Tuesday, 30 May 2017

WRIGLEY'S: Brand Architecture and Extension the Wining Way


Contributed By: Hadiqa Riyaz

Wrigley is recognized as a leader in confectionery with a wide range of product offerings including gum, mints, hard and chew candies and lollipops. Wrigley's world-famous brands – including Extra®, Orbit®, Doublemint®, and 5™ chewing gums, as well as confectionery brands Skittles®, Starburst®, Altoids® and Life Savers® – create simple pleasures for consumers every day. The story of Wrigley as a brand was started in 1892 when Mr. William Wrigley realized that chew gum industry had the biggest business potential he had been looking for, so he started marketing his business under his brand name “Wrigley” .The” Lotta” and “Vassar” were the first two brands of Wrigley. One of the most popular brand “Juicy fruit” came in 1893 and the “spearmint” was launched the same year.


Wrigley established it's first factory in Wembley in 1927 when the social attitudes of people transformed after the First World War, as before chewing gum in the public as not considered good in ancient Britain. Chew gum industry really boomed during Second World War, by the end of 1970s Wrigley’s chew gum brands become so trendy and Wrigley’s introduced many other amazing brands including “extra”, “Orbit”, Airwaves”, “5Gum” and others. Wrigley’s is not all about gum anymore; they continuously innovate and developed complete assortment of household brands which has became an essential part of people’s daily lives. It’s all brands available in different types of packaging and styles. Wrigley’s tasty and juicy long lasting flavors’ provide tempting and exciting experience with every chew. 

Wrigley’s all brands are attested by American dental association that helps prevent plaque formation, remove stains and balance natural whiteness of teeth’s.

Present Product Portfolio of Wrigley
  • Gum ( Extra,5Gum, Pk Gum, Eclips, Spearmint, Airwaves, Freedent, Juicy fruit, Winterfresh)
  • Mints( Altoids, Doublemint)
  • Confections (Skittles, Starbust, Live savers)

WRIGLEYS BRAND EXTENSION
Wrigley’s the chew gum brand adopt line extension as a brand extension opportunity. Wrigley’s apply the parent brand (Extra, Orbit, Starbust, Altoids, Juicy fruits and other) to a new product that targets a new market within a product category that a parent brand currently serves. Wrigley’s add a different flavour and ingredient variety. 
Wrigley’s uses its well known and well liked brand in extension so that they can form similar inferences and expectation about the likely composition and performance of a brand extension. 

WRIGLEY’S LINE EXTENSION



BENEFITS OF WRIGLEYS BRAND EXTENSION IN BUILDING BRAND EQUITY

Wrigley’s all brands have a significant high level of brand awareness and achieve necessary and desired POPs and PODs. The existing brand that has already achieved a certain level of awareness and image to brand an extension, the easier it should be to create awareness of and image for the extension in memory.


  • Wrigley’s brand extension strengthens and adds favorable and unique association to the parent brands.
  • Significantly decreased perceived customer risk and increase product acceptance.
  • Reinforcing and building upon key brand association.
  • Laying the ground work for future extension and increase and leverage brand equity.
  • Wrigley’s brand extension offer a portfolio of brand variants within a product category and consumers who want change, because of boredom can switch without having to leave the brand family.
  • Wrigley’s brand extension clarifies the meaning of a brand to consumers and defines the kinds of markets within which it competes.
WRIGLEY’S BRAND HIERARCHY TREE




WRIGLEY'S BRAND ARCHITECTURE
Brand architecture involves developing a framework that identifies how existing brands, products and services interplay with one another, defining which element will be presented consistently across products and externally culminates in the development of the framework through which consumer understand and organize those products and services within their minds.


  • Wrigley’s source brand architecture is characterized by a corporate brand (Wrigley’s) that is well known and guarantees quality, and each brand with their own brand positioning.
  • Because of Wrigley’s source brand architecture, Wrigley’s brand equity and positioning as perfect gum have an influence to its different brands.


