United Colours of Benetton

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________
1. Introduction4-34 2. Research Design35-40 3. Company profile41-91 4. Analysis and Interpretations..92-142 5. Summary of finding.143-145 6. Suggestion and conclusion......146-149 7. Bibliography150-152 8. Annexure.153-157
__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies
List of Tables
TABLE NO. TITLE
4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 4.9 4.10 4.11 4.12 4.13 4.14 4.15 4.16 4.17 4.18 4.19 4.20 4.21 4.22 4.23 4.24 4.25
Age wise classification Gender wise classification Monthly income of customers Preference of stores by customers Most preferred Benetton products Frequency of visits Opinion about collection of Benetton How often customers shop? Staff behaviour towards customers Opinion about defects in Benetton products Are Benetton clothes economical? Comfort level of trial rooms Rating of economic policy Speed of billing system according to customers Window display/presentation of store Opinion regarding staff members knowledge Cleanliness of store Rating of ambience of Benetton stores Rating of quality and fabric of Benetton clothes Rating of fitting of Benetton clothes Rating of schemes and offers of Benetton Rating of range and variety of Benetton clothes Rating of men collection Rating of women collection Overall rating of Benetton
PAGE 93 95 97 99 101 103 105 107 109 111 113 115 117 119 121 123 125 127 129 131 133 135 137 139 141
List of Charts
CHART NO. TITLE
4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 4.9 4.10 4.11 4.12 4.13 4.14 4.15 4.16 4.17 4.18 4.19 4.20 4.21 4.22 4.23 4.24 4.25
Age wise classification Gender wise classification Monthly income of customers Preference of stores by customers Most preferred Benetton product Frequency of visits Opinion about collection of Benetton How often customers shop? Staff behaviour towards customers Opinion about defects in Benetton products Are Benetton clothes economical? Comfort level of trial rooms Rating of economic policy Speed of billing system according to customers Window display/presentation of store Opinion regarding staff members knowledge Cleanliness of store Rating of ambience of Benetton stores Rating of quality and fabric of Benetton clothes Rating of fitting of Benetton clothes Rating of schemes and offers of Benetton Rating of range and variety of Benetton clothes Rating of men collection Rating of women collection Overall rating of Benetton
PAGE 94 96 98 100 102 104 106 108 110 112 114 116 118 120 122 124 126 128 130 132 134 136 138 140 142
CUSTOMER
Definition A person, company, or other entity which buys goods and services produced by another person, company, or other entity.
() A customer is someone who purchases or rents something from an individual or organization. Someone who pays for goods or services
() A person who defines needs or wants, justifies or pays for part or the entire project, or evaluates or uses the results.
() Groups or individuals who have a business relationship with the organization--those who receive and use or are directly affected by the products and services of the organization. Customers include direct recipients of products and services, internal customers who produce services and products for final recipients, and other organizations and entities that interact with an organization to produce products and services. () [GAO] A customer is a party to a real estate transaction with whom the
broker has no brokerage relationship because such party has not engaged or employed the broker, either as the party's agent or as the party's transaction-broker.
() The person or business that buys from a business; a purchaser of goods or services.
() A buyer of good or services. Customer any recipient of a product or service; anyone who is affected by what one produces. A customer can be external or outside the organization or they can be internal to the organization.
Types of Customers of New Technology

1.
Enthusiasts (or Innovators): purchase new technology just as it
comes available and before anybody else.

2.
Visionaries (or Early Adopters): purchase new technology before
most companies, but only after there are references available from other users.
3.
Pragmatists (or Early Majority): want to see well-established
references before investing substantially in new technology.

4.
Conservatives (or Late Majority): purchase technology only after it
has been on the market for a while and thus tested and accompanied by good support.
5.
Skeptics (or Laggards): don't purchase new technology if they can
help it.
Internal Customers
Many people deal with customers WITHIN their own companies. Internal customers are those people and employees who might use your services and products, who reside in the same company. For example the computer department, and human resources department serve internal needs.
<> Managers These are internal customers whose requirements are to accomplish the companys product quality goals, business results and overall performance and commitments, the organization has made to its stakeholders. In addition to above each upper manager has certain personal need also, such as to respect, recognition and higher responsibility to demonstrate his leadership qualities <>SUPERVISORS They are the middle level managers and supervisors whose requirements are the implementation of and conformance to approved plans to accomplish the divisional or unit level goals and objectives.
<>WORKERS The term worker means non-supervisory employees. In manufacturing organizations, many of these employees are production workers on the shop floor, whereas in service organizations the workers are frontline employees, who are involved in support services or dealing with external customers. The workers constitute the major volume of internal customers.
External Customers
The consumer of the product or service is the external customer. This class of customer has the most important requirements and they must be met, otherwise they will not purchase the product. <>Processors Processors use the products as inputs to their processes. They are mostly industrial customers, downstream processing industries, original equipment manufacturers and other industries. They add further value to the products and then supply finished products to their customers. <>Traders Traders or merchants purchase large volumes of products and sell it to the retailers, large consumers or through a chain of various retail outlets.
<>Public Activities or processes of every organization impact the public. It is the most important customer, even though it may not be buying the products. The impact to the public is related to safety and damage to environment caused by the undesirable products or pollutants discharged by the activities of the organization.
Customer Behaviour
ONE of the most important functions performed by a CRM system is to help predict customer behaviour. Customer behaviour prediction as implemented in most CRM systems consists of the following activities:

Capturing all relevant customer information. Customer behaviour modelling. Customer value assessment. Capturing relevant customer information.
In the past, information related to a single customer was distributed across the entire company within its different departments. This information had to be harmonised from both the business and technical point of view. Today, customers can
interact with a company in a number of waystelephone, fax, e-mail, EDI, Web, etc. Hence, analytical solutions must include the ability to flexibly and consistently integrate all data from a variety of customer interactions across all touchpoints into a consolidated view of the customer. This consolidated view, which should be available to every employee who needs to interact with the customer, should include information from external sources, interaction information captured at different touchpoints, and information from the back-office systems (ERP/SCM) of the company. CRM solutions integrate information from multiple sources to create a consolidated customer view and then make this customer knowledge base available as source data for the numerous CRM analytical applications. Customer behaviour modelling Customer behaviour modelling involves the following three steps:
Observe customer behaviour as depicted by the consolidated customer view contained in the customer knowledge base. Identify relevant behavioural patterns from the observed customer behaviour using profiling and scoring techniques. Create predictive models that can be used to acquire, grow and retain attractive and profitable customers.
10
Association
Association techniques identify affinities among the collection as reflected in the examined records. These affinities are often expressed as rules. For example, 60 percent of records that contain item A also contain B. The percentage of occurrences (60) is the confidence factor of the association. The association technique is often applied to market basket analysis, where it uses point-of-sales transaction data to identify product affinities. Clustering/Segmentation
Clustering is the method by which like records are grouped together. Usually this is done to give the end-user a high-level view of what is going on in the database. This technique segments records in a database into subsets (or clusters) based on a set of attributes. One way of using it is: In the process of understanding its customer base, an organisation may attempt to segment the known population to discover clusters of potential customers based on attributes never before used for this sort of analysis. (For example, the kind of school they attended, or the number of vacations per year.) Clusters can be created either statistically or by using artificial intelligence methods, and can be analysed automatically by a programme or by using visualisation techniques.
11
Scoring
Data mining software creates a predictive model based on historical data. This model can then be applied to new data in order to make predictions about unseen behaviour. * Scoring: The process of using a predictive model to make predictions about behaviour is called scoring. * Score: The output of the modelthe predictionis called a score. Scores can take just about any form, from numbers to strings to entire data structures, but the most common scores are numbers. For example, the probability of a customer segment responding to a particular promotional offer. * Scoring engine: Scoring involves a software applicationoften called the scoring enginethat can evaluate mathematical functions on a set of data inputs. The scoring engine takes a predictive model and a dataset and produces a set of scores for the records in the dataset. The scoring process A marketing user identifies a segment of customers of interest in the customer database. The records representing the customer segments might be copied into a separate database table. The selected group of customers is then scored by using a predictive model. For example, a model that predicts the customers likelihood of switching to a premium level of service might be used to get the probability that a customer will
12
indeed switch if he receives a brochure describing the new service.
The scores are placed in a database table and then sorted by their score value. For example, in a descending order of the probability of the customer switching to the premium service.
The top x percent are then chosen, for example, as targets for a promotion. The information necessary for promotion (contact information) is pulled out of the data warehouse for sending the brochures.
13
Customer care
-Customer care is a phrase that is used to describe the process of taking care of our customers in a positive manner. The term is used in place of complaint handling due to its positive focus, and is a reminder that customer satisfaction is a priority. - Customer service is the set of behaviors that a business undertakes during its interaction with its customers. It can also refer to a specific person or desk which is set up to provide general assistance to customers.
IMPORTANCE OF CUSTOMER CARE

We all know that people don't just buy the 'product'. People buy people first. Customer Care can be measured within the organization in a tangible way (number of complaints, errors, telephone service statistics etc.) but the only person qualified to judge your service is the customer. The customer decides how he feels as a result of his dealings with the company - if he is made to feel special he is more likely to return. Customers' expectations of service are rising. Improved technology provides instant information and businesses are becoming more conscious of customer service in order to compete. The customer is increasingly aware of the levels of service they are being given and expects a better, faster, extraordinary level of service. Customers placing an order expect their products on time, to be good value, and for their
14
order to be correct. All of these aspects of customer care are affected by systems and procedures, marketing and technology. To accomplish this goal, an operator's Customer Care program must involve the whole of the company and align completely. Thus, the importance of customer care can be summarized under the following categories. Increasing customer satisfaction Customer Care solutions enable you to identify and focus special attention on your most profitable customers and potential customers. These solutions also increase the efficiency of your marketing, sales and customer service departments by enabling them to deliver more relevant, timely service to each customer. Greater Personalization of Products or Services Customer Care allows you to tailor your communication and offerings based on customers interests and preferences. Broader Sales channel Customer Care solutions gather information about potential customers so you can tailor your sales message according to their needs and interests.
15
Reduced Costs A proper Customer Care programme helps to reduce the overall costs in an enterprise since it helps to attain the customer loyalty, which provides regular business to the enterprise. The objective of Customer Care is to win and keep customers - it has a direct impact on the companys bottom line results.
Customer service
Customer service is an organization's ability to supply their customers' wants and needs. Customers and business managers alike like to talk about what good customer service is (and isn't), but I think this definition by ACA Group sums up what excellent customer service is beautifully: "excellent customer service (is) the ability of an organization to constantly and consistently exceed the customer's expectations." Improving customer service involves making a commitment to learning what our customers' needs and wants are, and developing action plans that implement customer friendly processes.
16
Needs and Expectations

