INTRODUCTION

As a consumer we are all unique and this uniqueness is reflected

in the consumption pattern and process purchase.
The study of consumer behavior provides us with reasons why
consumers differ from one another in buying using products and
services. We receive stimuli from the environment and the
specifics of the marketing strategies of different products and
services,
and responds to these stimuli in terms of either buying or not
buying product.
In between the stage of receiving the stimuli and responding to it,
the consumer goes through the process of making his decision.
 Stages of the Consumer Buying Process:
Six Stages to the Consumer Buying Decision Process (For complex
decisions). Actual purchasing is only one stage of the process. Not all
decision processes lead to a purchase. All consumer decisions do not
always include all 6 stages, determined by the degree of
complexity...discussed next.

The 6 stages are:

1.Problem Recognition-
Difference between the desired state
and the actual condition. Deficit in assortment of products. Hunger--
Food. Hunger stimulates your need to eat. Can be stimulated by the
marketer through product information--did not know you were
deficient? I.E., see a commercial for a new pair of shoes, stimulates
your recognition that you need a new pair of shoes.

2.Information search-
 Internal search, memory.
 External search if you need more information.
Friends and relatives (word of mouth).
Marketer dominated sources; comparison
shopping; public sources etc.

3.Evaluation of Alternatives-
Need to establish criteria for
evaluation, features the buyer wants or does not want. Rank/weight
alternatives or resume search. May decide that you want to eat
something spicy, Indian gets highest rank etc. If not satisfied with
your choices then return to the search phase. Can you think of another
restaurant? Look in the yellow pages etc. Information from different
sources may be treated differently. Marketers try to influence by
"framing" alternatives.
4.Purchase decision-
Choose buying alternative, includes
product, package, store, method of purchase etc.

5.Purchase-
May differ from decision, time lapse between 4 & 5,
product availability

6.Post-Purchase
Evaluation--outcome: Satisfaction or
Dissatisfaction. Cognitive Dissonance, have you made the right
decision. This can be reduced by warranties, after sales
communication
etc. After eating an Indian meal, may think that really you wanted a
Chinese meal instead.
 Factors Effecting the Consumer Buying
Decision Process
A consumer, making a purchase decision will be affected by the
following three factors:
1.Cultural and sub culture Factor
2. Social Factor
3. Personal Factor
•

Culture and Sub - culture-

Culture refers to the set of values, ideas, and attitudes that are
accepted by a homogenous group of people and transmitted to the
next generation. Culture also determines what is acceptable with
product advertising. Culture determines what people wear, eat, reside
and travel. Cultural values in the US are good health, education,
individualism and freedom. In American culture time scarcity is a
growing problem that is change in meals. Big impact on international
marketing.

Culture can be divided into subcultures:

 Geographic regions
 Human characteristics such as age and ethnic
background.
West Coast, teenage and Asian American.
Culture affects what people buy, how they buy and when they
buy.
Understanding Consumer Buying Behavior offers consumers greater
satisfaction (Utility). We must assume that the company has adopted
the Marketing Concept and are consumer oriented.
Social Factors
Consumer wants, learning, motives etc. are influenced by opinion
leaders, person's family, reference groups, social class and culture.
•

Roles and Family Influences-

Role...things you should do based on the expectations of you from

your position within a group. People have many roles. Husband,
father, employer, employee. Individuals role are continuing to change
therefore marketers must continue to update information. Family is
the most basic group a person belongs to. Marketers must understand:
 that many family decisions are made by the family uni
oconsumer behavior starts in the family unit
 family roles and preferences are the model for
children's future family (can reject/alter/etc)
 family buying decisions are a mixture of family
interactions and individual decision making
 Family acts an interpreter of social and cultural values
for the individual.

The Family life cycle: families go through stages; each stage

creates different consumer demands:
•

Reference Groups-
Individual identifies with the group to the extent that he takes on
many of the values, attitudes or behaviors of the group members.
Families, friends, sororities, civic and professional organizations. Any
group that has a positive or negative influence on a persons attitude
and behavior.
Membership groups (belong to) Affinity marketing is focused on the
desires of consumers that belong to reference groups. Marketers get
the groups to approve the product and communicate that approval to
its members. Credit Cards etc.!!
Aspiration groups (want to belong to) Disassociate groups (do not
want to belong to) Honda, tries to disassociate from the "biker" group.
The degree to which a reference group will affect a purchase decision
depends on an individuals susceptibility to reference group influence
and the strength of his/her involvement with the group.

