internship report by abhisek
TRANSCRIPT
INTRODUCTION (Comfy Shoemakers Pvt. Ltd.):
About the Company:
Comfy Shoemakers Private Limited, Established in 1985 is located in Sidco Industrial Estate,Ambattur,
Chennai. The Company has 3 divisions namely, Manufacturing of Safety Shoes and has Retail(Total
15 stores) Stores of Adidas in Entire Tamilnadu and Bangalore (Karnataka).
Comfy shoemakers Pvt. Ltd. is one of the premier in retail industry as franchisee of “adidas”, it has
fourteen stores in Tamilnadu & one stores in Bangalore. The idea behind every store is to promote fresh
& trendy sports Merchandise and be the trend setter with its latest merchandise, the store not only offers
fresh sports merchandise but also keep the atmosphere of store very much trendy with its unique
interiors and VM designs. The merchandise consists of premier apparel brand “adidas” and adidas in-
house attractive range. New offers are offered to the customers often, the offers consist from attractive
membership to reduced prices to free gifts to gift vouchers. Every measure is taken to make entire
shopping process attractive.
The store staffs follows a few guidelines like every customer is greeted smartly with a Welcome to
Adidas and a smile, staffs are pushed to be proactive in order to simplify the search of customers.
The sections which a store has for apparel are:-
Footwear
T-Shirts
Polos
Shorts
Track Pants
Track Suit
Socks
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Bags
Caps
Fitness Equipments.
Sports equipments.
COMPANY PROFILE (Comfy ShoeMakers Pvt.Ltd.):
Comfy ShoeMakers Private Limited, Established in 1985 is located in Ambattur Industrial
Estate, Chennai. The Company had 3 divisions namely, Manufacturing of Shoes,
Distributing “adidas” entire range of Products for the State of Tamilnadu and Retail
EBO’S of Adidas. But these years company is concentrating on retail sector specially &
also manufacturing products for sports brand “adidas”.
CSPL, was promoted by Mr.Vasu V.Bhatia, B Tech ( Footwear ), who is the Chairman of
the company. The other Directors are Mr.Upendra Bhatia and Mr.Devendra Bhatia.
The Manufacturing division is specialising in Manufacturing Leather Shoes with Direct
Injection process of PVC, Direct Vulcanise process of Rubber and Stuck on process of
Polyurethane.
We at Shoemakers believe in Manufacturing Safety Shoes of high quality, with
competitive price and outstanding Customer Service and Timely Delivery.
We are dedicated to provide our Customers with the most comprehensive variety of up
to date Shoes. Our Shoes are made of Prime Quality Raw Material.
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Our Shoes are guaranteed against any Manufacturing defect and have a very
satisfactory wear to Customers.
The Distribution division takes care of the Whole sale Business of Adidas Entire
Range of Products for the region of Tamil Nadu.
The Range includes Footwear, Apparels consisting of T-Shirts, Shorts, Track Pants,
Track Suits, and the Accessories range includes Socks, Bags, Caps, and Fitness
Equipments.
We have 80 dealers across Tamil Nadu, which includes Exclusive Adidas Stores, Multi
Brand Dealers, Shop in Shops in cities namely Chennai, Coimbatore, Trichy, Madurai,
Erode, Salem, Ooty, Coonoor, Tirunelveli, Nagercoil, Tirupur, Karur to name a few.
The Retail Division takes care of the Exclusive Adidas stores. CSPL, has 15 stores in
Tnagar( Second Largest Adidas Store in Asia ), TTK Road , Annanagar, Nelson
Manickam Road, Chrompet, Spurtank , Trichy, Salem, Ooty,
Tirunelveli ,Ponicherry,Ambattur, Express avenue, Erode and Residency in
Bangalore.
Comfy shoemakers deals with only one type of format.
i.e EBO (exclusive branded outlet),
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Outlets of EBO cover the following store:
Adidas Nm Road
Adidas T nagar
Adidas Pondichery
Adidas Ooty
Adidas Chrompet
Adidas Salem
Adidas Tirunelveli
Adidas Annanagar
Adidas Egmore
Adidas TTk
Adidas Trichy
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Adidas Residency
Adidas Express Avenue
Adidas Ambattur
Adidas Erode
Company hierarchy:
CHAIRMAN
MANAGING DIRECTOR
CLUSTER HEAD
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CLUSTER MANAGER
STORE MANAGER
ASSITANT STORE MANAGER
CUSTOMER SERVICE ASSOCIATE
STOCK BOY
Management Team:
Vasu bhatia, Chairman
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Upendra Bhatia, Jt. MD.
Debendra Bhatia, Jt. MD.
Amita Raj, Cluster Head.
Rajendra Das, Cluster Manager
15 Store Managers.
15 Asst. store managers.
Adidas year by year:
1949
The foundation
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18 August - adidas is registered as a company, named after its founder: 'Adi' from Adolf and 'Das'
from Dassler.
954 - The 'Miracle of Bern' Germany battle Hungary with a competitive advantage. They are wearing
adidas soccer boots which for the first time feature removable studs.
60s
Higher
Driven by a desire to help all athletes committed to performance, adidas manufactures equipment for
what some consider "fringe sports". Unconventional high jumper Dick Fosbury launches himself up
and over in adidas footwear.
70s
The "adidas" team wins
Crowning moment: Franz Beckenbauer, the "Kaiser", raising the World Cup in victory salute.
Germany had just beaten Holland 2-1 in the 1974 final.
80s
The transition
After Adi Dassler's death, Adi's wife Käthe, his son Horst, and his daughters carry on the business.
90s
With a new management
Under the CEO Robert Louis-Dreyfus, adidas is moving from being a manufacturing and sales based
company to a marketing company.
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1995
adidas goes public
Flotation of the company on the Frankfurt and Paris Stock Exchange.
1996
A splendid year
The "three-stripes company" equips 6,000 Olympic athletes from 33 countries. adidas athletes win
220 medals, including 70 gold. Apparel sales increase 50%.
1997
adidas-Salomon AG
adidas AG acquires the Salomon Group with the brands Salomon, TaylorMade, Mavic and Bonfire in December 1997. The
new company is named adidas-Salomon AG.
1999
The new brands
The integration of the new brands is gaining momentum. The new TaylorMade FireSole clubs boost sales. Salomon in-line
skates take off with high double-digit growth during the first half of 1999.
2000
New management
Following personnel changes, the new management initiates an ambitious Growth and Efficiency
Program. Major sports events such as the European Soccer Championship EURO 2000™ and the
Olympic Summer Games, where swimmer Ian Thorpe takes three gold medals, contribute to the
company’s success.
2005
Sale of Salomon
The Salomon Group (including Salomon, Mavic, Bonfire, Cliché and Arc’Teryx) is being sold to
Amer Sports in October 2005. The new adidas Group is focusing even more on its core strength in
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the athletic footwear and apparel market as well as the growing golf category. The legal name of the
company will change to “adidas AG” in May/June 2006.
2006
adidas-Salomon AG acquires Reebok
The closing of the Reebok transaction on January 31, 2006 marks a new chapter in the history of the
adidas Group. By combining two of the most respected and well-known brands in the worldwide
sporting goods industry, the new Group will benefit from a more competitive worldwide platform,
well-defined and complementary brand identities, a wider range of products, and a stronger presence
across teams, athletes, events and leagues.
