Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
Submitted By:
Peter. J
Roll No.: 417
Under the Guidance of:
Prof.Dr.Shivaji Banerjee
DECLARATION
STUDENT DECLARATION
I hereby declare that the Project work with the title “Influence of mall –
changing consumer shopping habits of Kerala” submitted by me for the
partial fulfilment for the Degree of Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) in
Marketing under St. Xavier‘s College is my original work and has not been
submitted earlier to any other University or Institution for the fulfilment of
requirement for any course of study.
I also declare that no chapter of this manuscript in whole or in part has been
incorporated in this Report from any other work done earlier by others or me.
However extracts of any literature which has been used for this Report has
been duly acknowledged providing details of such literature in the references.
Peter. J
Registration No.:
Roll No.:
Kolkata
10 - 04 - 2013
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I deeply thank God and my family for showing me the way, no matter how
difficult the time was.
I thank Mr. N.P Dinta for his kindness and brotherly support towards me
throughout the term of internship in Lowe Lintas, Cochin.
Even thank Mr. Vinay Raj who held my hand during the period of internship
in Lowe Lintas, Cochin
Finally, special thanks to all my friends for their constant support and
encouragement, and making these years in St. Xavier‘s memorable.
CONTENTS
Contents
Abstract Page 01
7.2 Limitations……………………………………………………58
Appendices Page 60
ABSTRACT
Abstract
Kerala,‘ The God’s own country‘. Where India‘s largest mall has opened, Lulu
mall, as retail giants are raring to go in Kerala.
The retailing sector of Kerala is gradually marching its way towards becoming
the next boom industry. The whole concept of shopping has altered in terms
of format and consumer buying behaviour, ushering a revolution of shopping.
The growth of integrated shopping malls, retail chains and multi-brand
outlets is evidence of consumer behaviour being favourable to the growing
organized segment of the business. Modern retail has entered Kerala as seen
in sprawling shopping centres, multi stored malls and huge complexes offer,
shopping, entertainment and food courts. Due to these factors, the meaning of
shopping has changed. It is not just a mere necessity, as it was earlier, but
much more than that. The factors that affect store choice and draw customers
to the shopping centre include space, ambience, and convenience and
moreover an array of choice under same roof. Space, ambience and
convenience are beginning to play an important role in drawing customers.
Malls, which are new to the state, are anchored by large outlets of Reliance
group, Spencers, Big Bazaar and are also resided by a lot of Indian and
international brands, are also being seen as image benchmarks for
communities.
1
INTRODUCTION
Introduction
―The Kerala Real Estate market remains buoyant despite many a setbacks and
slowdowns it has faced in the last two years. Some cities have witnessed
significant real estate activity especially Trivandrum, due to the influx of
Information Technology industry and software professionals. They bring with
themselves higher aspirations in terms of quality of life and higher disposable
incomes which accelerates real estate growth. Cities like Kochi on the other
hand are in the recovery mode after quite a large drop in prices over the last
year. We expect prices to start accelerating in Kochi and Kerala as a whole
towards 2014, once the recessionary trends reduce post elections in United
States and economic developments kick in into the Euro zone.‖ K
Ramachandran, CEO Nandanam Consultants.2
The real estate sector of the state's economy is really on an upswing. The entry
of global players and international equity management firms into the sector
points to the abundance of enthusiasm and confidence that the investors have
towards the potential and prospects of the sector in the years to come.
The Kerala model of development is famous for the achievements it has made
in the field of social infrastructure development like health care education.
Things have changed dramatically in the past few years especially the
Chapter:1
1
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kerala
2
http://www.slideshare.net/nandanamconsultants/kerala-real-estate-market-report-january-june-2012
2
INTRODUCTION
The architecture of shops in all the cities and town in the state has changed
beyond recognition. Organized retail chains are mushrooming all over Kerala.
The first signs of their interest were 'supermarkets' such as IT super shops,
white goods retail chains and gold souks. Then came the malls. Nearly 50
malls are said to be built in the state in three years. The state government
announced the launch of agri-malls in all districts. At least three districts
would have fisheries malls. The launch of Lulu Mall, in Kerala, being the
largest mall in the country will only hasten the trend.
In Lulu's case, though these are early days, consumer response has been
"overwhelming", according to Shibu Philips, business head of Lulu Mall. The
mall is attracting footfalls of around 1 lakh even during working days, he
says. Established players in retail are not unduly worried. ―Several malls are
already operating in the state. But our business grew by 20% last year,‖ says
PP Jose, chief operating officer of jewellery chain Joyalukkas Group.
Unsurprisingly, leading jewellers are present in most malls. Yet, they are just
as focused on standalone stores. Joyalukkas Group, for instance, has said it
will launch mid-size malls in district headquarters under the brand 'Mall of
Joy'. In jewellery, says Jose, the bulk of the demand comes from families
shopping for weddings.‖They want privacy and more comfortable in an
exclusive standalone shop.‖3
3
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/slideshows/infrastructure/indias-largest-mall-in-kochi-lulu-
mall/slideshow/18923992.cms
3
INTRODUCTION
Kerala is also home to cash crops like rubber, pepper, cardamom etc. If that's
not enough, there are easy loans — estimated to be over Rs 1 lakh crore
provided by gold loan companies.
Hence, retailing in Kerala has emerged as one of the most dynamic and fast
paced industries with several players like:
4
http://www.kochukeralam.in/life-style/shopping-malls-in-kerala
4
INTRODUCTION
The Lulu Shopping Mall is the largest shopping mall in India, located in
Edapally area of Kochi, Kerala. It is built on an area of 3,900,000 sq ft, with
total area for mall alone at 230,000 square meters (3,900,000 sq ft) and the
remaining portion for a premium five-star hotel managed by JW Marriott
Hotels. Opened on 10 March 2013, the mall consist of more than 360 outlets
including food courts, restaurants, family entertainment zones and a nine-
screen multiplex, ice skating ring and bowling alley.