Customer needs may be defined as the facilities or services a customer requires to achieve specific goals or objectives. Needs are generally nonnegotiable, but may be optional or of varying importance to the customer. In any transaction, customers seek value-for-money, and will often consider a range of vendors' offers before settling on a purchase. Customer expectations are based on perceived values of facilities or services as applied to specific needs. Expectations are influenced by cultural values, advertising, marketing, and other communications, both with the supplier and with other sources. Expectations are negotiable and modifiable. Both customer needs and expectations may be determined through interviews, surveys, conversations or other methods of collecting information. Customers at times do not have a clear understanding of their needs. Assisting in determining needs is a valuable service to the customer. In the process, expectations may be set or adjusted to correspond to known product capabilities or service levels.
17
Customer satisfaction &Loyalty
Customer satisfaction
Customer satisfaction is a measurement of customer attitudes about products, services and brands. While it's always been smart to keep customers happy, the term "customer satisfaction" became popularized in the 1980's with the total quality movement. Customer Driven Excellence and Customer Focused Results remain important aspects of the Baldrige National Quality Program.
18
CUSTOMER LOYALTY
This article is about customer loyalty in general. If you are looking for information n on loyalty programs (points, etc.) . If you want to read a case study describing how incredibly profitable well-designed loyalty programs can be, Customer loyalty describes the tendency of a customer to choose one business or product over another for a particular need. In the packaged goods industry, customers may be described as being "brand loyal" because they tend to choose a certain brand of soap more often than others. Note the use of the word "choose" though; customer loyalty becomes evident when choices are made and actions taken by customers. Customers may express high satisfaction levels with a company in a survey, but satisfaction does not equal loyalty. Loyalty is demonstrated
19
by the actions of the customer; customers can be very satisfied and still not be loyal. Customer Loyalty has become a catch-all term for the end result of many marketing approaches where customer data is used. You can say Relationship Marketing or Database Marketing or Permission Marketing or CRM, and what you are really talking about is trying to increase customer loyalty - getting customers to choose to buy or visit more. Increased customer loyalty is the end result, the desired benefit of these programs. All of the above approaches have two elements in common they increase both customer retention and the LifeTime Value of customers. Customer loyalty is the result of well-managed customer retention programs; customers who are targeted by a retention program demonstrate higher loyalty to a business. All customer retention programs rely on communicating with customers, giving them encouragement to remain active and choosing to do business with a company. You want customers to do something, to take action. You want them to visit your website, make a purchase, sign up for a newsletter. And once they do it for the first time, you want them to continue doing business with you, especially since you probably paid big money to get them to do business with you the first time. You dont want to pay big money the second time. You want to create a "loyal" customer who engages in profitable behavior.
__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies 20
Customer data and models based on this data can tell you which customers are most likely to respond and become loyal, no matter what kind of front-end marketing program you are running or how you "wrap it up" and present it to the customer. The data will tell you who to promote to, and how to save precious marketing dollars in the process of creating customers who are loyal to you longer. For example, let's say you look at your most loyal customers and find on average they buy or visit at least once every 30 days. So you begin tracking these customers, and discover 20% of them "skip" their 30 day activity. In addition, 90% of the 20% who skip never come back. You are watching the erosion of customer loyalty right before your eyes. And it's too late to do anything about it, because they're already gone. You will waste a tremendous amount of money trying to get them back. You have to develop a way to identify high loyalty customers who are at risk, and take action before they leave you. This is accomplished by using the data customers create through their interactions with you to build simple models or rules to follow. These models can be your early warning system, and will alert you to situations like the "30 day skip" example above in time for you to do something before the customer defects. Behavior models because the data to speak to you about the loyalty status of the customer before it's too late. This site and the Drilling Down book are about teaching you how to build and use these models yourself in 30 minutes with an Excel spreadsheet. If you want to increase sales while reducing the costs of marketing to customers, you have to get this book
21
HOW TO USE CUSTOMER SATISFACTION STUDIES TO GREATEST EFFECT
22
Exceptional Customer Service

Customers' need and expectations are high and increasing. They expect businesses to be responsive, reassuring, courteous, competent, empathetic and reliable. The impression created by all levels of staff when dealing with present and potential customers is vital to securing the future of a business. What makes an exceptional Customer Service? There are four characteristics which make exceptional Customer Service and they are: 1. Reliability - This is the ability to provide what was promised, dependably and accurately. 2. Responsiveness - The willingness to help customers promptly, to get things done for the customer in a timely fashion. 3. Assurance - The knowledge and courtesy you show to customers and your ability to convey trust, competence and confidence. 4. Empathy - The degree of caring and individual attention you show customers.
23
Handling difficult requests There may be times when you are faced with difficult requests or you think you cannot accommodate. There are a number of ways in dealing with this situation which are: Find an alternative - Seek other ways of providing a solution, for example, if you cannot offer a navy raincoat, offer a black one instead. Don't assume you can't - Find creative or innovative solutions. Before you say you can't, involve your customer in trying to find a way that you can. Focus on the positive - If a customer focus on the negative, focus on the positive, for example, say 'I really appreciate your bringing this to my attention' or 'I can understand your concern'. Adding Value By doing what the customer expects and nothing more, will not win any loyalty. Share new products and services with repeat customers first. Add value by keeping customers feeling that they are really part of your team. Other ways to add value is to go out of your way to satisfy your customer anticipate their needs and find solutions.
24
Say 'Thank You' Frequently the reason that good customers fail to come back is because they feel taken for granted. One of the best ways to tell these customers that you do notice and appreciate them is simply by saying 'thank you'. You should thank your customers when:

They do business with you. Compliment you. Offer comments or suggestions. Try a new product or service. Recommend a friend. They are patient or not so patient. They help you to serve them better. They complain.
Let your thanks be immediate, specific, sincere and special. When things go wrong When things go wrong, as they will invariably do, follow these steps to help remedy and pacify the situation: Apologise - Always start by saying sorry, even if you feel it is their fault, express your apologies for the anxiety caused. Listen, emphasise, ask open questions - Listen carefully, show empathy and ask open questions to gain and keep control.
25
Rectify the problem quickly and fairly - Find a solution by involving the customer. Tell the customer what you are going to do.
Offer a goodwill gesture - If there is a complaint about your product, offer it for free or some other gesture.
Keep your promises - Be realistic about when and what you can and cannot deliver. Follow up - Check up with your customer that what was wrong has been put right.
HOW TO KEEP A CUSTOMER FOR LIFE

Select the right customer through market research. Know your purpose for being in business. Move customer from satisfaction to loyalty by focusing on retention and loyalty schemes. Develop reward programmes. Customize your products and services. Train and empower your employees in excellent customer service. Respond to customers needs with speed and efficiency. Measure whats important to the customer? Know what exactly customer wants in their relationship with you. Know why customers leave your enterprise by producing customer exit surveys. Conduct a failure analysis on your enterprise.
26
Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________ Know your retention improvement measures-have a strategy.
Dealing With Customer Complaints - B.L.A.S.T

by Albert Barneto In a restaurant, not so far away, in the not so distant future, a telephone rings, a customer complains and the battle begins! Handling customer complaints doesn't have to always be a battle, with the right tools and responses you can use complaints to your advantage; to help you build your business. B.L.A.S.T is a great tool that is used by companies such as Yum! (Parent company of KFC, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, A&W, and Long John Silvers). Training their employees in the basics of handling Believe Listen Apologize Satisfy Thank customer complaints. The acronym stands for:
27
How does your company deal with customer complaints? The easiest way to find out is to pick up the phone and play the role of the complaining customer. What happened? If you were an irritated customer, would you return? Using the B.L.A.S.T guidelines, allows you to create a standardized method for dealing with your complainers and turning them into loyal customers. Believe This is the cornerstone of handling a customer complaint. Yes, the customer may be lying and be incorrect about their situation. It is important to understand that your customer believes that your establishment has wronged them. Listen Stop and listen to your customer's complaint. I'm not certain whether it's natural instinct or just plain stubbornness. As soon as a customer starts to complain, we start to think of how we will respond to the accusation before we are done listening, and too often the case, already have the response ready to fight back. Take a second, relax, and listen. On occasion a complaining customer will be rude, angry, and use vulgar language, stay the course and remain calm and level headed.
28
When the customer is done venting; in a calm, non-judgmental tone, repeat their problem. An example I used in my KFC for a mispacked order: "What I hear you saying is that, you came in ordered and paid for 10 Pieces of chicken and when you got home, you only received 8, is that correct?" By repeating the problem at hand, you've demonstrated your ability to the customer that you heard and understood their problem.
Listen and clarify. Never defend or justify. The customer doesn't care if you were shorthanded or if you're having a bad day, they only care that they get taken care of. No excuses, just solutions. Apologize Always apologize even if you did nothing wrong. From your customers' perspective, they have a legitimate complaint, and they expect an apology. It could be as simple as "I'm sorry we've inconvenienced you." or "I'm sorry I know how frustrating it is to buy dinner for my family, only not to have everything there when I get home" A sincere apology will usually diffuse a lot of frustration that the customer has. There is an exception to this rule though, if a customer calls
29
with a critical complaint, such as food poisoning, don't apologize, it may be construed as an acceptance of guilt, instead refer to your company's procedures for such events. Satisfy Make it right. Ask the customer "What can I do to make this right for you"? Be the judge of what is fair of course, but allow them the opportunity to feel empowered over the situation. Many times they may ask for the problem be taken care of on their next visit or maybe that you talk to the person who made the mistake and correct them. We used a great system of sending out a personalized postcard apologizing for the mistake, it was a couple of handwritten sentences, but it was personal and always well received. We always gave them the unexpected as well, maybe a free dessert or an extra side dish just to show that we cared about them. Thank At the beginning, at the end, in the middle; it doesn't matter, thank the customer for calling and complaining. Why? With the simple act of complaining, your customer is telling you "I care about your business and your success". They are giving you the opportunity to fix the problem and invite them back so they can give you
more of their money. Puts a different spin on it doesn't it? Thank them for giving you that second chance, for letting you know that something in your restaurant didn't work like it normally does, for giving you the chance to make it right, and for the opportunity not to damage your reputation! Reputation? I had to throw that one in. You work hard, day in day out, trying the best to make your business the best, and yet one unhappy customer can take it away from you. A happy customer will tell two or three friends about a good experience, but an unhappy customer will tell at least ten friends about their experience and it always multiplies through word of mouth. Case in point, when I moved cross country to my new hometown, I was at a Chamber of Commerce event and being the new person in the group, I introduced myself and what we did. No sooner than five minutes passed did I get a list of 10 restaurants in my area that in their opinion were in "need of my services". Only one person gave me a good restaurant. I didn't ask, I was told. To this day I still haven't been to those restaurants as a customer, why do I want to give them my hard earned money, when they made my new friends unhappy? It may not be a rational thought, but it is human nature. Will some people take advantage of your kindness? Of course, a rule of thumb I used in my restaurant was:
31
First time shame on me,Second time shame on me, but I'm watching you, Third time... Shame on you and I will make the decision on how I will deal with you as a customer. Keep track of who calls to complain, names, phone numbers for follow up, addresses for your postcards. Using a binder and tracking your complaints, you will be able to detect and deter those that would take advantage of your new complaint procedures. Adding B.L.A.S.T to your expanding toolbox of customer service tools will help you in dealing with customer complaints and turn them around so they can tell their friends what great service you have!
Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) refers to the methodologies and tools that help businesses manage customer relationships in an organized way. For small businesses, customer relationship management includes: - CRM processes that help identify and target their best customers, generate quality sales leads, and plan and implement marketing campaigns with clear goals and objectives; - CRM processes that help form individualized relationships with customers (to improve customer satisfaction) and provide the highest level of customer service to the most profitable customers;
32
- CRM processes that provide employees with the information they need to know their customers' wants and needs, and build Customer Relationship Management (CRM) refers to the methodologies and tools that help businesses manage customer relationships in an organized way. Implementing a CRM system can help your organization realize improvements in customer satisfaction and retention, reduce cost of sales and services, increase sales and revenue and acquire new customers. To be competitive today, companies must meet the expectations of both their customers, who expect constantly improving levels of customer service, and their stockholders, who expect bottom and top line results. Improving operational efficiencies, customer retention and acquisition can quickly deliver long-term return on investment (ROI), and can have a profound effect on your organization's bottom line. CIBER's CRM practice can help you achieve results that will make your organization more competitive today, and more profitable tomorrow. How do you know if CRM will benefit you? If you would like to improve your sales forecasting, better manage your pipeline, more easily analyze the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns and increase revenue predictability, CRM can help you gain more control of your sales and marketing organizations and deliver the metrics you need to run your business effectively. If your customer information resides in "silos" that are not readily accessible across the enterprise, then CRM can help give your customer service organization the tools and information it needs to deliver the level of service and responsiveness that today's customers expect. If you would
like a self-service presence on the web, CRM can also help your organization improve Web-based customer support, capture and route incoming Web-based leads, and improve your ability to use the Internet to interact more effectively with customers, prospects and partners. If you're looking for this kind of result, CIBER can help you leverage industry-leading CRM applications and Internet-based technology to maximize performance, improve core business processes and improve customer satisfaction. Why CIBER For CRM? CIBER has the CRM project and individual consultant experience to get your system and processes right the first time. The CRM products and modules on the market today keep increasing in complexity, but our team knows how to cut through the confusion to make your CRM project a success. Strong leadership, communication, and careful scope management are the keys to running any successful project. Our consultants have the functional, technical and industry experience to deliver these skills, along with the proven tools and methodologies, to help your organization meet its goals.
34
35
Statement of problem
Luciano, Giuliana, Gilberto and Carlo Benetton, launched the activities of the Benetton Group in 1965. The company is today present in 120 countries around the world. Its core business is clothing with the casual United Colors of Benetton, fashion oriented Sisley, Playlife leisurewear and Killer Loop streetwear brands. Benetton Group is listed on the stock exchanges of Milan, Frankfurt and New York.
The Group produces around 115 million garments every year. Its retail network of 5,000 contemporary stores around the world, offers high quality customer services and generates a total turnover of approximately 1.8 billion euro. Benetton Group's Corporate headquarters is located at Villa Minelli in Ponzano, about 30 km from Venice.
This research project, through analyzing a comprehensive questionnaire handed out to more than 100 customers at United Colors of Benetton, Bangalore. It aims at improving the existing customer care of Benetton.
36
Objectives of the study

