BHARTIYA-the unique wear makes the women feel more unique

NATASHA CHHOWALA-10BSP1029 8/1/2010

INTRODUCTION

Product segments, is undergoing an astounding change of perception. While it continuous to enjoy the position of being an enhancer of beauty, the new age consumer perceives fashion as a must, manifesting the wearers attitude, personality and lifestyle.

India has a rich and a varied textile heritage. Each region of India has its own unique native costume and attire and accessories. In India the mix of language, food and culture changes every 80-100 kilometres making its fashion as diverse as the tradition and culture of the country.

Fashion in India covers a whole range of clothing from ornate clothes designed for wedding ceremonies to prêt lines. Traditional Indian techniques of embroidery such as chiken, zardosi, and traditional weaves and fabrics have been used by Indian designers to create indo-western clothing in a fusion of the east-west, allowing the Indians to choose from the best of both worlds.

Sari still forms a significant part of an average Indian woman‟s wardrobe. In spite of the concerns that Sari will lose their significance in the post traditional India characterized by 1990 onwards, Saris still are gaining momentum, in terms of sales and in terms of profits to the retailers. During 1998-2009, according to a survey, Saris registered an impressive growth of 8%. This has been made possible primarily because of two factors: innovations and should I say, Ekta Kapoor!! Even companies like Fabindia are looking at Saris as one of their primary business show stoppers which are evident by their opening of exclusive sari stores in India. Traditional costumes in India vary widely depending on the climate and natural fibres region. In the tropical warmth of south India women drape 5 meters of cloth around their bodies, in the graceful folds of the sari. Saris are woven in silk, cotton and artificial fibres. Kanjivaram, Mysore, Paithani, Pochampalli, Jamdani, Baluchari, Banarasi, Sambalpuri and Bandhini are some varieties of beautiful saris from different regions of India.In urban India the salwar kameez and the churidar kameez are commonly worn by women and the sari is worn on formal occasions. The sari, however, is an element of the daily wardrobe for most married women in the South. INDIAN FASHION No matter how many styles and trends come into the limelight, the Indian sari never loses its grace, beauty and elegance. Indian women wearing a sari look graceful, stylish, elegant and sensuous. This beautiful fashion attire has spanned ages in India, and still exists as the quintessential element in every Indian woman‟s wardrobe. The sari is a simple attire that consists of a single, rectangular piece of material that constantly changes in looks, styles, designs and fabrics from generation to generation.Indian saris come in a range of fabrics starting from cotton to silk, georgettes to crepe and many more.These saris are adorned with various embellishments like mirror work, zari, embroidery, zardosi, sequence, patch work, pearl work, kundan etc. The most popular Indian saris are Banarasi, Kanjeevaram, Bandhej, Chanderi, Chikan, Hakoba, Handloom, Baluchari, Patola, Phulkari and Parsi saris.3 1 Another very popular and widespread Indian attire is the salwar kameez. The drift from saris to salwar kameez in Indian women is evident. More and more women prefer to wear the salwar kameez, because it is more convenient for daily wear. Saris are now worn for special occasions only by many. This has given a boost to the Indian salwar kameez industry. Hence many fashion designers in the country are focusing on this beautiful outfit, trying to provide consumers with some of the most unique and exquisite collections of salwar kameezes. Zardosi work on salwar kameezes is evergreen.This dress provides opportunities for a lot of fine embroidery and other ornamental work. Thus in order to capture the whole market BHARTIYA-the unique wear makes the women feel more unique will provide the customers with variety of sarees from different regions.

BHARTIYA’S Mission Statement We are the employer of choice offering team members opportunities For Growth, Advancement, And Rewarding Careers in a Safe Working Environment. • P.E.A.R.L.S  Passion for excellence in doing everything.  Execute with positive energy and urgency  Accountability for growth in customer satisfaction and profitability  Recognize the achievement of others  Listen and more importantly, respond to the voice of the customer.