HOUSE OF BRAND ARCHITECTURE BENEFITS TO WRIGLEYS
  • House of brand architecture enables Wrigley to target the needs of specific customer segments.
  • Significantly reduce marketing cost with opportunities for cross promotion between sub-brands, marketing is more effective as well.
  • Wrigley’s house of brand architecture clarifies brand positioning, meaning and messaging.
  • Increase flexibility for future product extension.
  • Enhance customer awareness of Wrigley’s offerings while facilitating cross selling. 
  • Maximize visibility diversification in the market place.
  • Wrigley’s source brand architecture maintains a balance between the main brand and the sub brands.

Saturday, 27 May 2017

Imtiaz: Making the Difference in Modern Trade Retailing, AKA Local Walmart

Contributed by: Muhammad Jahanzaib Shafique & Shahbaz Murad
To surprise many, Imtiaz Super Market is providing its customers the unique shopping
experience since 1955, and is one of its kind modern retail departmental store offering products. In Karachi, Imtiaz is currently operating with 5 outlets located in all major areas in Karachi namely Nazimabad, Gulshan-e-Iqbal, DHA, Bahadurabad and Shahra-e-Faisal. It is the first ever retail-store located in the southern region of Pakistan’s financial capital. Convenience, amazing product range, excellent customer service and unmatched affordability are few of the features that make Imtiaz Super Market the leader in modern trade channel shopping in Pakistan. Flexible timings allow customers to shop more conveniently in a safe and secure environment unlike open markets; where the products like vegetables, fruits and meat are offered in an unhygienic environment.

RETAIL FORMAT 

a) Factors for choosing store location: 
Mall availability for the type of store Imtiaz wants to develop is the first key element in
establishing a new store. High rentals are also charged for the extent of space which Imtiaz looks for. Infrastructure including 3 to 4 floors and parking space is necessary for the store to run its operations. Supply Chain Management Warehouse inside the store is also another important thing for Imtiaz to carry out its daily operations without shortage of inventory. An inside warehouse is established at each store and continuous updating of that warehouse  inventory is maintained to run the operation smoothly throughout the day. Premium Location: Premium location in terms of high footfall of customers is achieved by the opening of Imtiaz super markets in the main areas of Karachi. The areas in which stores are safe to operate and which are easily accessible by the customers in their convenient timing. Prime Locations including the most important and densely populated areas are targeted.

b) Type of Location 
Imtiaz super market has carefully chosen the location of their stores. All the major areas of Karachi which are densely populated and have average leading to elite standard of living are the target market of their stores. For solving the problem of parking area and making sure that roads adjacent to their stores do not get stuck and avoid traffic jams huge space for parking is reserved adjacent to stores. To reduce time wastage in parking the vehicle by customers themselves valet parking is also available at many stores. 

STORE DESIGN & RETAILING IMAGE MIX

a) Employee Type and Density 
Minimum qualification of employees required by Imtiaz is matriculation. Employees speak national language i.e. Urdu. Female and male employees are designated as per the nature of their job. Products related to women personal care and hygiene have mostly female employees at the counters and for helping customers while others categories of products have male employees. Final checkout counters have both female and male counters to conveniently manage the traffic checking out of the store. The dress code is blue shirt and black pent for males and black long shirts and blue pants for ladies with a black scarf. Most of the salesmen are engaged in work in the sections of basic commodities. As far as density is concerned, they have 4- 5 employees working in each aisle. 

b) Merchandise Type and Density 
Imtiaz Store is very dense as far as merchandise is concerned and has approximately 1,000
pieces per sq ft. It has both a wide and deep assortment of merchandise to cater a versatile market.

c) Fixture Type and Density 
The fixtures at Imtiaz Store include blue plastic racks that carry all items. The number of fixtures per square foot of space at Imtiaz is 40. The density of the fixture complements the density of the merchandise there, thus making shopping convenient for customers. 

d) Sound Type and Density 
High quality sound systems are installed in the stores. Five times prayers calls are lively recited on the speakers. Important and emergency announcements are also made through the speakers. 

e) Odor  and Density 
Every department of the store have their own special odor prevailing in the stores.Bakery department have smell of the baked items,vegetables have fresh smell at their department while personal care and hygiene fragment have a nice odor of different perfumes, soaps, shampoos etc. A tangy smell can also be smelt when entered in the section of spices.

f) Visual Type and Factors 
Bright white lights are installed inside the stores to brightly present all the products and provide convenience to the customers to find and inspect the items without facing any difficulty. Bright white lights also induce the customers to buy more.

