This project was ideated and executed by me and my mentor who helped in the successful completion of the summer project. This was done during my last term in BBA as a part of my curriculum.The aim was to draw a conclusion on the preference between the above mentioned mode of shopping for clothes within my district Nadia. The study was conducted with the use of a survey form which was designed by me and simple factor analysis which will definitely be useful for future business development and also the consumers.

1. 1
A Project Report
On
“Comparative Study on Consumer Preferences Towards
Digital Vs Traditional Clothing Stores”
Under the guidance of:
Dr. Swati Pal
Submitted by:
Debankita Das
Registration No.- 203182005010003
Roll No.- 31805020049
Paper Code- BBA_681
Batch- 2020-23
Department Of Business Administration
JIS College Of Engineering

2. 2
Acknowledgment
It was a great opportunity for me to work on the topic “Comparative study on consumer
preferences towards digital vs traditional clothing stores.” I want to thank my mentor guide
Dr. Swati Pal and all the faculty professors of the Department of Business Administration
of JIS College of Engineering for sharing their expertise and knowledge with me and without
whom the completion of this study would have been virtually impossible.

3. 3
Certificate
This is to certify that Ms. Debankita Das, Registration no.- 203182005010003 of 2020-2023,
Roll No.- 31805020049 has completed her BBA project titled “Comparative Study on
Consumer Preferences Towards Digital vs Traditional Clothing Stores” under my supervision.
I recommended her to submit this dissertation for partial fulfilment of the requirements for the
degree of BBA under JIS College Of Engineering, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad University of
Technology.
Date-
Signature of supervisor

4. 4
Declaration
I hereby declare that the project entitled “Comparative study on consumer preferences
towards digital vs traditional clothing stores” was assigned to me for the partial fulfillment
of my BBA degree under JIS College of Engineering, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
University of Technology.
The work is originally completed by me under the guidance of my mentor
Dr. Swati Pal and the information provided in this study are authentic to the best of my
knowledge. This study has not been submitted to any other institution or university for the
award of any other degree.
Signature of Student
Debankita Das

5. 5
Table of Contents
Sl. no. Description Page no.
1 Introduction 6
2 Literature Review 7
3 Objectives of the Study, Clothing Retail Business 8
4 Advantages and Disadvantages of Online and Offline
Clothing Stores
9-10
5 Research Methodology 11
6 Data Analysis and Interpretation 12-18
7 Findings 18-20
8 Limitations of the Study 20-21
9 Conclusion 21-22
10 References 22
11 Questionnaire 23-26

6. 6
Introduction
In today’s era, every person is dependent on shopping for online or offline goods and services.
It is been seen that people shop not only for necessities but also for releasing stress. It gives a
break from the monotonous routine of life. In general, we have got two types of shopping ways:
Online shopping and Offline shopping (Traditional shopping).
In the current scenario, we can observe that people are more inclined toward online shopping.
Covid19 has brought a great change in the retail market. And also, internet facilities have made
it easy for people to buy things online.
Online shopping is a kind of electronic shopping which allows customers to purchase goods
over the internet facilities from the seller using a web browser. Online shopping is popular with
many other names like e-shop, e-store, internet shop, web-shop, online store, and virtual store.
Nowadays the internet holds a major part of shopping in retail markets. But at the same time,
traditional shopping has continued for years. This is because still customers prefer to examine
the products and hold the possession of product before purchasing it. They believe that the
penny spent on purchasing should not go to waste. Just at the click of the mouse or by typing
a word in the search engine on the handset, thousands of products pop up on the screen based
on choice and the goods will be delivered to the doorstep. Online shopping has gained
popularity because of the convenience that comes along with it. The increase in technology
provides a good opportunity for sellers to reach consumers in a much faster way all over the
world
.
On the other hand, it also supports buyers by giving them various choices to look up before
making a final purchasing decision. Though online shopping is at its peak, still many consumers
do prefer offline shopping. Consumers do believe in getting quality, value, and satisfaction
from their purchases. The study focuses on knowing the consumer’s choice of shopping. The
consumer should know the right medium of shopping for the products. Many products are such
which require touch. Here comes the role of offline shopping where customers can touch, smell
or try the product before purchasing. On the contrary, many consumers have been seen
switching back to offline shopping due to some experience.