Chapter:1
5
INTRODUCTION
6
INTRODUCTION
Oberon Mall is a shopping mall located in the Indian city of Kochi and the
current largest lifestyle mall in Kerala in operation. The mall is also the first
full format mall in Kerala, opened formally on March 2, 2009, though the mall
was launched in 2008. The cost of construction of the mall is about Rs. 1
billion. It is built on an area of 39,600 square meters (426,000 sq ft) across five
floors of shops and office spaces and covering grounds of up to 6 acres (2.4
ha). Oberon Mall was developed and promoted by the Oberon Group of
Companies, India. The mall is one of the busiest shopping avenues for the city
of Cochin.
Chapter:1
Image 3 source:http://www.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.oberonmall.com/photogallery/1315041338.jpg
7
INTRODUCTION
Focus mall is a Shopping mall located in the heart of Calicut city. The mall is
having six floors having a total area of 2.5 lakh square feet. The parking
facility of Focus mall is also excellent. The vehicles can be parked in two floors
on underground and top floor having a total capacity of 300 cars. The
shopping mall contains all the leading brand products. Self service food court
and restaurant in top floor is another specialty. Lifts and escalators are
available for customers who make shopping friendly and healthy. Focus mall
is also a centralized air-conditioned mall. View point is also available in top
floor where visitors have a chance to see the entire Calicut city. Focus mall is
the first ISO 9001:2008 certified mall in Kerala.
Chapter:1
8
INTRODUCTION
Bay Pride mall is one of the top most shopping mall in Kerala. About 21000
square feet with two floors constructed on 9,000 square meters (97,000 sq ft). Bay
Pride Mall is the prestigious product of Abad builders. This shopping mall in
Kerala is situating face to Arabian Sea, is a plus point of this shopping mall.
There have arranged showrooms of local and international leading branded
items which facilitate shopping more easily. Bay Pride Mall is prestigious
headstone to the Cochin business history. Every day a lot of peoples visited here
and received Bay Pride Mall‘s services and are saying that they are satisfied in
the services of Bay Pride Mall. To satisfying their customers they are giving lot of
offers with their products.
Chapter:1
9
INTRODUCTION
Gold Souk Grandé Kochi,is a shopping mall, in the city of Kochi, Kerala which
was formally opened in March 2011. With retail space of 57,600 square meters
(620,000 sq ft), this is the largest mall in the state of Kerala. The Mall is part of the
Gold Souk chain of Malls located all over the country and a brand of Gurgaon
based retail and property developer The Gold Souk Grande‘ Kochi is Aeren
Group‘s first venture in Kerala.
Chapter:1
Nearly 50 malls are said to be built in the state in three years. The state
government announced the launch of agri-malls in all districts. At least three
districts would have fisheries malls. The launch of Lulu Mall, in Kerala, being
the largest mall in the country will only hasten the trend.
5
http://www.kochukeralam.in/life-style/shopping-malls-in-kerala
1
2
INTRODUCTION
Also, due to the limited success of these outlets, it is necessary for retailers to
be aware of shoppers‘ motivations and to understand ways of attracting the
consumers. Till date, there has been very limited research on the shopping
habits of consumers in Kerala has been done.6
This study would concentrate on the consumer response towards the large
retail outlets, behaviour the consumer exhibits while visiting or making
purchases in the newly opened malls. It would explore the purpose and
motive behind the Kerala consumers‘ visit to these newly established
shopping malls, the values they derive from the shopping trip and their
shopping behaviour in terms of impulse purchases, time and money spent at
the shopping mall, etc.
Chapter:1
6
http://www.scribd.com/doc/53922188/Organized-Retailing-in-Kerala-%E2%80%93Key-Issues-and-Challenges 1
3
RESEARCH OBJECTIVE
Research objectives
There have been many motivations for me to pursue with this topic for my
project. Firstly, there have been massive changes in the demographic factors
of the Kerala consumer. Some of the factors include income and consumption
growth (foreign remittance), high literacy levels, changes in family structure
and women‘s role in the family, growing role of children as influencers,
gradual acceptance of frozen goods as a viable alternative to fresh produce
and the growing influence of media. These factors have been a driving force of
organized retailing in Kerala which has further driven the growth of the real
estate industry with more and more demand for retail space within malls.
The second motivator behind my choice of topic was that, I‘m a Keralite who
wonders regarding the twists and turns happening in my home state, social
wise and economy wise. Being a marketing student I believe knowing the
consumer behaviour of people from my land will be the first step I could lay
in my career. Therefore, this research would be helpful for me as it would give
a clear idea about the consumers in malls.
14
LITERATURE REVIEW
Literature review
Rowley and Slack (2004) describe literature review as ―a summary of a subject
field that supports the identification of specific research questions”. McCraken (1998)
specifies that a literature review offers ―deconstruction‖ of the existing
literature by establishing a survey of the ground and assessing the categories
and relationships that must be investigated, an approach I would attempt to
undertake in this research. The aim of this chapter is to examine and present a
comprehensive analysis of existing literature on the project topic.
An entire culture has taken root in Kerala and a sub culture emerged round
shopping malls. Shopping mall culture hits Kerala and malayali minds. Kerala
has the ability to adapt fast to every new changes without losing its identity.
Kerala‘s modern, multi-storey stylish shopping malls are a shopaholic
paradise. Shopping malls in Kerala accommodate every taste, pocket and
style. The latest addition to Kerala‘s ‗malls cape‘ is the new and fabulous Lulu
International Shopping Mall, the largest mall in India. Shopping mall culture
is growing in Kerala and a prominent feature of retail development here.
Shopping malls with its fashion stores, multiplexes, hang outs, game zones
bring new dimension and identity to cities of Kerala.7
Malls are more than just shopping destinations. Shopping mall is a place for
social gets together – to meet, eat and mingle and to be a one-stop
entertainment destination with exceptional leisure opportunities. Extensive
Shopping Malls in Kerala have changed the way people window shop and
buy in Kerala. It promises an internationally accepted standard of shopping to
every prospective customer and altogether a different and overwhelming
shopping experience. The premier malls showcase of international lifestyle
trends in relation to fashion, cuisine, urban leisure and more.