Marketing Objectives To increase the segment share of the sari Market.

Key Issue The biggest competitive barrier is local brands in various states, which is treated as a gold standard by the consumer.

Communication Task To create dissonance in the local brands user‟s mind by positioning BHARTIYA as a better option as compared to a brand she has been using more out of habit

STP FOR BHARTIYA-the unique wear makes the womwn feel unique

SEGMENTATION

The essence of the marketing concept is the idea of placing customer needs at the centre of the organization‟s decision-making. The need to adopt this approach stems from a number of factors, including increased competition, better-informed and- educated customers and, most importantly, changing patterns of demand. Primarily it is this change in patterns of demand that has given rise to the need to segment markets. This stems from the fact that higher standards of living and a trend towards individualism has meant that consumers are now more able to exercise their choice in the market place.

Market segmentation can be defined as the process of breaking down the total market for a product or service into distinct sub-groups or segments where each segment may conceivably represent a separate target market to be reached with a distinctive marketing mix. Segmentation and the subsequent strategies of targeting and positioning start by recognizing that increasingly, within the total demand/market for a product, specific tastes, needs and demand may differ. It breaks down the total market for a product or service into individual clusters of customers, or segments. Here, customers who share similar demand preferences are grouped together within each segment.

Effective segmentation is achieved when customers sharing similar patterns of demand are grouped together and where each group or segment differs in the pattern of demand from other segments in the market. In most markets, be they consumer or industrial, some kind of segmentation can be accomplished on this basis.

The factors which can translate big profits for a Sari retailer in India who wants to have a pan India presence. Here are a few of them 1. Strong Brand Name

The brand name should reach out widely to women population in the country Which means that brand names such as Garden and Nalli have an upfront advantage over the others. It also means that for any newbie entrant, it would make sense to spend resources in terms of brand building. Thus for bhartiya to enter into market have to build up a strong brand building in the mind of consumers. 2. Orientation to Wedding

Purchase of Saris has been strongly anchored to wedding. More saris are purchased for wedding than for any other usage. Thus stores would do well to cater to this segment. This would also make sense as wedding saris are high value, high volume and high margin items. Thus with this theory, stand alone “casual” sari stores would not survive. It would also mean that niche stores selling saris on the basis of usage segmentation have a lower chance of success. 3. Catering to both niche and large segment

It means the ability to provide variety of colors and designs on one hand and innovations on the other. Thus variety is something that one cannot ignore when considering selling saris. Women like to compare saris before purchasing. They also welcome any innovation in saris. Kumaran Stores has done a commendable job by introducing Sarees with Zip pallus, color changing and Saree-shirt combo.

4. Presence in Strategic Cities

This is the first lesson in any Retail Management Books. For Saris, however, it would make more sense as these cities act as sources from where fashion trickles down to Class-II and III cities. The presence in these cities would also offset any real space price hike in the future.

5. Presence in strategic locations and store ambience

Given point 4, 5 follows almost logically. As it is true with any apparel retail store, location is the key to success. Stores should be designed, however, differently than the other apparel retail stores. The size of a sari store has to be larger than the average apparel retail store because the need to display will be more. Also like buying Jewellery, woman in India needs relaxed environment when selecting saris. So sitting arrangement should be preferred with salesmen catering to them.

6. Competency in Supply Chain

Sari supply chain management involves planning right from merchandize sourcing, standardization of quality in procurement, vendor management, logistics support, quality control, „pilferage‟ control and replacement and replenishment. The supply chain management should provide a retailer flexibility to adapt to changing patterns in consumer behaviour and retailer‟s ability to add value at various steps/levels. This can provide the retailer assistance in maintaining a low working capital requirement and less carrying cost.

