Abstract:

This paper is about the Super market Stores in Vizianagaram. The name of
the store is MORE SUPER MARKET. There I approached the store owner who is
seeing the entire stores maintenance. I asked few questions to them to know
about the past and current sales of the store and the growth rate as well as the
future assessment on sales in the location of Vizianagaram.
These are the Questions which i asked to the people who are working with the
stores are as follows:
Section A
(History of the Company)

HISTORY:
Aditya Birla Group entered the retail industry with the acquisition of
Trinethra Super Retail in 2007. Trinethra Super Retail had a strong footprint
with over 172 stores spread across four states - Andhra Pradesh,
Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. In Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh,
Trinethra brand was being used, while in Karnataka and Kerala, Fabmall
brand was being used. Later, all the stores were rebranded
as more. Stores
On July 15, 2015, Kumar Mangalam Birla announced the merger of
all the retail businesses and creates a single listed company. As a part of
this restructuring effort, Fashion & Lifestyle business will be de-merged
from the Aditya Birla Nuvo and merged with other retail businesses. It is
likely that after the merger is complete, about 10% of the stock would be
sold to PE players to raise Rs. 3000 crore. However, the restructuring plan
has yet not been finalized.
Aditya Birla Retail Limited (ABRL) is the retail arm of Aditya
Birla Group Company. ABRL is the fourth largest supermarket chain in the
country after Future Group, Reliance Retail and D-Mart. It operates two
different store formats - Supermarket and Hypermarket under the
brand more... It has about 494 supermarkets and 19 hypermarkets
around the country. ABRL plans to open 100 supermarkets and 6-8
hypermarkets. To fund this expansion, ABRL has borrowed Rs 500 crore
from Yes bank. Besides this, it has decided to increase its borrowing limit
to Rs 7,500 crore from Rs 5,000 crore.

Aditya Birla Retail Limited provides customers products under its

own labels. Private label Food Brands includes Feasters, Kitchen's Promise,
and Best of India. Home & Personal care brands include Enriche, 110%,
Pestex, Paradise and Germex. As per a report in Economic Times, Aditya
Birla Retail Ltd (ABRL) with its 500 + 'more' branded supermarkets and 14
hypermarkets reported sales of Rs 1,966 crore and a net loss of Rs 650
crore in the year ended March 2012. The company has accumulated
losses of Rs 2,984 crore since it entered the segment over six years ago.

BUSINESS:
Aditya Birla Retail Limited is the retail arm of Aditya Birla Group, a
USD 41 billion corporation in the league of Fortune 500 companies. The
Company ventured into food and grocery retail in 2007 through the
acquisition of Trinethra Super Retail and subsequently expanded its
presence nationally under the brand 'more' across Supermarkets &
Hypermarkets. There are currently 492 Supermarkets and 19
Hypermarkets and more aims to offer a shopping experience that delivers
unbeatable value and quality.

In keeping with our motto 'Quality 1st, ABRL takes pride in being
the first ever Indian food and grocery retailer to receive the FSMS (Food
Safety Management System) certification. We received this award for
ensuring that the manufacture, storage, distribution and sale of food
adhere to the highest quality standards. The Aditya Birla Science and
Technology Centre in Taloja drives our quest for world-class quality
through extensive research and development across food and non-food
categories.

Through Clubmore and our comprehensive range of brands,

including our Power Brands Vow, Feasters and Kitchens Promise that
offer unbeatable value for homemakers, we aim to create customers that
keep on returning for more. In all, our family of Clubmore members has
grown to 17 million, all of whom enjoy a host of customized offers and
great savings.

ABRL follows the best industry practices in order to unlock the full
potential of its staff through our world-class learning institutes - Aditya
Birla Center for Retail Excellence and Gyanodaya. Coupled with learning
initiatives such as SPARK, Aarohan and Aarambh, these initiatives are
critical in helping our people imbibe the key characteristics of our Quality
1st philosophy.

