Assignment Of Retail Management On 3 Major Types of Retail Locations

Free Standing Locations

This type of retail location is basically any stand-alone building. It can be tucked away in a neighbourhood location or right off a busy highway. Depending on the landlord, there are generally no restrictions on how a retailer should operate his business. It will probably have ample parking and the cost per square foot will be reasonable. The price for all that freedom may be traffic. Unlike the attached retail locations where customers may wander in because they were shopping nearby, the retailer of a free standing location has to work at marketing to get the customer inside. The advantages of this type of retail location are many:

There is no competition. Rental costs are relatively low. There is flexibility. Larger space may be attained. Location is by choice. Isolation is good for stores involved in one step or convening shopping Better road and traffic facility is possible Facilities can be adopted to individual specifications Easy parking can be arranged Cost reduction are possible, leading to lower price

There are also various disadvantages to this retail location type:

Initial customers may be difficult to attract. Many people will not travel very far to get to one store on a continuous basis Most people like a variety in shopping Advertising coasts may be high Operating costs-such as outside lighting, security, maintenance of grounds, and trash collection cannot be shared The existence of other retailers and community zoning laws may restrict access to desirable locations A store must often be built rather than rented As a rule, unplanned business districts and planned shopping centres are much more popular among consumers; they generate the bulk of retail sales.

The difficulty of attracting and holding a target market is the major reason large retailer or convenience oriented retailers are usually those best suited to isolated locations. A small specialty store would probably not be able to develop a customer following at this type of location because people would be unwilling to travel to or shop at a store that does not have a very large assortment or a strong image for merchandize and/or prices. Years ago, when discount operations were frowned on by traditional retailers, numerous shopping centres forbade the entry of discounters. This forced numerous discounters to become isolated stores are to build their own centres, and they have been successful. Today, diverse retailers are been isolated locations, as well as at business districts and shopping centres sites. Some retailers, including many gas stations and convenience stores, continuity emphasize isolated locations. For example: Mc Donalds India, open its outlets on the national highways of India. It has to market itself for which it start placing sign boards 5 kms before on the roads and also it has its big logo highlighted 20 meters leavened from the ground level which is visible from nearly 500-600 meters back which is a good tool to attract the customer.

Unplanned Business District:

An unplanned business district is a type of retail location where two or more stores situate together (or in close proximity) in such a way that the total arrangement or mix of stores is not due to prior long-range planning. Stores locate based on what is best for them, not the district. Thus, for shoe stores may exist in an area with no pharmacy. There are four kinds of unplanned business district: the central business district, the secondary business district, the neighbourhood business district, and the String. a. Central Business District: A central business district (CBD) is the hub of retailing in a city. It is the largest shopping area in that city and is synonymous with the term downtown. The CBD exists in the part of a town or city with the greatest density of office building and stores. Both vehicular and pedestrian traffic are very high. The core a CBD is often no more than a square mile, with cultural and entertainment facilities surrounding it. Shoppers are drawn from the whole urban area and include all ethnic groups and all classes of people. The CBD has at least one major department store and broad grouping of specialty and convenience stores. The arrangement of these stores follows no pre-set format; it depends on history (first come, first located), retail trends, and luck. Here are some strengths that allow CBDs to draw a large number of shoppers and potential shoppers.

Excellent goods/service assortment Access to public transportation Variety of store types and positioning strategies within one are Wide range of prices Variety of customer services High level of pedestrian traffic Nearness to commercial and social facilities

In addition, chain headquarters stores are often situated in CBDs. These are some of the inherent weaknesses of the CBD.

Inadequate parking Traffic and delivery congestion Travel time for those living in the suburbs Many aging retail facilities Declining condition of some central cities relative to their suburbs Relatively poor image of central cities to some potential consumers High rents and taxes for the most popular sites Movement of some popular downtown stores to suburban shopping centres Discontinuity of offerings (such as four shoes stores and no pharmacy)

b. Secondary Business District (SBD). However, an unplanned shopping area in a city or town that is usually bounded by the intersection of two major streets. Cities-particularly larger ones-often have multiple SBDs, each having at least a junior department store (which may be a branch of a traditional department store or a full line discount store), a variety store, and/or some larger specialty stores in addition to many smaller stores. This type of location has grown in importance as cities have increased in population and sprawled over larger geographic areas. c. Neighbourhood Business District (NBD) is an unplanned shopping area that appeals to the convenience shopping and service needs of a single residential area. An NBD contains several small stores, and a restaurant. The leading retailer is typically a supermarket, a large drugstore, or a variety store. This type of business district is situated on the major street(s) of its residential area.

