A STUDY ON CUSTOMER SATISFACTION LEVEL OF MEN’S FORMAL SECTION OF PANTALOONS

GARIAHATDISSERTATION SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF REQUIREMENT FOR

MBA

BY

SIBAJI BASU,

REGISTRATION NO-00568

ROLL NO- VU/MBA-IIS-155

UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF

MR. INDRAJIT BHOWMICK

STORE MANAGER

PANTALOONS, GARIAHAT

&

EIILM , KOLKATA

AUGUST,2015

DECLARATION

I do here by declare that this report is submitted by me for partial fulfillmentMaster of Business Administration Programme in Marketing specialization from Eastern Institute for Integrated Learning in Management. The report is exclusively prepared by me and has not been submitted to any other institution or published anywhere before.

DATE: --------------------------------

SIGNATURE

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTThe project of this magnitude would not have been completed singly. Firstly I want to give heartily thanks to almighty that made the world and me also.

It gives me immense pleasure to thank

At the very outset. I would like to thank Mr. INDRAJIT BHOWMICK (store manager) &Ms.MADHUMITA SARKAR (H.R) of Pantaloons Gariahat for their guidance to undertake this project.

Finally, I would like to thank all others who directly or indirectly helped me to accomplish my project work.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARYI have been assigned a task as a project relegated to customer satisfaction. The project title is” A STUDY ON CUSTOMER SATISFACTION LEVEL OF MEN'S FORMAL SECTION OF PANTALOONS- GARIAHAT”. A project is an integral part of curriculum and its purpose to provide us with practical exposure of market in today’s changing scenario. It has in development of practical skills and analytical thinking process.

This project report throws light on the reasons behind customer’s decision of choosing Men’s Formal Section of Pantaloon-Gariahatfor the purchase of Apparels and various other products.Pantaloon as a Retail Brand is one of the emerging players in the Indian retail industry and offers a deep insight into the industry.

For completion of this report nearby Pantaloon store for conducting survey and fulfillment of questionnaires. A sample size of 100 was selected. Among those who were interviewed consist of housewives, professionals, and even college going students. Though the sample size considered was small but it was so varied in order to overcome all the odds. Random stratified sampling method was considered to be best suited to fulfill the project hypothesis. A structured questionnaire was constructed in order to measure the responses of respondents on suitable scale so that they can be analyzed. Primary data collection was done through questionnaire and interviews and secondary data collection through company websites.

Through survey effect of various factors like ambience of store, discount and convenience came in light and the reason of people choosing Pantaloon over other retail outlets became clear. My recommendation forPantaloonsthat they should have more Staff especially during Sales, more Sitting area, more variety, etc.

TABLE OF CONTENT

S.NO CONTENT

PAGE NO.

1 INTRODUCTION 1-9

2 METHODOLOGY 10-23

3 CONCLUSION & RECOMMENDATION

24-25

4 LIMITATIONS 26

5 REFERENCE 27

6 ANNEXURE 28-29

INTRODUCTIONCOMPANY PROFILE

Pantaloons, previously controlled by the Future Group, has been recently taken over by Aditya Birla Novo Limited, a US $4 billion premium diversified conglomerate and India's largest manufacturer of linen fabric.

Pantaloons Fashion & Retail Limited is an Indian premium clothing retail chain. The first Pantaloons store was launched in Gariahat, Kolkata in 1997. Pantaloons was previously controlled by the Future Group, but has now been taken over by Aditya Birla Nuvo Limited (ABNL).According to the Brand Trust Report 2014, a study conducted by Trust Research Advisory, Pantaloons featured among 100 most trusted brands in India.

Pantaloons offers multiple accessories and clothing brands across a spectrum of categories for men, women and kids. The company provides an incredible and complete one-stop shopping experience to its buyers through its vast collection of more than 200 prestigious brands for the discerning fashionista. Pantaloons, with a presence across 49 cities through 103 aesthetically designed large format stores and 26 factory outlets, displays a range of classy and trendy merchandise that truly lives up to Pantaloons’ maxim of ‘fresh fashion’.

A typical Pantaloons store comprises a brand portfolio that runs across a gamut of styles that spell class. The collection includes ready-to-wear western and ethnic apparel for men, women and kids, complemented by an exhaustive range of accessories. The variety of products and brands has helped propel Pantaloons to become one of the best clothing brands in India.