Adidas history:
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adidas AG is a major German sports apparel brand and manufacturer of excellent
quality sports equipments. It registered as adidas AG on 18 August 1949 (with lower-
case lettering: "adidas"). Adidas AG is the parent company of adidas group, which also
includes Reebok sportswear, Taylormade-adidas golf company & Rockport. The
company was named after its founder, Adolf ( Adi ) Das sler , who started producing
shoes in the 1920s in Herzogenaurach, near Nuremberg, with the help of his brother
Rudolf Dassler who later formed rival shoe company PUMA AG. The company's
clothing and shoe designs typically include three parallel stripes of the same color, and
the same motif is incorporated into adidas' official logos. Layer the company formed
three criteria for retailing
adidas plans to become the leader in the organised sports footwear and sportswear
market.
Adidas in India
adidas first entered India in 1989 through a licence agreement with Bata. adidas later re-
entered India for the second time in 1996 through a joint venture with Magnum
International Trading Company Ltd with an initial investment of $2.5 million to form
adidas (India) Trading Pvt. Ltd. adidas holds a 100 percent stake in the company.
The company launches every six months between 600 and 800 new designs in footwear
and between 1,500 and 2,000 new designs in apparels. The apparel range is priced
between Rs279 and Rs2700, while the footwear is priced between Rs499 to over
Rs12499. adidas' products in India are sold through 140 own outlets (excluding multi-
brand outlets).
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The company, which is known for football and running shoes, introduced its cricket
gear in India in 2004.
The company adheres to strict quality and design specifications and uses the
manufacturing unit of Lakhani Footwear to manufacture the locally produced adidas
range in India.
Around 30-40 percent of the components are locally sourced.
Industry Scenario
Footwear brands drew up ambitious plans targeting a larger audience and higher market
share.
MNC brands like Reebok and Adidas launched television commercials after a gap of
four years and brand shops were filled with a fresh and upgraded product line-up.
The new distribution strategy focused on extending the reach rather than exclusivity and
at broad-basing distribution through tie-ups with branded retailers and setting up shop in
shopping malls.
For adidas, sales of higher priced footwear recorded strong growth in 2003-2004 and
the company expected to close the year with a 30 percent growth.
Now have a look in scenario of business atatement of adidas group recently:
Currency inMillions of Euros
As of: Dec 312006
ReclassifiedEUR
Dec 312007
ReclassifiedEUR
Dec 312008
ReclassifiedEUR
Dec 312009EUR
4-YearTrend
Revenues 10,084.0 10,299.0 10,799.0 10,381.0
TOTAL REVENUES 10,084.0 10,299.0 10,799.0 10,381.0
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Cost of Goods Sold 5,589.0 5,417.0 5,543.0 5,669.0
GROSS PROFIT 4,495.0 4,882.0 5,256.0 4,712.0
Selling General & Admin Expenses, Total 1,592.0 1,705.0 1,508.0 1,376.0
Other Operating Expenses 2,012.0 2,246.0 2,703.0 2,796.0
OTHER OPERATING EXPENSES, TOTAL 3,604.0 3,951.0 4,211.0 4,172.0
OPERATING INCOME 891.0 931.0 1,045.0 540.0
Interest Expense -184.0 -166.0 -178.0 -138.0
Interest and Investment Income 37.0 27.0 37.0 16.0
NET INTEREST EXPENSE -147.0 -139.0 -141.0 -122.0
Currency Exchange Gains (Loss) 2.0 7.0 -25.0 -25.0
Other Non-Operating Income (Expenses) -13.0 -2.0 -- -3.0
EBT, EXCLUDING UNUSUAL ITEMS 733.0 797.0 879.0 390.0
Impairment of Goodwill -- -- 21.0 --
Gain (Loss) on Sale of Assets 1.0 21.0 10.0 3.0
Other Unusual Items, Total -11.0 -3.0 -6.0 -35.0
EBT, INCLUDING UNUSUAL ITEMS 723.0 815.0 904.0 358.0
Income Tax Expense 227.0 260.0 260.0 113.0
Minority Interest in Earnings -13.0 -4.0 -2.0 --
Earnings from Continuing Operations 483.0 551.0 642.0 245.0
NET INCOME 483.0 551.0 642.0 245.0
NET INCOME TO COMMON INCLUDING EXTRA ITEMS
483.0 551.0 642.0 245.0
NET INCOME TO COMMON EXCLUDING EXTRA ITEMS
483.0 551.0 642.0 245.0
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Pre-1997, adidas had tied up with Bata and Woodland and first began exploring multi-
brand outlets and retail malls.
Reebok was slated to grow by almost 30 percent against 22 percent in 2002-03 and
focused on its global Performance Range products. Bata started retailing other brands
like Reebok, Nike and Lee Cooper.
As of 2005-06, the current premium sports goods market in India was valued around Rs
500 crore. Within this market, adidas enjoys considerable brand equity and is
considered among the leading international brands in the country.
Scope of Study
I have selected the Footwear(Athletic) and apparels as Product Category.
The main multinational players in this industry are Nike, Puma, Fila, adidas & Reebok.
Indian players include Action Shoes Ltd., Liberty Footwear Co., and Bata India Ltd.
This report will mainly consider Nike & Rbk (Reebok) as competitors for adidas. Other
than this as adidas is now trying to make a customer base in apparel sector also so
casual wears brands like levi’s, Pepe are also coming into competitors.
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Adidas technologies & their benefit
Technologies Features Benefit
Adiprene Located in the heel area Good cushioning,shock
absorbing, stability &
durability
Adiprene+
Located in the forefoot area Highly elastic, gives
better toe-off
Torsion
Traxion
Located in midfoot area
Located in the outsole area
Provides support to the
arch, gives stability &
control
provide maximum grip in
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all direction
Pro-moderator
Light weight & durable
midsole system
Provide stability for flat
feet people
Climacool
Most ventilated product Maximum ventilation,
keeps feet cool & drier
Climawarm
Trapping body heat,
reducing exess heat loss
Keeps body warm in cold
environmental condition
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SWOT ANALYSIS OF NIKE AND ADIDAS
(With respect to e-commerce)
STRENGTHS
1. First movers advantage in e-
commerce.
2. Brand recognition and reputation.
3. Diversity in products offered on the
web. (footwear, apparel, sporting
equipment etc).
4. Strong control over its own
distribution channel.
5. Innovative designs in footwear
enabling consumers to design their
own shoes online.
6. Secondary websites (eg.,
soccerevolution.com)
WEAKNESSES
1. Negative image portrayed by poor
working conditions in its overseas
factories.
2. E-commerce is limited to USA.
3. Online customer service not
“helpful” or easy to find.
4. The direct sale to consumers is
creating conflicts with its own
resellers.
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OPPORTUNITIES
1. Increased demand in the industry
for products available online.
2. E-commerce will reduce the cost of
goods sold.
3. Expand e-commerce to global
markets.
4. Possibility of outsourcing web
development and e-commerce to a
third party developer.
5. Expand e-commerce to global
markets
6. Growing reputation in non-
basketball sports will boost e-
business.
THREATS
1. Increase in price of providing
technological solutions (e-
commerce).
2. Strong competition from some of
its major challengers in all
branches of the business.
3. Negative image created by the
sponsored athletes (i.e. Kobe
Bryant and his sexual assault
case).
4. Possibility of distress from
growing beyond its capabilities.