15
LITERATURE REVIEW
8
South and Spitze (1994) and Flam and Axelrod (1990)
1
6
LITERATURE REVIEW
1
7
LITERATURE REVIEW
1
8
LITERATURE REVIEW
Shopping As Pleasure
Table 1 source: Shopping motives and items according to Tauber (1972) from Sinha (2004) 1
9
LITERATURE REVIEW
Negative Shoppers: This category has the highest ratio of males who
have a negative perception of shopping and they cannot spend good
time in a shopping area.9
Chapter:3
9
CWHB (2002), Where People Shop, Cushman Wakefield Healey & Baker, London in Millan E.S. & Howard E.
(2007), Shopping for Pleasure? Shopping Experiences for Hungarian Consumers, International Journal of Retail
and
Distribution Management, Vol. 35 No. 6, pp 474-487
2
0
LITERATURE REVIEW
Consumer Centre (2007) also classifies shoppers into seven kinds of shopping
personalities:
Window shopper: they visits the shopping mall for leisure, usually
walks around in the mall with a friend enjoying the whole atmosphere,
without an intention to buy.
Bargain hunter: they prefer to shop at discount stores and mostly buy
when the retail outlets offer sales.
Power shopper: they do not visit the shopping centres that often, but
are very organized when they are shopping. They carry a shopping list
with them, buy only what they need and know where to get it.
Shopping phobic: these people are the ones who just hate the
experience of shopping in a shopping centre and cannot find anything
positive out of going out to shop. They would rather sit at home and
shop online.
10
Consumer centre (2007), http://www.superpages.com/consumercenter/clothing/personality.html
2
1
LITERATURE REVIEW
Figure 1 source: Dholakia R.R. (1999), Going Shopping: Key Determinants of Shopping Behaviours and 2
Motivations, International Journal of Retail and Distribution Management, Vol. 27 No. 4, pp 154-165
2
LITERATURE REVIEW
Solomon (2002) and Stern (1962) have recognized four types of purchase
behaviours namely:
11
Solomon M.R. (2002), “Consumer Behaviour”, Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ in Shoham A. & Brencic
M.M. (2003), “Compulsive Buying Behaviour”, Journal of Consumer Marketing, Vol. 20 No. 2, pp 127-138
2
3
LITERATURE REVIEW
Many other factors may also affect purchase decisions. A person is likely to be
influenced in making his/ her purchase decisions if he/ she are accompanied
by another individual while making a shopping trip. A study by Nicholls et
al. (1994) also found that a person will tend to shop more and spend more
money when going out with someone. Other situational factors can also have
an impact on shopping behaviour and purchase decisions. They include task
definition, antecedent states, social and physical surroundings and temporal
perspectives. For example, scarcity of time, any pre-existing affects, choice of
the retail outlet and store attribute salience, variety of merchandise available
in the store and even store fragrance have an effect on buying behaviour
(Nichols et al., 2002). Shopping frequency is also a significant concept while
studying consumer shopping behaviour. It is defined as the number of
incidences when a product is purchased by someone in person. The shopping
frequency is subjective to the time and effort that is put by a person and his/
her gender and shopping responsibility for the household. It is also
determined by the shopping context.12
Chapter:3
12
& Figure 2 source: Wilson D.F. (1998), “Why Divide Consumer and Organizational Buyer
Behaviour?”, European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 34 No. 7, pp 780-793
2
4
LITERATURE REVIEW
According to Dixon (2005), for the development of cities and towns, the retail
industry has a very important contribution to make (Howard, 2007). The retail
industry these days is not just about selling products in the shops. With a lot
of development taking place in the retail industry, the retailer, along with that,
needs to survey the consumers in the markets, identify and understand their
needs, provide them with more choice and experience offering competitive
prices. Apart from that, he is also required to maintain a relationship with the
consumers in order to retain them for long unorganized retailing is defined as
having outlets or stores run locally by the owner or caretaker of a shop that
lacks enough technical and accounting standardization. Both the supply chain
and sourcing are done locally to meet local needs.13
As the researchers classify the types of retail format it can also be observed the
method or the thought process of people to go to these stores and purchase
vary. Therefore it is better to understand the objectives of shoppers, retailers
and competitors for this purpose.
Chapter:3
13
Sathyaraj , “Definition of Unorganized Retailing”, http://retail-industry.blogspot.com/
14
& Figure 3 source: Reynolds et al. (2005), “Assessing the productivity of the UK retail sector”, International
Review of Retail, Distribution and Consumer Research 14 (2005) (3), pp. 337–349
2
5
LITERATURE REVIEW
With continued development of the retail industry, newer retail formats are
emerging every day. Many researchers have tried to explain as to why this
occurrence of new retail formats takes place. These explanations have given
credit to demanding consumers, competitive retailers and manufacturers.
Some studies have proposed the idea that value oriented consumers demand
for new formats and in a response to these demands; the retailers are driven to
develop these. The retailers‘ perspective suggests that as a result of expense
control and operational efficiencies, the competitive retailers are pushed
towards bringing new formats. Other researchers explain this phenomenon
with the help of globalization of the manufacturing base. Rousey and
Morgansky (1996) has suggested that whoever may be responsible for the
emergence of newer retail formats, but in the end the consumer is gaining as
Chapter:3
15
Rousey S.P. & Morganosky M.A. (1996), “Retail Format Change in US Markets”, International Journal of
Retail and Distribution Management, Vol. 24 No. 3, pp 8-16
2
6
LITERATURE REVIEW
Full – line Business district Extensive width and Slightly Low prices;
discount store shopping centre or depth of assortment; below heavy use of
isolated store average to good average–to- newspapers, price
power strip quality average oriented,
centres moderate sales
force
Specialty store Business district Very narrow width of Average to High prices,
or shopping centre assortment; extensive high heavy use of
regional malls depth of assortment; excellent displays;
average to good extensive sales
quality force
Variety store Business district Good width and depth Below Heavy use of
shopping centre or of assortment; below average newspapers, self
isolated store average to average service
quality
Factory outlet Out-of-the way Moderate width but Very low Little; self service
site or discount poor depth of
mall assortment; some
irregular
merchandise; low
continuity
Clothes
Accessories
Home needs
Books
Food court
Multiplexes
Entertainment zones
16
& Table 2 source: Rousey S.P. & Morganosky M.A. (1996), “Retail Format Change in US Markets”,
International Journal of Retail and Distribution Management, Vol. 24 No. 3, pp 8-16
2
8
LITERATURE REVIEW
Urgent purchases
Large quantity purchases
Difficult job
Regular purchases
Getting ideas
17
Fotheringham, A.S. (1988), “Consumer store choice and choice set definition”, Marketing Science, Vol. 7 No.
