Background of Staples< Stage Star India Bazaar >

Staples

Parent CompanyStaples

CategoryOffice supply chain store

SectorLifestyle and Retail

Tagline/ SloganThat was easy

USPLow prices, guaranteed

STP

SegmentOffice going people

Target GroupInfluencer and people from purchase department of office

PositioningLow prices for office supplies, electronics and furniture

SWOT Analysis

Strength 1. Over 2,000 stores worldwide in 26 countries.2. Sells office machines, promotional products, furniture, technology and business services both in stores and online.3. Staples do business exclusively withenterprisesin multiple European countries asStaples Advantage.4. More than 1,00,000 employee worldwide.5. Creative advertising and branding has enhanced its brand visibility

Weakness1. Still hasnt made penetration into the emerging economies2. Strong competition means market share is less compared to global leaders

Opportunity1. Global penetration into emerging economies 2. Incorporation of recycled content gives an edge over and above its competitor in a society.3. Better customer relationship will help to achieve more market share.

Threats1. Expansion planning in offerings by Staples may dilute focus on core competency2. Intense competition3. Changing govt policies and regulations on FDIs

Competition

Competitors1. Wal-Mart 2. Office Max3. Circuit City Stores

Store locationDoor no 5 , Opposite to forum mall,Krishna nagar, Industrail area , Kormangala, Bangalore- 560029

Staple is located at a prime location in kormangala , mainly to attract Christ university students. Its closer to forum mall which is an advantage for staples brand .

The store is of 2 floors of 4400 sq.ft . Its a well spaced out store with the merchandise arranged category wise.The grong floor has electronics and the first floor has stationary supplies.

Store layout

Need to determine the basic layout of the store Use signage to guide customers through the store and assist them in locating and finding info about merchandise variety of approaches used to feature specific products layouts- method of encouraging customer exploration present them with a layout which facilitates a specific traffic pattern. Eg Toys R us uses a specific layout which forces customers to move through a sections of inexpensive impulse purchase products to larger more expensive goods 3 types of layouts Grid Racetrack free formStaples has a free form layout

Signage and Graphics

Help customers locate specific products and departments, provide specific information, and suggest items or special purchases Graphics- can add personality, beauty to the stores image Location: use to identify the location of merchandise. Large stores display directional signage to guide customers around the store and from one area to another. Hanging signs from the ceilings to enhance visibility

Category signage: used within particular dept or sector of the store, smaller than directional signs. Purpose- to identify the types of products offered-located near the referred goods.

Point of sale: placed near the merchandise they refer to so that customers know its price and detailed information. Help to quickly identify special offers

Effective signage

Keep signs and graphics fresh: should be relevant to items displayed . New signs= new merchandise Limit text on signs: signs with too much copy wont work. Use appropriate typefaces on signs

Feature Areas

are those areas within a store designed to get customers attention include freestanding displays, end caps, promotional aisles, windows cash wraps or point of sale areas and walls

Free standing display

Are fixtures or mannequins located on aisles designed to primarily attract customers attention and bring them into the department. Often display and store most newest, exciting merchandise into the dept

Walls

limited retail space, use walls to store, display and present a message

Space allocated to Merchandise categories

Since staples has there own brand of stationary , that is given more space in terms of square foot .On the whole there is an entire stationary is given a complete floor.

Retail Mix Strategya) Pricing strategyA business can use a variety of pricing strategies when selling a product or service. The Price can be set to maximize profitability for each unit sold or from the market overall. It can be used to defend an existing market from new entrants, to increase market share within a market or to enter a new market. Businesses may benefit from lowering or raising prices, depending on the needs and behaviours of customers and clients in the particular market. Finding the right pricing strategy is an important element in running a successful business.

Staples is priced at a lower price as compared to other stationery brands. They dont have any competition in stationery products from other stationery brands. Local stationery shops is a competition for Staples or rather Staples is a completion for the local stationery shops. Staples also provides 10% discount on bulk orders for office and school appliances.

b) Product assortmentIn marketing terms, a product is anything that can be offered to a market to satisfy a want or need. In other words, a product is the item(s) or service(s) that you are offering your customers.A product can be a physical object or a service and may refer to a single item or unit, a group of equivalent products or a group of goods or services. A product has three components:-Core product this is the end benefit for the buyer and answers the question: What is the buyer really buying? For example, the buyer of a car is buying a means of transport, the buyer of an aspirin is buying pain relief and the buyer of financial advice is hoping to buy financial security and peace of mind.Formal product this is the actual physical or perceived characteristics of your product including its level of quality, special features, styling, branding and packaging.Augmented product the support items that complete your total product offering such as after-sales service, warranty, delivery and installation.