E-BUSINESS MODEL
Nike and Adidas have adopted a merchant model which has three pillars of their e-
commerce strategy:
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1. Pure-play e-tailer
2. Tricks and clicks
3. Their online store.
The main purpose of acquiring relationships with pure-play e-tailers is to promote and
market products on an international level. Nike has landed a deal with Fogdog Sports
which will sell their entire Nike product line on its web site. Adidas signed an
agreement with SportsLine.com and Sports.com. Fogdog.com, Sports.com, and
SportsLine.com have the initial coverage in the US, UK and eventually in Asia. Nike
and Adidas will also operate their traditional o, while selling their specialty products on
their e-commerce web sites. This business model is referred to as "Bricks and Clicks."
The primary goals of operating a bricks and click site is to increase sales, reduce cost,
increase market reach, applying competitive pressure, promoting new products,
improving customer service, and progress in addressing user concerns.
EFFECTIVENESS OF E-BUSINESS
Nike's ability to realize the potential of the Internet has placed them in the e-commerce
leadership position among other sporting goods companies. Through its initiative to be
the first to market with its e-commerce web site launch back in 1999. By continuously
relying on innovative companies to redesign the site, Nike acquired the luxury of
owning a site that's every bit as inspirational as it is informational, an important
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milestone for a market leader. Today, Nike's store enables online consumers to design
key elements of the shoes they purchase. This program is the first time a company has
offered such mass customization of footwear.
Adidas's approach to e-commerce was that of a follower since Nike was first. As a
result, Adidas relentlessly pursued innovation and refreshing content to differentiate
itself from Nike. Adidas also realized that in order to be successful it has to be fully
committed to this initiatie. That's why it included adidas.com as part of its three pillar
strategy along with pure play e-tailers, bricks and clicks. The final result is a web site
that successfully portrays Adidas's product portfolio in an interactive and informational
manner.
Nike and Adidas seem to follow similar online strategies but Adidas experienced a
greater transformation from being a minor, insignificant player back in 1998 to the
number two position in the athletic footwear and apparel industry. Part of this success is
due to Adidas's ability to thoroughly leverage the Internet as a marketing and e-
commerce medium, most of it at the expense of Reebok. In the Nike's case the online
strategy ensured its strong leadership position in the intensely competitive market. No
other athletic footwear company is able to outshine these two firms when it comes to e-
commerce.
VS
Consumers
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In 1999, when adidas entered the Indian market, it introduced the cheapest range of
shoes it had ever sold keeping Indian consumers in mind. The new line took into
account the importance of affordability in the Indian market, and the company expected
the move to expand their customer base by 20%.
But today, the customer has changed. Andreas Gellner, MD of adidas India, tells us:
“Today’s Indian customer is aware of international fashion and technology and he cares
about them. He is also a big sports enthusiast. We have also noted the need for constant
change—which implies faster turnaround for designs and therefore newer products.
On the other hand, the buying experience is becoming crucial. The retail scenario in
sportswear is changing accordingly—marketers are focusing on shop design and service
and on brand consistency across outlets; they are paying a premium on technology and
innovation. This has also been impacted to a large extent by the mall mania and the
growth of the high street.”
From our meeting with adidas’ marketing executives we gathered information about
how they defined their target demographic. They target the 15-35 age group, both males
and females, with a monthly income of over Rs15000.
The consumer is typically an image-conscious sports fan, but not necessarily a
sportsman.
||| Consumer Behaviour |||
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Our market research delves into the customer mindset, trying to assess the population
and coming up with demographic details as to who our target customer is. This is being
done by a two-pronged strategy of reaching out to the young working class on the one
hand (in and around NCR) and also by assessing the student strata who are pursuing
their post-graduation (IMT, DSE, FMS etc). This would leave us with roughly 120
separate assessments on buyer behaviour on which we plan to base our studies.
FIFA World Cup 2006 and other Football Tournaments
The World Cup's Status so far:
Respondents: 118
Dates of response: 27-08-2006 to 17-09-2006
Demography: Students (post-graduate – 107, young working class – 11)
Method of survey: Online
Some of our observations so far:
Only around 3% of the total respondents cited Price as the number one factor
influencing their purchase decision, and another question showed that comfort, weight
and styling of the shoe were important elements of the shoe. This initially seems to
indicate that the Indian customer no longer fits the price-sensitive stereotype, but a
closer look at the results shows a different picture. The survey also showed that 62.93%
budgeted less than Rs. 2000 for their sports shoes. This shows that while Price is almost
never the most important factor for most respondents, it is certainly a very important
consideration.
More respondents own a Reebok pair than adidas (second place) and Nike (third),
but when asked which brand they would like to own, Nike topped list, followed by
adidas and Reebok. This shows that Reebok’s Indian pricing has managed to attract
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more market share than its rivals, but Nike still has the highest brand equity and
perceived value.
Nike being the world-wide leader does well on advertisements and viewer/customer
attention-catching and carries the best image of the 3 top brands. It is the brand that
people want to own.
The survey also revealed that customers felt that Sales Staff Service was the most
important part of the buying experience. With 51.46%, it beat the other 4 factors by a
long way.
Environmental Analysis
Global TV and Web audience was bigger than the Olympics' or the Super Bowl's -- 38
billion in-home viewers worldwide. Adidas was an official sponsor and paid for the
rights to shut Nike out of TV advertising in the U.S. for all 64 games.
The retailers we spoke to acknowledged that the World Cup caused a sharp spike in
sales, both of the football (Teamgeist) and footwear & jerseys. Globally, by end-June
2006, adidas had already sold $1.5 billion worth of football products this year owing to
the then ongoing World Cup. Football-related sales were expected to stabilise at slightly
above 1.0 billion euros in 2007 before rising again in 2008, when the football European
Championships take place. It had already sold a record three million replica jerseys in
the wake of the football event, including 1.5 million jerseys of the German national
team.
At the previous World Cup in 2002, the company sold 1.5 million federation jerseys and
250,000 German jerseys.
It has also sold more than 15 million of its "Teamgeist" World Cup match balls,
compared with 6.0 million of the replica ball for the 2002 tournament.
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Adidas is an official sponsor, supplier and licensee of the World Cup and is sponsoring
six national teams in the tournament, including host country Germany. Three teams
sponsored by Adidas - Germany, France and Argentina - reached the quarter-finals and
France went through to the finals.
Adidas estimated its global share of the soccer footwear market rose by 1-2 percentage
points to 35-36 percent at the end of the first quarter.
The company also announced that it has signed a long-term partnership to be the global
sponsor for Euro 2008, which will take place in Austria and Switzerland. It has also
extended its partnership with the UEFA Champions League to become the official ball
supplier until 2009.
BPO Boom
This booming industry has emerged as a boon for the hundreds of thousands of job-
hunting Indian youth and aims to grow into Rs.100,000 crore industry generating over
1.1 million jobs by 2008.
As we shall explain later, the Call Centre Crowd is characterised by high disposable
income, which is spent on lifestyle products. Therefore, this constitutes a segment of
increasing importance for adidas.
Retail
We visited retailers of leading footwear brands in chennai, and we gained an insight
into the workings of the retail business. Periodical meetings are held, where the
company shows samples of its various models and products to the retailers. It is up to
the retailers to decide which products they will stock in their shops, how and when they
will put them on display and when they will be put up for sale. Thus, retail outlets of the
same brand might well have differentstocks of different products at the same time.
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Sales staff is another important factor. The Reebok retailer told us that Reebok does
not allow retailers to hire their own sales staff without company approval. All sales staff
must pass the company’s test before getting the job. The same does not apply to adidas
though. Retailers for this company are allowed to hire salespersons they feel will be
effective. Training for salespeople, however, happens across the board. Reebok believes
that investing in salespeople is a cause for their higher sales, and will be a source of
sales growth in the future.