To find out what the customers feel about Benetton.
To evaluate consumers perception of customer care. given to customers.
To find out overall standard of Benetton with respect to services To offer suggestions based on findings.
Design and Technique

A random sampling technique was conducted with 20 questions in total including 1 open ended questions and 25 close ended. A statistical technique was used for the study.
Data Collection
Data can be classified into 2 different categories, based on in what way they are colleted. In this research project, primary data as well as secondary data have been used. Sample size: This included 100 respondents from different parts of Bangalore. Questionnaire 100 questionnaire where filled by the customers visiting Benetton stores. Customer feedback was collected and report was made.
37
Chapter scheme:
Chapter 1 Introduction Introduction chapter explains the different ascepts of customer care. Chapter 2 Research & design This chapter reveals the methodology in the approach to the study. From objectives framing to field work and analysis, the chapter gives a detailed description of all aspects of the research design. Chapter 3 Company profile This chapter gives an outline about Benetton. The profile gives detail information about the company. Chapter 4 Analysis and interpretation This chapter is concern with deducing results from the analysis and interperating the results. Chapter 5 Summary and Findings This chapter is concern with singling out of findings from the project study. Chapter 6 Suggestions and Recommendations This chapter deals with drawing conclusions from the findings and making suggestions and recommendations in order to help the company in framing an appropriate customer care policy.
Basic classification of data

PRIMARY Sources that contain raw, DEFINITIONS unevaluated information. Primary sources tend to come first in the publication cycle. and monthly-produced magazines; letters, diaries. SECONDARY Sources that digest, analyze, evaluate and interpret the primary sources. They tend to be argumentative. TIMING OF PUBLICATION CYCLE Secondary sources tend to come second in the publication cycle. Often scholarly periodicals and books. (Professors like these.) original, uninterpreted and information contained within
FORMATS--depends on the Often newspapers, weekly kind of analysis being conducted.
In this report, primary data has been collected by the means of a structured questionnaire. In this research project, secondary data has been collected through literature in books, as well as articles on the internet
39
Limitations of the study

There are few factors which limits the study. They are as follows: Lack of Time This study is totally based on the information collected through primary data, getting this information was time consuming and the time which was given to complete the study was very short. Location constraintThis study is conducted only in Bangalore. There are many stores across the country. Baised optionThe respondents may not have filled up the full questionnaire because of unawareness. This might affect the efficiency of the customer care survey.
Lack of Interest
It can be both from the customer side and the project performer side. It can happen that the customer is not interested in filling the questionnaire due to unfortunate circumstances because time is valuable for them. It may also happen that the person who is taking the survey may loose enthusiasm after completing few surveys.
40
41
About Benetton - Know the Facts

Benettons position regarding the controversy on mulesing between the Australian Wool Industry and PETA (2004) In 2004 PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) launched a campaign against the Australian Wool Industry in an attempt to force it to cease a practice called mulesing. PETA unjustly and incorrectly involved Benetton Group in this matter despite the fact that Benetton has no relationship, direct or indirect, with sheep breeding in Australia. Within the Australian Wool Industry there are now developments aimed at the progressive elimination of this practice
Benettons position regarding the Mapuche in Patagonia (2004) In 2001 Atilio Curianco and Rosa Nahuelquir occupied, without authorisation, 385 hectares of unpopulated land situated in Patagonia, belonging to Compaa de Tierras Sud Argentino held by Edizione Holding (holding of the Benetton family). They stayed there for 39 days, at the end of which they were ordered to leave. As a result of this incident Compaa de Tierras Sud Argentino initiated a lawsuit which confirmed the total legality of its ownership of the land, situated in the area of Santa
Rosa.
Benettons position on RFID technology (2003) Contrary to several articles written on this issue, Benetton Group has never industrially used RFID technology nor have microchips (smart labels) ever been present in the approximately 110 million garments produced and sold throughout the world under its brand names, including Sisley. Turkish Child Labour Issue (1998) In 2003 the Court of Milan, condemned the journalist Riccardo Orizio and the editor-in-chief of Corriere della Sera, Ferruccio de Bortoli, for the charges attributed to them, respectively libel with aggravated circumstances and omitted control, in relation to the unmotivated involvement of the Group in a presumed case of exploitation of child labour in Turkey (1998).
43
Founders
Luciano, Giuliana, Gilberto and Carlo Benetton, launched the activities of the Benetton Group in 1965. The company is today present in 120 countries around the world. Its core business is clothing with the casual United Colors of Benetton, fashion oriented Sisley, Playlife leisurewear and Killer Loop streetwear brands. Benetton Group is listed on the stock exchanges of Milan, Frankfurt and New York. Luciano Benetton Born in 1935, Luciano Benetton is Chairman of the Benetton Group. He is also on the Board of Directors of Edizione Holding, the family-owned financial holding company and was a Senator of the Italian Republic from 1992 to 1994.He is the father of four children. GiulianaBenetton Born in 1937, Giuliana Benetton is currently on the Board of Directors of both Edizione Holding (the family-owned financial holding company) and Benetton Group.She is married and has four children.
44
GilbertoBenetton Born in 1941, Gilberto Benetton is President of Edizione Holding, the family holding company, President of Autogrill and Director of Benetton Group. He is Vice President of Olimpia, the main shareholder in Telecom Italia where he holds the same position. Gilberto is also a Director of Autostrade S.p.A., Mediobanca S.p.A., Pirelli S.p.A. and Abertis Infrastucturas S.A.He is married and has two daughters. CarloBenetton Born in 1943, Carlo Benetton is Deputy Chairman of both Edizione Holding (the family-owned financial holding company) and of Benetton Group.He is the father of four children.
45
History
'60s The idea of color. The Benetton Group is established. Benetton beyond boundaries: first shop in Paris. A business model making the '70s difference: unique, flexible and innovative. Benetton communication '80s campaigns: known all over the world. A global company: around 115 '90s 2000 million garments sold in 120 countries. Benetton grows with the market: a new network of megastores.
1965
1969
46
BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND DIRECTORS