Staples provides stationery products and I.T. products and services.

In stationery it offers: Basic Office Supplies Paper and Paper Products School Essentials Pens, Pencils and Markers Notebooks and Notepads Arts and Crafts Boards and Easels Diaries and Planners Housekeeping Products Gifting Product

In I.T. it offers: Laptops Mobiles and Smartphones Tablets Printers and Cartridges Pen Drives External Hard Drives Wireless Router and Cables Computer Accessories Batteries and UPS Spike Gaurds and Adapters

Staples also provides I.T. services like laptop repairs, Hard Drive repairs etc. It takes orders for printing pamphlets, printouts and Xerox in bulk at discount rates. It also provides extended services like free deliveries and customer loyalty programs.

c) Promotion strategy

Staples uses a mix of promotional Strategies.

It uses media for advertisements like radio and television.It does promotions through distributing pamphlets around colleges and schools. Putting up banners at different places and posters in colleges. Staples did promotional activities in Nift Bangalore, Christ College, etc. for its new store opening.

d) PeopleStaples has 24 employees in its kormangala store with one store manager. It has a sales team which is trained in I.T. for better serving the customers that come in. Employees are encouraged to do better and their performance is evaluated. Employees are motivated through different incentives which they get if they perform well.

e) placePlace is an integral to the retail marketing mix, both in terms of physical locations and the placement of information about the products. The idea is to make sure that the physical as well as the virtual venues chosen for the product are also places that the targeted consumers are most likely to visit. Paying close attention to where the products can be found can go a long way toward making it easier for customers to find and purchase the goods and services.The staples retail store in Bangalore city is currently located at kormagala, opposite to forum mall. It is characterized by high traffic and accessible for transportation from different parts of the city. The location is also known for higher crowdedness of customers as it is found at the centre of the city just near to the mall. It is also selected by the store to be nearby to its branch specialized in information technology services.f) PresentationIn retail, the design of your store and the way you present your products is an important part of the marketing mix. The display should fit your image so that customers encounter a cohesive experience. In a high-end retailer, products are often placed father apart to create a sense of scarcity and exclusivity; in a computer store, display models are set at waist height to allow testing. Placement can help bring certain products to attention and promote items you want to sell more of.Besides, it is true that a well-planned retail store layout allows a retailer to maximize the sales for each square foot of the allocated selling space within the store.Store layouts generally show the size and location of each department, any permanent structures, fixture locations and customer traffic patterns.Each floor plan and store layout will depend on the type of products sold, the building location and how much the business can afford to put into the overall store design.The staple store in Bangalore is generally a free flow layout store with a total area of 4,200 square feet. It has two floors which are basically categorized in such a way that the ground floor is dedicated for electronics and some stationary items while the first floor is allocated for the typical category killer of stationary products.The store design can be expressed as a normal external design and the interior part has some special designs that match with their brand and products.The displays of products are mainly by using floor fixtures, tables and also wall fixtures which are appropriate for the specific products.

3. Store operation analysisStore operations refer to operating and overseeing all the functions of the store from setting up shop, deciding what type of store you want, what products you want to sell, deciding on what type of customers you are trying to attract into your store (young, old, fat, skinny, thrifty or extravagant), then ordering the products, hiring personnel, pricing the products, deciding on a location, taking an inventory, advertising the products, etc.

3.1 Customer serviceCustomer service is the service provided to customers before, during and after purchasing and using goods and services. Good customer service provides an experience that meets customer expectations. It produces satisfied customers. Bad customer service can generate complaints. It can result in lost sales, because consumers might take their business to a competitor.Good customer service is the lifeblood of any business. You can offer promotions and slash prices to bring in as many new customers as you want, but unless you can get some of those customers to come back, your business won't be profitable for long.Good customer service is all about bringing customers back. And about sending them away happy - happy enough to pass positive feedback about your business along to others, who may then try the product or service you offer for themselves and in their turn become repeat customers.