Supermarket:
Conveniently located in your neighbourhoods, there are 492
more stores across the country offering a wide range of fresh fruits
and vegetables, groceries, personal care, home care, general
merchandise etc. Offering an irresistible combination of quality and
value, more aims to be shopping destination of choice for families
everywhere.

Hypermarket:
More. MEGASTORE is a one stop shopping destination for the
entire family. There are currently 19 hypermarkets in operation and
you find a large range of products across fruits and vegetables,
groceries, fresh items {bakery, diary & frozen}, FMCG products,
general merchandise, apparels, consumer durables and IT goods.
Theres something to suit every need at a more. MEGASTORE near
you.

1. Who did you interview?

I met Mr in the store who is working as store manager from past two
years
2. How long have they been in Business?
More was established in the year 2011 and business is doing good with the
sales growth rate of 20%
3. How has their Business changed over the years?
Starting there were only 7 employees and now number has increased to
15. At first products were just dumped in order but now the products were
organised in top to low price order and also each shelf is given name and
that product is kept for sell. Customers number has also shown increasing
trend
4. What is their vision Statement?

Vision: To be the foremost retail brand which makes India healthy and
happy, with an obsession to provide wholesome and freshest foods?
Values: integrity .commitment, passion, seamlessness, speed.
5. Do they plan to expand, penetrate, diversify or change their
format in the near future?
Yes, the expansion of another more retail store has already taken place at
dhramapuri road jn, Vizianagaram and the store is operating with 10 staff
members.

Section-B
(Super market Strategy)
1. Who is their Target Market:
Define their customer according to demographics (Age, gender, income level

education, etc..,)
Their target customers are head of youth, family and high income peoples.
They focus main on the 15-45 years of age people
Trade area- 1300 sq.ft primary
2. Merchandise Assortment:
What are the major brands they carry?
They maintain all type of brands but they deal more with HUL,P&G& ITC are the

major brands.
Do they have private brands?
Yes, they have own brands kitchens promise, feasters, vow,
Where does their Super marketers merchandise fit on the category life cycle?
The business is running well from past 5 years but now they are facing tough
competition with Spencers and metro hyper which is situated nearby. And they
expansion process is completed and operating with good margins. So, basing on this
we can say that it is in Growth stage

Does this Super marketer carry convenience goods, shopping goods or specialty?
More deals with shopping goods and convenience goods

3. Human Resources:
How does this store prepare and train their sales people?
At present, there are 15 employees in the more including store manager. And
employees are given training at the initial stage for the period of 2-3 months known as
on-field training. Appraisal reports will be given to the employees for every quarter.

Are they paid on commission, salary, or hourly wage?

All the employees in the mores are paid on salary basis.
Are the sales people allowed to cross sell?
Yes, the sales people are involved in cross selling in the absence of the requested
product by the consumer.

Do they outsource any activities in their business

No, they dont outsource any activities

4. Store Location:
Where is this Super market store located?
Ground floor, south shop, NCSmultiplex, thotapalem, Vizianagaram.
Why do you think they choose this location?
As the store is located in multiplex all income group people visits the multiplex which

helps them in gaining competitive advantage.

Is this site accessible for the customer?
It is located opposite to the complex it is easy for the customers to get along with the

store and hence this site is accessible for the customer.

What type of lease do they have?
They didnt provide the information due to confidentiality.
5. Pricing:
What is this store pricing policy?
As it is a branded store standard prices will be maintained which are fixed by the

company itself. There is no frequent changing in the price according to demand etc.
What other practices do they use to compete with price?
They are using discounts method in order to compete with competitors price
Does this Super marketer use the cost-oriented method of pricing or demand-

oriented pricing
This Super marketer uses the cost-oriented pricing.
Is there a frequent shopper program?
They are using discounts and value for money method in order to make the customer
to visit the store frequently.