During 2005, the Board of Directors held nine meetings in which it analyzed and approved the guidelines for Group operations, organizational recommendations and general guidelines regarding human resources management, proposals to reorganize the corporate structure, operating performance, extraordinary operations and the quarterly and half-year results. During these meetings, the executive directors also provided the Board of Directors and Board of Statutory Auditors with information regarding any significant or unusual operations or related party transactions. The Board of Directors has paid particular attention on analyzing the periodic reports of the Internal Audit Committee regarding its activities and an evaluation of the appropriateness of the internal control system, and providing updates on the accomplishments adopted by the Committee in accordance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (the U.S. law that Benetton is required to observe as a result of being listed on the New York Stock Exchange). At the Board meetings, the necessary documentation and information were provided, with reasonable advance notice, such that the Board could knowingly deliberate on the various issues submitted before it. The current system of powers granted by the Board of Directors on May 16, 2005, as described below, and the disclosure procedures adopted ensure that the Board is informed of all of the most significant transactions for the Company and for the Group.
Indeed, even though vested with the related powers, executive directors are required to submit such transactions to the Board of Directors for approval before their execution. Particular attention has been paid on transactions with related parties, as described in greater detail below in the section Related Party Transactions
Directors
The current Board of Directors, appointed by the shareholders meeting on May 16, 2005, is composed of 11 members, who are to remain in office until the meeting of shareholders to approve the financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2005. A complete overview of the directors curricula are available on the Companys web site in the Corporate Governance section. The Chairman, Luciano Benetton, is vested with the powers of company representation and the power to carry out all actions related to the Companys activities, with limitations for certain categories of actions and the following transactions in particular: the purchase and sale of shares or corporate bonds for amounts exceeding 25 million euro; the purchase and sale of business units and the purchase and sale of property for amounts exceeding 25 million euro; the approval of loans to parties other than subsidiaries for amounts exceeding 5 million euro.
The Chief Executive Officer, Silvano Cassano, is vested with the power to carry out actions related to ordinary administration and certain actions of extraordinary administration, with limitations for the following actions in particular: the purchase and sale of shares in companies for amounts exceeding 5 million euro; the purchase and sale of securities and bonds for amounts exceeding 10 million euro; the purchase and sale of business units and the purchase and sale of property for amounts exceeding 10 million euro; the approval of loans to parties other than subsidiaries for amounts exceeding 5 million euro; the guarantee of loans of companies that are not wholly controlled, either directly or indirectly, by Benetton Group S.p.A. The Board of Directors has appointed two Deputy Chairmen (Carlo Benetton and Alessandro Benetton), who are vested severally with the powers of Company representation in the absence of the Chairman. There are seven non-executive directors (Carlo Benetton, Gilberto Benetton, Giuliana Benetton, Reginald Bartholomew, Luigi Arturo Bianchi, Giorgio Brunetti and Ulrich Weiss), of whom four (Reginald Bartholomew, Giorgio Brunetti, Luigi Arturo Bianchi and Ulrich Weiss) are independent from the owners and corporate management, in accordance with the concept of independence as defined by the Corporate
49
Governance Code for listed companies in effect for financial year 2005. All directors participate diligently in the boards activities. The Group has recently adopted a new Policy, which was also approved by the Boards of Directors of the subsidiaries, regarding the exercise of power granted to Benetton Group S.p.A.s proxy holders and to directors and proxy holders of its subsidiaries. This Policy provides prior authorization by the Board of Directors of each company, or by its shareholders meeting, for the execution of the following transactions, in the event that such transactions are not conducted within the scope of ordinary intragroup relations: the issuance of guarantees, concessions or requests for financing, the purchase or sale of property, the purchase or sale of shares in companies (with certain exceptions). The Group has recently adopted a new Policy, which was also approved by the Boards of Directors of the subsidiaries, regarding the exercise of power granted to Benetton Group S.p.A.s proxy holders and to directors and proxy holders of its subsidiaries. This Policy provides prior authorization by the Board of Directors of each company, or by its shareholders meeting, for the execution of the following transactions, in the event that such transactions are not conducted within the scope of ordinary intragroup relations: the issuance of guarantees, concessions or requests for financing, the purchase or sale of property, the purchase or sale of shares in companies (with certain exceptions).
50
Corporate Governance - Articles of Association

The subdivision of the Articles of Association in titles has been done in order to facilitate consultation. The text of the Articles of Association approved by the General Meeting of the Stockholders is exclusively subdivided into Articles. Title I: Identification Articles from 1 to 4 Title II: Capital stock - Shares - Increases in Capital - Articles from 5 to 7 Title III: General Meeting - Articles from 8 to 13 Title IV: Administrative and Control Organs - Articles from 14 to 19 Title V: Financial Year- Net income Winding-up - Articles from 20 to 22
51
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
2005 %
Key operating data [millions of euro]
1H 05
2004 %
1H 04
Revenues 1.765 100% Gross operating income 770 43,6% Contribution Margin 643 36,4% EBITDA 285 16,2% Ordinary operating result 285 11,6% Earnings before interest 157 8,9% and taxes (EBIT) Net income attributable 112 6,3% to the Parent Company 2005
842 368 308 140 140
100.0% 43.8% 36.6% 16.6% 16.6%
1,704 100.0% 775 45.5% 654 38.4% 312 18.3% 312 18.3% 9.3% 6.4%
860 380 320 156 156
100.0% 44.2% 37.2% 18.2% 18.2%
95 11.2% 158 63 7.4% 1H 2005 109 2004
102 11.8% 69 8.1% 1H 2004
Working capital Net capital employed Net financial position Shareholders equity Free Cash Flow * Employees [no.] Financial ratios [%] ROE ROI EBITDA Earnings before interest
688 1,626 351 1,275 167 7,987 2005
738 1,694 475 1,219 43 7,619 1H 2005
711 1,654 441 1,213 182 7,424 2004
794 1,738 568 1,170 32 7,034 1H 2004
8.9 9.7 16.2 8.9
16.6 11.2
8.9 9.6 18.3 9.3
18.2 11.8
52
and taxes (EBIT) Net income attributable to the Parent Company
6.3 2005
7.4 1H 2005 0.34 6.66
6.4 2004 0.60 6.64 0.34 0.57 3.9
8.1 1H 2004 0.38 6.42
Share and market data Earnings per share [euro] 0.62 Shareholders equity per 6.95 share [euro] Dividend per share [euro]0.34 Pay out ratio [%] 55 Dividend yield 3.5 Share price: at period end 9.62 [euro] Screen-based market: 10.15 high [euro] Screen-based market: 7.01 low [euro] Price/earnings ratio [P/E] 15.5 Share price/Shareholders equity per share Market capitalization [thousands of euro] Average no. of shares 1.4
7.62 10.15 7.01
9.74 10.18 8.33 16.2 1.5
9.40 10.18 8.33
1,746,596
1,383,478
1,706,653
1,768,383 181,558,811
outstanding No. of share outstanding 181,558,811 181,558,811 181,558,811 181,558,811 * Free Cash Flow does not include the sale of current financial assets, flat-rate tax payments and residual amounts relating to the sale of the sport equipment segment.
181,558,811 181,558,811 181,558,811
53
Benetton Stock Quote

Exchange Milan Frankfurt New York Last 11.66 11.65 29.83 Change 0.04 % -0.26 % -0.57 %
Share Information - Share Capital

Number of share outstanding 181.558.811 Par value 1.30 euro Share capital 236,026,454.30 euro fully paid-in
Stock exchanges and year of quotation
Ordinary shares on the
July 1986
54
Milan stock exchange, Ordinary shares on the
October
Frankfurt stock exchange, 1988 ADS on the New York stock Exchange,
June 1989
Symbols
Reuters Tickers Bloomberg Tickers
BNG.MI BNG.F BNG.N
BEN IM BEN GR BEN US
Milan Stock Exchange Frankfurt Stock Exchange New York Stock Exchange
Securities Identification Numbers

ADR Cusip Sedol 081795403 2091671 Ordinary ISIN Sedol Consob Code IT0003106777 7128563 30295
Share Information - ADR

In June 1989, Benetton made a public offering of 7,000,000 American Depositary Shares ("ADS"), each representing the right to receive two Ordinary Shares and listed the ADSs on the New York Stock Exchange.
Stock Exchange Year of Listing Ticker NYSE June 1989 BNG
55
Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________ Ratio 1 : 2 (Each ADS represents two ADR Program Cusip Sedol Ordinary Shares ) Level-III Depositary Receipts 081795403 2091671
Depositary Bank
JPMorgan JPMorgan ADR Group One Chase Manhattan Plz., 40th Fl. New York, NY 10081 (866) JPM-ADRS
Custodian Bank
BNP Paribas Settlement Department Via Ansperto, 5 20123 Milano
Dividend Payment History

ADR Record Date May 17 2006[1] May 25 2005 May 26 2004 May 21 2003 May 22 2002 May 23 2001 May 19 2000 ADR Payable Date May 25 2006[1] June 3 2005 June 4 2004 May 30 2003 May 31 2002 June 5 2001 June 5 2000 Final Payment ($) NA 0.6209 0.6707 0.5940 0.5495 0.5759 1.3540
[1] The Annual Shareholders Meeting approved distribution of a 0.34 euro per share dividend. The ordinary shares listed on the Milan Stock Exchange and the ADSs listed on the New York Stock Exchange will be
traded ex-dividend on 15 May, 2006. Benetton Group will pay the dividend to all holders of ordinary shares of record on May 12 2006, and to all holders of ADSs of record on May 17 2006. In order to be a ADS holder of record on May 17 2006 and thus be entitled to such dividend , you must purchase the ADSs on or before May 12 2006. The dividend will be paid on May 18, 2006 in Euro by Monte Titoli S.p.A, authorized intermediary, to all ordinary shares depositary banks. For the holders of ADSs the dividend will be paid to JP Morgan, as depositary of the ordinary shares and the issuer of the ADSs, through BNP Paribas, as custodian under Deposit Agreement.JP Morgan anticipates that dividends will be payable to all the ADSs holders commencing from and after May 25, 2006, upon satisfaction of the documentation requirements, at the Euro/US Dollar exchange rate in effect on or around May 18, 2006.
HEADQUATERS
Villa Minelli
Benetton Group's Corporate headquarters is located at Villa Minelli in Ponzano, about 30 km from Venice. Villa Minelli is a complex of sixteenth century buildings of great historical and cultural interest. The villa was acquired by Benetton in 1969 and the task of restoring and remodernising the complex, entrusted to architects Afra and Tobia Scarpa, took over fifteen years. From the mid 1980s Villa Minelli
57
became the headquarters of the Group and home to all its strategic functions.
Distribution
From the very beginning, Benetton decided to maintain direct control of the logistics phase and has invested heavily in automating logistics processes in order to achieve total integration within the production cycle, from customer orders to packing and delivery. Automated Sorting System are automated machines are capable of assembling individual orders for Benetton's 5,000 shops worldwide. Flat and hanging garments are automatically sorted around 115 million items a year, packed into boxes and sent directly to the automated distribution system through a tunnel of approximately one kilometre. The finished product is sent directly to the group's 5,000 retail outlets in 120 countries worldwide.
58
STORES
5,000 stores worldwide The development of Benetton's commercial organization has been supported by a major programme of investment in megastores. These stores are characterised by their large dimensions, their prestigious locations in historic and commercial centres and by the high level of customer services they offer. The new Benetton megastores carry complete casual womenswear, menswear, childrenswear and underwear collections, as well as a wide selection of accessories, offering a full range of Benetton style and quality.
Design
A staff of 300 designers from all over the world creates the collections for the casual brands United Colors of Benetton, Undercolors, Sisley and for the sportswear brands Playlife and Killer Loop. The design team is also engaged in researching new materials and creating new lines for different targets from children, men and women to expectant mothers, offering them not only practical and modern styles but also maximum comfort
59
Production
Consistently high quality is one of the fundamental characteristics of the Benetton production process from the raw materials to the finished garment. A constant commitment to innovation, a crucial factor for development, has always characterised the Groups business organisation, from communication to IT, from research into new materials to integrated logistics. Special attention is given to innovation in production, where all systems and equipment are totally renewed every five years. The Benetton production system, co-ordinated by a high-tech facility at Castrette (Treviso, Italy) is capable of turning out around 115 million casual and sportswear garments every year. Dyeing
Since the beginning dyeing has always been a crucial phase in the Benetton production process. The dyeing vats are operational 24 hours a day.
Computerized Knitting Machines

