A study of consumers’ understanding regarding retailing in India

The Retailing Sector in India is experiencing a paradigm shift. The Indian Retail Sector is facing a critical situation where the new format stores and retail managers are pushing their brands with more marketing tactics and the old ones are trying to save their traditional customers. In the keen competition, Indian Customers are the utmost beneficiary. The present study focuses on issues like whether the small means beautiful or the new means modernization. The study has collected data from 100 respondents and the major findings are that consumers recorded mixed opinions and they have different perception of the retailing paradigm shifts in India. People still believe in the basic retailers, though they favour change. People demand change in small retailers’ selling style and change in displays at small store. It concludes that the economic slowdown is affecting Malls much more than the small stores. Ultimately it is a testing time for both because consumer is neither happy with small store nor delighted with Malls.