7. Control Systems Control system applications are essential to handle retail chains of large magnitude. The office systems should support procurement, supply chain logistics, distribution centre‟s management and store operations including inventory management and billing. It would be better to build a system to monitor the inventory position on a real-time basis at each store, under which a stock requisition or delivery order is generated when pre- determined stock or re-order levels are reached. The re-order levels for stores can be determined based on factors such as display levels, lead time for replenishment and average daily sales. The re-order levels should be reviewed on a continuous basis to factor in variances in demand based on seasons, trends and promotional schemes.

8. Complementary Retail arrangements

High value saris are purchased on occasion. It would be better to tie-up with retailers who provide other accessories on such occasions. Thus it would be prudential to enter into Franchisee arrangement with well-known jewelers for display of their jewelley in sari stores. That would recover some costs incurred in advertisement, electricity and rent. d on advertisement, rent, electricity and other operational costs.

9. Strong Customer Relationship Management

Saris are as valuable in the Indian consumer‟s heart as jewellery. Thus very strong emotional connections are needed in order to have repeated footfall. Thus a data base of consumers is an absolute must as a beginning. Then comes communication with those customers. All new offers, sales, discounts and schemes should be conveyed to them on phone or/and by mail. This will go a long way in winning the hearts of Indian consumers and their pockets.

Marketing planning

New firms have limited resources in terms of finance, marketing knowledge and time. Often, their marketing Steps in Marketing knowhow depends only on personal contacts. The owner of Planning the firm or the manager who runs the show normally comes from technical background. They lack specialist marketing expertise. They don‟t realise the need for specialist marketing experts in their firms. Their advertisement and publicity is also negligible. Hence, they have limited impact on the market place. Many experts advocate that the small firms in the Indian textile industry should incorporate marketing planning for their further growth. But the small firms are reluctant to act upon their suggestions. There seems to be lack of faith in marketing planning which might be due to their lack of awareness.

Marketing planning is basically about integrating „needs of the customers‟ in all the activities of the firm in a planned manner. It includes four steps: a) Understanding market opportunities

Marketing planning starts from understanding the market and the opportunities it offers. The new apparel firms have to regularly watch and assess the market environment either in domestic or overseas. They have to have a strong sense about the fashion cycle which determines the demand for any apparel product. This is very important to predict what will happen to the product in future. A fashion cycle has five distinctive but continuous stages such as introduction, rise, peak, decline and rejection. The cycle may also recur after certain number of latent years. Many fashion cycles might behave like a fad and a few cycles would continue as classics. Fads are fashions that are adopted quickly with great enthusiasm and decline very fast. Classic fashions always stay in consumer day-to-day life. For example, cotton saree is a classic and boot cut jeans is a fad. Apart from this, the marketers must be vigilant about the competitors‟ activity. For example, the competitors might come up with innovative new products to serve a niche market that would be substantial enough to hold interest. Further, they should also look at the suppliers, distributors and retailers volume of business and profitability to expand the business in terms of forward or backward integration. For instance, the financial strength gathered over the years might encourage the small manufacturers to go for forward integration which could be in the form of retailing. b) Segmenting the market

All the customers are not the same. Their needs and wants differ. Hence, the marketing efforts can not be the same for all the customers. But there may be similarities among group of customers in terms of their needs and wants. Segmenting is nothing but identifying such groups. For a new apparel manufacturer, it may be in terms of export agents, import agents, retailers and end consumers. The marketing efforts of the manufacturer should be specifically suited to the particular segment. The manufacturer can target only one segment or a few segments that suits its goals and the attractiveness of the segment. It can also have a target plan of which segment first, second and so on. The segmentation may go to the next level called identifying very narrow segment which is called as niche. The ultimate level of segmentation is one to one marketing. In this case, the marketing efforts are suited to the needs and wants of the individual customer.

In marketing and advertising, a target audience, or target group is the primary group of people that, usually an advertising campaign, is aimed at appealing to. A target audience can be people of a certain age group, gender, marital status, etc. (eg:- for BHARTIYA age group will be from 20 to 50 and more, females, single and commited people, etc.) A certain combination, like women from twenty to thirty is often a target audience. Other groups, although not the main focus, may also be interested. Discovering the appropriate target market(s) to market a product or service to is one of the most important stages involved with market research. Without knowing the target audience, a company's advertising and the selling efforts can become difficult and very expensive.

