

Marketing:
In April 2008, Shoppers Stop changed its logo and adopted the mantra "Start
Something New" repositioned to bridge to luxury segment and introduced
international brands like CK Jeans, Tommy Hilfiger, FCUK, Mustang, Dior
across the stores. The focus of the reposition was on the service, ambience
up gradation and customer connect.

* Connect with Youth

Shoppers Stop connects with the youth audience through adopting the
communication routes relevant to youth, up the fashion quotient through
merchandising, and create ambience that connects with the mindset. The
brand campaign addresses environment-related issues in a youthful, tongue-
in-cheek manner. Shoppers Stop as a brand active on social media marketing
platforms with Facebook and Twitter to connect with this audience.

* Merchandising
Merchandising opportunities like the launched Zoozoo merchandise and film
merchandise with Om Shanti Om and Love Aaj Kal.

* Sensorial experience
Creating an environment conducive to relax in-between shopping introduced
Shoppers Stop Radio that plays youthful music and Cafe Coffee Day was
given the management of the Desi Cafe and Brio cafes

In order to enhance the level of customer service and gain insight into new
and emerging practices followed internationally, Shopper’s Stop Ltd. is a
member of the Inter Continental Group of Department Stores (IGDS). It is
the only Indian member along with 29 other experienced retailers from all
over the world. Leveraging expertise, excellence and experience, Shopper’s
Stop Ltd. has become a benchmark for the Indian retail industry to follow.
Continuing expansion plans, presence across several retail formats and
international offerings will empower Shopper’s Stop Ltd. to meet and
exceed the expectations of shoppers at the micro level and the industry at the
macro level. The company’s flagship business of department stores is
manifest in Shoppers’ Stop. A pioneer of organized retail in India, Shoppers’
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Stop today, is the country’s biggest Department Store Chain. It offers
customers an international shopping environment and a world-class
shopping experience through its 20 stores in 11 cities. It houses a host of
international and domestic brands across categories such as apparel,
accessories, cosmetics, home & kitchenware as also its own private brands.
Shoppers‟ Stop offers a wide range of brands (more than 400 brands) for
the entire family to choose from. Exclusive and established brands share
shelf space to offer an array of choices customers across all ages, tastes and
occasions.

SWOT OF SHOPPERS STOP:

Strengths
 Variety
 Range
 Different Brands
 Low risk
 Good financial position
 Presence across various segments

Weakness
 Very high prices
 Less Schemes
 Less Discounts
 Competition from standalone stores

Threats
 Government Policies
 Entrance of New Players
 High attrition
 Lesser consumer spending
 Entry of foreign players
 Unorganized sector
Opportunities
 Awareness about the brands
 Quality
 Youngsters
 Collaborate
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 Private levels
 Enter new consumer goods segments.

WESTSIDE

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Style, affordable prices, quality these are the factors that have shaped
Westside's success story in the retail fashion stores business. Launched in
1998 in Bangalore, the Westside chain has, ever since, been setting the
standards for other fashion retailers to follow.

Established in 1998 as part of the Tata Group, Trent Ltd. operates Westside,
one of India's largest and fastest growing chains of retail stores. The
Westside stores have numerous departments to meet the varied shopping
needs of customers. These include Menswear, Women’s wear, Kid’s wear,
Footwear, Cosmetics, Perfumes and Handbags, Household Accessories,
lingerie, and Gifts. The company has already established 36 Westside
departmental stores (measuring 15,000-30,000 square feet each) in
Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Gurgaon, Ghaziabad & Noida (to
be considered as 1 city), Hyderabad, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata, Ludhiana,
Lucknow, Mumbai, Mysore, Nagpur, Pune, Rajkot, Surat, Vadodara and
Jammu. The company hopes to expand rapidly with similar format stores
that offer a fine balance between style and price retailing.

Trent ventured into the hypermarket business in 2004 with Star Bazaar,
providing an ample assortment of products made available at the lowest
prices, aptly exemplifying its ‘Chota Budget, Lambi Shopping’ motto. At
present Star Bazaar has 4 stores in 3 cities located in Ahmedabad, Mumbai
and Bangalore. This store offers customers an eclectic array of products that
include staple foods, beverages, health and beauty products, vegetables,
fruits, dairy circa 1998 when The Tatas acquired Littlewoods – a London
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based retail chain. This acquisition was followed by the establishment of
Trent Ltd (a Tata enterprise that presently operates Westside). Littlewoods
was subsequently renamed Westside.

In addition, Trent acquired a 76% stake in Landmark, one of the largest

books & music retail chains in the country. Landmark began operations in
1987 with its first store in Chennai with a floor space of 5500 sq. ft.

At present Landmark have 12 big stores , 7 hotel bookstores and 4 Airport

stores, varying in size from 12,000 sq. ft. to 45,000 sq. ft in Chennai,
Bengaluru, Gurgaon, Mumbai, Vadodara, Gurgaon, Pune, Lucknow,
Ahmedabad and Hyderabad. Until 1996, Landmark’s product portfolio
comprised books, stationery, and greeting cards. It was later that music was
added to it. Landmark also sparked the trend of stocking curios, toys and
other gift items. What separates Landmark from other stores of its kind is the
range and depth of its stock.