Benetton is the world's largest consumer of pure virgin wool and operates with a structure of computerized machines that are programmed to operate all knitting phases.
Seamless
Sweater of Benetton's innovations is the
computerised knitting procedure capable of producing a complete, seamless sweater in half an hour thanks to a software program conceived by Benetton specialists.
60
Holding company
Edizione Holding is the Benetton familys holding company. Based on the international market experience of the Benetton Group and on skills and abilities available within the Group, Edizione has developed, over time, also thanks to the fundamental contribution of large industrial and institutional partners, a network of companies aimed at offering quality goods, services and infrastructures for modern consumers and people on the move. These companies operate all over the world, in various sectors: clothing, which, with the activities of Benetton Group, constitutes the traditional and innovative heart of the system; highway and urban catering services; infrastructure and services for transport and communications; real estate and agriculture; and other activities, such as the investments of 21 Investimenti. In total, aggregate turnover is around 8 billion euro. The total number of Group employees exceeds 60,000. The Group monitors the market on a continuous basis so that it can take advantage of any investment opportunities which are considered suitable for creation of value, while maintaining a balanced financial structure.
61
Overview
Today, the Benetton Group is present in 120 countries around the world. Its core business is clothing: a group with a strong Italian character whose style, quality and passion are clearly seen in its brands, the casual United Colors of Benetton, fashion oriented Sisley, Playlife leisurewear and Killer Loop streetwear. The Group produces around 115 million garments every year. Its retail network of 5,000 contemporary stores around the world, offers high quality customer services and generates a total turnover of approximately 1.8 billion euro.
Financial Highlights Year Revenues (million euro) Net Income (million euro) 2005 (a) 1,765 112 2004 (a) 1,704 109 2003 (b) 1,859 108 2002 (b) 1,992 [10] 2001 (b) 2,098
148
PRODUCT-STYLE AND PLANNING

Throughout 2005, the Product Development Unit, which was established in 2004, continued consolidating its role of connecting the product, operations, and sales units. This unit has the twofold objective of
62
providing an ever better service to Benettons traditional customers, the companys global network of partners, and of generating more direct contact with the market and the final consumer. We are working to provide the necessary creativity in the design of our collections, taking into account the demands of rationalization and organization, so as to combine product innovation and planning in a quick and effective response to the needs of the marketplace." Walter Giuriato, head of the Product Development Unit An improved rationalization of the collections, in particular, led to an average reduction in the number of articles presented in 2005, thereby lowering dispersion, inefficiency, and costs, while at the same time strengthening the identity and consistency of the various brands.In conjunction with this, and in order to complement the product offering and take advantage of as many opportunities for growth as possible, Benetton collections now include "nice price" articles, which are basic yet original and are inspired by the practical needs of day-to-day living. Product planning is also intended to constantly reduce the time it takes to restock the points of sale, in order to quickly reach the goal of offering
with the base, flash, integrations and new fashion collections at least a new proposal every four weeks. The continuative articles, which represent the very genetic makeup of each brand, are available throughout the year and at increasingly rapid
resupply times: as low as seven days in Italy and 15 throughout the rest of the world. Benettons collections are constantly evolving, yet never lose their own identity. With innovative raw materials, colors that are in touch with the times, and new, youthful shapes, we help stimulate the market by designing articles that always evoke the history and tradition of our brands. From 2005, hanging garments made a decisive entry into the collections alongside our casualwear, while knitwear was the focus of a special color project. The search for new materials has also led us to produce articles made of bamboo viscose for Fall/Winter 2006, which provides a soft, natural feel and advanced ecological and antibacterial characteristics. Benettons constant dedication to the quest for new materials and new designs has led us, for example, to strengthen our relationship with Politecnico di Milano, particularly on a project, co-funded by the Italian Ministry of Education and Research, to study and eliminate the peeling effect of wool and other fabrics. Another study, which we are developing with Istituto di Nanotecnologie in Venice, involves the application of Nanotechnology in fabrics, which will lead to further innovation in our collections."
PRODUCTION ORGANISATION NEED AND SERVICE

Benettons production system was redesigned in 2005, evolving from an organization based on divisions (e.g. wool and cotton) to a structure based on Service Units, such as planning and quality control. The new system is more efficient, flexible, and integrated, and makes it possible to optimize quality, service, and product delivery times, while being able to sustain desired growth in production over the coming years. In 2005, clothing production increased by as much as 3 million articles over the previous year. This system relies on a network of skills, which, leverages the best industrial capabilities available internationally, into which Benetton know-how is introduced, in each case using the most appropriate production techniques. In a landscape of increasing competition, such a system ensures rapid response times, product quality, and customer satisfaction. Benettons control and research units, which govern the entire system, operate in eastern Europe, in the Mediterranean - led by Tunisia and Turkey - and in transitional Asian markets, such as China and India. In terms of logistics, in 2004, the new Hong Kong hub became fully operational and, together with the European hub, allows for more rapid response times and better customer service in China, Japan, and the Far
East in general, as well as in the U.S. Other such units throughout the world are being studied and will consolidate the transition from a
65
centralized system to a new model based on satellite logistics. In 2005, Benetton celebrated the fifteenth anniversary of its presence in India, which represents a significant competitive advantage in a market rich in history and tradition, but which is, at the same time, strategic to the development of business in Asia. The production of cotton clothing, shirts, accessories, and footwear by our production network, which includes the facilities in Gurgaon (Haryana) just outside of Delhi, has enabled us to continue the strong growth of Benetton India (wholly owned by Benetton Group since December 2004), which boosted sales by 70 percent in 2005. The more than 50 shops currently in business in the country are expected to double over the next three years. Gagan Singh, managing director of Benetton India
THE MARKET - KNOWLEDGE AND DEVELOPMENT

The areas of greatest growth in 2005 were eastern Europe, the Mediterranean - Spain, Greece, and Turkey - and Korea. In Turkey, a joint venture has also been established with the Boyner Group in order to develop production and sales in the country and certain surrounding areas.distribution, which, as of this year, is being centrally coordinated in Italy, numbered almost 300 shops in the leading international fashion capitals and posted encouraging economic results.
The evolution of the interior design elements of shops continued in 2005 with the new Sisley concept, known as Pentagram, which is a better fit for the glam image and for brand positioning. The previous year also saw the debut of the Twins concept for UCB, which expresses the themes of the various collections very effectively. Commercial policies were also launched in 2005 aimed both at broadening the product offering to include nice price articles while favoring an increase in customer traffic in the points of sale and at the same time at supporting an increase in margins for our partners so that they can invest to keep the sales network fresh and up to date. The results achieved will enable us to continue confidently along this path in 2006. In the area of co-branding, Benetton and Mattel have begun a global partnership through December 31, 2006, for the creation of a girlswear line called Barbie loves Benetton With regard to licensing, of particular note is the agreement with Zorlu Holding, one of the largest Turkish groups, for Sisley Casa products, as well as the exclusive agreement with the French firm Selective Beauty for the development and global distribution of United Colors of Benetton perfumes, colognes, and fragrances The new Benetton Giyim Sanayi, a joint venture between Benetton and Boyner Group, manages all commercial activities of the brands United Colors of Benetton, Sisley, Playlife, and Killer Loop. According to the
development plan, sales should increase by 50 percent over the next five
67
years, thereby significantly strengthening our presence in Turkey. Benetton has grown here like no other international brand. With entrance into the European Union, our domestic market is certain to grow, as will our business in the Eurasia zone, which shows strong potential for sales development. Today in Turkey, there are already more than 100 shops in 50 cities displaying the Benetton logo. Zeynep Selgur, general manager of Benetton Giyim Sanayi Barbie and Benetton have joined forces to create one of 2005s most exciting developments in the world of fashion, delighting and surprising customers throughout the world by combining Benettons brilliant abilities in the clothing industry and its strength in distribution with the worlds most famous fashion doll. Being successful in business today means having the courage to run risks and to support innovative, creative ideas. Thats the difference between a good brand and an exceptional one. The Benetton- Barbie relationship shows that innovative thinking, imaginative leadership, and the courage to run with an idea can lead to exciting results. Mattel is enthusiastic about this partnership and is looking forward to future innovations with Benetton. Barbie loves Benetton is a splendid partnership and a sign for these two world-famous brands that will stand the test of time. Richard Dickson, senior vice president of worldwide marketing, media and entertainment for Mattel
68
HUMAN RESOURCE-TEAM AND COOPERATE CULTURE

In 2005, the department contributed to the evolution of the Groups corporate culture by redesigning the organizational structure around three fundamental principles: teamwork, knowledge, and quality.
Directly managed distribution, in particular, is currently being coordinated by a centralized Retail Unit, which also serves to connect the various units throughout the world. By preparing forecasts of market dynamics, the new Production Planning office makes it possible to anticipate and reduce production times in order to respond to the needs of the marketplace in a timely manner. The Commercial department, in turn, has been redesigned around the two main sales channels: wholesale distribution and the retail chain. In terms of training, of particular note is a visual merchandising program (concepts, brand communication, and window and in-shop displays) for our partners, which involved more than 250 shops in 2005. For young people looking for a career in sales, there was also the Wanna Sell? project, including hands-on sales experience in the field. The program has a duration of roughly one year and highlight characteristics such as strong sales ability, product sensitivity, pragmatism, and speed at becoming one with the system. After an initial period of six to eight months in the shop, the most promising participants continue on with a trial period with a Benetton agent/area manager.
69
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY-ANALYSIS AND REALIBILTY

During 2005, numerous initiatives were launched as part of Project Phoenix, which supports the core business with the renovation and full integration of IT systems. Completed projects included the new information system for the retail channel, which is based on the Oracle platform and manages the main processes (financial planning and management of both corporate activities and stores activities) globally through a single centralized system. http://hosting.benetton.com/ar05/video5-en.htmlThe project Benettontv calls for the implementation of a new portal for Benetton partners (agents, clients, shops, and buyers), which provides controlled access with all the necessary security assurances. The system will make it possible to provide information to the entire Benetton commercial network in real time, updating everyone on initiatives (new collections, reassortments, display methods, distance learning for employees, and so on) and receiving orders via web. In particular, the Continuative Articles project has already begun according to which orders for these products will be entered directly, and, thanks to integration with the information systems of the production and logistics units, the system will provide immediate confirmation and guaranteed delivery times.Upon completion of the Planning project for the organization of production and having implemented the first phase of the Sell-out project to keep track of market trends in real time, the diffusion of the centralized system of
70
Administration and Control, based on the SAP platform has gradually advanced.Among the other projects in 2005, the followings are of particular note: support for the Benetton orders process, from receipt of the orders to their fulfillment using the SAP Apparel and Footwear (SAP AFS) platform; the adoption of Java technology in order to complete and launch the packaging system; the design of a new high-speed metropolitan area network (MAN) to connect the corporate offices of Benetton Group, based in the Treviso area. The Phoenix-SAP project sees IBMs Business Consulting Services division working side by side with Benetton. It is a project of strategic importance for the company, one which seeks to update the information system that supports the companys main processes, beginning with sales and logistics. IBM feels deeply involved and is working as a close-knit team with Benetton, sharing commitments, objectives, and results. Andrea Pontremoli, CEO of IBM Italia
COMMUNICATION:INNOVATION AND VISSION