VISUAL MERCHANDISE AND DISPLAY: 
Through visual merchandising Imtiaz reduces the employee mix and increase per square feet returns and can further helps in reducing marketing budgets. To attract the customers and make them buy more in bulk Imtiaz store utilize the freezers of different companies which attract customers to buy more and more of their desired products. Pepsi, Coke, K&N’s and many more companies have their fridges placed in the store with attractive color and pricing schemes. In perfume and deodorants section customers can use from large variety of products and choose them through free testing samples. Advertisement on the front of Imtiaz stores also attract customers and induce them to buy more of that product. New temporary style stalls of different companies are also placed in the store.

SHOP DISPLAYS
Exterior and interior shop displays are used for the to make the customers decide and buy
quickly. Shop displays also help customers to find their desired product without the wastage of time.

a) Live Displays
Products from the personal care and hygiene companies are used for the live displays on the entrance of Imtiaz store like fair & lovely etc. 
b) Counter Displays
For impulse purchases Imtiaz uses its counter displays for merchandise like suparis, bubble gums, cigarette lighters and batteries. 
c) End Cap Displays 
Imtiaz uses end cap displays as their point of purchase products like staples etc. and induce customers to less browse and buy more during the distance covered between aisles and end cap.

STORE ATMOSPHERICS 
The store atmospherics at Imtiaz Store has been properly maintained to create the unique image of the store. 
a) Exterior 
Exterior of the store depicts the overall image of a high quality super store. Advertisements are displayed on the front of store through bill boards and different large Pena flexes. 
b) Signage 
The storefront has been designed in a way that compliments the color combination that has been used throughout the store. A big light blue sign with Imtiaz Store written in bold letters is the first thing you see when you enter the lane. 
c) Interior
Interior is designed to facilitate customers starting from the good temperature inside the store. As per the weather conditions, bright lights and the proper maintenance of the aisle placed with formality throughout the store.

Space Mix: 
The selling area at Imtiaz Store accounts for 70% of the total area, and the retailing 30% has been kept circulation and back area respectively. The 30% non-selling area includes the staircase and obstacles which leads to the warehouse. Back area includes the go down and the warehouse present within boundaries of the store. Selling space of Imtiaz store is divided in term of size and location of different groups of merchandise such as U-shaped fastener and impulse items. These goods constitute about 50% of the store and are placed at the deeper end of the store. 

Retail Space Management:
The customer enters to the store for buying basic commodities like wheat, rice and other staples which are kept in the deeper of the store, customer often keeps walking inside follow the walkway where it leads to basic commodities. This technique works because it makes customers to buy stuff that is not even in their shopping list. Haji Imtiaz Khan is very critical about the space management in his store as he believes that, “80 out of 100 customers follow the silent guide that we provide them. His philosophy was “if we don't provide the right way to walk, our sales can go down drastically”. He said that the floor is marbled and clean our space strategy must force customer to move within the boundaries of the store. Impulse goods are also kept in the cash counter. Ice Cream and some local chocolates are kept near the cash counter for not only attracting kids also attracting the attention of passers as well. Some other items like personal care products (Facewash) are also kept near the stairs.

Layout/Circulation Plan:
a) Inside store: 
The display and the placements of products catches customer’s eyes and enable them to get
exposed to the entire store offerings. 

b) Lightning and Display Strategy: 
Cosmetics, household and chocolates are highlighted with lightening and displays strategically placed along the aisles which pulls customers traffic from section to section. Each aisle width is planned as per the product type and density of the product pattern in that area. The main aisle is 5ft wide, which then goes to into 8 more aisles each for different product categories.

c) Entrances:
There are two entrants in the main store for kids and women. The circulation pattern followed by Imtiaz Store is “Grid Circulation”. The aisles and fixtures are at the right angle of each other. Imtiaz entrance goes directly to the sweet section and house-hold section, this allow customers to go directly to their destination without moving through the store. 

d) Floor Space Management:
The employees and store owners are working very hard on floor space management for making sure that the customers frequently visit their store.

e) Gross Margin on Footage: 
Each month they check the per square foot merchandise selling and the customer traffic. The hot spots include the rice and staples area. Cold spots include the household items but by adding more varieties of merchandise and imported goods there they are effectively converting it into warm spots.