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Apparel, brands and accessories

Pantaloons offers its customers a collection of apparels and accessories from the stables of globally renowned brands. The private labels for men in western wear include Lombard, Rig, Bare Denim, Bare Leisure, SF Jeans, Byford, F Factor and JM Sport apart from trendy brands like John Miller and Akkriti provides a wide selection of ethnic wear.The women’s section houses the private labels — Bare Denim, Bare Leisure, Rig, Annabelle, Honey, and Ajile — in western wear, as well as the choicest ethnic wear from RangManch, Trishaa and Akkriti. Popular brands like Lee Cooper, Biba are also available. The formal wear section offers a range of crisp and well-tailored collection by popular international brands such as Van Heusen, Allen Solly, Peter England and Louis Philippe.

Kids can choose from private labels like Bare Denim, Bare Leisure, Rig, or indulge in exclusive brands like Lee Cooper Juniors, Chalk, Poppers, Pink & Blue, and Sach in addition to international brands like Barbie and Disney. For the ethnic look, they can opt for traditional wear from Akkriti. The portfolio of brands also includes infant wear by Chirpie Pie.

Pantaloons offers much more than just apparel. Customers can shop from an assortment of watches from renowned international brands, including Tommy Hilfiger, Esprit, Kenneth Cole, Citizen, Timex, Titan and others.

Trendy sunglasses from Polaroid, Guess, Police, Scott, I Dee and Allen Solly are also available. The accessories and beauty segments display an attractive collection of ladies’ handbags from Lavie, Caprese, Fiorelli and Fastrack. Also available are products from colour cosmetic brands such as Bourjois, Chambor, Deborah, Faces, Revlon, Maybelline, and Lakmé, as well as a wide collection of exotic fragrances.

In its endeavor to meet the consumer’s ever-changing fashion needs, Pantaloons has introduced new brands that include Candies, Alto Moda, Turtle, Spykar, 109F, AND, Chemistry, Global Desi and Giny&Jony.

Pantaloons is an integral part of the prestigious Aditya Birla Group, a USD 40 billion Indian multinational company, operating in 36 countries across the globe with over 120,000 employees.Voted as ‘India’s Most Trusted Apparel Retail Brand’ in the prestigious Brand Equity Survey 2014, Pantaloons continues to nurture consumer trust and confidence.

With its overwhelming repertoire of lifestyle apparel brands, the company is focused on growth while continuing to create fresh fashion. Among some of the top clothing brands in India, Pantaloons is recognized by its warm personalized service that completes the core proposition of this trendy chain.

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Board Of Directors  

Sr. No Name Designation

1 PranabBarua Managing Director

2 Bharat Vithalbhai Patel Director

3 SukanyaKripalu Director

4 Sushil Agarwal Director

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4

Loyalty programmeThe Pantaloons Payback Greencard, which is a unique loyalty programmed, has been designed exclusively for Pantaloons' customers to enhance customer experience. Presently offered to over 4 million members, the programme entitles members to discounts, points and special privileges at all Pantaloons stores.

The card has four tiers depending on the year's shopping. As a customer shops, the card upgrades with increasing privileges and discounts.

The benefits covered under Greencard include discounts, Payback points, complimentary parking, complimentary home drop of altered garments, relaxed exchange policy, complimentary shipping across India, exclusive sale preview, exclusive billing counters and assisted shopping among others.

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INTRODUCTION OF MY PROJECTMy project title is “A STUDY ON CUSTOMER SATISFACTION LEVEL OF MEN’S FORMAL SECTION OF PANTALOONS- GARIAHAT”. Which I have done in Pantaloons- Gariahat involves stuyding customer’s satisfaction with in the store and interaction with them to understand their needs and satisfaction level with the product and services offered by the company.

It is very important to understand customer’s needs to serve them better and to understand needs management should understand key buying factors, so that management could prepare themselves accordingly. We must satisfy and even delight our customer with the value of our products and services to gain their loyalty and repeat business. Customer satisfaction is therefore a primary goal of process improvement programs. So how satisfied are our customer? One of the best ways to find out is to ask them using customer satisfaction surveys.