6. Communication Mix:
What type of paid advertisements does this business use?
Sticking posters on autos, Advertisements in local media, channels and newspapers,
banners and flex.
What type of unpaid communication does this business use?
Word of mouth
Does this Super marketer use cooperative advertising? With whom?
No, they are not using any cooperative advertising.
What type of sales promotions does this Super marketer use?
By using coupons discounts as per the company norms. They also sponsor events
where huge female and family gatherings happen.
7. Store layout:
What type of design layout does this store use?
Grids, free flow.

Is it effective for customer flow?

yes, it is effective for customer flow.
What type of fixtures do they use?
Modular Super market wall system.
What type of lightings are they using?
Currently, they are using sealing based LED lightings in the store.
Is music constantly playing? What type?
No, they dont play
What type of scent is in the store? Does it detract or attract?
They use very mild floral room fresheners in the store. As they are mild and pleasant,
they attract the customers.

8. Customer Service:

What type of services does this store offer? (Alterations, gift-wrapping etc.)
They offer free alterations for their customers and also gift wrap the merchandise on
special request by the customers.

Talk to 3 customers - What is their perception of this stores customer service?

By collecting information from 3 customers who visited the store, they perceive
positive feedback regarding customer service in the store and also felt the price for the
product is also reasonable.

How does this store handle customer complaints?

Store takes the valid complaints and works on it. If the fault with goods is found they
do with customer preference i.e. return back money or changing of product.

Does this store have mystery shoppers to check level of service?

No.

Is the salesperson empowered to make decisions or is it up to management?

The sales person are not empowered to make decisions, it is only the management that
take decisions.

Section-c
(Competitive Advantage)

Does this Super marketer have a competitive advantage over similar stores?
The competitive advantage for the MORE store is it is located in the multiplex no
other retail marketers located in this mall and in the surroundings and they are able to
win customers trust by managing customer relationship which is their major
competitive advantage

How can they retain this advantage or achieve an advantage over their
competition?
In Vizianagaram more they are not having any music system in the store so by
keeping music system they can attract customers
For making customer relationship more strong they can keep feedback system and if
any customer is unsatisfied they can take their concern. Their concern area can be due
to price or quantity or quality or treatment which they receive inside the store,
anything, they must work on it and if feasible treatment can be done to the concern
area, they have to do it and they also have to inform about the action to the customer
may be through SMS or e-mail.

They must also work on the frequent shopper program

Summarize your Super marketers primary strengths and weaknesses and

support your assessment. What are their biggest challenges now and in the
future? How are they preparing to meet those challenges? What do they view as
their opportunities for the future?

Strengths:
1. Their strength is great bonding with customers as they are old and trusted retailer in
Vizianagaram.
2. They have various brands and private brands too
3. Their location also gives them extra edge as it located in the area of core targeted
customers
4. Low labor cost of skilled ones
5. Demographic favor
6. Shopping convenience
7. Greater availability of quality retail space

Weakness:
1. The brand has not established itself in the e-commerce arena in Vizianagaram
2. The more retailer has the trading area of only 1300 sqfeet. when compared to other
retailer it is very small
3. Limited consumer insight
4. Lack of trained personnel at all level
5. Lack of adequate utilities
Opportunities:

1. The brand can focus on expansion of trading area and can become number one
retailer in Vizianagaram.
2. Locational advantage
3. Fastest growing retail market in Vizianagaram
4. Promoting e-retailing
Threats:
1. Existing competition from more and metro hyper
2. Opening of new stores in their area may make to share their customers
3. Poor inventory turns and stock availability measures.
4. Lack of differentiation among the malls that are coming.

What environmental and economic factors are affecting the Super marketer?
Suppliers
Customers
Competitors
How is your Super marketer seeking to increase revenue in the future?
By developing better customer service, sales thereby increasing revenue.

How do they make use of technology (web and ecommerce, supply chain
management, information systems, etc.)? How has technology affected the way
they conduct business?
They are planning to come on ecommerce

Competition
Who are the Super marketers competitors (both direct and indirect)? How does
your Super marketer compare to these competitors in terms of its size, market
dominance/share, sales, profitability, etc.?
Competitor: Spencers and metro hyper
They are very strong in their trading area