MERCHANDISING 
Imtiaz Store merchandise hierarchy is widespread. They carry a wide assortment of  products to numerous categories

Hierarchy: 
As a research suggests held in 2014 Imtiaz Store is serving approx. 90,000 customers per day, it caters an assortment of more than 40,000 variations and options. Their largest category is of beauty products that is sub divided into soaps, lotions, creams, face masks, scrubs, fragrances, (body sprays and perfumes for both Men and Women gender), hair care products (shampoos, balms, gels, oils, dyes and conditioners) and dental care (creams, toothpastes, toothpowders, and mouth fresheners). The other divisions confectionary, include chocolates, biscuits, chewing gums, toffees, and chips. Food groceries include pasta (rice, noodles, spaghetti etc.), sauces, cooking oils, and ghee’s, foods, grains, spices, and dairy products (cheese, butter, milk, yoghurts, and ice creams). Under the division of beverages, Imtiaz carries an assortment of tea, coffee, energy drinks, soft drinks, juices (bottled or tetra packs) and milk shakes. other divisions include pharmaceuticals, sanitary, sundry (cigarettes, battery cells, small electrical items, men’s shirts and socks, animal food, and plastic items like combs, brushes etc. and utensils and crockery (also includes decorative items). 

Buying Function: 

a) Open to Buy: 
Imtiaz store has open to buy plan which enables Imtiaz to achieve strategies and the standards of qualities of deliveries to their customers.

b) Forward planning: 
Imtiaz forwards planning by forecasting sales at the end of month (EOM) inventories for specified periods. They pre-plan a stock for one week in advance and they store a week’s stock. The responsibility of the buying function. The buying function of Imtiaz store is segmented into packaged goods and perishable good. This function is structured to meet the needs of the store in managing the wide range of products. 
  • Fresh Produce 
  • Frozen foods 
  • Foods (packaged grocery) 
  • Medicines 
  • Non-food items (personal products/ Household goods/ General merchandise/ Apparel).
c) Markup/ Markdown: 
No special markup charges at Imtiaz store because Imtiaz store is following a low-cost strategy but there are often markdowns in products/ merchandise like biscuits and sweets. Their markdowns are seasonal like during December when it is wedding or Eid season and any other special occasion like 14th August or Ramzan package. 

d) Shrinkage: 
At Imtiaz Store they face shrinkage but they control this by keeping a manual checking of all the employees as well as customers. Their employees are given special uniforms which they have to wear while they arrive at work their uniforms have no pockets so it lessens the chances of employees shrinkage and they keep their wallets and other things around the counter, . Shrinkage by customers is controlled by proper checking by all the employees at the lower level as well as the middle management level. 

Supply Chain Management at Imtiaz Super Store 
Supply chain management at Imtiaz super store comprises of the following sub-sections 
 Procurement and Distribution 
 Logistics Management 
 Inventory Management 
 Information management

Procurement and Distribution: 
Imtiaz Super Store’s process of procurement involves reducing its purchasing costs as far as possible so that it can offer best price to its customers. The company procures goods directly from the manufacturers, bypassing all intermediaries. Imtiaz Super Store has distribution centers. Imtiaz Super Store’s own warehouses supplies about 80% of the inventory. Each distribution center is divided in different groups depending on the quantity of goods received. The inventory turnover rate is very high, about once every week for most of the items.

Logistics Management:
This involves fast & responsive transportation system. Company owned trucks services the stores. These dedicated trucks enable shipping of goods from distribution centers to the stores within 2 days and replenish the store shelves thrice a week. The drivers hired are all very experienced & their activities are tracked regularly. This allows the drivers to be aware of the terms & conditions for safe exchange of Imtiaz Super Store property. For more efficiency, finished goods are directly picked up from the manufacturing site of supplier, sorted out and directly supplied to the stores. This system reduces handling & storage of finished goods, virtually eliminating role of distribution centers & stores. 