Employee and the management of the store can use the survey information to identify opportunities for ongoing process improvement and to monitor the impact of those improvements.

An unsatisfied customer will tell many people about their negative experience. A satisfied customer will only tell three to five people about their positive experience. So a retailer should always think in that way to satisfy their customer and delighting them with the services which competitors never think of .

ADDITONAL WORK

Giving vouchers related to jamai sashthi festival offer.

Selling the products to the customers.

Helping them to make Green cards.

Tagging of the merchandise to save them from theft.

Folding the Garments

I redeemed the points of the customers, accumulated in their Privilege Card.

I was assigned to call the customers by Telephone to inform them about several ongoing offers.

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SALE FIGURE

DATE BRAND QUANTITY (PIECES) AMOUNT(RUPEES)

1ST MAY-31STMAY VAN HAUSEN 3 6099

ALLEN SOLLY 7 13194

BARE LESURE 9 9291

JOHN MILLER 4 4196

LOUIS PHILLIPPE 2 4349

BYFORD 1 1299

TURTLE 3 3397

PETER ENGLAND 2 2398

1ST JUNE-30TH JUNE ALLEN SOLLY 4 7196

LOMBARD 2 1598

LOUIS PHILLIPPE 1 1899

VAN HAUSEN 5 9696

JOHN MILLER 2 1998

BYFORD 1 899

PETER ENGLAND 9 9391

BARE LESURE 7 8493

TOTAL MERCHENDISE SOLD= 62 PIECES TOTAL AMOUNT-Rs. 85,393/-

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OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDYObjective of the study of customer services as a part of customer experince is to put things in mind as to how customer service affects the whole shopping experience of the customer and what all is needed on the part of retailer to make experience a remembering one for every individual customer.

The first objective of my project is customer satisfaction level identification in men’s formal section of Pantaloons-Gariahat.

The second objective of my project is understanding of the most preferred brands in men’s formal section of Pantaloons -Gariahat.

The third objective of my project is finding out the acceptance of the loyalty programmed within Pantaloons -Gariahat.

The fourth objective is to find out the performance level of the staffs available within Men’s formal Section within Pantaloons – Gariahar.

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In this project we will try to cover the few aspects of the store which is being assigned to me. I have tried to gain knowledge about the customer satisfaction in the store, understood the need, requirement of customer.

Using various kinds of tactis to get customers it is important for a lifestyle retailer. Pantaloons is one of the store in india which provides offers, quality products with discounted offers. And to make the store profitable it becomes important for them to maintain that image by using various Methods and Research.

Offers and dicounts Schemes Buy one get one offers End of season sales Giving good shopping experince to customer

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METHODOLOGY“Methodology” implies more than simply the methods you intend to use to collect data. It is often necessary to include a consideration of the concepts and theories which underlie the methods. For instance, if you intend to highlight a specific feature of a sociological theory or test an algorithm for some aspect of information retrieval, or test the validity of a particular system, you have to show that you understand the underlying concepts of the methodology.

When you describe your methods it is necessary to state how you have addressed the research questions and/or hypotheses. The methods should be described in enough detail for the study to be replicated, or at least repeated in a similar way in another situation. Every stage should be explained and justified with clear reasons for the choice of your particular methods and materials.

There are many different ways to approach the research that fulfils the requirements of a dissertation. These may vary both within and between disciplines. It is important to consider the expectations and possibilities concerning research in your own field. You can do this by talking to your tutors and looking at dissertations written by former students on your course.

RESEARCH DESIGN

TARGET POPULATION – The sample size of 100 respondents was taken by me for completion of my project.

SAMPLING FRAME CRITERIA – In this project Men’s formal section of Pantaloons - Gariahat was chosen as a sampling frame comprises all elements of a population with proper identification that is available to us for selection of any stage of sampling.

SAMPLING TECHNIQUE –I chose convenience sampling for completion of my project Men’s formal section of Pantaloons -Gariahat was selected as the study area and people of this area where selected for collecting response for my questionnaire.

SURVEY INSTRUMENTS - Questionnaire method was chosen as a survey instrument

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INTERPRETATION

1) WHEN WOULD YOU LIKE TO VISIT PANTALOONS GARIAHAT?