Target Audiences are set to focus on different groups: Adults, teens and children. Like in BHARTIYA the target audience are female. It is essential to become familiar with your target market, their habits, behaviors, likes, and dislikes. Markets differ in size, assortment, geographic scale, locality, types of communities, and in the different types of merchandise sold and because of the many variations included in a market it is essential, since you cannot accommodate everyone‟s preferences, to know exactly who you are marketing to and the specific fondness of that market. To better become acquainted with the ins and outs of your designated target market legend a market analysis must be completed. A market analysis is a documented examination of a market that is used to enlighten a business‟s preparation activities surrounding decisions of inventory, purchase, work force expansion/contraction, facility expansion, purchases of capital equipment, promotional activities, and to improve daily operations and many other aspects.

TARGET AUDIENCE

 Bhartiya targets higher and upper middle class female customers.  The large and growing female young working population is a preferred customer segment.  It also specifically targets working women.

c) Positioning and differentiating the offer

When the manufacturer is targeting its efforts on a particular segment, the segment should recognise the manufacturer‟s distinctive offering. In their minds, consumers associate the popular brand for its premium and high quality suits. This is the position BHARTIYA consciously will develop over the years through their „unique features‟ advertisement. The positions can be created by the benefits that the customers get or the features that the product has. The small apparel firm can position itself in terms of the quality certificates that it would have received from respectable certification agency or it may position itself for offering best value for money or number of years of existence. The small apparel manufacturer should also think that how its offer is different from its competitors.

Accordingly, the offer with such difference should be made available to the customers. Care must be taken to focus on a difference which cannot be easily copied by the competitors. The firm can differentiate its offering in terms of product, accompanied services, employees, distribution channel and image. The firm can focus on a niche segment and differentiate its offer from competitors in terms of style and premium platforms. It can also go for competitive price with better quality as one of the differentiator.

BRAND POSITIONING AND VALUES

Brand Positioning

– Brand positioning is all about identifying the optimal location in our customers‟ minds for our Brand and our competitors – Proper positioning makes it easier to facilitate understanding of our Brand

 Taken to its‟ logical conclusion, you might think of the Principle as an indicator of a brand‟s position  The first step is to identify and establish Brand positioning and brand values (Keller)  Positioning is the foundation for creating and fostering the desired knowledge and perceptions of your customers  remember our 3 types of associations in memory?  We can really only manage one (positive), can respond to a second (negative), and have no control over the third (idiosyncratic)  Proper positioning  Clarifies what the Brand is all about  How it is both unique and similar to competitive brands  Why customers should purchase and use the Brand BHARTIYA positioning

 Provide you with variety of sarees.  Celebrities: sonam kapoor Deepika padukone Konkana sen  Weekly discounts are available.  Discounts offer on anniversary and birthday.

d) Developing marketing mix strategies

Most of the decisions in marketing can be classified into „four Ps‟: Product, price, place and promotion. Product means the goods-and-services combination the firm offers to the target market. It includes decisions related to the quality of the yarn, fabric, dye, stitching, designs of the fabric as well as apparel, branding, packaging, and accompanied services. Pricing includes the decisions related to list price, discounts, allowances, payment-period and credit terms. Place means the activities of the firm that make the product available to target consumers. It includes decisions such as distributor network or having own retail shops, transportation, logistics and factory locations. Promotion means activities that communicate the merits of the product and persuade target customers to buy it. It includes advertising, sales promotion, personal selling and public relations decisions. All these decisions can be manipulated for a strategic purpose of entering, growing and competing in the market. The marketing mix decisions help the firm to tactically establish a strong positioning in the minds of the target costumers.