Area Sales Managers (ASMs) are in constant touch with their retailers and actively
take their feedback and suggestions. adidas mentioned that they occasionally employ
mystery shoppers to get a better feel of the customer’s perspective.
The décor and ambience of the stores is under the control of the retailer, but still
guided by the company’s direction. The number of posters within the store, the type of
music, etc. generally conforms to company policy.
||| Competitors |||
Nike
Nike, Inc. is a major American manufacturer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports
equipment. It is well known for its strong sponsorship agreements with athletes, leagues
and federations, as well as many of the world's top football clubs and national teams,
including Manchester United, Arsenal F.C, Brazil and even India.
Nike is the leading brand in sports footwear worldwide. In India, we have seen that
although its brand image is good, its sales are not. Nike products don’t compromise on
quality, and are always full-price. They do not have post-season discount sales on
footwear unlike adidas and Rbk. While no brand can neglect the highly price-sensitive
consumer, Nike certainly does not target them. They use their higher perceived value to
charge a premium for their products.
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Reebok
Also known by its contraction Rbk, Reebok International Limited is an Anglo-
American Fortune 500 company, now subsidiary of Adidas AG, and producer of
athletic footwear, apparel, and accessories.
Founded in 1895, the family-owned business proudly made the running shoes worn in
the 1924 Summer Olympics by the athletes, Harold Abrahams and Eric Liddell
celebrated in the film Chariots of Fire.
In August 2005, one of the company's largest rivals, Adidas, announced that it would
acquire Reebok for $3.8 billion. The acquisition would increase adidas' market share in
North America and allow it to pose a serious threat to the world's biggest maker of
sports apparel, Nike. The deal was completed in January of 2006.
We gathered from the retailers that in India, adidas and Reebok are still very much in
competition with each other. Both are trying to get to the #1 position presumably to
garner as much market share as they can, and in the process take some from Nike as
well.
||| Segmentation |||
For adidas the market segments in consideration are based on demographics,
psychographics and behaviour. The demographic segmentation is based on age, gender,
income and occupation.
The market is segmented into three main categories based on age. These segments are
age groups 1-15 years, 15-35 years and above 35 years.
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Based on monthly household income the market is segmented into below Rs.15000 pm,
Rs.15000 to Rs.50000 pm and above Rs.50000 pm. The market is also segmented based
on gender and occupation (which leads to differential disposable incomes).
Psychographic segmentation is of great importance for the sport shoe industry. The
higher income groups are classified based on their tendencies into four major
categories; the innovators, thinkers, achievers and experiencers. As for the groups with
lesser resources, they are categorized into believers, strivers, makers and survivors.
Under behavioral segmentation an important user group is the sports and fitness
conscious population. This segment is further subdivided into gym regulars,
professional and amateur athletes and even drawing-room sports enthusiasts.
||| Targeting & Positioning |||
Based on information gathered from retailers and adidas executives, it is evident that the
major demographic segment targeted by adidas is the age group of 15-35 years. Very
few footwear products are aimed at the female market.
adidas targets households with monthly incomes greater than Rs. 15,000. Households
with incomes between 15,000 and 30,000 rupees per month don’t buy a new pair as
often as higher income brackets. This is primarily because they use shoes as shoes and
not as style/image products. It is important that when this group enters the market with
an intention to buy, they should buy from adidas. To ensure this, adidas should sell
durable, comfortable shoes at a reasonable price to this group.
A crucial segment adidas has identified is the Call Centre Crowd. This segment is
substantial in the metros and is expected to continue its rapid growth. It consists of
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image-conscious youth who are earning but are not yet independents. This means that
their entire income is disposable. adidas seeks the highest share of wallet from these
consumers.
Under psychographic segementation, adidas targets…
Experiencers: young, enthusiastic, impulsive people who seek variety and
excitement.
Strivers: Trendy and fun-loving people who are resource-constrained but favour
stylish products that emulate the purchase of those with greater material wealth.
Image Drivers: The wealthy few who set the trends in their social circle. This is
the segment responsible for the selling out of the Rs.12499 adidas One - adidas’
most expensive shoe in India.
The company targets behavioral segments also: The sports and fitness conscious
population is further subdivided into gym regulars, professional and amateur athletes
and even drawing-room sports enthusiasts. “adidas” has specific products for each of
these sub-categories.
Cross-training shoes, running shoes, etc. are aimed at gym regulars and runners. Shoes
are designed specifically for sports like cricket, football, basketball and now even
adventure sports like rock-climbing. We can take a particular segment which we call
Hardcore football. It refers to young footballers, passionate about playing the sport,
with the means to pay. A good example here would be adidas’ “Predator”, which sets
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the standard for football studs. From 2010 world cup we now maximum number of
teams are using adidas products, this year also adidas team Spain won the cup.
“adidas” rightly sees themselves as the world leaders in football shoes. This is the only
sport market in which they lead Nike. The brand has been synonymous with football
ever since Adi Dassler invented the first adjustable rubber screw-on studs. An
interesting fact: Every World Cup winning team before 2006 wore adidas football
boots!
Sport-inspired designs are incorporated into adidas’ lifestyle products for the sports
enthusiast. For example, there is a shoe that is designed like an F1 driver’s shoe. The
heel is molded to fit into the floorboard of an F1 car and the sole is made of Goodyear
rubber – the same rubber that F1 tyres are made of! Despite the effort put into design
and manufacturing of the shoe, it is still meant to be a lifestyle product.
||| Recommendations |||
After analysing the data, we find that although adidas has a greater market share than its
arch-rival Nike, it still lags behind in brand image. To tackle this problem, we will now
show you what very few Indians have seen. Globally, adidas sells products under 3
divisions.
www.adidas-group.com provides us with a clear definition of these divisions.
Divisional Strategy
The divisional strategy has been developed to provide three distinct consumer segments
with product and marketing concepts that fulfill their unique needs and desires. The
three divisions are:
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Sport Performance Division Innovate to perform.
This division is completely focused on the athlete who demands performance first and
style second. Every sport is important, but the main categories of running, football,
basketball, as well as the women’s segment, are the primary focus in terms of both
footwear and apparel.
Sport Heritage Division Celebrate Originality.
This division looks to our past for inspiration and direction for the authentic and
contemporary products of the future. These are footwear and apparel products that
clearly have a foundation in sport but are meant for lifestyle and street wear.
Sport Style Division Modern Sportswear.
The newest division is directed at the style and fashion conscious consumer who still
desires the look and attitude of sport but in a new, more sophisticated interpretation. It
is the foundation in sport that adidas and this consumer share that makes this division so
exciting and full of potential for both footwear and apparel.
adidas can claim the prime position in the elite SEC, capturing share of both mind and
heart if they introduce adidas Originals (also known as Heritage) and adidas Style.
These are extremely up-market products: High profile designers of the likes of Stella
McCartney and Yohji Yamamoto combine cutting-edge technology with unique styling
and passion for sport.
This will enable adidas to target the Achievers psychographic segment, i.e. “success,
goal-oriented people who focus on career and family and favour premium products that
demonstrate success to their peers.”(Kotler & Keller)
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After acquiring a stagnating Reebok for 3.8 billion pounds, adidas must prove the deal
was more than a market share grab and integrate the companies smoothly. Considering
that adidas themselves admitted that the female market is not catered to properly but
still has great potential for growth, we think that Reebok should be used to tackle the
relatively untapped women’s sport shoe market. It could additionally tackle the price-
sensitive market.