8 Rules for Good Customer Service Answer your phone. Don't make promises unless you will keep them. Listen to your customers. Deal with complaints. Be helpful - even if there's no immediate profit in it. Train your staff (if you have any) to be always helpful, courteous, and knowledgeable. Take the extra step. Throw in something extraThe staples Bangalore store pays great attention for customer service as the business long-term life is dependent on keeping its existing customers and attracting new ones too. The target customers of the staples store are people who are 18-32 ages old. The customers of staples brand are mainly institutional buyers for stationary products which buy in bulk with discount such as government and private schools, colleges, offices etc. The store delivers the sales at the compound of the buyers as a customer service activity. There is no any feedback on the accessibility problems on the stores location now.To this regard, staples store performs the following customer service schemes or programs: Staples Loyalty program Credit pay Continues updating of information to customers by using different Medias and internet applications.3.2 Store administrationComponents of store administration includes Management of premises-floor space management, managing store inventories, cash receipts and displays, customer service and crm, managing promotions, events etc.

Managing premises- a) working hrs- duration of business hrs, opening , closing responsibilities, e.g. lifestyle stores can open late and grocery, supermarkets need to open early, free standing stores can operate choice hrs while mall stores fallow organized hrs. b) Maintenance and cleanliness store faade and display windows, c) Managing required permissions and licenses d) time keeping of store staff, d) Space thru Plano grams answering questions such as what items, categories, and departments should be carried, how much of each item should be carried, how much space merchandise should take, where should the merchandise be located.

Managing inventory and display- store staff manage inventory and so to enable them to work efficiently systems and procedures for handling merchandise at store level need to be documented and manualised.

Involving receiving, in warding as per colours, style, size, checking accompanying documents received from RDC/hubs, detecting discrepancies, .Hand scanners are used to update stocks, correct display of merchandise. Managing receipts- defining manner in which store is going to manage receipt of payments against sale, cash or credit cards, or both, or cheques, debit cards, co-branded cards.

Top management involved in this activity as every person working in store is involved to provide comfortable pleasant shopping experience, and so to be a top- down approach. Long question for payments irritates after long shopping hrs in store, so each staff is trained to handle cash counters, express check outs for small buys also helps, fast lanes for billing during festival shopping rush.

Accordingly, Staples store administration is characterized or carried out in the following ways: The working time of the store is from morning 9:00 AM 8:30 in the evening from Monday to Saturday.

The responsibility of opening and closing the store is given to a group established from security and store managements based on working shift.

The security of store premise is guarded 24 hours by store security as the store is a free standing store on the main road.

The store uses merchandise tag for product security from any kind of theft.

The store also has a cc camera in the store to monitor every activity of customers and employees in the store.

The store follows a working habit of keeping the store clean every time to keep customers comfort and satisfaction.

3.3 Inventory managementInventory management is a science primarily about specifying the shape and percentage of stocked goods. It is required at different locations within a facility or within many locations of a supply network to precede the regular and planned course of production and stock of materials.The scope of inventory management concerns the fine lines between replenishment lead time, carrying costs of inventory, asset management, inventory forecasting, inventory valuation, inventory visibility, future inventory price forecasting, physical inventory, available physical space for inventory, quality management, replenishment, returns and defective goods, and demand forecasting. Balancing these competing requirements leads to optimal inventory levels, which is an on-going process as the business needs shift and react to the wider environment.Staples store keeps its inventory in its own warehouse located in the retail store itself. Merchandise replacement is performed based on the selling performance of the store. Inventory management plays great role in the store as most buyers are those who buy in bulk which needs holding of proper inventory any time to address every customer need at an appropriate time.On the other hand, the staples store receipt management is in such a way that only individual buyers have option to pay in cash otherwise the institutional buyers who buy in bulk are supposed to pay in bank check only. The store has also card payment option for its customers.

3.4 Personnel ManagementAdministrative discipline of hiring and developing employees so that they become more valuable to the organization. It includes: (1) Conducting job analyses, (2) Planning personnel needs, and recruitment, (3) Selecting the right people for the job, (4) Orienting and training, (5) Determining and managing wages and salaries, (6) Providing benefits and incentives, (7) Appraising performance, (8) Resolving disputes, (9) Communicating with all employees at all levels.

