V. Prasad has owned a retail store in Vizianagaram, India since 2008. Over the years, the business has grown steadily at a rate of 12% annually as customer traffic has increased. The store focuses on customer satisfaction over formal goals and aims to offer both shopping and convenience goods at competitive prices through cost-oriented and demand-based pricing. While the location and large size of 7,000 square feet are strengths, greater brand awareness could help the store attract more customers and become the top retailer in the area. Maintaining strong customer relationships and service will be key to retaining their competitive advantage against other stores like Spencer's that have entered the market.

1. Section A
1. Who did you interview?
V.PRASAD
Position: OWNER
2. How long have they been in business?
Since 2008, they have been running the store in Vizianagaram
.
3. How has their business changed over the years?
During the initial stage of the business there was a less customers but now the sales
has been increasing gradually at the rate of 12% p.a.
4. What is their mission statement?
There is no particular mission statement, in order to develop their business they used
to reach customers through low cost and also they want to increase the customer
traffic for the store.
5. Do they plan to expand, penetrate, diversify, or change their retail format in the
near future?
They are not planning for any expansion in vizianagaram and this store holds the area
of 7000sq feet which is their major strength

2. Section-B
(Retail Strategy)
1. Who is their Target Market:
 Define their customer according to demographics (Age, gender, income level
education, etc..,)
According to age:Age is never been an concern area for METRO HYPER they
always focus on customer receiving and they always give extra edge on customer
satisfaction which lead them to be one among the successful retailers in vizianagram
According to Gender:
 Both Male & Female
 Their main customers are family oriented people.
2. Merchandise Assortment:
 What are the major brands they carry?
Coco-cola, ITC, HUL, P&G, Cadbury, Nestle,...etc all the FMCG products
 Do they have private brands?
No, they don’t carry own brands.
 Where does their retailers merchandise fit on the category life cycle?
The business is doing well from past 8 years and their sales shows a growth rate of
12% p.a which shows their performance. Considering the growth rate we came to
conclusion that the business is in the growth stage and the business is increasing
eventually in the coming years.
 Does this retailer carry convenience goods, shopping goods or specialty?
Metro hyper deals with both theShopping Goods&Convenience Goods.
3. Human Resources:
 How does this store prepare and train their sales people?
Mostly they would like to hire experienced people. So there is no need to prepare and
train them.
 Are they paid on commission, salary, or hourly wage?
They paid on salary basis.

3.  Are the sales people allowed to cross sell?
Yes, the sales people are involved in cross selling in the absence of the requested
product by the consumer.
 Do they outsource any activities in their business
I couldn’t get the information due to confidentiality.
4. Store Location:
 Where is this retail store located?
, Complex, Vizianagaram
 Why do you think they choose this location?
As it is the area where the high income people are located branded stores are located
And it is a well known area.
 Is this site accessible for the customer?
As it is the main complex it is easy for the customers to get along with the store and
hence this site is accessible for the customer.
 What type of lease do they have?
On agreement basis (9 years) & monthly rent payment. The agreement can be
extended further if the business is fruitful otherwise they will shift for other better
location.
5. Pricing:
 What is this store pricing policy?
As it is a branded store standard prices will be maintained which are fixed by the
company itself. There is no frequent changing in the price according to demand etc.
 What other practices do they use to compete with price?
They are using coupons method in order to compete with price.
 Does this retailer use the cost-oriented method of pricing or demand-oriented
pricing
This retailer uses the cost-oriented pricing& demand-oriented pricing.
 Is there a frequent shopper program?
They are using coupons method in order to make the customer to visit the store
frequently.

4. 6. Communication Mix:
 What type of paid advertisements does this business use?
Pamphlets, advertisement in paper, television media (SITI cable), SMS.
 What type of unpaid communication does this business use?
Word of mouth
 Does this retailer use cooperative advertising? With whom?
No, they are not using any cooperative advertising.
 What type of sales promotions does this retailer use?
By using coupons& as per the company norms.
7. Store layout:
 What type of design layout does this store use?
Grids, free flow.
 Is it effective for customer flow?
yes, it is effective for customer flow.
 What type of fixtures do they use?
Modular retail wall system.
 What type of lightings are they using?
They are using LED BULBS and fluorescent bulbs for extra lighting in the trade area
 Is music constantly playing? What type?
No
 What type of scent is in the store? Does it detract or attract?
Attract
8. Customer Service:
 What type of services does this store offer? (Alterations, gift-wrapping etc.)
 Talk to 3 customers - What is their perception of this stores customer service?
 How does this store handle customer complaints?
 Does this store have “mystery shoppers” to check level of service?
 Is the salesperson “empowered” to make decisions or is it up to management?

5. Section-c
(Competitive Advantage)
 Does this retailer have a “competitive advantage” over similar stores?
Maintaining good Customer Relationship Management.
Giving much importance to Customer Satisfaction
 How can they retain this advantage or achieve an advantage over their
competition?
 (This section should be 2-3 paragraphs minimum -- think about it!)
 Summarize your retailer’s primary strengths and weaknesses and support your
assessment. What are their biggest challenges now and in the future? How are
they preparing to meet those challenges? What do they view as their
opportunities for the future?
Strengths:
 They have a large trade area of 7000 square feet
 They have various ranges of products and brands.
Weakness:
 Though retail is operating from 5 years it is not known to many people
Opportunities:
 The trade area is big they can offer more products with different categories.
 They can become no1 retail store if they work more on CRM
Threats:
 Existing competition from spencer’s and more.
 Opening of new stores in their area may make to share their customers

6.  What environmental and economic factors are affecting the retailer?
Suppliers
Customers
Competitors
 How is your retailer seeking to increase revenue in the future?
By developing better customer service, sales thereby increasing revenue.
 Competition
Who are the retailers’ competitors (both direct and indirect)? How does your
retailer compare to these competitors in terms of its size, market
dominance/share, sales, profitability, etc.?
Competitor:Spencer’s, more
What is your retailer’s competitive strength? How do they try to compete? Are
there strategies that have not worked for them?
They are well known for their service offered by the store so customers trust is the
main strength for their business