7. 7
Literature Review
1. (2013) by Yogesh Uttam Gaikwad, “An Analytical study of change in consumer
Shopping behavior with special reference to the organized retail sector in Nashik City
(2001-2010)”, their study of age, education, income, qualification, gender, preference,
purchase frequency, motives, source of information, selection factors, influencing
factors, expectation, and mode of payment focused only on consumer behavior toward
organized retail.
2. (2015) by Priyanka Singh, “Online Shopping Evaluating the Relationship among
Perceived Value, Satisfaction & Trust Based on Consumers’ Perspectives, Gwalior
M.P.”, in their general study of online shopping behavior considers perceived risk,
value, trust & satisfaction. It provides the idea about expectation & why consumer
behaves in a particular way. The study has not focused on a particular segment of the
product.
3. (2016) by Tanvi Patiyal, “Online Shopping: A Paradigm Shift in Buying Behavior of
Young Consumers in Himachal Pradesh”, in this study focuses on various influences of
factors like media, demography, privacy, and recommendation on the youth concerning
online shopping in general.
4. (2017) by Shivkumar Masanabappa Belli, “Online Consumer Behavior: A Study on the
Impact of Trust & Risk Perception on online apparel buying behavior, Karnataka” in
their study of perceived risk, customer trust, website trust, and Fashion Innovativeness
focus only on online consumer buying behavior of apparel.
5. (2021) by Eine & Charoensukmongkol, their study focuses on various technologies that
are available as a medium to buy products online, for example, online stores, online
marketplaces, or social media. Online marketplaces are managed by intermediaries and
are used by several different vendors to sell their products online in the same virtual
location.

8. 8
Objectives of the Study
• To understand the factors influencing customers’ buying behavior towards online and
offline clothing stores.
• To analyse the different online and offline consumer groups in terms of demographic,
technology use, availability, and attitude of consumers in Nadia.
• To study if the increased social media use has any impact in terms of the digitization of
buying clothes online.
• To identify consumer satisfaction and preference between digital and traditional
clothing stores.
Clothing Retail Business
The clothing retail business is always trying to keep pace with the ever-changing fashion trends
of the time. The industry is comprised of a fiercely competitive market, which is composed of
large chains (ex. Zara), small independent retailers (ex. Pernia’s Pop-up shop, Kolkata), and
the emerging dot.com e-tailers such as jodilife.com. With "Generation Z” now entering as a
consumer segment, fashion trends span across a very broad spectrum. With many technology-
savvy consumers at present, retailers are scrambling to find new ways to meet their demands.
Consumers are presented with numerous options as to what styles of clothing are available, and
where to buy them.
Due to the large presence of competitors in this market, consumers, therefore, have more
discretion over which business they patronize, making customer satisfaction critical to the
survival of a business. To achieve this customer satisfaction, many retailers have turned to the
Internet for support. Most big retailers, such as Reliance Trends, Pantaloons, and Tata Cliq,
have branched out their business in the form of a website.

9. 9
Online or Digital Clothing Stores
Advantages
1. With online shopping, access to a wide range of collections is easily available. From Eastern
to Western fashion, and access to many online international clothing stores, everything is just
a click away.
2. Shopping can be done at any time of the day. The online shopping store is at the service
24/7. The return policy is fair by a maximum number of online sites.
3. The online shopping service provides various safe and easy modes of payment (PayPal to
Google Pay), also for the convenience of customers, websites provide the option for (Cash on
Delivery).
4. With technology-savvy consumers in the present, online shopping services have come up
with many filters and comparison tools for consumer convenience which offline stores usually
cannot provide.
Disadvantages
1. Quality assurance of the product is not well known to consumers while shopping online.
Reviews with photos and videos of the product satisfy the consumers partially.
2. One of the major cons of online shopping is the time factor. Sometimes, the delivery of
orders gets delayed for a longer period, causing an increased return rate.
3. With cyber-crimes increasing, many malware practices take place in the present (fake
websites, fake payment getaways). Consumers have to be well aware of authentic and secure
websites/apps.
4. Another major con of shopping for clothes online is the absence of a trial and purchase
facility which and why the offline stores in this part are a step ahead.

10. 10
Offline or Traditional Clothing Stores
Advantages
1. While shopping for clothes offline, the popular reason is always the inspection of the product
before buying. One can easily check the fittings and quality before making any purchase.
2. Offline shopping allows one to buy and have the product at the same time (instant purchase).
One does not have to wait for days to get the product delivered.
3. Consumers often feel safe making payments in offline stores as compared to online
shopping.
Disadvantages
1. Offline clothing stores do not always meet up the trends and also keep the collection within
a range, causing the customers to shop for their desired outfits online.
2. Discounts and deals are offered for limited clothes as compared to online deals.
3. In shopping malls or stores when becomes crowdy, customers face difficulties in making
decisions regarding the purchase and face other issues.