Inventory Management: 
Considering the expansion of Imtiaz Super Store stores, it was essential to have a very good
communication system. Imtiaz Super Store ensures that unproductive inventory is as less as possible, by allowing the stores to manage their own stocks, thereby reducing pack sizes across many categories and timely price markdowns. Imtiaz Super Store makes full use of its IT infrastructure to make more inventories available in case of items that customers wanted most, while reducing overall inventory. By making use of Bar-coding, different processes like efficient picking, receiving & proper inventory control of the products along with easy packing and counting of the inventories was ensured. A Centralized inventory database allows the personnel at the store to find out the level of inventories and location of each product at a given time. It also shows the location of the product like distribution center or transit on the truck. When the goods are unloaded at the store, the inventory system is immediately updated. 

Information Management:
In recent years, Imtiaz Group has achieved growth through an aggressive strategy for opening new stores. While Supermarket sales are a major driver for this strategy, the company’s warehouses had become burdened by poor inventory visibility and control and limited data that compromised its decision making. As an expanding business, they required a modern IT platform that could consolidate their Retail and warehousing operations and foster the planned pace of growth.
 No centralized access to inventory information & availability of proper sales data 
 Inefficient stock monitoring & movement 
 High transaction time at point of sale and system constraint to handle high footfall at store 
 Data existed in siloes at each branch & lead inaccurate inventory calculation 
 Unmanageable data consolidation & audits

For this purpose, iVend Retail Management Suite with SAP Business One was introduced. Benefits of this new system are as follows: 
 iVend Retail enhanced key retail transaction performance at store & increased overall employee efficiency 
 Synchronized data transfers between Stores & enterprise ensured accuracy across Retail chain 
 Allowed to measure sales numbers better and track inventory stock levels efficiently 
 Easy identification of slow moving inventories for improved purchasing decision making

RETAIL MARKETING STRATEGIES
Private Labels:
Imtiaz launched its personal brand PONAM. Imtiaz Store has been popular for providing excellent quality rice under their brand named 'Ponam' rice. Besides rice, Imtiaz store has also provided spices with its brand name. Now many other products like honey, and other grocery items are provided the brand umbrella of Ponam. It has its own factories located in Karachi which helps it to be efficient in providing the required units in time to the store with reduced cost of manufacturing. 

STORE POSITIONING 
Target market
 Includes people from lower to upper classes. 
 traffic on weekends, as it's filled with families who come to the store especially for their weekly grocery and other items.

CONCLUSION AND FORTHCOMING FUTURE
Imtiaz is already a market leading retail store due its everyday low price strategy with addition to efficient and effective value chain network which includes supply chain management, personal brand Ponam, excellent customer service and customer driven policies. Imtiaz is goal orient organization and opening stores across Pakistan and they now cater a bigger market of diverse culture. Future of Imtiaz is in untapped online market which needs to be addressed soon. Sooner this step is taken to tap this opportunity the more fruitful it will be to the owners of Imtiaz.

Friday, 26 May 2017

Mothercare Pakistan: An Insight to its Retail Strategy..

Contributed by: Rabiya Inayatullah 

Mothercare works with various store formats to meet its customer’s needs; involving small shop-in-shop format to mid-sized high street store to the larger out-of-town or larger store in a mall. Internationally, the mothercare products are sold through its Franchise Partners’ retail stores with a small but growing online presence and a fledgling wholesale business for territories where it doesn’t have Franchise Partners. In Pakistan mothercare is operated by Gull Sons Group of Companies with Yaseen Paracha being company's CEO. 

TYPE OF OWNERSHIP
mothercare in Pakistan has franchise type store format. The franchise is operated by Gull Sons Group of Companies & run by qualified management members.