3, pp. 299-310 in Sinha P.K. & Banerjee A. (2004), Store Choice Behaviour in an Evolving Market, International
Journal of Retail and Distribution Management, Vol. 32 No. 10, pp 482-494
2
9
LITERATURE REVIEW
Although a lot of differences have been noticed among the different age
groups while studying their preferences of the shopping malls (Anderson et
al., 2003), general shoppers of all age groups are attracted to innovation and
uniqueness. Attractiveness of the shopping mall also determines the rent that
the various retailers have to pay in order to open an outlet in the mall. The
major factors which affect the attractiveness of a shopping mall have been
discussed further.
Chapter:3
18
& Figure 4 source : Sinha P.K. & Banerjee A. (2004), “Store Choice Behaviour in an Evolving Market”,
International Journal of Retail and Distribution Management, Vol. 32 No. 10, pp 482-494
3
0
LITERATURE REVIEW
Wilhelm and Mottner (2005) have considered the number of retail outlets in a
shopping mall as one of the factors that helps shoppers decide which mall to
choose. While studying mall preferences of teenagers, Baker and Haytko
(2000) have said that not only the number but the variety of different stores is
also a decisive aspect for them. The assortment of stores and services, known
as the retail mix, as well as less repetition of stores are also key factors for a
number of shoppers. Therefore, the tenant mix is also an important construct.
The anchor tenants are also a major part of the tenant mix as they help to
generate a lot of shopper traffic to the mall. Miceli et al. (1998) said that apart
from considering the profit of a store, the mall management should also take
into consideration its consumer drawing power to the mall, as more
consumers would also lead to the profit generation for other stores in the mall
as well. To ensure the success of a shopping mall, one or more anchor tenants
should be selected by the management so that they initially attract customers,
which can be charged lower rent. According to Brown (1994), the anchor store
for a shopping mall in the central city is more likely to be a departmental
store, whereas for a mall in the suburbs, the anchor store would be a
supermarket. He also suggested that the layout of the mall should be such
that the anchor stores should be placed at the both ends of the mall, service
outlets on the side malls closer to the exits and entrances of the mall and
outlets like pet shops and dry cleaners should be positioned away from the
food stores. Moreover, if a large number of similar stores are clustered
together, this would bring agglomeration benefits and thus more customers
would be drawn towards the shopping mall. 19
Chapter:3
19
Miceli, T.J., Sirmans, C.F. and Stake, D. (1998), “Optimal competition and allocation of space in shopping
centres”, Journal of Real Estate Research, Vol. 16 No. 1, pp. 113-26 in Ooi J.T.L. & Sim L.L. (2007), The
Magnetism of Suburban Shopping Centers: Do Size and Cineplex Matter? , Journal of Property Investment and
Finance, Vol. 25 No. 2, pp 111-135
31
LITERATURE REVIEW
Also, with smaller shopping malls coming up, tenants like restaurants and
fast food outlets, clothing stores, retail service providers and institutional
tenants such as banks and post officers are gaining more importance. As the
tenant mix is a very important factor, the decision of correct assortment of
tenants should be the starting point for any shopping mall. Apart from being
a crowd puller, it also affects the image of the shopping mall, its patronage
and rentals. It also influences the length of stay of customers in the mall and
their level of excitement. However, the definition of what should be called the
ideal tenant mix would keep developing over time. It has also become difficult
for the mall management to find the appropriate tenants for the malls, reasons
being large number and competition between shopping malls, upcoming
newer retailing formats and the downturn in economies.20
“Some researchers have even shown that, while good business practices may not
compensate for poor location, good location may compensate for poor business
practices”
The Law of Retail Gravitation Model by Reilly (1931) and Huff (1964), tested
that the magnetism of a shopping mall decreases with distance and increases
with increase in its physical size The gravity and potential models also
recommend that while choosing between shopping malls, the customers try to
find a balance between the utility, which is measured by the size of the
shopping mall, and the cost, which is measured by distance. Shoppers
patronize a shopping mall by finding out the correct balance between these
two attributes.21
In relation to the location of the shopping mall, accessibility and visibility are
the two determinants which need to be noted. The size, quality and design
characteristics should also be favourable as these impact the accessibility and
visibility factors.
20
Kirkup, M. and Rafiq, M. (1994), “Managing tenant mix in shopping centres”, International Journal of Retail
Chapter:3
& Distribution Management, Vol. 22 No. 6, pp. 29-37 in Ooi J.T.L. & Sim L.L. (2007), The Magnetism of
Suburban Shopping Centres: Do Size and Cineplex Matter? , Journal of Property Investment and Finance, Vol.
25 No. 2, pp 111-135
21
Ooi J.T.L. & Sim L.L. (2007), “The Magnetism of Suburban Shopping Centers: Do Size and Cineplex Matter?”,
Journal of Property Investment and Finance, Vol. 25 No.2, pp 111-135
3
2
LITERATURE REVIEW
According to the findings of Wilhelm and Mottner (2005), the age group of
teenagers also preferred going to a shopping mall whose atmosphere was
friendly and made them feel welcomed. They wanted a mall which provided
cool stores, entertainment options, attractive designing and a good place to
spend time with friends, on the whole a good shopping experience.