11. 11
Research Methodology
The methods, sampling plan, and research instruments used for the collection of data are as
follows:
Research Design
It is the specification of methods and procedures and acquiring the
information needed which guides the collection of data and analysis of
data. Research design aims to ensure that the data collected is accurate
and relevant.
The descriptive design is used for this survey.
Tools Used for
Research
The tool used for analysing the data that can be collected from
questionnaires is Factor Analysis and other primary tools needed for
questionnaire design and data collection. We use factor analysis to check
the impact of different factors on a customer that leads to their
preference/buying decision.
Sampling Method Questionnaire
Sampling Size 54
Sampling Area Nadia district of West Bengal
Types of Data Collected
1. Primary Data: The data that is being collected for the first time or to particularly
fulfill the objectives of the project is known as primary data.Aquestionnaire is prepared
in such a way that it will be able to collect all relevant information regarding the project.
2. Secondary Data: Secondary data are the type of data, which are already assembled
and add value to the primary data. This is used to collect necessary data and records
from different articles, magazines, journals, reference books, newspapers, etc

12. 12
Data Analysis and Interpretation
The pie chart shows that most of the survey takers belong to youth and the rest are in the
(30-40) age group.
From the above chart, it is clear that the maximum number of female consumers’ buying
behavior is observed as compared to males.

13. 13
The majority of respondents are students and it can be identified that the student community is
well aware of online shopping facilities.
From the above chart, it can be identified that most of the respondents are occasional shoppers
of clothes which means they are need-based buyers and the rate of frequent buyers is
comparatively low.

14. 14
This chart shows that the majority of respondents are a mix of both digital and in-store shoppers
regarding apparel.
When comparing two modes of shopping regarding apparel, the majority of respondents prefer
shopping from digital or online clothing stores.

15. 15
The above data determines that most of the respondents feel convenient with trial and purchase
facilities (inspection) while shopping for apparel in-store. In-person interaction and payment
method factors are also major consideration.
Regarding the latest fashion trends, the majority of respondents find that offline/ traditional
clothing stores meet up their expectations partially.

16. 16
A situational question was asked in the survey, and it can be found that a dramatic shift has
taken place in respondents who happened to be offline shoppers, or a mix of both online and
offline, who switched to online clothing stores in terms of the price factor.
Here, social media has played a major role in terms of factors that influence consumers to
switch to online shopping.

17. 17
From the above chart, it is clear that the respondents are very much familiar with online
payment modes. While shopping clothes for online, the majority of them do not face any
difficulties at the time of making prepaid orders.
The above chart depicts the major factors which influence consumers for preferring online
clothing stores over traditional ones. Most of the respondents prefer online clothing stores in
terms of factors such as self-decision-making, easy returns policy, and a wide range of
collections.

18. 18
Among the latest online fashion apps, Myntra is considered the most preferred app by most
respondents in terms of shopping apparel online.
Findings
• 94.4% of the total respondents belong to the (18-29) age group which means the
majority of respondent’s buying behavior is of youth. The rest 5.6% belongs to the (30-
40) age group.
• In this survey, 70.4% were female respondents, and 29.6% were male which also
identifies the buying behavior of female consumers in the survey report as major.
• The respondents in majority occupies as students (88.9%) and 9.3% are employed.
• 51.9% of total respondents buy apparel occasionally which means the majority are
need-based buyers. 25.9% buys apparel monthly, 14.8% of the total respondents are not
sure, and hence their activity is uncertain, 7.4% buy weekly, which means either they
are a frequent buyer (following the latest trends/fast fashion) or they are loyal
customers.

19. 19
• It can be found that 66.7% are major respondents who prefer a mix of both shopping
modes (digital and in-store), 16.7% prefer to buy apparel in-store, and the rest 16.7%
prefer to buy online.
• When comparing both modes of shopping, 55.6% of respondents prefer to shop for
clothes online as compared to offline stores (44.4%). The buying behavior is observed
for most of the respondents in this area who prefer shopping for apparel online.
• Trial and purchase facilities are one of the most influencing factors by which (40.7%)
of respondents choose traditional clothing stores over digital ones. While 37% prefer
offline clothing stores for all the factors provided, which means the other half of the
total respondents are considered to be offline shoppers. 9.3% consider in-person
interaction /guide to be the factor for them while 7.4% do not prefer offline shopping
for apparel. It can be found that the convenience of offline shopping is still considered
by a majority of the respondents in this area.
• Most of the respondents find that traditional clothing stores partially meet their
expectations regarding the latest fashion trends (40.7%).
35.2% are fully satisfied with traditional clothing store’s collections while 24.1% are
unsatisfied with the collection.
• In a situational question, a dramatic shift has been observed where the respondents who
happened to be offline shoppers have switched their preference to online clothing stores
in terms of the price factor (87%). While the other 13% have kept their preference for
offline clothing stores. It can be found that people in this area who shop solely offline
are comparatively low.
• 55.6% of the respondents have purchased apparel from social media platforms and
44.4% have not made any purchases regarding apparel from social media platforms. It
can be seen that the majority of the respondents in this area are well aware of the online
clothing businesses on social media platforms and the rest might have faced issues or
have not made any buying decisions towards social media.