Social Class

An open group of individuals who have similar social rank. US is not

a classless society. US criteria; occupation, education, income,
wealth, race, ethnic groups and possessions.
Social class influences many aspects of our lives. i.e; upper
middle class Americans prefer luxury cars Mercedes.
 Upper-upper class, .3%, inherited wealth, aristocratic
names.
 Lower-upper class, 1.2%, newer social elite, from
current professionals and corporate elite
 Upper-middle class, 12.5%, college graduates,
managers and professionals
 Middle class, 32%, average pay white collar workers
and blue collar friends
 Working class, 38%, average pay blue collar workers
 Lower class, 9%, working, not on welfare
 Lower-lower class, 7%, on welfare

Social class determines to some extent, the types, quality, and

quantity of products that a person buys or uses.
Lower class people tend to stay close to home when shopping; do not
engage in much pre-purchase information gathering.
Stores project definite class images.
Family, reference groups and social classes are all social influences
on consumer behavior. All operate within a larger culture.

Personal Factor

Unique to a particular person. Demographic Factors, Sex, Race, Age

etc. Who in the family is responsible for the decision making? Young
people purchase things for different reasons than older people.

Psychological factors

Psychological factors include:

Motives-

A motive is an internal energizing force that orients a person's

activities toward satisfying a need or achieving a goal. Actions are
effected by a set of motives, not just one. If marketers can identify
motives then they can better develop a marketing mix.

MASLOW hierarchy of needs!!

 Physiological
 Safety
 Love and Belonging
 Esteem
 Self Actualization
Need to determine what level of the hierarchy the consumers are at to
determine what motivates their purchases. The product was not
selling well, and was almost terminated. Upon extensive research it
was determined that the product did sell well in inner-city
convenience stores. It was determined that the consumers for the
product were actually drug addicts who couldn't digest a regular meal.
They would purchase Nutriment as a substitute for a meal. Their
motivation to purchase was completely different to the motivation that
B-MS had originally thought. These consumers were at thePhysio
logical level of the hierarchy. BM-S therefore had to redesign its MM
to better meet the needs of This target market. Motives often operate
at a subconscious level therefore are difficult to measure.

Perception

Perception is the process of selecting, organizing and interpreting

information inputs to produce meaning. IE we chose what info we pay
attention to, organize it and interpret it.
Information inputs are the sensations received through sight,
Taste, hearing, smell and touch.
Selective Exposure-select inputs to be exposed to our
awareness. More likely if it is linked to an event, satisfies
current needs, intensity of input changes (sharp price drop).
Selective Distortion-Changing/twisting current received
information, inconsistent with beliefs.
Advertisers that use comparative advertisements (pitching one
product against another), have to be very careful that consumers do
not distort the facts and perceive that the advertisement was for the
competitor. A current example...MCI and AT&T...do you ever get
confused?
Selective Retention-Remember inputs that support beliefs, forgets
those that don't. Average supermarket shopper is exposed to 17,000
products in a shopping visit lasting 30 minutes-60% of purchases are
unplanned. Exposed to 1,500 advertisement per day. Can't be
expected to be aware of all these inputs, and certainly will not retain
many.
Interpreting information is based on what is already familiar,
on knowledge that is stored in the memory

Lifestyles-
Recent US trends in lifestyles are a shift towards personal
independence and individualism and a preference for a healthy,
natural lifestyle.
Lifestyles are the consistent patterns people follow in their
lives.
The marketer must be aware of these factors in order to develop an
appropriate MM for its target market
Company profile
 Van Heusen Corporation is one of the world's largest apparel
companies. It owns and markets the Calvin Klein brand worldwide. It
is the world's largest shirt and neckwear company and markets a
variety of goods under its own brands, Van Heusen, Calvin Klein,
IZOD, ARROW, Bass and G.H. Bass & Co., and its licensed brands
including Geoffrey Beene, Kenneth Cole New York, Kenneth Cole
Reaction, unlisted, A Kenneth Cole Production, BCBG Max Azria,
BCBG Attitude, MICHAEL Michael Kors, Sean John, Chaps, Donald
J. Trump Signature Collection, JOE Joseph Abboud, Tommy Hilfiger,
DKNY, and Timberland.
Product profile
Research objective
 RESEARCH OBJECTIVE
FOLLOWING IS THE OBJECTIVES OF RESEARCH
 To study the consumer behaviour with respect to Van Heusen.
 To find out purpose of buying van huusen products.
 To study the awareness of various companies regarding branded
clothes.
 To find out channel of communication which is preffered by
cuctomers
 To find out how often customers visit ven huesen store.
 To find out which other brands customer normally buy.
 To find out the normal spending of customers on clothes per
year.
Research Design
 RESEARCH DESIGN

Type and source of data:

1.primary data:
Collected directly from customers by using questionnaire

2.secondary data:
Secondary data is taken from company
website,brouchers,company register etc.