An NBD offers consumers a good location, long store hours, good parking, and a less hectic atmosphere than a CBD or SBD. On the other hand, there is a limited selection of goods and services, and prices (on the average) tend to be higher because competition is less than in a CBD or SBD. d. String is an unplanned shopping area comprising a group of retail stores, often with similar or compatible product lines, located along a street or highway. There is little extension of shopping on to perpendicular streets. A string may start with an isolated store, success then breeding competitors. Car dealers, antique stores, and clothing stores are examples of retailers often situating in strings. A string location has many of the advantages of an isolated store (lower rent, more flexibility, better road visibility and parking, and lower operating costs). Along with some disadvantages (limited product variety, increased travel for many consumers, higher advertising costs, zoning restrictions, and the need to build premises). Unlike an isolated store, a string store has competition at its location. This draws more people to the string over prices and less store loyalty for each outlet there. But an individual stores increased traffic flow, due to being in a string rather than an isolated site, may be greater than the customers lost to competitors. This may explain why four gas stations will locate on opposing corners.

The planned shopping centre:

A planned shopping centre consists of a group of architecturally unified commercial establishments built on a site that is centrally owned or managed, designed and operated as a unit based on balanced tenancy, and surrounded by parking facilities. Its location, size, and mix of stores are related to the trading area served. A typical shopping centre has one or more anchor stores and a range of smaller stores. Through balanced tenancy, the stores in a planned shopping centre complement each other as to the quality and variety of their product offerings, and the kind and number of stores are linked to the overall needs of the population. To ensure balanced tenancy, the management of a planned shopping centre usually specified the proportion of total space to be occupied by each kind of retailer, limits the product lines that can be sold by every store there, and stipulates what kinds of firm can acquire unexpired leases. At a well-run centre, a coordinated and cooperative long-run retailing strategy is followed by all stores. The planned shopping centre has several positive attributes:

Well-rounded goods and service assortments based on long-range planning Strong suburban population Interest in one-stop, family shopping. Cooperative planning and sharing of common costs. Creation of distinctive, but unified, shopping centre images Maximization of pedestrian traffic for individual stores Access to highways and availability of packing for consumers More appealing than city shopping for some people. Generally lower rent and taxes than CBD stores (except for most enclosed regional malls) Generally lower theft rates than CBD stores Popularity of malls o Open (Shopping area off-limits to vehicles). o Closed (shopping area off-limits to vehicles and all stores in a temperature-controlled facility). Growth of discount malls and other newer types of shopping centres

There are also some limitations associated with the planned shopping centres.

Landlord-imposed regulations that reduce each retailers operating flexibility, such as required hours. Generally higher rent than an isolated store (with some regional centres being quite expensive). Restrictions on the goods/services that can be sold by each store A competitive environment within the centre Required payments for items that may be of little or no value to an individual retailer, such as membership in a merchants association Too many malls in a number of areas (some observers call this the milling of America) Rising consumer boredom with and disinterest in shopping as an activity. Aging facilities of some older centres Domination by large anchor stores

Regional Shopping Centre: A large, planned shopping facility appealing to a geographically dispersed market. It has at least one or two full-sized department stores (each with a minimum of 1000,000 square feet) and 50 to 150 or more smaller retailers. A regional centre has a very broad and deep assortment of shopping oriented goods, as well as a number of services intended to enhance the consumers experience at the centre. The market for a typical regional centre is 10000 + people, who live or work up to a 30-minute drive from the centre. On average, people travel less than 20 minutes. The regional centre is the result of a planned effort to re-create the shopping variety of a central city in suburbia. Some experts even credit the regional shopping centre with becoming the social, cultural, and vocational focal point of an entire suburban area. Frequently, a regional centre is used as a town plaza, a meeting place, a concert hall, and a place for a brisk indoor walk. Despite peoples declining overall interest

in shopping (which does pose a significant problem for retailers), on a typical visit to a regional shopping centre, many people spend an average of an hour or more there. Community Shopping Centre: A community shopping centre is a moderate-sized, planned shopping facility with a branch department store, in addition to several smaller stores (traditional or discount), a variety stores, and/or a category killer store, in addition to several smaller stores (usually similar to those in a neighbourhood centre). It offers a moderate assortment of both shopping and convenience-oriented goods and services to consumers from one or more nearby, well populated, residential areas. About 2000 to 10000 people, who live or work within 10 to 20 minutes of the centre, are served by this location. Neighbourhood Shopping Centre: A neighbourhood shopping centre is a planned shopping facility, with the largest store being a supermarket or a drugstore. Other retailers in the centre often include a bakery, a laundry, a dry cleaner, a stationary store. A barber shop or beauty parlour, a hardware store, a restaurant, a liquor store, and a gas station. This centre focuses on convenience-oriented goods and services for people living or working nearby. It serves 300 to 500 people who are within a 15 minute drive (usually less than 10 minutes).