22
& Figure 4 source: Wilhelm W.B. & Mottner S. (2005), “Teens And Shopping Mall Preferences: A Conjoint
Analysis Approach To Understanding The Generational Shift Toward An Experiential Economy”, Journal Of
Shopping Centre Research, Vol. 12 No. 1
3
3
LITERATURE REVIEW
The authors of ―Shopping and the Fear of Others‖ have found out
that shopping malls have an important role to play in the formation of
the social identity of the shoppers as they are connected to particular
societal groups. Shopping mall image has been defined by Houston and
Nevin (1980) as the total of consumers‘ perceptions of a shopping mall
based on functional and emotional attributes.23
Chapter:3
23
Arnould E. (2000), Reviewed Work(s): A Theory of Shopping by Daniel Miller and Shopping, Place, and
Identity by Daniel Miller; Peter Jackson; Nigel Thrift; Beverly Holbrook; Michael Rowlands, Journal of
Marketing, Vol. 64 No. 1, pp 104- 106
24
Millan E.S. & Howard E. (2007), Shopping for Pleasure? Shopping Experiences for Hungarian Consumers,
International Journal of Retail and Distribution Management, Vol. 35 No. 6, pp 474-487
3
4
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Research Methodology
Research has also been defined as an organized and deliberate effort to collect
new information or to utilize existing knowledge for a new purpose, seeking
to answer worthwhile and fundamental questions, by employing valid and
reliable techniques. In addition, research involves the use of more appropriate
tests to justify the methods employed, and provides logical and objective data
collection where conclusions can be drawn. Ultimately, it contributes to the
gaining of new knowledge and a better appreciation for the issues involved by
the researcher.26
To answer these research questions I would look into the past trends in the
Kerala retail industries and Kerala real estate. With the help of the data that I
have collected, I would compare the past trend with the present trends with
respect the gradual movement in the consumer shopping habits in the state
and the factors leading to it. With the continuing drift in their shopping
habits, the future prospects of organized retailing in Kerala would also been
discussed.
Chapter:4
25
Neuman W.L. (2000), Social Research Methods: Qualitative and Quantitative Approach, 4th Edition, London:
Allyn and Bacon in Kapur, R. (2006)
26
Gill J. and Johnson P. (1997), “Research Methods for Managers”, 2nd Edition, Paul Chapman Publishing
Limited, London in Kapur, R. (2006) “Globalization of high street UK brands in the Indian retail market and its
impact on the culture and buying behavior of Indians”, The University of Nottingham.
35
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
27
Neuman W.L. (2000), Social Research Methods: Qualitative and Quantitative Approach, 4th Edition, London:
Allyn and Bacon in Kapur, R. (2006)
3
6
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
2. Retailers: the ones who had already opened their outlets in the
shopping malls of Cochin, Kerala. For conducting these interviews,
purposeful sampling was used. Purposeful sampling selects
information rich cases for in depth study. This could be a help as most
of these retailers already had their outlets in the unorganized markets
before opening shop in the shopping malls. Thus, they could give their
views on the consumers‘ shopping habits in the malls and how was it
different from the outlets in the markets. Qualitative research typically
uses a relatively small sample yet focuses in depth on it. Therefore, a
sample size of 15 respondents was chosen for taking the interviews of
Chapter:4
retailers.
3
7
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
To start this research I first went to the malls and spent time observing the
gradual shift which occurred during the past few years. Then I gathered few
articles relevant to my area of study. Reading that, I formulated the literature
review which consisted mostly of consumer buying behaviour and their
choice determinants for choosing a shopping mall. After a careful examination
of the literature, questionnaire was formulated for conducting the
interviews/surveys from the customers/retailers who had opened their
outlets in the malls and the Kerala consumers.
For conducting the research, 3 major malls in Cochin were visited. Conducting
the interviews from the retailers was not a very easy task to do. Even though I
approached them in their non peak sale time of the day, they seemed to be
busy and disagreed to give the interviews. However, I got hold of 15 retailers
from different malls and conducted their interviews and writing down their
responses side by side. For the interviews of the consumers, approaching
them was quite easy as most of them were familiar with my area of study.
Face to face interviews with some and telephonic interviews and online
survey with the others helped me complete my field research.
The data was collected and compiled using Google docs which made the
analysis easy.
The purpose of the interview and the study was explained clearly to each
interviewee before taking the interview. The data that was collected was then
analyzed and results were evaluated. Some recommendations for the future
were then suggested for the retailers and the mall management from the side
of customers.
Chapter:4
3
8
FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS
All the data has been collected through opinion survey conducted by me.
When this question has been popped to the public majority of them supported
it as a blessing to the society. They even pointed out that malls make them feel
good about their state in race of being par with the other states in the country
whereas the minor group even criticized malls as an unwanted luxury and a
curse to the morality of the society.
Majority of the sample makes a visit to the mall between 1- 2 times in a month,
followed by 3-5 time visits and more than 5 time visits. While a small portion
of the sample doesn‘t visit a mall quite often. It has also been observed that no
Chapter:5
one visits a mall on a daily basis. That shows that people visits malls with a
reason.
39
FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS
Considering the high ratio of youth in the survey sample it has been noticed
that majority goes to a mall with their friends, whereas middle aged or
married individuals visit mall with their family or colleagues and very less
part of the group prefer to visit the mall alone. It has been also found that
people even switch over the group accordingly with the purpose of visit to the
mall.
It can be observed that people prefer visiting mall on weekends than any
other day. But it is also visible that other majority of people are those who
don‘t mind to make a visit on any random day. Other group can be termed as
Chapter:5
40
FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS
It has been found that maximum number of people usually prefers to spend their
time between 1-3 hours in a mall. Interestingly it is also noticed that the number
of people who spend less than 1-hour in a mall and the number of people who
spend more than 3-hour in a mall, in the sample size, are same.
Here, it is seen that majority consider mall as a hangout destination more than a
shopping destination. Since, Kerala has quite number of local movie halls I
personally feel that people doesn‘t consider mall for movies. Whereas, people
even commented that mall signifies all the above mentioned features to them and
it is also observed that for some mall even signify as luxury of life.