4 P’S OF MARKETING

PRODUCT MIX

Product: How should the company design, manufacture the product so that it enhances the customer experience Product is the physical product or service offered to the consumer. Product includes certain aspects such as packaging, guarantee, looks etc. This includes both the tangible and the non- tangible aspects of the product and service.

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Catalog No. 109 Total Items 25 Price Range:- 900 to 3000 rs

EMBOIDERED SALWAR

SAREES 305

Catalog No. 305 Total Items 32 Price Range:-5000 to 10000rs DESIGNER SAREES

SAREES 308

Catalog No. 308 Total Items 38 Price Range:- 1500 to 4000rs PRINTED SAREES

SALWAR KAMEEZ 107

Catalog No. 107 Total Items 72 Price Range:-650 to 1500 rs

CASUAL SALWAR KAMEEZ

PRICING

As there are no such specific brand competitors for BHARTIYA which could compete with the quality , therefore, the pricing strategy adopted by us is 'market skimming'. We will adopt this pricing strategy as we want to hold maximum share of the market by maximum profit. This is a golden era for us, as there are no competitors and hence, is free to charge any price we want. We will charge higher prices due to the uniqueness of the product. We will satisfy the target market as the sari quality is worth the price paid. The pricing strategy is not just to get the worth of quality but also to gain maximum profits before any competitor enters because then will have to change pricing strategy. Although the prices would be lowered with the new entrants in the market but not to a greater extent as we are having monopoly First, this pricing strategy will help segment the market. Different groups of customers are willing to pay different prices for the same product. The high/low pricing strategy will also create excitement. The pricing strategy adopted by us is 'market skimming'. We will adopt this pricing strategy as we want to hold maximum share of the market by maximum profit. This product will emphasize product and service quality.

 Value pricing(EDLP)  Promotional pricing a. Low interest financing b. Psychological discounting c. Special event pricing  Differentiated pricing a. Time pricing  Bundling

PLACE/DISTRIBUTION

It refers to the best place to offer program. That is the place where it is located and through what channels are we distributing programs and the competitive advantage lies in distribution.

 Initially identifies future/ potential development areas  Acquires such areas at an early phase before the real estate value booms  Located at high traffic areas  Online trading

E-TAILING

 To overcome location disadvantage-launched a merchandise retailing website www.bhartiyasarees.com which targets high-end customers ready to use credit cards.  Internet as place has put them in a profitable position because there is a minimal expense of maintaining a website.  The low level of internet penetration proves a hindrance for a rapid growth.

Distribution The type of distribution channel used by BHARTIYA is the direct channel. The direct channel is successful when there is an extremely large market that is geographically dispersed. The direct channel is also useful when there are a large number of buyers, but a small amount purchased by each.

PROMOTION:

The objectives of promotion are to introduce a new product, stimulate demand, change the short-term behavior of the customers, and encourage repeat or greater usage by current customers.  We are using billboards on main stream places to get target customers.  we are also distributing door to door brochures to capture more and more customers(especially for house wives).  we are using marketing techniques. These are the strategies we wil be using for its marketing.  We are trying to attract the different women from different states their main market segment.  Apart from this we are using intense marketing strategies we are also giving ads in magazines. Advertising camping will creates awareness of the products in our target markets.

 Exchange offer  Weekly discounts  Point of purchase promotion

 Future card (5% discount You can enjoy Shopping in 3 ways: order on the web, order by phone, by e-mail. Our mission is to provide our customers with an exceptional selection of styles, colors and sizes in finest collection of sarees (saris) to make special occasions perfect. We have a terrific selection for your festival occasions whether you need a designer sarees(saris) or wedding sarees (saris) or bridal sarees(saris). We're sure you'll find the perfect clothing outfit for you.

CONCLUSION

BHARTIYA has many targets which it has achieve in a given period of time. The time- period is mostly a year. Therefore, in order to fulfill the targets different strategies are adopted by BHARTIYA. It can be concluded that these strategies have been successful and there is flexibility in the strategies, as they can be changed with the changes in the market conditions as well as the targets.