In 2005, we launched the communication project to celebrate Benetton Groups 40th anniversary, which will culminate in a grand event in Paris in October 2006 at the prestigious Centre Pompidou, featuring both fashion and art and which will be designed by Fabrica.
71
During the year, Benettons communication research center continued its multicultural and international activities with projects and events ranging from the global campaign to promote tourism in the Veneto region to Flipbook, the media art project encompassing nearly 200,000 animations and 15 million visitors (winning the Grand Prize at the Japan Media Art Festival), from promotion and graphic design for art exhibits to a documentary on the city of Shanghai for Swiss German television. The United Colors of Benetton campaign, photographed for Fabrica by David Sims, reaffirmed the brands values of color and youth with a decidedly modern flair.Sisley asserted its reputation as a sexy, trendy brand in its Fall/Winter 2005 campaign, which was set in the streets of Naples and photographed by Terry Richardson. The success of the clothing collections in 2005 was also supported by communication, with a significant increase worldwide, up 16%, of coverage in fashion newspapers and periodicals. In the world of new media, both the blog, benettontalk, designed to open up dialogue with online youth, and the new web site dedicated to the worlds media debuted during the year. Working for Benetton is a lot of fun. Its interesting to see how the company has united clothing and values, fashion and color. As a photographer, I tend towards the essential, and interpreting the colors and
weave of a fabric, bringing them together, and creating a fluid, modern image is a challenge that I face with great pleasure. In the Benetton campaign, I tried to give new light to products and issues such as the trademarks of the brand, one of the first to be truly global, with an unmistakable international image. David Sims, fashion photographer
ADMINISTRATION,TAX & COPERATE SKILL & PERCISION

In 2005, we launched the communication project to celebrate Benetton Groups 40th anniversary, which will culminate in a grand event in Paris in October 2006 at the prestigious Centre Pompidou, featuring both fashion and art and which will be designed by Fabrica. During the year, Benettons communication research center continued its multicultural and international activities with projects and events ranging from the global campaign to promote tourism in the Veneto region to Flipbook, the media art project encompassing nearly 200,000 animations and 15 million visitors (winning the Grand Prize at the Japan Media Art Festival), from promotion and graphic design for art exhibits to a documentary on the city of Shanghai for Swiss German television. The United Colors of Benetton campaign, photographed for Fabrica by David Sims, reaffirmed the brands values of color and youth with a decidedly modern flair. Sisley asserted its reputation as a sexy, trendy brand in its Fall/Winter
73
2005 campaign, which was set in the streets of Naples and photographed by Terry Richardson.
The success of the clothing collections in 2005 was also supported by communication, with a significant increase worldwide, up 16%, of coverage in fashion newspapers and periodicals. In the world of new media, both the blog, benettontalk, designed to open up dialogue with online youth, and the new web site dedicated to the worlds media debuted during the year.
Working for Benetton is a lot of fun. Its interesting to see how the
company has united clothing and values, fashion and color. As a photographer, I tend towards the essential, and interpreting the colors and weave of a fabric, bringing them together, and creating a fluid, modern image is a challenge that I face with great pleasure. In the Benetton campaign, I tried to give new light to products and issues such as the trademarks of the brand, one of the first to be truly global, with an unmistakable international image. David Sims, fashion photographer
INVESTOR RELATIONS:PROACTIVITY AND DISCIPLINE

During the year, the Investor Relations unit sought to strengthen direct communication with institutional investors throughout the world, with
the organization of an ongoing series of presentations, conference calls, and meetings with the management.
Communication with the retail investors has also been further strengthened with the enhancement of the web site at where new sections have been added (Social and Glossary) and content has been expanded. A new means of communicating with analysts has also been introduced, with a "virtual room" that facilitates group discussion on issues of common interest. Particular emphasis has also been placed on communicating clearly and fully the impact of the adoption of IAS/IFRS. Finally, at the end of the year, a shareholders identification study was conducted in order to provide a breakdown by geographic area and to define the structure of institutional investors. The study showed that European investors hold roughly 55% of the organizations free float, with some 40% being held by American investors and the remaining 5% by Japanese investors.
75
BRANDS
United Colors of Benetton. A global brand, and one of the most well known in the world, United Colors of Benetton has an international style that combines color, energy and practicality. The womenswear, and a total offer menswear, underwear look for childrenswear collections the
everyday, for work and for leisure, in city and outdoors.
The brand is broadening its horizons, expanding into new areas of merchandise from Home Collection, kitchen accessories, terrycloth line, to baby products, new toiletries line, perfumes and exclusive watches. The above products are available stores and in in
76
numerous
Benetton
selected specialized shops worldwide. www.benetton.com
Undercolors is an extension of the Benetton brand, featuring underwear, beachwear and sleepwear collections, as well as accessories for women, men and children. A wide selection of recurring basic colors is enriched every season with the latest trends. Undercolors is available in its own chain of stores which now has more than 500 locations in thirty countries and in selected Benetton Shops. www.benetton.com/undercolors Sisley is the Groups most trend-setting brand, at the forefront of fashion. Season after season, its bold, forceful collections full of fashion ideas set the trends for young, dynamic women and men. Its creative artists and sales team concentrate their efforts on its image and on strong-impact advertising campaigns.
77
www.sisley.com Playlife is Benettons leisurewear label. Collections for men and women offer a casual yet sporty look designed to provide maximum comfort, freedom of use, unrestricted by any single sporting discipline. Footwear and accessori complete the collection reflecting the latest trends. www.playlife.com KillerLoop is brand with a strong "Street" connotation dedicated to young people ,Killer Loop has become an icon for a dynamic lifestyle thanks to its assertive clothing and footwear ranges. www.killerloop.com
78
Sport Sponsorship
Benetton Group has for many years sponsored the Rugby, Basketball and Volleyball teams in Treviso, highlighting Benettons profound link with its roots and its hometown in a context that is not only competitive but also social. For the Group, sport and business have the same philosophy: passion, challenge, competition and results. Over the years this has translated into numerous victories, thanks to which Benetton Rugby has collected 12 league championships, Sisley Volley 8 and Benetton Basket 5. Benetton Basket
Sisley Volley
Benetton Rugby
79
A creative think tank FABRICA

Fabrica is Benetton's communication research centre, created in 1994 from Benetton's cultural heritage. Fabrica is housed in a stunning building by Japanese architect Tadao Ando and is situated outside Treviso in Northern Italy.
Guided by an international team, which also supervises its strategic, cultural and communication policies, Fabrica supports the creative development of young artists/researchers from all over the world. Following a careful selection process, they are invited to develop concrete communication projects in sectors ranging from cinema to graphics, from industrial design to music, from publishing to new media and photography, under the direction of some of the main players in these areas. In its role as an applied creative laboratory (its name comes from the Latin word meaning workshop), Fabrica experiments new forms of communication, following two parallel guidelines: a hands-on approach to training and interactivity, in terms of both the projects and cultural identity, whose plurality is guaranteed by the mix of young people from countries with different languages, cultures and attitudes.
Producing
creativity
(writing,
composing,
design,
interactive,
photography, film for cinema or video) means having input into the world. That's what the young artists invited to Fabrica do to uncover the
future. The centre is divided into various departments and is dedicated to the realization of ideas.Artists/researchers work under the guidance of professionals who are experts in their field and learn to become confident with the latest communications technologies. They work both on independent projects and on commission.The guiding principle of Fabrica is exploiting diversity as the basis of global communication and finding images which concentrate and express strong, universal issues, such as racism, fear and world hunger. In an era of economic and cultural 'globalization', creativity cannot afford to be ethnocentric. So the challenge for Fabrica is to bring together different cultural stimuli from all over the world in order to pick out completely new concepts which everyone can understand, and which carry messages with strong emotional content. This is not a 'school' in the conventional sense. At Fabrica there are no lessons or exams. Students' work is subject to constant scrutiny and judged only on completion. Accordingly, the work completed by Fabrica students over the last ten years (exhibitions, conferences, publications, advertising campaigns, concerts, films and videos) is proof that Fabrica has already won the challenge it has set itself.
81
CAMPAIGNS
An expression of our time "Communication should never be commissioned from outside the company, but conceived from within its heart".
Luciano Benetton
Benetton Group's advertising campaigns are not only a means of communication but an expression of our time. Through their universal impact, they have succeeded in attracting the attention of the public and in standing out amid the current clutter of images. The campaigns have gathered awards and acclaim worldwide; by the same token, they have aroused strong reactions - at times ferocious, at times simply curious, confirming once again that they are always a focal point of discussion and of confrontation of ideas. Several of the communication projects created by Fabrica, Benettons research center have also been developed in cooperation with prestigious associations (including FAO, UNV, WFP) obtaining important acknowledgements at an international level.
A bridge between Culture and Society
82
About Benetton - Cultural and Social Activities The Benetton Group has long been involved in a series of cultural, social and sporting activities. Some of these, such as the Benetton Foundation, which focuses on issues relating to the preservation and promotion of the local culture and landscape heritage, reflect the strong links which the Group has traditionally maintained with its territorial roots. Others reflect the Group's international outlook, such as the Leleque Museum under the patronage of Benetton in Patagonia, where more than 15,000 archaeological finds narrate the history and culture of this land, or the Pivano Library, primarily dedicated to American literature, located at the Benetton offices in Milan. The social commitment of the Benetton Group has been developing for decades thanks to the strong relationship and cooperation with renown international non profit organizations. The territorial links are also an important component of Benetton's approach to sport. From its involvement in rugby, volleyball and basketball, to its historic victories in Formula One, the Group promotes not only the quest for competitive excellence, but an important social element focusing on participation.
Culture
Benetton Foundation
83
The Fondazione Benetton Studi Ricerche (Benetton Study and Research Foundation), established in 1987, promotes initiatives on both international and local levels, with the aim of safeguarding and raising awareness of natural heritage. These initiatives fall intro three categories: landscape management, history of the Veneto region and the story of games. The Fondazione Benetton also boasts a comprehensive documentation centre, comprising a library, map and image archive. It includes the estate of Bianchi Barriviera encompassing the work of Lino Bianchi Barriviera, one of the great engravers of 20th century Italy, and the Fernanda e Riccardo Pivano Library. Pivano Library
Acquired by the Benetton Foundation in 1997, the Biblioteca Fernanda e Riccardo Pivano contains about 40,000 volumes, journals, documents and
correspondence, mostly concerning American literature, collected by the famous critic and writer, Fernanda Pivano, and her father, Riccardo. All the classics are represented, from Mark Twain to Hemingway, Scott Fitzgerald and Henry Miller, as well as the prose writers and poets of the Beat movement. The Biblioteca Pivano is unique in Europe both for its extent and its completeness. It also includes no longer available first editions, often with autograph dedications, letters and original documents. The collection of underground magazines comprises several dozen titles, most of which are American although there are also British, German and Spanish-language publications. The Biblioteca Pivano, located at the Benetton premises in Milan, is open to the public by appointment as a functioning documentation centre. Leleque Museum
Under the patronage of Benetton in Patagonia, the Leleque museum was inaugurated as the result of the will and passion of both Pablo
Korchenewski, who has devoted an entire lifetime to collecting artefacts of Patagonian populations, and of Carlo Benetton. It is the first and only such structure dedicated to the history of Patagonia. More than 15,000 exhibits, including archaeological remains, testimony, documents and photographs narrate 13,000 years of history and culture of a mythical land. The Leleque Museum narrates the experience of indigenous peoples and immigrants in Patagonia, the changes undergone by the societies living in the territory and the relationship between different ethnic groups. Their conflicts, beliefs, and religious rites are some of the issues approached in this long history.
Social
Benetton has proven a tangible action to the company's commitment to ethical values, with a multi-ethnic approach, respect for the environment and support of human rights. This action has been growing throughout the years thanks to a strong collaboration with numerous renown international non profit organizations.
The 2004 Benetton communication campaign is dedicated to primates (gorilla, chimpanzees, orang-utans and bonobos), photographed by James
Mollison with the support of Jane Goodall, renowned primatologist and United Nations Messenger of Peace and founder of the Jane Goodall Institute. In the previous years Benetton worked with the World Food Program, the United Nations agency, to face the theme of world hunger (2003), with the United Nations Volunteers, in occasion of the International Volunteers Year (2001). Together with UNHCR (United Nations High Commission for Refugees) Benetton developed a campaign (1998) to generate solidarity towards refugees of the war in Kosovo. The company also supported SOS Racisme in aid of the poorest African Countries and the Associazione per la Pace in aid of war victims in Bosnia Herzegovina, collaborations that led to other projects, in particular Benetton's antiracist institutional advertising campaign of the three hearts (1995), and has also supported Caritas Switzerland and the International Federation of the Red Cross promoting the Clothing Redistribution Project (1993).
87
The social commitment goes beyond the campaigns, as other important cooperations include: the celebration of the World Braille Day (January 4th 2002), with the World Blind Union; the production of the international communication campaign for the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Human Rights, in collaboration with the United Nations (1998), the realization of the symbol of the first international world food summit, held in Rome in November 1996, promoted by FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization), a charity in favour of War Child (1995). Benetton also promoted several initiatives with LILA, GAPA, and the Gay Men's Health Crisis to tackle the theme of Aids.
A magazine about the rest of the world.