Reebok has previously grown on the base of an urban, street, hip-hop image. This
image does not conflict with any of adidas’ target markets and should thus be exploited
to the full.
adidas could benefit from taking a leaf out of Reebok’s retail book. Reebok does not
allow retailers to hire sales staff. All sales staff have to have passed a centralised test.
This ensures that Reebok hires employees that are equipped with the right knowledge
and attitude towards service that is required to succeed in the Indian market. We know
that service at the point of sales is a crucial element of the buying experience because
51.46% of the respondents of our survey marked it as the single most important
element.
||| Appendix |||
Consumer Survey
Age
19-21 53 (44.92%)
22-24 54 (45.76%)
25-27 8 (6.78%)
>27 3 (2.54%)
Gender
Male 89 (75.42%)
Female 29 (24.58%)
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Do you own a pair of sport shoes?
Yes 111 (94.07%)
No 7 (5.93%)
If yes which Brand/s? (you can chose more than one)
Which is the most important factor to you while purchasing sneakers/sport shoes?
Price 4 (3.39%)
Durability 16 (13.56%)
Comfort 58 (49.15%)
Looks and styling 30 (25.42%)
Brand image 6 (5.08%)
Other 4 (3.39%)
Sole 45 (12.82%)
Inside cushioning 59 (16.81%)
Weight of the shoe 71 (20.23%)
Laces 7 (1.99%)
Material 48 (13.68%)
Styling 65 (18.52%)
Color 53 (15.10%)
Other 3 (0.85%)
Which brands advertisements do you like the most?
Adidas 44 (37.29%)
Nike 43 (36.44%)
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Reebok 27 (22.88%)
Other 4 (3.39%)
Which brand of shoes would you like to own?
Adidas 40 (33.90%)
Nike 45 (38.14%)
Reebok 25 (21.19%)
Others 8 (6.78%)
Which aspect of buying experience do you consider most important?
Shop Design 14 (13.33%)
Service 53 (50.48%)
Ambience 14 (13.33%)
Shop Location 19 (18.10%)
Others 5 (4.76%)
Function Of Retail Store Operations:
The function of retail store operations is to ensure that the store runs smoothly
and efficiently through thoroughly defined processes in each & every area.
Retail operations must ensure that every process in the store is both customer –
friendly and cost – effective.
Setting performance standards is critical to the efficient functioning of a retail
organization. Such standards have to be clearly defined.
Measuring performance through defined reports provides an indication about the
health of the retail store in every area of its operations.
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Buying & Merchandise:
The term merchandising is unique and exclusive to the retail industry. It refers to the
entire process of inventory planning and management in a retail organization.
Role of Merchandise manager:
Planning
Directing
Co – ordination
Controlling
STOCKS REFILMENT-
1. On every Tuesday I use to prepare top 20 selling item of one week, sales report & tock on hand report & send it to the head office.
2. According to that we get the stocks which are out of stock or fast moving articles, we can also recommend the head office if any specific items which we feel will run good in our respective store.
The buying Function:
Buying for a retail organization is a critical function of merchandising. The process begins with the preparation of the buying plan, called ‘Open to Buy’. It helps retailers projects and control future buying so that the flow of merchandise in the store matches anticipated sales at desired stock turn rates to give a positive cash flow.
An efficient OTB Plan has the following elements:a) Forward Sales Planningb) Forward Cover.c) Stock Required.d) Opening Stock.e) Intake Requirement.f) On order.g) Open to Receive.h) Closing Stock.
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Advantage of an OTBa) The OTB plan enables retailers to estimate in advance the amount of working
capital that needs to be employed in inventory from month to month.b) It helps ensure the right inventory level to support planned sales and to attain the
best gross margin return on inventoryc) The OTB plan places places restraints on merchandise commitments so that the
store receives the right merchandise at the right time and not before of after.d) It enables a continuous flow of fresh merchandise into the store month after
month during the season.e) The OTB plan establishes goals so that the actual performance can be compared
with the plan and corrective action taken in the required areas.f) Above all, an efficient OTB plan provides the organization more opportunity for
profit.
Visual Merchandising :
Visual Merchandising is the art of displaying merchandise in a manner that is appealing
to the eyes of the customer. It sets the context of the merchandise in an aesthetically
pleasing fashion, presenting them in a way that would convert the window shoppers into
prospects and ultimately buyers of the product. A creative and talented retailer can use
this upcoming art to breathe in new life into his store products. Passion for design and
creativity are essential to be a good visual merchandiser. A perfect design process and
the ability to create ideas that are different are required. Awareness of happenings in
fashion world is needed so as to keep up-to-date with the dynamics of the market
constantly.
Visual merchandising includes window displays, signs, interior displays, cosmetic
promotions and any other special sales promotions taking place. .
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Visual Merchandising is not a science; there are no absolute rules. It is
more like an art in the sense that there are implicit rules but that these also exit to be
broken for striking effects. The main principle of VM is that it is intended to increase
sales, which is not the case with a “real” art. It is one of the final stages in trying to set
out a way that customers will find attractive and appealing and it should follow and
reflect the principle that underpin the store’s image. VM is the way one displays’ goods
for sale’ in the most attractive manner with the end purpose of making a sale.
“If it does not sell, it is not Visual Merchandising.”
VM is the art of implementing effective design ideas to increase store traffic and
sales volume.VM is an art and science of displaying merchandising to enable maximum
sale. It is a tool to achieve sales and targets, a tool to enhance merchandise on the floor,
and mechanisms to communities increase ate to a customer and influence his decision to
buy. VM uses season based displays to introduce new arrivals to customer, and thus
increase conversions through a planned and systematic approach by displaying stocks
available. Recently visual merchandising has gained in importance as a quick and cost
effective way to revamp retail stores. A close sister to visual merchandising is “retail
experience”. “Customer experience” looks at the same issues around product
presentation but from the customer perspective, rather than the retailer perspective.
Status of VM in India:
Unlike the western countries, where VM receives highest priority in commercial
planning of a product, the Indian industry understands and practice of the concept of
VM is inadequate. With phasing out of quantitative restrictions after the year 2004, the
textile industry will have to compete purely on the competitive edge of the products and
VM will be a helpful tool in projecting the uniqueness of the products and thereby
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increasing the market access and sales. It is high time that the Indian textile and
clothing industry, therefore, understands and adopts the scientific and professional
system of VM rather than the traditional practices of display of products and
communication
How Visual Merchandising Helps The Shopper:
Retail professional’s displays to make the shopping experience more comfortable,
convenient and customer friendly by:
Making it easier for the shopper to locate the desired category and merchandise.
Making it easier for the shopper to self-select.
Making it possible for the shopper to co-ordinate & accessorize.
Providing information on sizes, color & prices.
Information about the latest fashion trends by highlighting them at strategic
locations.
Educating the customers about the product/service in an effective and creative
way.
Establishing a creative medium to present merchandise in 3D environment,
thereby enabling long lasting impact and recall value.
Setting the company apart in an exclusive position.
Establishing linkage between fashions, product design and marketing by keeping
the product in prime focus.
Combining the creative, technical and operational aspects of a product and the
business.
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Drawing the attention of the customer to enable him to take purchase decision
within shortest possible time, and thus augmenting the selling process.