6%12%

44%

27%

11% WEEKLYMONTHLYDURING OFFER TIMEDURING FESTIVAL TIMEOCCASIONALLY

This pie chart shows that most of the respondents ( around 44%) have visited Pantaloons during offer time. This question was included in questionnaire in order to now the visits in Pantaloons

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2) WHICH CATEGORY OF BRAND YOU PREFER WITHIN MEN’S FORMAL SECTION?

56%

44%

IN HOUSENPB (NON PANTALOONS BRANDS)

This pie chart shows that most of the respondents ( around 56%) prefer in house category of brand of Pantaloons. This question was included in questionnaire in order to now the category of brand preference.

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3) WHICH BRAND YOU PREFER MOST FOR MEN’S FORMAL?

VAN HEUSEN

JOHN MILLER

LOUIS PHILLIPPE

LOMBARD

PETER ENGLAND

BARE LEISURE

BYFORD

ALLEN SOLLY

TURTLE

0% 10% 20% 30%

5%

8%

6%

15%

11%

27%

11%

9%

8%

BRAND PREF-ERENCE

This bar diagram shows that most of the respondents ( around 27%) have prefer Bare leisure brand from Pantaloons. This question was included in questionnaire in order to now the preference of brands in Men’s Formal section.

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4) SERVICE OFFRED BY EMPLOYEES?

18%

36%

42%

4%

EXCELLENTGOODAVERAGEPOORVERY POOR

This pie chart shows that most of the respondents ( around 42%) feels that service offered by Pantaloons is Average. This question was included in questionnaire in order to now the services offered by employees.

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5) IF YOU ARE A GREEN CARD HOLDER WHAT STAR DO YOU HAVE?

36%

15%

36%

13%

1 STAR CARD3 STAR CARD5 STAR CARD7 STAR CARD

This pie chart shows that most of the respondents ( around 15%) have 3 star card , around 13% respondents have 7 star card , around 36% have 5 star card and only 36% respondent have 1 star card . This question was included in questionnaire in order to know star the green card holder have.

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6) GREEN CARD DISCOUNT PLAYS AN IMPORTANT ROLE?

15%

34%

42%

6%2%

STRONGLY AGREE AGREE NEUTRALDISAGREE STRONGLY DISAGREE

This pie chart shows that most of the respondents ( around 42%) response is neutral about the important role of discount of the green card . This question was included in questionnaire in order to now the role of green card discounts plays.

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7) YOUR OPINION ABOUT PROMOTION SCHEMES?

14%

31%47%

8%

EXCELLENTGOODAVERAGEPOORVERY POOR

This pie chart shows that most of the respondents (around 47%) response is average about the promotional schemes. This question was included in questionnaire in order to now the opinion about promotional schemes.

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8) OCCUPATION

18%

28%

32%

22%

STUDENT SERVICE HOLDER BUSINESS OTHERS

This pie chart displays that 32% of the total respondents (total 100 respondents) are Business owners. This question was included in questionnaire in order to know the occupation of the customers.

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9) AMBIENCE INSIDE THE STORE?

16%

46%

34%

4%

EXCELLENTGOODAVERAGEPOORVERY POOR

This pie chart shows that most of the respondents (around 46%) feels that Ambience inside the the story is Good. This question was included in questionnaire in order to now the ambience.

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10) OVERALL SHOPING EXPERIENCE IN PANTALOONS

19%

34%

41%

6%

EXCELLENTGOODAVERAGEPOORVERY POOR

This pie chart shows that most of the respondents (around 41%) response is Average about the shopping experience in Pantaloons. This question was included in questionnaire in order to now the opinion about the shopping experience in Pantaloons.

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11) YOUR OPINION ABOUT THE AVAILABILITY, VARIETY AND QUALITY?

18%

33%

43%

6%

EXCELLENTGOODAVERAGEPOORVERY POOR

This pie chart shows that most of the respondents (around 43%) are average. This question was included in questionnaire in order to now the availability, variety and quality of product on men’s formal section.

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12) GENDER

53%

47%

MALE FEMALE

This pie chart shows that most of the respondents ( around 53%) are male . This question was included in questionnaire in order to now the gender who came for shopping at men’s formal section.