On sale in 40 countries, 3 editions, published in 4 languages, an Internet site that has won a record number of hits and critical acclaim: COLORS is a quarterly magazine that talks to young people all around the world. Established in 1991, from an idea of Luciano Benetton and Oliviero Toscani, under the direction of Tibor Kalman, with the premise that diversity is positive but that all cultures have equal value. Pictures are, above all else, COLORS' expressive medium: a method that is universal and reaches the greatest number of people with a strong, immediate impact.
Over the years COLORS has become a unique point of reference in the global publishing world. It has stirred public attention to topics and
88
themes originating in areas of the world that other publications seldom write about with depth and freshness. Related Projects // Colors 68: Amazon Press site This issue introduces you to the Amazon rainforest, the earths largest remaining tropical wilderness. Meet some of the 17 million inhabitants who really care about preserving it. For more info see www.benetton.com/colorspress/68 // Colors Music Music from the rest of the world. A new series of compilations featuring contemporary tracks from around the world. Colors music is not about folk or traditional songs. Its about different ways of understanding and introducing new musical contexts. The fifth cad INNER ASIAN POP presents the best in pop music from Central Asian new republics of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Turkmenistan. For more info see www.colorsmagazine.com/music
89
Table 4.1
Age wise classification.
Option 0-25 25 and above Total
No. of Respondents 68 32 100
Percentage 68% 32% 100%
Analysis:
68% of respondents fall under age group of 0-25, 32% of respondents fall under age group of 25 & above.
Chart 4.1 Age wise classification

Age
0-25 25&above
Inference
Form the above chart we can interpretate that 68% of customers fall under age group of 0-25 yr and rest 32% fall under age group of 25 yr & above. This shows that Benetton is usually preferred by youth as compared to adults.
Table 4.2
Gender wise classification
Option Male Female Total
Analysis:
55% of respondents are male and 45% of respondents are female.
Chart 4.2 Gender wise classification
93
Inference
From the above information states that Male walk-in are more as compared to Female. 55 respondents are male and 45 respondents are female.
Table 4.3 Monthly Income of customers

Option Rs.5000-10000 Rs.10000-15000 Rs.15000-20000 Rs.20000 & Above Total
No. of Respondents 20 35 19 26 100
Percentage 20% 35% 19% 26% 100%
Analysis
20% of respondents have monthly income between Rs.5000-10000, 35% of respondents have monthly income between Rs.10000-15000, 19% of respondents have monthly income between Rs.15000-20000, and 26% of respondents have monthly income between Rs.20000&above.
Chart 4.3 Monthly Income of customers
95
Inference:
From the above information we can interpretate that majority of customer having monthly income between Rs.10000-15000 prefer Benetton clothes.
Table 4.4 Preference of store by customers.

Option Forum Brigade Commercial Jayanagar Eva Mall Total
No. of Respondents 32 30 13 10 15 100
Percentage 32% 30% 13% 10% 15% 100%
Analysis:
32% of respondents prefer to shop from Forum, 30% of respondents prefer to shop from Brigade, 13% of respondents prefer to shop from Commercial, 10% of respondents prefer to shop from Jayanagar, and 15% of respondents prefer to shop from Eva Mall.
Chart 4.4 Preference of store by customers.
97
Inference
The above chart states that customers usually prefer visiting Forum & Brigade Benetton Stores. Very few customers prefer visiting stores located in Jayanagar, Eva Mall, and Commercial Street.
Table 4.5 Most preferred Benetton products

Option Clothes Purses, Bags Perfumes Footwear Total
Percentage 68% 12% 15% 5% 100%
Analysis:
68% of respondents prefer Clothes, 12% of respondents prefer Purses & Bags, 15% of respondents prefer Perfumes, and 5% of respondents prefer Footwear.
Chart 4.5 Most preferred Benetton products
99
Inference
Customers usually prefer Benetton Clothes more as compared to other products.68% of respondents prefer Benetton clothes. Remaining customers prefer other products such as perfumes, purses & footwear.
Table 4.6 Frequency of Visits

__________________________________________________________________ 100 SBMJC-Center For Management Studies
Option Very Often Often Rarely Very Rarely Total
Percentage 15% 55% 16% 14% 100%
Analysis:
15% of respondents visit Benetton stores very often, 55% of respondents visit Benetton stores often, 16% of respondents visit Benetton stores rarely, and 14% of respondents visit Benetton stores very rarely.
Chart 4.6 Frequency of Visits
Inference
From the above chart we can interpretate that more than 50% of respondents visit Benetton stores often. There are very few respondents who visit stores very rarely.
Table 4.7 Opinion about Collection

Option Trendy Outdated Can Improve Total
No. of Respondents 60 5 35 100
Percentage 60% 5% 35% 100%
Analysis:
60% of respondents consider Benetton clothes trendy, 5% of respondents consider Benetton clothes outdated, 35% of respondents consider Benetton clothes can improve.
Chart 4.7 Opinion about Collection
Inference
Majority mass of respondents found Benetton clothes trendy. Some respondents suggest that they can also be improved more and very few respondents found Benetton clothes outdated.
Table 4.8 How often Customers shop?

Option >1 Months >3 Months >4 Months >5 Months Total
Percentage 33% 37% 14% 16% 100%
Analysis:
33% of respondents shopped within 1 month, 37% of respondents shopped in last 3 months, 14% of respondents shopped in last 4 months, 16% of respondents shopped in last 5 months.
Chart 4.8 How often Customers shop?
Inference
From the above data its clear that 33 respondents are recent customers of Benetton. 37 respondents shopped in last 3 months, 14 respondents shopped in last 4 months and 16 respondents shopped in last 5 or more than 5 months.
Table 4.9 Staff Behaviour towards customer
Option Courteous Friendly Casual Unfriendly Total
Percentage 25% 46% 27% 2% 100%
Analysis:
25% of respondents consider behaviour of staff members courteous, 46% of respondents consider behaviour of staff members friendly, 27% of respondents consider behaviour staff members casual, 2% of respondents consider behaviour of staff members unfriendly.
Chart 4.9 Staff Behaviour towards customer
Inference
Respondents are happy with the behavior of staff members towards them. Majority of customers i.e. 46 respondents found them friendly only 2 respondents found them unfriendly and remaing are satisfied with their behaviour.
Table 4.10 Opinion about defect in Benetton products.
Option Yes No Total
Analysis:
4% respondents find defect in Benetton products, 96% respondents didnt find any defect.
Chart 4.10 Opinion about defect in Benetton products
Inference
Above data shows 96 respondents didnt found any defects in Benetton clothes and 4 of respondents found some defect in clothes. Defect can be overcome by proper handling of products.
Table 4.11 Are Benetton clothes economical?
Option Yes No Total
Analysis:
74% of respondents consider Benetton clothes economical, 26% of respondents consider Benetton clothes expensive.
Chart 4.11 Are Benetton clothes economical?
Inference
Majority of respondents found Benetton clothes economical. But few found them expensive. 74 respondents found them economical and 26 found them expensive.
Table 4.12 Comfort level of Trial room

Option Yes No Total
Analysis:
100% respondents are happy with the trial rooms.
Chart 4.12 Comfort level of Trial room
Comfort of trial room
Yes
NO
Inference
All respondents are happy with trial rooms. They did not have any problem. They found them comfortable and clean. A comfortable trial room is also an important part of a store.
Table 4.13 Rating of Exchange Policy

Option Excellent Good Can Improve Total
Percentage 20% 66% 14% 100%
Analysis:
20% of respondents are happy with exchange policy, 66% of respondents consider exchange policy good, and 14% of respondents consider exchange policy can improve.
Chart 4.13 Rating of Exchange Policy
Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________ EMBED Excel.Chart.8 \s
Inference
On the basis of the above information the interpretation made is that majority of respondents found exchange policy of the company good. Few were not satisfied, so suggested for further improvement on it.
Table 4.14 Speed of Billing System according to customers.