Merchandise presentation refers to most basic ways presenting merchandise in an
ordinarily, understandable,’ easy to shop’ and ‘find the product’ format. This easier
format is especially implemented in the fast fashion retailers. Apart from above
points VM also helps in following aspects:
1. Sell by showing and promoting.
2. Create an emotional connect between the viewer and the display.
3. Encourage the shopper to enter the store
4. Get the customer to pause and shop and “shop” the selling floor
5. Establish, promote, and enhance the store’s visual image.
6. Entertain customer and enhance their shopping experience.
7. Introduce and explain new products.
The Importance of Visual Merchandising:
Visual Merchandising is the art of displaying merchandise in a manner that is appealing
to the eyes of the customer. It sets the context of the merchandise in an aesthetically
pleasing fashion, presenting them in a way that would convert the window shoppers into
prospects and ultimately buyers of the product. A creative and talented retailer can use
this upcoming art to breathe in new life into his store products. Passion for design and
creativity are essential to be a good visual merchandiser. A perfect design process and
the ability to create ideas that are different are required. Awareness of happenings in
fashion world is needed so as to keep up-to-date with the dynamics of the market
constantly.
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Visual merchandising includes window displays, signs, interior displays, cosmetic
promotions and any other special sales promotions taking place.
Components of Visual Merchandising:
There are certain things which a retailer needs to take care while proceeding with the
process of displaying his products. These components when combined together in a
proper ratio will make a successful outcome.
Make merchandise the focal point:
The main goal of display is to showcase the products within the overall display area.
Customers give three to five seconds of their attention to window display. The retailers
visual message should be conveyed to the customer in that short period of time. It
should not be like an unsuccessful TV advertisement, where the product is forgotten
altogether and only the concept of the commercial remains in the mind of the viewer.
The arrangement of window display should go with the product and should not suppress
them to make it discernable to the eye.
Right choice of colors is vital:
Color is one of the most powerful tools in the Visual Merchandising segment. It is a
visual perceptual property. Colors can be associated with emotions, special occasions
and gender. It attracts attention and pulls more customers into the store. A retailer has to
focus on the right choice of color that would match with the theme of display. It is not
possible to satisfy everyone all the time, but it is possible to cultivate the taste of
customers gradually and purposefully. A right choice of colors in the display items can
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turn walkers into stoppers and significantly convert them into customers. It is therefore
mandatory to choose the right color for the right theme of display. A Halloween display
would require black color in the display theme. Valentines theme should be ruled by red
color supplemented with pink and white. A display of babies accessories should reflect
light shades of pink and blue colors. A Christmas display should contain colors of red,
green, gold and silver.
Display themes to appropriately support the product:
A theme is a display of sale items of similar categories e.g. a display of kitchen
accessories. Its essential to have themes for all retail displays. They can be romantic,
wild, or capricious, and capture peoples imaginations.
A good theme will lure the customer with a shopping mood into the store. Themes
mainly depend upon the retailer’s imagination and creativity. Focusing on the right
theme rather than creating a display with expensive raw materials is the key to
successful window display. A shoe store theme can be a group of elves buying shoes. A
theme for display of casual wears can be a group of mannequins sitting casually at a get
together in different poses. Related themes will tug the heartstring of the customers and
will pay off.
MIS(Management Information System):
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MIS (Management information system) is a system which provide essential information
to the upper level management by the help of software, hardware, human resource. It
provides processed information to the management to take decision. It plays a very
important role in decision making process in an organization.
Function of MIS:
MIS reports which consist conversion ratio in which they compare passed
years walk – INS with present year walk – ins, Sales Vs Stock ratio etc.
Stock analysis report in which they analyze the age of the stock in the
particular store, and on the basis of which they give discount on saleable
stock, slow moving stock, and non moving stock. (Annexure)
(1) Saleable stocks are those stocks which are 0 to 30 days old.
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Display should complement the retailers other strategies:
The content of the display should complement the in store environment and other marketing strategies of the retailer. If the retailer has a specific logo, the colors of the display can reflect the same color of the logo. For e.g. MacDonalds display, the clown is of the same color, red and yellow as in their logo.
Cleanliness:
Neat and clean arrangement is the foundation of an inviting a successful visual display. A beautiful display can be ruined by a cracked sign holder or an unclean display environment. Effective cleaning schedule of showcases and display fixtures is required.
Change the display settings in frequent intervals:
Changing the arrangement of the displays in regular intervals will initiate new interest about the products in the minds of the customer. By designing a plan-o-gram and activating changes frequently one can thus be a proactive retailer.
With globalization and the retail boom, visual merchandising is growing in leaps and bounds. It is not simply concerned about decorating a store beautifully; but must also symbolize the brand keeping the target audience in mind.
(2) Slow moving stocks are those stock which are 30 to 60 days old and
which are denoted by green tag.
(3) Non moving stocks are those stock which are 60 to 90 days old are
denoted by yellow tag.
(4) Dead stocks are those stock which are above 90 days old and they are
denoted by blue tag.
SPTS(Store Performance Tracking Sheet) for finance department.
(Annexure)
(1) Number of customers coming in the store.
(2) Number of bill made.
(3) Per bill value.
(4) Conversion percentage.
(5) Individual sales performance.
(6) Stock quantity and value.
(7) Actual sale for the day.
(8) Comparison between last three year/months sales with present
years/months sales.
Quarterly incentive report and sales report for HR department. It helps to
analyze quarterly target Vs sales achieved. To give incentive for the
employees.
Handbills and SMS reports for sales promotion. In handbills Newspapers
and pamphlets etc. are used. For SMS we collect database of customers from
different stores and send them SMS through the use of bksms software.
Store score sheets.(Annexure)
AUDIT: (annexure)
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The process of evaluating the condition of stock in EBO (Exclusive Brand Outlet) and
matching the stock with the billed stock in system records. Twice in a month Stock
checks are done, in that Stocks in the system should tally with the physical stock.
Suppose physical stocks are not tally with the system & some articles are missing, then
it will be billed & the money will be deducted equally from every staff including
Manager.
Apart from that other function of audit team is to timely visit the outlets to check
following things:
Daily Morning briefing sheet
Daily Store walk
Grooming of the employees
Maintenance of card, cash bill and gift vouchers details in register on daily
basis.
Maintenance of outlet.
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY:
It takes care of the various problems faced by the outlets in terms of computers. The
maintenance of system is done by the IT department. One more important job of the IT
department is to provide support to the MIS department by collecting daily sales report
from various outlets and making sure that it will be secure and safe by the use of certain
software such as SHOPPERS etc.
RESPONSIBILITY:
The generalized description of internship responsibilities are as follows:
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As my internship was of 6 months, so my responsibilities were divided into 3 parts
which are as follow:
For 1 st & 2 nd month as CSA(customer service associate) where my
responsibility is:
Ensuring customer delight in each interaction
Maintaining stocks at the store level.
Helping CRO in achieving their monthly targets.
Assisting the manager in the implementation of various promotional
activities
Enrolling maximum number of customers onto signet and EMG.
Display of merchandise within the counters in specified format and its
maintenance.
Daily counting of stock
Tracking individual non conversion reasons. Tracking average UCP per
item sold. (Target vs achievement).
Making the final bills of all the merchandise selected by the customer.
For this ETP software is used.
Cancellation /exchange bills: if a customer needs to exchange the
product for any reason, can be changed. The bill can also be cancelled if
a customer wants to make it on some other name.
Cash maintenance: tally the cash sales of the previous day and write its
denomination, filling the challan form and then depositing it to the bank.
Trying to solve customer complaints.
Trying to rectify customer’s queries: Like can we change the strap,
particular model is available or not, offer is there or not n etc.