RETAIL FORMAT
mothercare is a speciality retail store, a one stop shop for parents which aims to be the world’s leading mother and baby specialist in the markets in which they operate.
·         Store Location:
The store is located in the Dolmen Mall: Shahrah-e-Ghalib, Marine Drive, Block 4. Clifton. Karachi. The store is on the First floor, shop no F-8. The store can be seen easily & it is convenient for the customers to locate the store as the customer’s footfall is very high on the first floor because many international outlets were there. 
·         Store Design:
The mothercare store is designed very creatively. The merchandise shelfing, the merchandise category segments & baby’s mannequins are designed in a way that it captures one’s site. All the elements which attracts the consumers are involve in its store design that it attracts the consumer. The elements that compliments the store design are:
RETAIL IMAGE MIX
a.      EMPLOYEE TYPE & DENSITY:
mothercare’s employees are well trained & representative. They were in clean & well designed uniform with the colour combination of light purple & black. The employees are well informed about their brand, & they guide their customers in a very impressive way. In the store, there are four employees from which three are females. The Area Manager is a female & the outlet Manager is a Male.

b.      FIXTURE TYPE & DENSITY:
All the fixtures in the store looks high Standard. They have used style/item presentation technique, that every merchandise is placed in its own category type. They have used beautiful wooden mixed with metal shelves, straight racks, four-way & promotional Aisles. The walls are painted with white textures & they used green colour for highlighting their ELC section. The flooring is granite in a light ash colour.   

c.       ODOR TYPE & DENSITY:
The store smells fresh. There is nothing that can irritate their customers. The clean & refreshing environment of the store encourages their customers to spend time in the store for examining merchandise.

d.      VISUAL TYPE & DENSITY:
The store looks very creative as the merchandise is placed item/category wise, the lighting in the store is so bright that it creates a sense of excitement in the store, the use of white, light ash & green colour creates a calming environment. The store looks clean, well-managed & appealing. The window displays, mannequins & promotional aisles, promotional signage captures the customer’s attention towards the store.

e.      MERCHANDISE TYPE & DENSITY:
The merchandise density is high. The merchandise is placed categorically with different SKU’s such as size, colour & fabrics. The store shows great management of merchandise within category. The apparels are placed on straight racks while the Home & Travel, ELC merchandise are placed in promotional aisles and on free-standings.

f.        SOUND TYPE & DENSITY:
There is no use of soft music in the mothercare store. The whole store is quite and peace full.


DISPLAYS
The display represents the merchandise management & designing. The entire store looks classy & well-managed. The people who walks through the aisles can easily see every category of merchandise they display. People can be attracted also by the watching the stores frontal display design.


SPACE MIX
The space mix in mothercare store is 65% selling area, 20% ELC area & 15% circulation area.

Impulse merchandise: The impulse merchandise in the mothercare store are the merchandise which are placed besides the cash counter and which are baby liquid talc, soaps, baby cotton pads, baby bubble bath, water teether & kids bags.






Demand merchandise:  The demand merchandise is placed in the inner side of the store but displays properly that anyone who enters the store can easily see the merchandise. The demand merchandise in mothercare store are pushchairs, feeding products, buggy & car seats.


SPECIAL MERCHANDISE: The special merchandise in mothercare store are its Early Learning Brands in which they offer different toys for children up-to 8 years. The innovative toys for every children according to their ages. The toys boosts children’s creativity & helps to have a healthy play. The toys include inflatable bowling, flying disc, trampoline & enclosure, bounce castle, etc.

Retail Space Management
The retail space is used in a very systematic way. The merchandise is placed categorically & the fixture design attracts the consumers. The stores frontal view attracts many people & increases footfall. The mannequins of baby’s apparels in the front window, the promotional signage, the ELC toys & the background also captivates shopper’s attention.

Layout & Circulation Plan
mothercare store has a Free-Form Layout as it is a speciality retail store in which they have placed all the merchandise in an asymmetric pattern which provides the customers a relaxing environment for shopping. Customers can circulate easily in the store for browsing as everything is ordered in a systematic way.

Floor Space Management
·         Hot spot: The entrance of mothercare store where the new baby boy’s apparels on   the left side & new baby girl’s apparels on the right side are displayed is the hot spot because it is the high traffic area in the store.
·         Cold spot: The area where the traffic is medium in the store is the back side where the car seats, push chair & bedding furniture’s are placed.
·     Warm spot: The warm spot is the fitting room & ELC brand segment where customers traffic flow is low.

