BBA 1 Year

Retail Management
Define Retail Management:
Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is the
sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from
manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and then sells in smaller quantities to
consumers for a profit.
Retail management refers to the process of helping customers find products in your store. It
includes everything from increasing your customer pool to how products are presented, and
how you fulfil a customer's needs. A good store manager helps customers leave the store with
a smile.
Functions of retail management:
Retail management refers to successfully running and managing the internal functions of a
retail store. It comes from extensive planning and having an understanding of the target
demographic. Retail management teaches about inventory management and supply
management, where it conveys various techniques to optimize the entire retailing operations.
It is important to understand the needs of any staff employed as these individuals will be at
the forefront of the business and represent your brand on a daily basis. If done successfully
managing a retail store is a combined process of gaining the most suitable funding,
communication, marketing, branding, and ensuring you have the most suitable employees to
reflect your vision.

Retail management helps in saving time and ensures customer availability to locate effective
management. They must keep a record of the entire buying and selling of products such as
tracking cash flow and daily sales reports. It helps in maintaining the product’s image and
ensures the availability of goods. The functions of a retailer in retail management are –

 Acting as agent
Retail management always acts as an agent between consumers and sellers by anticipating the
requirements of the buyer at reasonable prices. They make sure to convince consumers to buy
products as per their desire.

 Marketing functions
Retail management itself is a marketing function that performs advertising, sales promotion,
and public relations for the purpose of selling products. It helps in increasing awareness about
the goods of reputed companies.

 Connecting link
Retail management helps in establishing a connecting link between buyers and sellers. It can
be done by ultimate customer satisfaction through sales promotions.
  Providing information to wholesalers and customers
Retailers act as a middleman between manufacturers/wholesalers and customers. It is easy to
provide information directly to the final consumer. It increases demand among consumers
through direct contact.

 The function of breaking bulk

Retail management is done on large units that are converted into smaller units. It can be such
as bottles, packets, and individual canes for customer requirement purposes. It creates place
utility in breaking bulk to the good point of the consumption process.

 Stocking of goods
Stocking of goods in retail management is done by buying various goods units from
wholesalers and manufacturers. It provides a wide variety of choices when it comes to
preference for customer satisfaction.

Importance of Retail Management

Retail management plays a crucial role in the world of business, and its importance is hard to
overstate. It’s not just about selling products; it’s about making sure customers have a great
shopping experience and that businesses make profits. Let’s dive into why retail management
is so important:

 Customer Satisfaction: The main aim of any retail business is to satisfy customers.
Retail management ensures that the right products are available, the store is clean, and
the staff is helpful
 Efficient Operations: Retail managers make sure everything in the store runs smoothly.
They plan the layout, manage inventory, schedule staff, and handle day-to-day tasks.
This efficiency helps the business save time and money.
 Inventory Control: Retail management is responsible for keeping track of what’s in
stock and what needs to be replenished. This prevents overstocking (which ties up
money) and under stocking (which leads to missed sales).
 Staff Management: Hiring and training the right people is crucial in retail. Managers
ensure employees are well-prepared to assist customers and handle various tasks. A
skilled and motivated team can significantly impact a store’s success.
 Financial Management: Retail managers handle budgets, pricing, and financial reports.
They need to balance the books to ensure the business remains profitable. Proper
financial management is essential for long-term success.
 Marketing and Sales: Promotions, advertisements, and in-store displays are all part of
retail management. These tactics attract customers and boost sales. Managers need to be
creative to make the store appealing.
 Adaptation to Trends: The retail world is ever-changing, with new technologies and
shopping trends. Retail managers must stay updated and adapt the business accordingly,
whether it’s adding e-commerce options or embracing sustainability.
 Competition: In today’s competitive market, a well-managed store can make all the
difference. Retail management helps the business stand out by offering unique products,
excellent customer service, and a great shopping atmosphere.
 Customer Feedback: Retail managers are the bridge between customers and the
business. They collect feedback, complaints, and suggestions from customers and
 convey this information to improve the store. Listening to customers helps the business
grow.
 Risk Management: Unexpected challenges like theft, supply chain disruptions, or
natural disasters can disrupt a retail business. Retail managers plan for these risks and
implement security measures to safeguard the business.