20. 20
• At the time of making any prepaid order 68.5% of the respondents have not faced any
difficulties which also shows that the majority of the respondents in this area are
familiar with digital modes of payments. 16.7% have faced some difficulties and thus
it can be considered as a reason for them to prefer offline clothing stores in terms of
transaction/payment modes. 14.8% have faced difficulties at times.
• 40.7% of the respondents prefer online/digital clothing stores over traditional ones in
terms of all the factors provided: self-decision making, easy returns/refund policy, and
wide range of collections. 16.7% prefer online clothing stores solely in terms of easy
returns/refund policy. 16.7% prefer online in terms of the wide range of collections
available. 9.3% of the respondents feel self-decision making a factor for their buying
motive. While the other 16.7% do not prefer to make any purchases from online
clothing stores. It can be found that comparing the factors of both shopping modes, the
majority of the respondents prefer online clothing stores in this area.
• Myntra is considered to be the most preferred (53.7%) shopping app among the latest
fashion apps/sites. 18.5% of the respondents prefer other fashion apps/sites, 14.8%
prefer Ajio for online apparel shopping, 7.4% prefer Urbanic, and 5.6% do not prefer
any online fashion apps/sites. It can be found that the majority of the respondents are
well aware of online shopping facilities whereas the rate of solely offline shoppers is
comparatively very low.
Limitations of the Study
• The study was restricted to a limited area.
• The study was restricted to a limited time.
• The study only focuses on the buying behavior of the clothing/apparel category.

21. 21
• Only 54 respondents were taken for the study.
• Accuracy of the study depends on the truth of the response.
Conclusion
Online shopping is a new experience and has greatly impacted consumers’ lives in its short
time. Online shopping has made consumers more effective and efficient in their shopping
behavior and has driven clothing businesses to a new level, forcing many to make the necessary
adjustments and changes to reach the new market of knowledgeable consumers. The results of
this survey underscore the need for businesses to take the online market seriously. The survey
conducted revealed a positive attitude and behavior toward online shopping even by those
consumers who still like traditional stores. These consumers are mostly in youth and senior-
age groups. Those consumer groups have time to spend in traditional stores and malls and value
the offline shopping experience for clothing, such as inspection before buying, safe payment
modes, and in-person/social interaction. These consumers appear to be more knowledgeable
by gathering information online and then purchasing from traditional stores.
The rapid growth of e-commerce after Covid19 has resulted in an E-transformation in the
global apparel retail infrastructure. Increased use of social media during the lockdown period
has made a huge impact on consumer buying decisions. The Internet has emerged as a cost-
effective means of doing business. Secured online payments, better return policies, and exciting
discounts could help the Perceptions of Shopping Benefits. Considering the demographic
profiles of online users; gender, age, and education have significant associations with web
shopping in the current area of Nadia district, West Bengal. The overall results prove that the
respondents have perceived online shopping positively. This justifies the projected growth of
online shopping for apparel in this area. However, the frequency of online shopping is relatively
less in this area. Online shopping organizations can use the relevant variables and factors,
identified from the study, to formulate their strategies and plans in Nadia, West Bengal.

22. 22
Organizations can prioritize the consumer’s implicit and explicit requirements in the online
shopping environment. The results can also be used by various organizations to identify their
target customer segments. The results of the study can be utilized by practitioners in relooking
or revamping their strategies for online shopping. Online fashion websites should pay more
attention to the female segments as results prove that females shop more in online shopping as
compared to men
Reference
• https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/23311975.2021.1968206
• https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20200722-the-curious-origins-of-online-
shopping
• https://www.pinkvilla.com/lifestyle/people/online-vs-offline-shopping-which-one-do-
you-prefer-542972
• Alavi, S. A., Rezaei, S., Valaei, N., & Ismail, W. K. W. (2016). Examining shopping
mall consumer decision-making styles, satisfaction, and purchase intention. The
International Review of Retail, Distribution, and Consumer Research, 26(3), 272–303.
https://doi.org/10.1080/09593969.2015.1096808
• Arora, N., & Aggarwal, A. (2018). The role of perceived benefits in the formation of
online shopping attitude among women shoppers in India. South Asian Journal of
Business Studies, 7(1), 91–110. https://doi.org/10.1108/SAJBS-04-2017-0048
• Gupta, P. (2015). Comparative study of online and offline shopping: A case study of
Rourkela in Odisha (Doctoral dissertation).