Chapter:5
41
FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS
The research has been made it even clear that shopping centres in a mall pulls
the people back. The ambience of the mall also plays a key role as a pull
factor. Come back factor provided through movie halls has been noted
limited. Eating joints and vicinity factors keeps the same amount of interest in
people. It has been noted that the presence of crowd also attracts people to be
there in a mall.
stores like Big Bazaar can be considered as an enlarged family shop but not a
mall.
42
FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS
As we can see from the data collected, it was a positive response from the
crowd regarding the purchase of retail goods from a mall. Majority purchases
from mall whereas 25% of the sample responded ‗No‘ towards this query.
Offers attract people – this point has been further concreted with this result. It
can be noticed majority among the group visit the mall without a plan for
purchasing but when they see an offer/product product attractive they end
up purchasing. Festive seasons all pull the crowd considering the promotional
offers during that season. People have even responded that money also
matters them while it come to purchase.
Chapter:5
43
FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS
11. Scale your preference for shopping from a mall to a local retail store?
(1 - From Malls; 5 - from Local retail store)
It can be observed that people choose to be in the average mark when it comes
to their preference for shopping from a mall to a local retail store. Keeping ‗3‘
as the average mark we can notice that people tend to have more affinity to
purchase from mall than from a local retail store. Although the affinity ratio is
lead by a small proportion we can presume it in the long run that people will
be more likely to purchase from malls.
12. Do you think malls lacks the personal touch which local retail store
offer?
It is widely felt among the people that malls lack the personal touch provided
by a local retail store. We can see that 57% people feel it lacks the personal
touch where other 47% doesn‘t feel so.
Chapter:5
44
FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS
50% of the people have responded that they believe in the promotional
programs offered by the malls to an extent. Whereas it has been found that
another 34% believe in the promotional programs. Therefore we can see
people generally get attracted towards the promotional programs and it can
be used by the malls to increase their foot fall.
14. Do you think malls have become a part of your daily life?
According to the data collected we can see that people widely claim malls not
as a part of their daily life. The other closer group prefer considering it to an
extent as a part of their daily life. Whereas 21% people like to think malls as a
part of their daily life while others were unable to fix an opinion.
Chapter:5
45
FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS
Considering the age wise distribution of people in the sample we can find
the average amount of spending in a mall:
Spend per visit in shopping mall in the age BETWEEN group 20-25 yrs.
The main purpose of visiting the mall is fun & entertainment, family outing
and shopping at the last. The average amount spend by the consumers varies
in different age groups. Consumers in malls were mostly in the age group of
20 – 25 yrs and 25 - 35. They came to the mall mainly for the entertainment.
The interviews that had been taken from the retailers who had already
opened their retail outlets in the malls have been analyzed in the following
section. The responses by the retailers have been listed in a table format
question by question and then analyzed later using points that have been
listed in the literature about choice determinants of mall. The analysis and
the observation have been further followed after the research conducted
among the retailers. All the retailers who were interviewed had opened their
outlets in the malls since a period of less than 2 years.
Chapter:5
46
FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS
Q1. Why did you choose Different retailers gave different responses to this
to open your outlet in the question. The most common reasoning that was
mall other than the given by them was the upcoming trend of mall
unorganized market? shopping and the changing customer preferences. As
all their needs get fulfilled under one roof and they
get the required quality, price and environment,
they are attracted more towards the malls. Another
reason for the customers getting fascinated to the
malls is the hot and rainy weather conditions in
Kerala. Other responses included bigger retail
space which is not available in the congested
unorganized markets, and also for the separation of
the commercial establishments from the residential
areas.
Q2. Do you have another All retailers who were interviewed had their
retail outlet other than in outlets in unorganized markets of different areas as
this mall? well as other malls except two retailers who only had
outlets in malls and one who only had another outlet
in the unorganized market area.
Q3. Do you reach There was a mixed response of this question. Seven of
the targeted sales the interviewed retailers were happy with the
level in this outlet or as amount of sales level that they were getting in their
much as the other outlets?
mall outlet as their target was being achieved. Out of
them, one women‘s ethnic wear retailer was achieving
the best sales level in that outlet out of all others.
The reasoning that was given by them was that the
customers were attracted by their brand name.
However, the other retailers were not achieving as
much sales as they did in the unorganized market
outlets. Different explanations were given for it. They
said that the outlets in the markets were very old
and well known to the customers. Other reasons were
mall specific such as not much foot fall in the mall
and absence of a cinema due to which fewer
Chapter:5
47
FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS
Q5. What do you think can Attraction of customers is the most important for
be done to attract customers the success of malls. According to the responses
to a mall? What do you provided by various retailers, location, having a
think of anchor stores? good mix of brands within the mall, having an
ambassador for promoting the mall or the various
branded outlets present in it, timely promotions
using banners and posters, economical prices of
merchandise, provision of regular weekend and
monthly schemes to keep the customers loyal,
organization of events and programs within the
mall, positive behaviour of the staff, cleanliness,
promotion of the mall as a whole instead of the
different retail outlets present in the mall are the
various methods of pulling the customers towards
the mall. One of the retailers also held a fashion
show within the mall to promote their outlet.
Positive responses were also provided by majority
of the interviewees about having an anchor store in
the mall as it is a positive point to have such an
outlet in the mall and has advantages like “it is a
great help in attracting customers” and they visit the
other shops as well, it increases “walk – ins” into a
mall. One of the retailers also believed that “the
crème customers”, who have the buying capacity are
attracted towards the anchor stores. However, one
Chapter:5
Q6. What do you think of Majority of the retailers say that a major part of the
consumers‘ perception of customer base still perceives that the merchandise
mall shopping? in the mall is highly priced. According to one of the
retailers, “50 percent of the consumers think that
products in the malls are expensive and so they just
hang out in the mall and go. For shopping they go to the
markets which they perceive to be cheaper”. However,
some of them also believe that the mindset of the
consumers is changing and they are getting more
convinced about the prices. Also, the prices of
branded products are found to be similar in the
malls as well as the unorganized markets. The
customers also tend to receive many benefits if they
come to the malls for shopping which compensates
for the high price factor. These include better
infrastructure, comfort of one stop shopping, good
experience and ambience, protection from the
harsh Indian weather conditions, etc.