What is the Retail Management Process

The retail management process is the step-by-step approach that businesses follow to
effectively run their retail operations and ensure customer satisfaction. It involves various
activities that help retailers meet customer needs while maintaining profitability. Let’s break
down the retail management process in simple terms:

 Planning: This is the starting point. Retailers need to plan what products they will sell,
how many to stock, and where to direct and store them. They also plan pricing strategies
for products and goods.
 Buying and Procurement: Retailers then purchase the products they plan to sell. This
involves negotiating with suppliers, making orders, and managing inventory. It’s like
going for shopping in your store.
 Inventory Management: Managing inventory is all about keeping track of what you
have in stock. Retailers need to know when to reorder products so they don’t run out of
things customers want. It’s like making sure your pantry is always stocked with your
favourite snacks.
 Visual Merchandising: This is about how products are displayed in the store. Retailers
arrange their products to grab customers’ attention. It’s like arranging items in your
room to look nice and organized.
 Sales and Customer Service: When customers come to the store, retailers and their
staff help them find what they need, answer questions, and make the shopping
experience enjoyable. It’s like being a helpful host at a party.

Multichannel Retailing is the process of using multiple channels for selling similar products
across different platforms. The platforms may be online and offline and the various channels
may be brick and mortar store, online store, mobile store, mobile app store, etc. Multichannel
retailing is the approach of businesses reaching down to the customers along the choice of
convenience of the customers. The final purchasing may be across any of the channels, but
the collaborative effect of the various channels helps facilitating the buying decision process
in multiple ways.
How businesses can benefit from multi-channel retailing
Since multi-channel retailing is an improvement over the most common strategies, let’s
compare it with single-channel retailing to get a better grasp of its benefits.

Better revenue

Even after you invest a lot of money on advertising and marketing and establish brand
awareness, if your customers have only one way of buying from you, it won’t necessarily
increase your revenue. But by spreading your business across multiple platforms, you could
 pop up more often into a prospective customer’s view and therefore receive more attention.
This will give them the time needed to browse through your store, compare prices, and do
their research which is necessary for them to buy from you eventually. Improved revenue is
by far, the most prominent advantage that multi-channel retailing display.

More ways to buy from you

Like any other sceptical person, most customers would hesitate to buy from a business that
they stumbled across once. And if that one viewing is all they ever get, then the chance of
them remembering your business and looking for you is impossibly low. With just a single
sales channel, all your customers would be forced to buy from you using just that
channel. And this is okay for customers that have purchased from you earlier and trust your
brand, but it doesn’t necessarily attract new customers who are considering buying from your
business. So with multi-channel retailing, you can offer your customers multiple ways to buy
from you, from which they can select one based on their comfort and convenience. This will
give you a competitive advantage over single channel businesses. Simply put, more ways to
buy from you could mean more customers.

Collect valuable data on customer purchases

Multi-channel retailing allows you to collect a lot more data on customer purchases compared
to a single channel. By doing this, you can tell which sales channels your customers seem to
prefer and which ones they don’t, so that you know what specific parts of your
business to work on and how to promote your business. Additionally, with a single sales
channel, you wouldn’t be able to compare your sales with any other channel since you’re
stuck with the one you have. Comparing several channels gives you more perspective. you
can also compare how different products perform on different channels. Knowing which
product to promote on which channel is part of the valuable data you’re collecting, right.

Pricing strategy:
By setting your prices in line with or slightly below theirs, you can attract customers looking
for a competitive deal. However, avoid engaging in wholesale price wars, as this can erode
your profits. Instead, focus on differentiating your offerings through superior quality,
customer service, or unique features.
A growth strategy is a plan that companies make to expand their business in a specific aspect,
such as yearly revenue, number of customers, or number of products. Specific growth
strategies can include adding new locations, investing in customer acquisition, or expanding a
product line.

Why You Need a Business Growth Plan

We know the why is important — so why do we think building a business growth plan is so
crucial, even for established businesses? There are so many reasons, but here are three that
apply to almost all businesses at some point:

 Funding. Functionally, most businesses are always on the lookout for investors, and you’ll
have an advantage if you can present a solid growth plan to convince them. Most expect it.
 Insurance. Growth creates financial padding, like a force field to protect your business when
unexpected issues crop up. The economic upheaval for brick-and-mortar businesses in 2020
is a perfect example.
 Credibility and creditability. For brand new businesses, getting a loan and making sure you
can pay back your bank is at the top of the priority list. There’s no real profit until that debt is
managed. Having a growth plan will not only help you secure a business loan, it will be there
to refer to so you’ll know what to do to continue making your payments.