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Trying to improve the sales to fulfill the targets provided by the
company. E.g. influencing/encouraging the customer to take the product
by telling its features.
Building relationship with the customers
Preparing the gift vouchers report..
Tally the stocks coming from the stock point.
Enter the stocks in the system
For 4th and 5th month:
Will be responsible for the complete Store Operations including Opening
& Closing of the Store, Preparing the Report on Daily basis. Chasing
Sales Targets, Supervising & training Store Staff, Visual Merchandising,
Security of the store, Admin & Commercial issues, Reports/ MIS,
Inventory/Stock management, Business Development.
Manages and controls the operations of the store to ensure that company
standards and expectations are consistently met.
Manages the operations of the stockroom to ensure new merchandise
gets to the sales floor in a timely manner, goods are received properly
and maintains tight control of all merchandise in stock areas.
To enter the new stocks in the system by creating new master of the
particular stocks, then our job was also to do the stock inward & outward
Prepare, manage and upgrade vendor database.
Tracking and improving operational efficiency of the merchandising
team
Prompt availability of the required SKU
Maintaining optimum stock levels, guarding against excess inventory,
review of returnable and damaged stocks
To accurately phase sales, stock, margin, markdown and intake plans and
projections for the brand by week, taking into account historical
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performance future trends, prevailing market trends and new store
openings, and to structure the buy to deliver the required level of
profitability at minimum risk.
Ensuring that availability is maintained throughout the product's life and
that re-buys and cancellations are actioned in a timely manner.
Maintaining a balanced mix of product at all times, and to effectively
execute the agreed exit policy.
To determine the footage requirement for the department for each grade
of stores so that the optimum range can displayed while delivering the
planned returns per square foot.
Vendor management and development.
To conduct the annual review of supplier performance with QA and
buying.
To liaise with vendor base and marketing for promotional activities.
To pursue and recover all monies due from vendors as a result of
performance penalties or markdown and promotional contributions.
Development of subordinates - To ensure that the skills of all direct
reports are fully developed through a balance of training and coaching,
and to manage individual performance so that full potential can be
realised.
Budget - To manage budgeted department expenditure within agreed
levels.
Integration with internal customers (Retail, Store planning, Visual
Merchandisers) and external customers (consumer).
Regularly track Competition's activities and consumer's needs and
buying patter
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After 2 nd month my responsibilities as a Store Manager of “adidas”
Tirunelveli
To handling each and every operations in store level.
Store Operation.
Merchandising
Sales
Targets achievements
Daily activities
Creating customer base
Identifying there problems
Giving suggestions to employees under me
To learn different strategies adopted by different outlets according to
different area and items.
To learn about Store layout and display of merchandise
Process of buying the merchandise
Fixing of target
OTHER RESPONSIBILITIES:
To organize sale out of the store like in Gym, Colleges etc..
To acquire complete knowledge about the company and its products.
To understand the market, consumer behaviour and competitors behaviour.
To give necessary suggestions and feedback whenever required.
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To find out effectiveness of selected promotional mix elements.
To suggest the company other potential targets.
Strategies Adopted
For the first week of the Project, “Observation technique” has followed by me to
understand about the product, product features, product offers, about the organization.
The various marketing strategies applied are as follows:-
1. Target Segmentation - A platform of demographic segmentation is followed by
targeting the age group 14-35 as they are large potential customers and look for
great offers.
2. Product Differentiation – Differentiated ADIDAS products by doing
comparative analysis with existing products and explaining it to customers.
3. Positioning – Positioning the product by explaining the invaluable offers
provided by ADIDAS.
Learning's:
How to deal with different types of customers?
Billing in Shopper and ETP.
Stock analysis on the basis of cluster and brand
Final evaluation of gift vouchers(GV)
Way to display the merchandise
Process of day beginning and day closing activities
Opening &daily stock (head) counting
Cancellation/ returns/exchanges billing in Shopper and ETP
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Putting the price tags
How divide the monthly target in daily basis and division of monthly and
daily target in CSA’s on the basis on there experience
How to motivate the CSA’s
Arrangement of daily meeting agenda and minutes
Analysis the causes of low sale or walk-ins in the store.
Service billing
How to do inventory control
How to maintain petty cash
Putting the order of merchandise
Putting the new stock in system
Maintain daily sales report
How to deal with different kinds of customer:
o Greeting: Eye contact, smiling, Wishing Nodding
o Making Customer Comfortable: Engagement, leading to new arrivals
or customer choice, waiting
o Understanding Requirements:
1. Buying for whom, occasion, tastes
2. Listening skills, looking for single
o Presenting: Showing Footwears & Apparels, Talking about Features and
Benefits, Taking about Unique strengths, providing value with focus on
customer
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o Trial Closing:
1. How to trail close, checking for concerns
2. Recognizing Buying signals, Caution signals
o Handling Concerns:
1. Understanding, Agreeing, Reassuring
2. Handling standard customer objection question
o Closing &Up Selling:
1. Closing steps- checklist for billing
2. Introduce SIGNET and EMG if applicable
o Thanking And Welcoming Back
Displaying Apparel:
Regarding displaying of the apparel I come to about that we have to follow
some standards which are as follow:
In every model or design 3 pieces are displayed like small, medium & large
Small piece displayed in the front followed by Medium & Large
Do not mix up collor & without collor t-shirts
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Also do not mix up the full-sleeves & half-sleeves t-shirt
Display cotton t-shirt, pes t-shirt & clima cool t-shirts separately
Price tag should be inside the article
In the front of the display hanger the high range article should be displayed.
In the display table the high range & attractive pieces displayed which can
attract the customer attention.
And rest pieces (xl & xxl) are in the stock room
All the apparels should be displayed with equal distance from each other, so that
customer can browse easily
Apparel should not have any stains
Display should be changed after every interval of 10-12 days
Mannequins display should also change after interval of every week
DISPLAYING SHOES:-
In shoe wall there are separate category for Running(men, womens),
basketball, golf, tennis
For Men we display the general size of shoe like 7 & 8 in the display & for
Ladies 4 & 5
There are separate socks for trail
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All the high range shoes are displayed at the Eye-level because Eye-level is
the Buy level.
Before 2 months we launched Adidas wet-print test, through this we can
check the exact structure of the customer feet & according to that we can
suggest the perfect shoe to the customer. & this method is working good.
We are also giving three months warranty for any manufacturing defect for
both apparel & footwear
How to motivate the CSA’s :
While motivating the CSA’s first we to understand the objectives of motivation
Objective: To enable employees to understand the relevance of developing themselves
to enhance their performance capabilities. This also plays a key role in retaining
good employees.
Processes: A comprehensive understanding of what development means, what
processes available within, how they are administered and how the outcomes
monitored.
When we are aware about the objective of the motivation and the process which are
going to follow then identified the developments needs which is going to be
considering, which could be for example;
1. Lack of assertiveness
2. Lack of aggression in pursuing targets
3. Poor interpersonal skills
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4. Poor grooming
5. Poor expression in communication
6. Improvements in converting walk-ins
7. Insufficient up-selling
8. Discipline
9. Low product Knowledge
Once the motivation part is over then after a month we have to assess the performance
of the employee in an objective manner against set measurable objectives. To use this
information for determining what rewards and benefits flow to the employee in
recognition of performance. It also reflects on the areas of improvement for the
employee and the action that the employee needs to take for improving on personal
performance.
Appraisal Basics: Keep the appraisal process short and simple. The objective is to get
authentic information on the actual performance of the employee.