In a rapidly evolving retail scenario, Westside has carved a niche for its
brand of merchandise creating a loyal following. Currently, the company has
36 Westside stores measuring 15,000-30,000 square feet each across 20
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, artifacts, home accessories and furnishings. Well-
designed interiors, sprawling space, prime locations and coffee shops
enhance the customers’ shopping experience.

Westside has garnered numerous accolades

* Balanced Scorecard Hall of Fame

* India Brand Summit – Brand Leadership Retail
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 * IFA Visionary of the Year Award, 2002 – Mrs. 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

Aiding the community:

Light a Diya, Help a Child – Purchase a diya and light it at Westside during
the Diwali Promotion. Funds collected are donated to NGOs to help bringing
smiles to the faces of underprivileged children.

Angels Tree – Purchase a “Silver Star” or a “Gold Star” during Christmas

Promotion, and decorate their Angels Tree. The money collected are donated
to various NGOs across the country working with underprivileged children.

SWOT OF WESTSIDE:

Strengths
 Growing at the faster pace
 Brand name of TATA’s.
 Good customer base.
 Apparels are cheaper
 Attractive promotional schemes and heavy discounts
 Location advantage

Weakness
 Not much product range for middle class
 Need some concessions from labor laws
 Lack of differentiation
 Poor inventory turns and stock availability

Opportunities
 Huge untapped market
 Urbanization

Threats
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  Competition from organized retail players
 Competition from local retailers.

The following comparative study has been done between Shoppers Stop
Ansal Plaza, south extension and Westside Lajpat Nagar.

Comparison between Shoppers stop and Westside:

The following comparison on shoppers stop and Westside is base on
personal perception after having a direct shopping experience in both the
retail chains. The following table outlays a few similarities and
dissimilarities between the two.

Both the retail chain their own in private label brands but Westside is more
into promoting and selling its own brand whereas shoppers stop as lot of
other brands apart from its own private one.

Westside has the following

Club west card program An assured return-and-exchange policy reinforces

customer confidence in the chain. Another winning Westside idea is Club
West, a customer loyalty program launched in May 2001. The 30,000-plus
members of this club get rebates at restaurants and on holiday packages from
the Taj Group of Hotels, home delivery of alterations, and best of all, special
shopping hours on the first day of any discount sales event organized by the
chain.

SERVICES:

Pre-purchase services include accepting telephone & mail orders,

advertising, window & interior display, fitting rooms, fashion shows. It
provides post purchase service including shipping & delivery, gift wrapping,
adjustments & returns, alteration & tailoring It also provides ancillary
services including general information, check cashing, parking, restaurants,
repairs, interior decorating, credit etc. Shoppers stop has a separate exchange
counter which is not properly visible which is done purposefully to hide it
from the normal customers. The billing counter and the waiting line model
in Westside are comparatively slower than in shoppers stop. Hence though
being two popular retail chains there are many aspects in which they differ.
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The difference is basically because their targets are different though the
format is the same.

Comparative study of Shoppers Stop and Westside according

to our observation:

Parking Facility:
Shoppers Stop has good parking facility in comparison to Westside and also
through our survey it can be concluded that customers are happier with the
parking facility of Shoppers Stop than Westside.

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Outside appeal:
In terms of outside appeal that is facades windows etc. definitely Westside
scores higher than Shoppers Stop.

Sales Personnel:
Sales personnel of Shoppers Stop seemed more attentive and friendly to us
than Westside.

Moving Space and arrangements:

There is lots of space for moving in Westside in compare to Shoppers Stop.
Moving space in Shoppers Stop seemed little congested.
But the arrangements seemed more organized in Shoppers Stop than
Westside. Different brands had different section for customers convenience
whereas in Westside it was not so.

Billing counters and trial rooms:

There is equal number of billing counters and trial rooms in both the retail
shops but the billing system is fast in Shoppers Stop in comparison to
Westside. In Westside you have to wait more for payment of bill than in
Shoppers Stop.

Ease of location of desired category:

In Shoppers Stop it is much easier to locate desired category as each
category is separated floor wise. The retail layout of Westside is free form
layout wherein the fixtures and the aisles are arranged asymmetrically.
Merchandise in clustered like the accessories and the women section are
clubbed together for ease of shopping There are two main divisions :
a)Products – household items, gifts etc b)Apparel – kids wear, women wear,
men’s wear etc Whereas in shoppers stop it’s more organized and arranged.
It’s not free form but every category is departmentalized like men formal
wear has different section and casual wear is different.

Range of garment and accessories:

Range of garments and accessories are much more in Shoppers Stop than
Westside. In Shoppers Stop you can find wide varieties of brands and
accessories but Westside deals mainly with their brand that is Westside and
accessories are also limited.