Retailing is all about Managing personnel well so that profitability and customer satisfaction remains.

Staples store has currently 24 employees including the store manager and category managers. The employees are directed and motivated towards effective customer service just in the store or on sales delivery locations.

3.5 Receipt managementPayments systems are the methods used by customers to pay. These include cash (notes and coins), cheques, debit cards, credit cards and charge cards, and subsidiary methods such as pre-paid oyster cards (in London), shopping vouchers, pre-purchased gift cards, and loyalty cards credits (where permissible). The big problem is that the easiest ones for the consumer (credit cards, one month free credit etc) are expensive for the retailer. A second problem is fraud. In some types of retail business, where immediate payment is not always required such as antiques or kitchens, and the customer is fairly well known (or the delivery will be made long after the account is credited), payments by cheque or bank transfer are common. On the other hand, the staples store receipt management is in such a way that only individual buyers have option to pay in cash otherwise the institutional buyers who buy in bulk are supposed to pay in bank check only. The store has also card payment option for its customers.3.6 Managing promotion, events and partnershipsRetail Promotion is any communication by a retailer that informs, persuades, and/or reminds the target market about any aspect of that firm.

Elements of the Promotional Mix include advertising Sales promotion Store atmosphere Digital Marketing Personal selling E-mail marketing Publicity Word of mouth Impersonal Personal Unpaid Paid

Various forms of Publicity followed at Staples store foot Print are: POSTERS: The essential purpose of a poster is the rapid telling of a single simple message using a limited number of elements. BILLBOARDS: Place a large poster in the central lobby of Good win Hall. BANNERS: A large extension of the poster, these can be hung outside the hall or in the mailroom or in a lobby. WORD OF MOUTH: And of course, there is the time-honoured word-of-mouth technique. This is perhaps the oldest, yet most effective way to get the word out. Networking sites, Mass e-mails and Bags.

Moreover, staples store uses other promotional systems such as: Newspapers Television Radios and Brochures

The store also has different partnership links between vendors and customers along the supply chain backward and forward.3.7 Logistics and distributionTwo types of channel of distribution methods are available. Indirect distribution involves distributing your product by the use of an intermediary for example a manufacturer selling to a wholesaler and then on to the retailer. Direct distribution involves distributing direct from a manufacturer to the consumer For example Dell Computers providing directly to its target customers. The advantage of direct distribution is that it gives a manufacturer complete control over their product.

Distribution StrategiesDepending on the type of product being distributed there are three common distribution strategies available:1. Intensive distribution Used commonly to distribute low priced or impulse purchase products (e.g. chocolates, soft drinks)

2. Exclusive distribution Involves limiting distribution to a single outlet. The product is usually highly priced, and requires the intermediary to place much detail in its sell. An example of would be the sale of vehicles through exclusive dealers.3. Selective Distribution A small number of retail outlets are chosen to distribute the product. Selective distribution is common with products such as computers, televisions household appliances, where consumers are willing to shop around and where manufacturers want a large geographical spread.If a manufacturer decides to adopt an exclusive or selective strategy they should select a intermediary which has experience of handling similar products, credible and is known by the target audience.The staples Bangalore store uses a different logistics and distribution system for its product sourcing and sales distribution. It uses vendors for sourcing or supply chain which are found in different parts of the country mainly around Mumbai. Besides, the store uses its own logistics and transportation to deliver and distribute its sales for institutional buyers.3.8 Legal compliance

Complying with statutory and legal norms is imperative for businesses worldwide and in India it is no different. As an employer, you not only need to remain 100% legally compliant but also stay attuned to the ever changing statutory environment. This calls for valuable time, effort and resource allocation, which otherwise can be spared to focus more on your core competency.Smart corporate are finding ADP's Statutory Compliance Services an ideal solution. At ADP, we can ensure that you stay at the right side of all your statutory and legal requirements and remain 100% legally compliant.Regarding the legal aspect of the staples retail store in Bangalore is established in a joint venture system between Staples USA and Future Group of India. They have a right to source standard products produced in India and by making supply chain relations with vendors in the country.

ConclusionReference1. http://businesscasestudies.co.uk/first-direct/using-customer-service-to-position-a-business/what-is-customer-service.html#ixzz2zgYsRbJT2. 10