Set a target: These could be set at the beginning of the year or when the
employee joins.
Target should be set on the following parameters.
1. Value of sales.
2. Brand wise targets.
3. Customer appreciation.
4. Personal grooming.
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5. Walk-in conversion.
Assign clear weightage for each target.
Prioritize the target on the basis of primary importance in descending order.
For example:
1. Value of sales.30%
2. Sales volumes.50%
3. Customer appreciation 10%
4. Personal grooming and discipline 10%
Keep it transparent.
1. Make the calculation and present it to the employee at the end of each month
2. Let them check and verify that the statement reflects their actual performance.
3. Review process for follow up on status KRA. We recommend Half Yearly
review and appraisal at the end of the financial year.
4. Let them seek clarification if any.
Make the task simple.
Design a simple form so that employees can calculate for themselves and can track
their own performance.
On the basis of above appraisal standards we understand what actions can be taken
for the welfare of the employees. Towards retaining employees and to give them a
feeling of belonging to the business. For this we can use the following factors:
Health
Counseling
Recognition
Motivation
Celebrations
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Sympathy
Team work
Exercise
Food & Water
Recommendations
Personal Hygiene
Workspace Clutter
Toilet Training
Smoke and Gum Free
Divide the monthly target in daily basis and division of monthly and daily target in
CSA’s on the basis on there experience: During internship period I come to know
about the deviation of monthly target in daily basis and how a retailer divide there target
in there employees. For this have to consider the following standards:
1) Number of weekdays
2) Festivals in the month
3) National Holidays in the month
4) Number of employees in the store
5) Experience of employees
How to deal with different types of customers?
Billing in Shopper and ETP.
Stock analysis on the basis of cluster and brand
Dealing the signet to the customer and final evaluation of signet
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Final evaluation of gift vouchers(GV)
Way to display the merchandise
Process of day beginning and day closing activities
Opening &daily stock (head) counting
Cancellation/ returns/exchanges billing in super and ETP
Putting the price tags
How divide the monthly target in daily basis and division of monthly and
daily target in CSA’s on the basis on there experience
How to motivate the CSA’s.
Arrangement of daily meeting agenda and minutes
Analysis the causes of low sale or walk-ins in the store.
Service billing
How to do inventory control
How to maintain petty cash
Putting the order of merchandise
Putting the new stock in system
Maintain daily sales report
Observation :
During the process of observation my area of concern was SO (Store Operation) and
Buying & Merchandising but before going with observation I had collected the
information about Store operation and Buying & Merchandising.
Retail Operation:- Retail enable a store to function smoothly without any hindrances.
The significant areas of retail operations consist of:
Customer Services and Accommodation.
Retail selling process.
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Store Staffing and Scheduling.
Retail Floor and Shelf Management.
Store Administration and Facilities Management.
Warehousing and Supply Chain Management.
Loss Prevention.
POS/Cashiering Process.
Visual Merchandising and Displays.
In front – end retail operations, it is very important to know how the store is performing
at least on a day – to – day basis if not on an hourly basis. There are ready reckoner are
there to help in store operation called Dipstick Parameters.
Dipstick Parameters:- Dipstick parameter enables retailers to find out about the health
of specific areas of operation customers stocks space, staff/employee, finance etc. in an
instant. Some of them are:
Customer Transactions: It tells how many customers came into my store
compared to the corresponding period last year, and the conversion rate.
Customer Conversion Ratio.
Returns To Net Sales:
Transactions Per Hour
Sales Per Transaction
Hourly Customer Traffic
Stocks: In order to determine the strength of stock holding.
Average Selling Price
Average Stock Price
Stock Turnover/Inventory Turnover Rate.
Percent Inventory Carrying Costs.
Gross margin return on inventory.
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Markdown Goods Percentage.
Shrinkage to net sales
Steps to define of design a performance programme for a retail store:
Collecting and sieving information.
Selecting key performance indicators.
Studying the result
Setting goals for action.
No facility of security inside the store, e.g.- security cameras, baggage counter.
Rules and Norms are not clearly defined in stores regarding employee’s
behavior.
Distribution of authority and responsibility is not clear, nobody is clear about his
or her job.
Lack of co-ordination between staff members of the store.
CSA’s are not able to understand consumer behavior as they have very few
knowledge about it.
Displays are not rotated regularly, repetition of products are too much.
Power back up is not up to the mark because of this sale suffered badly.
The model display in the back side of the counter should be available in the
store; otherwise there should be some facility that within half an hour or within a
specific period of time we can easily make it available for the customer.
The model displayed on the wall of the store should be change at regular interval and the changing should be rotated, so that we can change the position of flat bed also.
Rights and Duties should be clearly defined between employees. Additional benefit for the customers, e g if customer makes a purchase of high
value provides them additional services.
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Customer should be informed by the technician or manager after the services. Regarding the approval of the customer to do the services ahead, message or a
call should be clearly defined.
Limitations
1. The study is limited to few Adidas store of Chennai only. But market varies
from area to area. Hence it is not applicable to all areas.
2. There are some inability and unwillingness of customers to give actual data due
to various reasons.
3. The information given by concern person may not be 100% accurate.
4. The study was made with the facts of observation done and information
available with the store..
5. It was difficult to understand the consumer behaviour of various geographical
areas.
6. It was difficult to tap the corporate since he/she located in particular outlet in the
distribution channel.
7. As we have work in two kind of situation in Chennai & small district town of
Tamilnadu, the customer choice totally different so this report may vary in
places.
SUGGESTIONS
1) The Customer Care should avoid keeping the customer on hold for a long time.
2) Provide some customer care training to the CSA’s.
3) Monthly target of them should be divided in equal part within the CSA’s and the
monthly target of the CSA’s should be divided in equal daily targets.
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4) Arrange a daily meeting and appreciate them for their performance and talk to
those CSA’s who are not able to perform well, if possible talk to them separately,
and encourage him.
5) Whatever display card is put in the store must keep that model in stock.
6) Display should be according to price.
7) Early short out the problem of CSA’s because if the employees are happy then
only they can perform their duties efficiently.
8) Rotation of the displayed items should be there, minimum on weekly basis..
9) Goal and Vision of the company should properly communicated between the
employee’s.
10) Improve the space utilization in stores to increase GMROF(Gross Margin Return
On Footage).
11) Should maintain walk - in reports. It will be done on per CSA level. It will help in
finding the conversion ratio of customer and employee productivity.
CONCLUSION
1) CSA’s are not able to understand consumer behaviour as they have very few
knowledge about it.
2) CSA’s are only concerned with there own target and not to the store target and
after achieving there individual target the became relax and not attend the
customer properly.
3) There is a lack of co-ordination between staff members of the store.
4) Distribution of authority and responsibility is not clear nobody is clear about his
or her job.
5) Rules and Norms are not clearly defined in stores regarding employee’s
behavior.
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6) CSA’s need an extra training for handling customer.
.
Finally it can be concluded that in this course of time I have acquired good knowledge
about the corporate world, its ethics, rules and regulations, its mission and vision etc.
The art of convincing customer was not so easy task to execute so intern has learnt
about customers’ behavior, how to persuade them, how to interact with them and how to
convince them to buy the product instead of competitor’s product.
Bibliography and references
1) google.com
2) wikipedia.com
3) www.adidas.com
4) Retail Management by Gibson G.Vedamani (2007) ,JAICO PUBLISHING
HOUSE,DELHI.
5) www.comfyshoemakers.com
6) www.businessweek.com
7) Adidas technogy books
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