49
FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS
Q8. If you have to open a new outlet, Few of the respondents have
would you choose to open it in the mentioned various criteria for this
upcoming malls? decision, the major being location of
the mall or the market, foot fall
of the mall, consumer preferences for
the mall and government policy.
However, a good number of the
retailers would prefer to open their
next outlet in the upcoming malls of
the country as “markets are doing better
currently but in the future malls would
be the only thing” and “the coming time
will see an end of the markets”. “It will
take time for the malls to develop and
grow; patience is required to get sales
in the malls however the future
prospects are bright”. Two of the
retailers also had tie ups with two of
the biggest mall developers of the
country; this was one of the reasons
that they opened their outlets in the
mall, and would plan any further
expansions within the malls developed
by those companies.
Chapter:5
50
FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS
5.4 Findings
The anchor tenants are an important part of the tenant mix as they help to
generate a lot of shopper traffic to the mall. It has also been said that the mall
management should also take into consideration its consumer drawing power
to the mall, as more consumers would also lead to the profit generation for
other stores in the mall as well. All retailers have agreed to this fact that
anchor stores are major factor responsible for pulling crowd towards a mall.
5.4.1.2 Location
It has been said that "Only the ones in favourable locations and having the
right format and suitable strategies are likely to remain long-term players".
However, in the Kerala context, the factor of location of a shopping mall does
not seem to affecting the consumers‘ visits to these malls. As it has been
discussed above that there are only a few shopping malls that have come up
in the country and the consumers are finding it to be a very novel experience
to visit a shopping mall for shopping. They are still overawed by this new
Chapter:5
method of shopping, therefore they even travel long distances to capture the
advantage of getting everything under one roof.
51
FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS
However, their daily needs are still fulfilled by the unorganized markets that
are situated close to their homes. With the speedy development in the number
of shopping malls in the state, soon there would be a shopping mall in every
area. The consumers would then prefer to visit the malls that are closer to
their homes, for their daily needs as well. Thus, location has still been
considered a significant factor while choosing a shopping mall.
5.4.1.4 Image
The authors of ―Shopping and the Fear of Others‖ have found out that
shopping malls have an important role to play in the formation of the social
identity of the shoppers28. Self image is also exceptionally important for
Keralites, however, they do not tend to attach self image with shopping in a
shopping mall though. This factor has been falsified in the findings because
Kerala has not yet reached that stage of development that it tends to associate
image with a shopping mall. The unorganized market in Kerala still has a
very significant proportion; therefore, all consumers have to visit the
unorganized markets for the fulfilment of some or the other needs they face.
Chapter:5
28
Arnould E. (2000), Reviewed Work(s): A Theory of Shopping by Daniel Miller and Shopping, Place, and
Identity by Daniel Miller; Peter Jackson; Nigel Thrift; Beverly Holbrook; Michael Rowlands, Journal of
Marketing, Vol. 64 No. 1, pp 104-106
52
FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS
It does not affect his/ her personality or status. Thus image has not been
considered a substantial factor in the Kerala context, when the consumer
chooses between a shopping mall and the unorganized market for making
purchases.
While looking at the Kerala context large part of the population belongs to the
middle income group who cannot afford these luxurious brands. Therefore,
this was one of the additional major aspects that came up in the research.
Although, from secondary data it has been found that the income level and
the purchasing power of the Kerala consumers is increasing, majority of the
retailers are still in the perception that the most of the consumer population is
still price sensitive.
Even though a market for high end luxurious brands exists in the state, a
major chunk of the population does not buy these brands. However with
globalization taking place throughout the world, the consumers are getting
the hang of the branded products and their demands are changing with
growing income levels. From the consumers‘ perspective, it has also been seen
that a high price level in the malls does not stop them from purchasing what
they want. On the whole, there has been seen a slight positive change in the
consumer spending habits with respect to the price. Thus, it can be concluded
that the consumers shopping habits are changing slowly but surely.
5.5 Conclusion
From the analysis above, it can be inferred that there is a slow and steady
change that is taking place and the preferences of the Kerala consumers are
shifting from shopping in the unorganized markets to shopping in the newly
developed malls. The Kerala consumers‘ population is varied among diverse
income segments. According to secondary data, there exists a significant
difference in the shopping patterns of consumers across these income
segments and there are no uniform trends in their buying behaviour.
Researchers who have done their research on the organized retailing sector of
Kerala have also said that organized retailing has made headway in the upper
Chapter:5
class. However, even in this segment, items such as milk, fruits, vegetables
and a significant portion of ‗through-the month‘ purchases seem to be done at
traditional outlets.
53
FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS
The middle income class prefers shopping for processed food and personal
care in supermarkets and fall back on traditional outlets for bulk shopping.
For them, organized retail outlets seem to be associated with branded
items/special purchases. Organized retailing does not seem to have made an
impact on the lower class, except for ‗curiosity‘ shopping 29. This fact can also
be supported by the findings of my study as it was conducted on consumers
who belonged to varied income groups.
On the whole this study has found out that a large number of consumers have
started choosing the malls over the unorganized markets for the purpose of
shopping which is also associated with leisure. The attributes of the malls,
which attract the consumers towards it and are responsible for this change of
choice of the consumers, have been represented in the form of a decision tree.
In this chapter, the analysis has been done by comparing the findings with
what has been said in the literature. A few extra points that came up in the
findings have also been analyzed and this fills the gap in the studies that have
been conducted.