3. data collection method:

survey

4.research instrument:
Include 10 questions
5.sampling plan:
1)consumer behavior study
i. sampling unit- ven heusen customer
ii.sampling size- 50

2)duration:

10 days.

RESEARCH
LIMITATION
 RESEARCH LIMITATION

Following is the limitation of research

 Information given by the customer is assumed to be true.

 Because of time constrain the sample size is limited.
 Analysis &
Interpretation
 SIZE NORMALLY CUSTOMERS WEAR

Particular Freq Shirt Freq Trouser Shirt Per Trouser Per

30-34 - 33 - 66
35-38 1 15 2 30
39-42 43 2 86 4
43-47 6 - 12 0

1
0.9
0.8
0.7
0.6
0.5 Shirt %
Trouser %
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0
30-34 35-38 39-42 43-47

INTERPRETATION

1) According to the customer’s survey normal Shirt size is in the Range of 39 – 42 i.e. 86%.
2) Normal Trouser size is 30 – 34 i.e. 66% according to our survey.
 COMMUNICATION CHANNEL PREFERED BY VAN HUESEN CUSTOMERS

Particular Frequency Percentage

Letter 4 8
Sms 24 48
Call 7 14
E-mail 15 30

60%

50%

40%
Letters
30% Sms
Call
20% E-mail

10%

0%
1

INTERPRETATION

1) Most preferable network is SMS which is preferred by 48% customers.

2) The Second most preferable network is E-mail i.e. 30%.
 HOW OFTEN CUSTMER’S LIKE TO RECEIVE INFORMATION ABOUT VAN HUESEN

Particular Frequency Percentage

Once In month 23 46
Once in two month 25 50
Once in six month 2 4

60%

50%

40%

Once in month
30%
Once in two months
Once six month
20%

10%

0%
Percentage

INTERPRETATION

1) According to survey customers like to receive information about store Once in Two month.
 HOW OFTEN CUSTOMER’S VISIT ANY VAN HUESEN STORE

Particular Frequency Percentage

Once In two month 23 46
Once in three month 18 36
Once in six month 9 18

50%
45%
40%
35%
30%
Once in two month
25%
Once in three month
20% Once in six months
15%
10%
5%
0%
Percentage

INTERPRETATION

1) Most of the customer’s visit VAN HUESEN Store in every two months i.e. 46% of the total
sample size.
 WHY PEOPLES BUY VAN HUESEN CLOTHES

Particular Frequency Percentage

Brand 15 30
Style 17 34
Fit 13 26
Range 5 10

40%

35%

30%

25%
Brand
20% Style
Fit
15% Range

10%

5%

0%
Percentage

INTERPRETATION

1) The customers buy VAN HUESEN Clothes because of its Style and Fitting i.e. 34% and 26%.
2) However some customers buy it for Brand Name.
 CUSTOMERS SPENDING ON CLOTHES PER YEAR

Particular Frequency Percentage

5000-10000 25 50
10000-15000 20 40
15000-20000 3 6
Above 20000 2 2

60%

50%

40%
5000-10000
30% 10000-15000
15000-20000
above 20000
20%

10%

0%
Percentage

INTERPRETATION

1) The average spending of customers on clothes is in the range of 5000 – 10000 i.e. 50% of the
total sample size
 OTHER BRANDS NORMALLY PREFERRED BY CUSTOMERS

Brand Name Frequency Percentage

Arrow 4 8
Allen Solly 10 20
Louis Philippe 14 28
Wills Lifestyle 7 14
Color Plus 4 8
Zodiac 11 22

30%

25%

20%
Arrow
Allen Solly
15% Louis Philippe
Wills Lifestyle
Color Plus
10%
Zodiac

5%

0%
Percentage

INTERPRETATION

1) Most preferable Brand other than VAN HUESEN is LOUIS PHILIPPE which is preferred by
almost 28% customer as per our survey.
2) The second most preferable Brand by customers is ZODIAC which is almost 22% of the
sample size
 PERCENTAGE OF MALE AND FEMALE VISITED STORE DURING SURVEY

Particular Frequency Percentage

Male 45 90
Female 5 10

Percentage

Male
Female

INTERPRETATION

1) According to our survey we noted that most of the visitors of VAN HUESEN are Male i.e. 90%
of total customers
 CUSTOMER SATISFACTION SURVEY

Particular Frequency Percentage

Very Satisfied 25 50
Satisfied 23 46
Unsatisfied 3 6
Very Unsatisfied 0 0

Percentage
60%
50%
40%
30%
20% Percentage

10%
0%
ed ed ed ed
tisfi tisfi tisfi tisfi
a Sa sa a
r yS Un Uns
Ve ry
Ve

INTERPRETATION

1) According to survey customers are very satisfied with this Brand.