Option Fast Slow Total No. of Respondents 100 0 100 Percentage 100% 0% 100%
Analysis :
100% respondents consider billing system to be fast.
Chart 4.14 Speed of Billing System according to customers.
EMBED Excel.Chart.8 \s
Inference
All respondents are satisfied with the billing system. None of the respondents have billing problem. This states that the billing process is fast and accurate which did not make customers wait.
Table 4.15 Display/Presentation of store

Option Bad Good Excellent Total No. of Respondents 2 66 32 100 Percentage 2% 66% 32% 100%
Analysis:
2% of respondents consider display of store bad, 66% of respondents consider display of store good, and 32% of respondents consider display of store excellent.
Chart 4.15 Display/Presentation of store

Inference
Respondents found display/presentation of store to be attractive. By this we can say that display/presentation is also one of the reasons for increasing walk-ins in the store.
Table 4.16 Opinion towards Staff members knowledge

Option Yes No Total No. of Respondents 99 1 100 Percentage 99% 1% 100%
Analysis:
99% of respondents agree that staff member have product knowledge and 1% of respondent disagree to the fact that staff member have product knowledge.
Chart 4.16 Opinion towards Staff members knowledge

Staff knowledge
Yes No
Inference
Respondents are impressed by the staff members. Customers agree to the fact that they have enough product knowledge. The queries of the customers were efficiently solved by the staff members.
Table 4.17 Cleanliness of store

Option Yes No Total No. of Respondents 98 2 100 Percentage 98% 2% 100%
Analysis:
98% of respondents find store clean, 2% of respondents find store is not clean.
Chart 4.17 Cleanliness of store
Inference
From the above chart it can be inferred that respondents found store clean. Around 98% of respondents agree to it. This shows that Benetton keeps its stores up to the mark.
Table 4.18 Rating of Ambience of the Benetton outlets

Option Excellent Good Can Improve Total No. of Respondents 40 56 4 100 Percentage 40% 56% 4% 100%
Analysis: 40%of respondents consider ambience excellent, 56% of respondents consider ambience good, and 4% of respondents consider ambience needs improvement.
Chart 4.18 Rating of Ambience of the Benetton outlets
Inference
From the above chart its inferred that 56 respondents rated ambience of store is excellent, 40 respondents rated ambience good and 4 respondents suggested that it can be improved. Overall customers are satisfied with the ambience of store.
Table 4.19 Rating of Quality and Fabric of Benetton clothes

Analysis: 45% of respondents consider quality and fabric excellent, 50% of

respondents consider quality and fabric good, 5% consider quality and fabric can be improved.
Chart 4.19
Rating of Quality and Fabric of Benetton clothes
Inference
From the above chart it can be inferred that respondents found quality and fabric of Benetton clothes excellent. Some customers suggested that it needs a bit improvement.
Table 4.20 Opinion towards Fitting of Benetton clothes.
Option Excellent Good Can Improve Total
Percentage 34% 55% 11% 100%
Analysis:
34% of respondents consider fitting of clothes excellent, 55% of respondents consider fitting of clothes good, 11% of respondents consider fitting of clothes can be improved.
Chart 4.20
Opinion towards fitting of Benetton clothes

Inference
From the above chart it can be inferred that more than half that is 55 respondents are satisfied with the fitting of the clothes. Some respondents suggested improvement in fitting of small size t-shirts.
Table 4.21 Rating of Schemes & Offers of Benetton

Analysis:
15% of respondents consider schemes & offer excellent, 50% of respondents consider schemes & offer good, 35% of respondents consider schemes & offer can improve.
Chart 4.21 Rating of Schemes & Offers of Benetton
Schemes & Offers
Excellent Good Can Improve
Inference
Above chart states that schemes & offers provided by Benetton are accepted by customers but some gave there valuable suggestions as scope for improvement.
Table 4.22 Rating of range & variety of Benetton clothes

Analysis:
20% of respondents consider range & variety is excellent, 45% of respondents consider range & variety is good, 35% of respondents consider range & variety can improve.
Chart 4.22
Rating of range & variety of Benetton clothes

Inference
From above chart it can be inferred that range & variety provided by Benetton is good but some respondents suggested that it can be improved more so that they have more choices.
Table 4.23 Rating of Men collection

Analysis:
30% of respondents consider Men collection is excellent, 57% of respondents consider Men collection is good, 13% of respondents consider Men collection can improve.
Chart 4.23 Rating of Men collection

Men Collection
Excellent Good Can Improve
Inference
Above information states that majority of the customers found men collection up to the mark. They suggested for improvement in formal wear collection.
Table 4.24 Rating of Women collection

Analysis:
32% of respondents consider women collection excellent, 56% of respondents consider women collection good, 12% of respondents consider women collection can improve.
Chart 4.24 Rating of Women collection

Inference
More than half of the respondents i.e. 56 respondents found women collection clothes. good. Very few respondents suggested for further improvement. They expect more of designer clothes rather than plain
Table 4.25 Overall Rating of Benetton

Analysis:
30% of respondents overall rated Benetton excellent, 65% of respondents overall rated Benetton good, 5% of respondents overall rated Benetton can improve.
Chart 4.25 Overall Rating of Benetton
Inference:
Above data states that overall Benetton was rated well by majority of respondents. Around 65 respondents rated Benetton good, around 30 excellent and 5 suggested that it can be improved.
Summary of Findings
On conducting a survey amongst 100 respondents there were some findings and inferences about Benetton. 1. In market the demand for Benetton clothes are more than compared to its accessories.
2. Majority of customer prefer Benetton clothes as compared to
purses perfumes and footwear.

3. Respondents find Benetton clothes trendy. According to some
people collection of formal wear can be improved a bit more. 4. We can segment adult section into two i.e., youth & adults in which Benetton is worn more by youth. 5. Staff performance is appreciated. Customers find them friendly & courteous. This is a productive aspect for the company.
6. There is hardly any complaint against Benetton clothes. Its only
4% of customers out of 100 had complaint which can be overcome by proper handling of products.
7. Respondents find Benetton clothes priced reasonable. This is one
of the aspects what attracts customers towards Benetton. 8. Benetton is a great mixture of quality clothes with reasonable price. 9. The trial rooms are clean & comfortable. Not one customer has criticized the trial rooms.
10. High percentage of respondents found the display in Benetton
attractive which helps Benetton to get more walk-in. 11.Billing system is fast which saves time and helps to deal better with the customers. 12.The ambience is found excellent by the customers. The trendy display is one of the factor which makes ambience more attractive. 13.Majority of customers find range & variety in Benetton good but according to few it can be improved more.
14. Over all rating of Benetton is good. In order to make it excellent
Benetton needs to work on few aspects like range & variety.
Suggestions
Suggestions for improvement are a very important process of the customer care process. It involves asking for feedback from both internal as well as customers regarding things such as the product and service offered, whether the customer is satisfied with the company, asking for suggestions for further improvements, etc. The feedback can easily be collected through sending out questionnaires to customers regularly and analyze their response, as well as making regular calls to them. The feedback help companies to: Understand the customers and their needs.
Understand in what areas it excels. Understand in what areas it needs to improve. Discover new potential areas to innovate in.
On basis of the findings found out through the survey there are certain recommendations which can be given to Benetton for their overall improvement.
Recommendation for Benetton

1. Benetton needs to improve on men formal wear.
2. Variety of clothes can be improved so that people have more choices.

3. Respondents found Benetton clothes plain. They prefer designer
clothes more.
4. Respondents found products a bit expensive. Products can be made
reasonable by lowering the prices so that everyone can afford it

5. On interaction with customers one of their comman requests is to
provide parking facility.
Conclusion
After conducting a thorough serve and research on UNITED COLOURS OF BENETTON it is been perceived as an excellent brand. It has good customer loyalty and also attracts large number of new customers. It also offers its customers a unique shopping experience few brands can offer. It has got an advantage of its location. There are many stores of Benetton across the city. Its becomes easy for customers to approach the store. However customers are very happy when it comes to layout of merchandise, cleanliness of the store, ambience Etc. IF the (store) improves upon some of its weaknesses such as range and variety of products and if it improves on this it will continue to do well the way it has done in the past. The future for UNITED COLOURS OF BENETTON indeed seems to be bright and it should continue to do well as seems apparent from the response of the customers.
Bibliography
The making of this project involves help an assistance from many text books of management and marketing. The websites have also been a very useful source of information.
Books Referred
MODERN MARKETING RSN PILLAI AND BAGHAVATHI, S. CHAND &CO., NEW DELHI, 3RD EDITION 2004 PRINCIPLE OF MARKETING KOTLER AND ARMSTRONG, PRENTICE HALL OF INDIA PVT LTD. NEW DELHI 10TH EDITION, 2003 SERVICE CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR LEON.G SCHIFFMAN AND LAZARK ANUK, NEW DELHI 9TH EDITION 2004
Websites Visited
www.google.com
www.Benetton.com
www.answers.com
www.yahoosearch.com
CUSTOMER CARE UNITED COLORS OF BENETTON QUESTIONNARIE

Dear Sir/ Madam, Im a student pursuing my 2nd year B.B.M. I am conducting a Customer care survey on UNITED COLORS OF BENETTON in partial fulfillment of my course. I Request you to spare five minutes of your valuable time to fill this questionnaire. 1. Name : 2. Age : (a) 0-25 3. Sex : (a) Male 4. Address : (b) 25 and above (b)Female
5. Monthly Income : (a)Rs 5000 Rs 10000 (c)Rs 15000 Rs 20000 (b) Rs 10000 Rs 15000 (d) Rs 20000 & above
6. Which showroom among these you visit often? (a) Forum (c) Commercial (e) Eva 7. When you think of UCB what comes to your mind first? (a)Clothes (c) Perfumes 8. How often you visit UCB? (a)Very Often (c)Rarely 9. How do you find UCB collection? (a)Trendy (b) Outdated (c)Can improve (b) Often (d) Very Rarely (b) Purses, Bags (d) Footwear (b)Brigade (d)Jayanagar
10. How long it has been when you last shopped from UCB? (a)>1 month (c)>4mothns (b)>3mothns (d)>5mothns
11. How is the response of staff towards you? (a)Courteous (c)Casual (b) Friendly (d) Unfriendly
12. Did you ever find any defect in UCB product? (a) Yes (b) No
13. Are UCB products (clothes) economical? (a)Yes 14. Are the trial rooms comfortable? (a)Yes (b) No (b) No
15. How will you rate the exchange policy? (a)Excellent (b) Good (c) Can improve
16. How did you find the billing system? (a)Fast (b) Slow
17. How do you find the window display/ Presentation of the store? (a) Bad (b) Good (c) Excellent
18. Does the staff have enough product knowledge? (a)Yes 19. Is the store clean & Tidy? (a)Yes (b) No (b) No
20. Please rate the following accordingly Excellent Ambience Quality, Fabric Fitting Schemes & Offers Range, Variety Section: Men Women Overall Rating Any Suggestions: _________________________________ Good Can improve

United Colours of Benetton

Hochgeladen von

Dokumentinformationen

Copyright

Verfügbare Formate

Dieses Dokument teilen

Dokument teilen oder einbetten

Freigabeoptionen

Stufen Sie dieses Dokument als nützlich ein?

Sind diese Inhalte unangemessen?

Copyright:

Verfügbare Formate

United Colours of Benetton

Hochgeladen von

Copyright:

Verfügbare Formate

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

Types of Customers of New Technology

Enthusiasts (or Innovators): purchase new technology just as it

comes available and before anybody else.

Visionaries (or Early Adopters): purchase new technology before

Pragmatists (or Early Majority): want to see well-established

references before investing substantially in new technology.

Conservatives (or Late Majority): purchase technology only after it

Skeptics (or Laggards): don't purchase new technology if they can

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

indeed switch if he receives a brochure describing the new service.

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

IMPORTANCE OF CUSTOMER CARE

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

Needs and Expectations

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

Customer satisfaction &Loyalty

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

HOW TO USE CUSTOMER SATISFACTION STUDIES TO GREATEST EFFECT

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

Exceptional Customer Service

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________ SBMJC-Center For Management Studies

Project on Customer Care _____________________________________________________________________