MERCHANDISING
1    Hierarchy

      Clothing & footwear:
·         New baby
·         Girls clothes
·         Boys clothes
·         Kids essentials
bHome & Travel:
·         Bed time
·         Bath time
·         Dinner time
·         Car Seats
c      Toys ELC Brands:
·         inflatable bowling
·         flying disc
·         trampoline & enclosure
·         bounce castle

d     Maternity Products
·         Feeding bottles
·         Maternity towels
·         Nursing cream
·         Toiletries

RETAIL MARKETING STRATEGIES
a)      BRANDING: The mothercare is a well-known international brand. The brand is distinct because of its products offering. The merchandise category & the customer service of mothercare is its unique selling proposition. The brand is customer centric because of which is it able to satisfy its target customers.
b)     POSITIONING: The mothercare brand has a unique positioning in the speciality retail market. The brand is in the leading position because of its innovative offerings & valuable service. Mothercare is the pioneer in offering parenting & baby’s products. They got a unique & strong position in the market as they are focused on offering style, quality & innovation in product & great service.
c)      RETAIL MARKETING MIX: The retail marketing mix of mothercare includes:
·         PRODUCT OFFERING:
Mothercare have a wide range of merchandise with different SKU’s. The products are designed to satisfy customers, creates style, provide high quality & building loyal relationship.
THE PRODUCT LINE INCLUDES:
        •             Clothing & footwear:
        •           Home & Travel
        •           Toys ELC Brands
        •       Maternity Products
        •      Parenting Guides/ Expert in Store Advice

·         PRICE: The mothercare products are affordable for their target customers. They have catered elite class so their price range is High & it is so expensive on some products such as on bedding furniture.
·         PLACE: The store is located in the Dolmen Mall: Shahrah-e-Ghalib, Marine Drive, Block 4. Clifton. Karachi. The area is reputable & dolmen mall is the place where many customers went for shopping as the mall includes many big brands so we can see high traffic over there. The store location captivates shopper’s attention as it is on the first floor and has an excellent design.
·         PROMOTION: mothercare promote their brand through print advertising in which they use many international magazines, the use digital catalogues for promoting their new offerings, through website of their own & through partner’s websites, the brand promote itself, also in UK the brand had organised many events for mothers & babies. Through sales promotion techniques such as 50% sale, discount offers & gifts they attract many consumers towards their store. Its recent sales promotional offer is “A bundle of Joy” in which they offer the customers to Shop at mothercare & get a toy of your choice, at “Half Price”.

·         PEOPLE: mothercare’s employees & staff are well trained & well mannered. They have skills to handle high traffic & they have experienced to satisfy moody customers. The staff guides their customers in browsing their products. They greet the customers on the entrance of the store & also when they exit the store.
·         PRESENTATION: The store’s presentation is spacious. The store looks presentable & beautiful which catches eye of many shoppers. The store in terms of display of merchandise looks beautiful, everything in the store is properly placed on the shelves & racks that are superbly designed.

ADVERTISING

mothercare advertise through online catalogs, print catalogs & magazines, banners & flyers.  Internationally, it uses celebrity endorsement for promoting their brand. They use celebrity’s pictures on the banners, catalogs & magazines. The online advertisement on retail websites such as baby shop & Zubeida mother shop can also be seen.
CUSTOMER SERVICE

Mothercare is a customer centric brand. They are focused about their consumer’s needs & they strive to give best product, guidance & service to their customers. The strong relationship of the brand with its customer’s increases loyalty. Their sustainable quality & service encourages their customers to keep in touch with the brand.

FUTURE OUTLOOK
mothercare is an international brand & famous for its specialty merchandise retailing service. In Pakistan & in other Asian countries; mothercare can open stores in well-reputed areas to attract its target market. The brand is at the maturity level, so they can even increase their product line in some regions. The brands aim to leave its footprints in the globe can be achieve strategically if they provide the same standard of quality & service to their customers.