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Products:
As mentioned before the product quality in shoppers stop is higher than
Westside. The variety and assortment is pretty good in shoppers stop. The
range of products available is too good be it apparel or home furnishing or
accessories and that’s customers drive in especially to shoppers stop and
hence it has been able to succeed in standalone stores whereas Westside
usually is in a mall.

In Store advertisements:
In Shoppers Stop frequently you can hear ads and offers through speakers.
But this was less in case of Westside.

Kids toys:
There is more variety of toys in Shoppers Stop than in Westside.

Restroom:
Each floor of Shoppers Stop contains at least one rest room but that could
not spot in Westside, though Westside had sitting arrangements for their
customers in each floor which was not there in case of Shoppers Stop.

Service Desk:
Both Shoppers Stop and Westside have at least one service desk in their
retail shops.

Comparative Study between Shoppers Stop and Westside on

the basis of survey conducted:

The result has been concluded on the basis of different rates given by the
customers to the services both the retail shops on the scale of 1-10.

Total:
Stores Parking Facility (space) Outside appeal (facades windows etc.)
Shoppers' Stop 350 290
Westside 160 320

Stores Attentive Friendliness

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Shoppers' Stop 290 280
Westside 270 250

Stores Music Moving Space Arrangements

Shoppers' Stop 28 27 24
Westside 26 30 22

Stores Billing Counters Trial Rooms

Shoppers' Stop 32 32
Westside 31 34

Stores Rest Room Drinking Facility

Shoppers' Stop 30 29
Westside 26 29

Ease of location of
Stores desired category Range of garment Range of acc.
Shoppers' Stop 34 34 31
Westside 28 32 25

Stores Membership Kids Play Area

Shoppers' Stop 31 27
Westside 25 27

Ease of Alter/exchange
Stores advertisement In store advertisement Other facility
Shoppers' Stop 35 26 27
Westside 25 24 24

Average:
Stores Parking Facility (space) Outside appeal (facades windows etc.)
Shoppers'
Stop 7 5.8
Westside 3.2 6.4

Stores Music Moving Space Arrangements

Shoppers'
Stop 5.6 5.4 4.8
Westside 5.2 6 4.4

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Stores Billing Counters Trial Rooms
Shoppers'
Stop 6.4 6.4
Westside 6.2 6.8

Stores Rest Room Drinking Facility

Shoppers'
Stop 6 5.8
Westside 5.2 5.8

Range of
Stores Ease of location of desired category Range of garment acc.
Shoppers'
Stop 6.8 6.8 6.2
Westside 5.6 6.4 5

Stores Membership Kids Play Area

Shoppers' Stop 6.2 5.4
Westside 5 5.4

Ease of Alter/exchange Other

Stores advertisement In store advertisement facility
Shoppers'
Stop 7 5.2 5.4
Westside 5 4.8 4.8

Percentage:
Stores Parking Facility (space) Outside appeal (facades windows etc.)
Shoppers' Stop 0.7 0.58
Westside 0.32 0.64

Stores Attentive Friendliness

Shoppers' Stop 0.58 0.56
Westside 0.54 0.5

Stores Music Moving Space Arrangements

Shoppers'
Stop 0.56 0.54 0.48
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Westside 0.52 0.6 0.44

Stores Billing Counters Trial Rooms

Shoppers' Stop 0.64 0.64
Westside 0.62 0.68

Stores Rest Room Drinking Facility

Shoppers'
Stop 0.6 0.58
Westside 0.52 0.58

Range of
Stores Ease of location of desired category Range of garment acc.
Shoppers'
Stop 0.68 0.68 0.62
Westside 0.56 0.64 0.5

Stores Membership Kids Play Area

Shoppers' Stop 0.62 0.54
Westside 0.5 0.54

Ease of Alter/exchange Other

Stores advertisement In store advertisement facility
Shoppers'
Stop 0.7 0.52 0.54
Westside 0.5 0.48 0.48

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 From the above graph we can say that customers are more satisfied
with the parking facility of Shoppers Stop than Westside but they
think the outside that is facades windows etc of Westside is more
appealing in Westside.

 From the above graph we can say that customers find sales personnels
of Shoppers Stop more attentive and friendly than sales personnels of
Westside.

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 It is clear from the graph that customers find the music and
arrangements of Shoppers Stop better than Westside. But according to
them Westside has more moving space than Shoppers Stop.

 The above graph says that customers are more satisfied with the
billing system and counters of Shoppers Stop but they find Westside
trial rooms more convenient and good.

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 Ease of location of desired category, range of garment and range of
accessories, customers find Shoppers Stop better in these parameters.

 Most customers have membership of Shoppers Stop than Westside

and according to the survey customers have equal opinion for kids
play area in both the retail shops.

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  Customers are more satisfied with the rest rooms of Shoppers Stop
than Westside but they have equal opinion for drinking facility in both
the shops.

Conclusion:

From the above survey we can conclude that in spite of high prices in
Shoppers Stop customers find Shoppers Stop ahead in terms of services than
Westside.

Westside needs to work more in their services to be ahead in the competition

market.

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References:
www.wikipedia.org

www.shoppersstop.com

www.mywestside.com

www.scribd.com

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