Fashion Retailing in Challenging Times
Brand perspective
PEARL ACADEMY RETAIL CONCLAVE 2009-CHENNAI

Recession
• In economics, the term 'recession' is generally used to
describe an economic phase in which GDP (Gross Domestic
Product) declines for two consecutive quarters.
• Cyclic Event
• Economic Environment

Product:
• Make what sells- Do not sell what you make.
• Fashion has been and will always be time sensitive…
and Core is price sensitive.
• Differentiate your product instead of discounting.
People do move downwards in price point but
however they are always looking for value even at
those price points.

Pricing:
• Never - Never compete on price as any body can drop their
prices lower than yours.
• If a customer does not respect the price stamped on your
product he is not yours as he is looking for a better offering.
• In challenging times, offer value perhaps ” more for less “ is
one such term used commonly.
• Create intangible values that add to brand aspiration : re-
cycle, re-new or re-use, exchange or create needs for
adjacency products or services
• Look at a pool of offerings , instead of a singular product or
services.

Place
• Reach … placement of the product in the right
places and in the right manner , remember that there
are enough consumers out there who are already
buying
• Try alternative selling channels as opposed to
placing all the eggs in one basket.
• Open own stores at best prices possible, try e-
business and look for most efficient and economical
supply route.
• Stand alone stores are the face of the brand in every
respect , be it aspiration , touch point , signature ,
feel , look , service .
• In short “EBO’S” are the life line of the brand.

Supplies
• Work closely with supplier on:
– Timely Delivery
– Delivery in phases
– Use their warehouse space.
• Dispatch when it requires NOT when you receive.

Promotion ( Marketing)
• In the current scenario spending money in the right
manner is the greatest challenge ….thinking laterally is
the need of the hour .
• Adopt alternatives like sms, emailers, banners, inserts,
postcards, event sponsorship, events for loyal
customers.
• Direct energies towards creating ”enhanced awareness”
of the brand ,
• “Aspiration” will eventually lead to a far better
proposition in terms of Value in the eyes of the
consumer.

Personnel ( Manpower)
• In a store It’s not as important “What U R Selling” as
opposed to “HOW U R Selling”.
• Providing good merchandise, prompt refills, Brand
aspiration , ambience , are a given but most importantly
how you serve your guest will define the next visit.
• Main focus is to upgrade them to meet the challenges.
• My organization average is 29 years old which means not
only we think faster but also implement faster. This makes
us different from others.
• Take new initiatives like sending them for skill
development; enrolling them in various other development
courses as most of them have grown with us and may not
have had the time to upgrade their skills.

Decide the position to fight
Decide the position to fight
Price-based- Most common
Location-based Quality-based
Time-based

Past Learning
• Several researches have revealed that businesses which
promote themselves as self confident during hard economic
times perform better not only during the slowdown period but
even for the following years.
• This strategy helps bolstering consumers' confidence making
them think that they have chose the right product from the
right organization at a difficult economic time.

Cont…
• Another effective way for businesses to gain on their
competitors is to enhance their advertising campaigns.
Recession is the time when there is less "noise" and
congestion (fewer advertisers) in the marketplace and it is
why the best time to increase consumer awareness at a
relatively low cost.
• In a study of the 1981-82 recession in the United States,
McGraw-Hill Research analyzed 600 B2B companies in 16
different industries. The results revealed that companies
which took the recession as an opportunity to increase sales
and market share performed better than those who didn't.

The bottom line:
• Businesses which are jittery about the current slowdown in
Indian economy need to realize that recessions can be good
times for them to gain advantages over their competitors and
pave a new way for success.
– Smart branding,
– Cost effective advertising,
– Attractive promotional strategies
– “WOW” merchandise
– Great Service are the keys to solve the jigsaw puzzle
called Recession.

THANK YOU
ALOK SHARMA