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13) MONTHLY INCOME

36%

41%

23%

10-20K20-50K50000 ABOVE

This pie chart shows that most of the respondents ( around 41%) are 20-50k Monthly Income . This question was included in questionnaire in order to now the gender who came for shopping at men’s formal section

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CONCLUSION & RECOMMENDATIONS

FINDINGS

44% of the consumers visit the store during offer time and 27% during festival time

Bare leisure is the most preferable brand s in Men’s Formal Section

I consider that quality ,availability, variety of Brands are good.

Ambience in the section is good.

Staff Service in the section is average.

Pantaloons green card plays a very good role to make customers loyal to Pantaloons.

The promotional schemes of Pantaloons are moderately acceptable within customer.

According to the survey 41% of the customers earns between 20k to 50k, monthly.

According to the survey 53% of the customers are male.

According to the survey 32% of the customers having business and 28% of service holder.

CONCLUSION

This project report aims to study consumer satisfaction towards Pantaloon and highlights its strengths and weaknesses in order that Pantaloon can fight the competition in a better way. Though Pantaloon captures a different market and is giving competition to big players. Retail in India is a booming sector nowadays and Pantaloon should try to benefit more from it. Recommendations given should be considered by Pantaloon in order to emerge as a winner in long run.

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RECOMMENDATION

The project throws light on various strengths and weaknesses of Pantaloons and can also help Pantaloons to improve on different fronts in order to have an edge over its competitors. Based on the analysis and findings of my project I would like to give following recommendations:

Men’s Formal section should focus those brands which are showing poor result in terms of sales of revenue generation.

.

.

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Limitations:

This project report suffers from following limitations:

1. Our research is limited to only one store of Pantaloons at Gariahat and sample size is of 100 respondents so errors may crop in while generalizing the results.

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REFERENCE1. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY NOTES2. MARKETING MANAGEMENT, PHILIP KOTLER

3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pantaloon_Retail_India

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ANNEXUREQUESTIONAIRE

1. WHEN WOULD YOU LIKE TO VISIT PANTALOONS GARIAHAT?

A. WEEKLY B. MONTHLY C. DURING OFFERS TIME

D. DURING FESTIVAL TIME E. OCCASIONALLY

2. WHICH CATEGORY OF BRAND YOU PREFER WITHIN MEN’S FORMAL SECTION?

A. IN HOUSE B. NPB (NON PANTALOONS BRAND)

3. WHICH BRAND YOU PREFER MOST FOR MEN’S FORMAL SECTION? A. ALLEN SOLLY B. LOMBARD C. VAN HEUSEN D. JOHN MILLER E. LOUIS PHILLIPPE F.PETER ENGLAND G. BARE LEISURE H. BYFORD I. TURTLE

4. SERVICES OFFERED BY EMPLOYEES? A. EXCELLENT B. GOOD C. AVERAGE D. POOR E. VERY POOR

5. YOU’RE OPINION ABOUT THE AVAILABILITY AND VARIETY AND QUALITY?A. EXCELLENT B. GOOD C. AVERAGE D. POOR E. VERY POOR

6. AMBIENCE INSIDE THE STORE ISA. EXCELLENT B.GOOD C. AVERAGE D. POOR E. VERY POOR

7. IF YOU ARE A GREEN CARD HOLDER WHAT STAR DO YOU HAVE

A. 1 STAR CARD B. 3 STAR CARD C. 5 STAR CARD D. 7 STAR CARD

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8. GREEN CARD DISCOUNT PLAYS AN IMPORTANT ROLE

A. STRONGLY AGREE AGREE B. NEUTRAL

C. DISAGREE D. STRONGLY DIAGREE

9. YOUR OPINION ABOUT PROMOTION SCHEMES A. EXCELLENT B. GOOD C. AVERAGE D. POOR E. VERY POOR

10. OVERALL SHOPING EXPERIENCE IN PANTALOONSA. EXCELLENT B.GOOD C. AVERAGE D.POOR E. VERY POOR

11. GENDER

A. MALE B. FEMALE

12. OCCUPATION

A. SERVICE HOLDER B. BUSINESS C. STUDENT D. OTHERS

13. MONTHLY INCOME

A. 10000 TO 20000 B. 20000 TO 50000 C. 50000 ABOVE

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