29
Chandrasekhar P (2001), “Retailing in India: Trends and opportunities”, Business Line: Catalyst, in
http://www.afferguson.com/bulletin/ret-pri.htm accessed on 19 August 2007
54
SUGGESTIONS
Suggestions
1. The Facilities at the mall: The mall should be a place, where one should
spend a good amount of time. For that there should be facilities to eat
food, sit, rest, pray, entertainment, clean toilets, breast feeding, smoking
areas etc. Why is this important? Because any customer who goes out
for meeting these needs may not come back again! You have to retain as
many people as possible in the mall, so that they get exposed to all the
shops in the mall, which might translate to business.
2. Long term advertising: I have seen Mall owners, waiting for the
completion of their malls to start its space marketing. This is not just a
sheer waste of time, but also a suicide for the mall! Tenants don‘t come
together; they come, when they are looking for a space or expansion.
My observation is that, the mall marketing should begin, right from
when the Mall 3D drawing is ready. The construction of the mall might
take, 1-2 years. And if the marketing starts at this time, the prospective
tenants of the mall gets 2 years to prepare and plan their new shop in
that mall. This will allow the mall to open itself, with all the shops
ready for business. 2 years is a good time, to select and choose the best
Chapter:6
tenants
55
SUGGESTIONS
3. Tenant Mix: Many mall owners don‘t know what a tenant mix is! And
those who got their strategies wrong, and are desperate to fill the spaces
will not think of a mix either. What is tenant mix? It is the right mix of
shops catering different services to the same defined customer category.
So if it‘s a ladies mall, it will have shops like ladies dresses, ladies shoes,
beauty parlours, purdah shops, kids wear bridal boutiques etc. And not
car accessories shop, or a whole sale outlet for hardwares etc. A poor
tenant mix can really kill the shops in a mall, and the mall itself! A good
tenant mix is possible only if you start marketing your mall, during its
construction phase itself.
5. Mall Events: Customers basically shop at the mall for two main
reasons, one is the experience or ―good feeling‖ and other is the
‗variety‘ of goods they can purchase. We can do this by structuring the
mall to include elements that is continuously changing. For example, it
can range from what malls do now (like organizing shows and
programs) to having commercial spaces that is let out to modern
business gypsies or a traditional ‗chanda or mandi‘ version of a mall
range, where you have one theme for a specific day of the week, and
people who sell that visits the mall to get access to these 100s of
temporary outlets. Since these themes change every day, there is a
reason for people to come and visit it every day! This is in no way an
easy task, it needs a strong visionary team, and strong management
team from the mall mgt side, it also needs the cooperation of the retail
shops.
Chapter:6
56
CONCLUSION
Conclusion
The retail revolution, apart from bringing in sweeping, positive changes in the
quality of life, and is also bringing in slow changes in lifestyle in the smaller
towns of Kerala. Increase in literacy, exposure to media, greater availability
and penetration of a variety of consumer goods into the interiors of the
country, have all resulted in narrowing down the spending differences
between the consumers of larger metros or states and those of smaller states
like Kerala. Lastly I want to conclude my project in some points:
The customers are attracting towards shopping malls & retail outlets.
The shopping malls & retail outlets are targeting to middle class
customers because the purchasing power of this class is rapidly
growing as well as the class is also growing.
Chapter:7
Most of the family wants to purchase from big showrooms and malls
because there are no bargaining system so they have a trust that there is
no cheating.
The main strength of most of the retail outlets are providing attractive
offers to attract customers.
Big retail stores are running customer loyalty programmes which has
increased profits and no. of customers, and increase their switching
costs.
It can be concluded from the research that the consumer markets in Kerala
have potential for the future development of the retail industry as the market
is growing, government policies are becoming liberal and the technological
developments in the state are favourable for operations in Kerala. Due to these
promising factors, more and more retail investors have been encouraged to
invest into the Kerala market which has further impelled investments in the
real estate industry.
However, the success of malls in the long run in the Kerala market would
involve attraction of diverse consumer segments towards the malls which
includes diverse income groups, nuclear families, working women, etc. The
provision of wide choice and the comfort of being able to shop everything
under one roof would attract all these groups of buyers.
6.2 Limitations
Every piece of research has its own set of limitations which can arise during
the course of conducting it. Penaloza suggests that the researcher should be
careful enough to avoid any kind of bias with the research subjectivity. This is
mainly because of the reason that researchers working in their own culture
tend to avoid keeping a critical distance from their work as they may hold a
set of assumptions about their own culture hence influence the interpretation
of data analysis30.
Chapter:7
30
Penaloza, L., (1994) “Atravesando Fronteras/Border Crossings: A Critical Ethnographic Exploration of The
Consumer Acculturation of Mexican Immigrants”, Journal of Consumer Research, Vol 21, pg 32-54 in Kapur, R.
(2006) “Globalization of high street UK brands in the Indian retail market and its impact on the culture and
buying behavior of Indians”, The University of Nottingham.
58
CONCLUSION
• The sample size of the population being tested should be large enough
to increase its validity. However, the findings and analysis are based
on semi-structured interviews taken from fifteen retailers and eighty
consumers which can be unrepresentative of the population.
This research mainly relies on secondary sources such as the research done by
other people; hence it was difficult to come to strong recommendations.
Chapter:7
59
CONCLUSION
Appendices
Appendix – I
Questionnaire for the consumers from mall
Movies
60
CONCLUSION
11. Scale your preference for shopping from a mall to a local retail store?
(1 for mall and 5 for local retail store)
12. Do you think malls lacks the personal touch which local retail store
offer?
Yes No
14. Do you think malls have become a part of your daily life?
Yes
No
Chapter:7
61
APPENDICES
Appendix – II
1. Why did you choose to open your outlet in the mall other than the
unorganized market?
2. Do you have another retail outlet other than in this mall?
3. Do you reach the targeted sales level in this outlet or as much as the other
outlets?
4. What do you do to attract customers to your outlet?
5. What do you think can be done to attract customers to a mall? What do you
think of anchor stores?
6. What do you think of consumers‘ perception of mall shopping?
7. What benefits do consumers obtain from coming to a mall rather than the
unorganized market? What effect do these benefits have on sales?
8. If you have to open a new outlet, would you choose to open it in the
upcoming malls?
62