RESEARCH
FINDING
 RESEARCH FINDING

 BRAND NAME AND FITTING ARE THE

IMPORTANT FACTOR FOR BUYING VEN HUESEN
PRODUCTS.
 MOST CUSTOMER VISIT VEN HUESEN IN EVERY
2 MONTHS.
 CUSTOMER LIKE TO RECEIVE UPDATES ABOUT
STORE THROGH SMS.
 THE OTHER MOST PREFERABLE BRAND IS
ZODIAC IN COMPARISION WITHVEN HUESEN.
 CUSTOMERS ARE VERY SATISFIED WITH VEN
HUESEN BRAND.
 CUSTOMERS SPEND ON CLOTHES IN THE RANGE
OF 5000-10000 EVERY YEAR.
SUGGESTIONS
 SUGGESTIONS
 VEN HUESEN SHOULD INCREASE CASUAL STOCK.
 SHOULD INCREASE THE RANGE AVAILABLE AT
THIS PARTICULAR STOCK.
 SHOULD COME UP WITH 38 AND 36 CM SIZE IN
SHIRTS
 LAUNCH NEW TYPE OF OCCASIONAL WEAR T-
SHIRTS.
 COMPANY SHOULD COME UP WITH NEW
DISCOUNTS SCHEMES.
CONCLUSION
 CONCLUSION

The aim of marketing is to meet and satisfy target customer’s

need and want. Studying customer provides clues for developing new
product, product features. Company challenge is to produce delight
and loyal customer. A company would be wise to measure customer
satisfaction regularly, because the key to customer retention is
customer.
The project is undertaken for VAN HEUSEN which is the
leading brand for apparel in World.
The aim of project is to study of consumer behavior with respect
to apparel and customer satisfaction level.
For this research primary and secondary data is used in which
primary data is collected directly from customer through open and
close – ended questionnaire, answer filled by customer for which
personal contact was made with customer in VAN HEUSEN store .
Most of the customers purchase VAN HEUSEN products
because of its fitting and very high percentage of customers are
satisfied with VAN HEUSEN service and product line. The most
customers have suggested that store should come up with new
discount schemes.
According to our survey the other most preferable brand is
LOUIS PHILLIPPE and ZODIAC. Most of the visitors are Men very
few customers are unsatisfied with this brand and so its become
recommended Brand.
 Because of its unique collection VAN HEUSEN is on the top
position in today’s competitive market

APPENDIX
 VANHEUSEN
Feedback Form

Name:

First Name: _________________ Last Name: _________________

Gender: MMM F

Birth Date (dd/mm/yy) : __/__/____

Mobile No: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

1. Please let us know what size your normally wear ?

Shirt Trouser

2. Your Occupation:

Designation:_________________________________________

Company name:______________________________________

3. How would you prefer to receive communication from van

huesen?

Email Letter Sms Call on mobile

4. How often you would you like to receive communication about van
huesen?
Once in two months Once a month Once in six month

5. How often do you visit any van heusen store?

Once in two months Once in 3 month Once in six month

6. Why do buy van heusen?

Please rank the following options with1 being the most preferred
option and 5 being the least preferred:

Brand Style Fit Range Price

7. Which other brands do you normally buy?

Arrow Allen Solly Louis Philippe Wills Lifestyle

Color Plus Zodiac

8. Why do you buy this brand?

____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
___

9. Do you have any special requirements that van heusen could

address?

___________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
___

10. Are you satisfied with VAN HEUSEN?

a) Very satisfied b) Satisfied

c) Unsatisfied d) Very unsatisfied

11. How much you spend on your clothes per year?

a) 5000 – 10000 b)10000 – 15000

c)15000 – 20000 d) Above 20000

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Bibliography

1) Marketing Management
-By Philip Kotler
2) Research Methodology
-C. R. Kothari
3) Website
www.vanheusen.com
4) Booklet of VAN HEUSEN, advertisement posters, broachers, etc