Final Dissertation Report - Manash Verma

DISSERTATION ON A STUDY ON CONSUMER BUYING BEHAVIOR AT BIG BAZAAR
Prepared by MANASH VERMA
Registration No. 10SBCM0231
Under the Guidance of: Prof. Jacob Alexander
In partial fulfillment of the Dissertation Course in Semester IV of the Master of Business Administration (Batch: July 2010-12)
Alliance University, School of Business
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Master of Business Administration Dissertation
DECLARATION
This is to declare that the Report entitled A Study on Consumer buying behavior at Big Bazaar has been made for the partial fulfillment of the Dissertation Course in Semester IV (Batch: July 2010-12) by me under the guidance of Prof. Jacob Alexander. I confirm that this Dissertation truly represents my work. This work is not a replication of work done previously by any other person. I also confirm that the contents of the report and the views contained therein have been discussed and deliberated with the Faculty Guide.
Signature of the Student
Name of the Student (in Capital Letters) : MANASH VERMA
Registration No. Alliance University, School of Business
: 10SBCM0231 Page 2
Master of Business Administration
CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that Mr. Manash Verma with Regn. No. 10SBCM0231 has completed the Dissertation entitled A Study on the Consumer buying behavior at Big Bazaar under my guidance for the partial fulfillment of the Dissertation Course in Semester IV of the Master of Business Administration (Batch: July 2010-12).
Signature of Faculty Guide:
Name of the Faculty Guide: PROF. JACOB ALEXANDER
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I wish to express my sincere thanks to Prof. Jacob Alexander, my Faculty Guide, who has been constantly guiding me although my project and helping me to collect various data. I am extremely grateful to him for providing me valuable guidance and support for this report and also provide me with the required support with his extra ordinary knowledge. It has been an excellent and rewarding experience for me and has immensely increased my knowledge and confidence. I am deeply indebted to, for his assistance and encouragement right from the conception of the idea to the completion of the report. He has always motivated me to put my best foot forward by setting high standards for me. He has from time to time helped me with information, insights and constructive feedback. I am thankful to all my friends and relatives who helped me to successfully complete the research project on time. Lastly, I would like to thank Alliance University for providing me an opportunity to gain experience through this Dissertation work.
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CONTENTS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ........................................................................................................ 8
1. INTRODUCTION
Introduction about the Study............................................................................. 10 Research motivation ............................................................................................ 11 Retail Industry In India ...................................................................................... 12 Big Bazaar : Overview ........................................................................................ 17
2. LITERATURE REVIEW
Literature Review ................................................................................................ 22

3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Objectives of the Study ..................................................................................... 28 Research Design ................................................................................................. 28 Scope of the Study ............................................................................................... 28 Sampling Technique ........................................................................................... 29 Data Collection .................................................................................................... 30 Tools of Analysis ................................................................................................. 30 Limitations of the Study .................................................................................... 31
4. DATA ANALYSIS
Plan of Data Analysis.......................................................................................... 33 Descriptive Analysis ........................................................................................... 34 Factor Analysis.................................................................................................... 47 Cross Tabulation ................................................................................................ 52 Chi-Square Analysis .......................................................................................... 55
5. FINDINGS OF THE STUDY
Findings of the Study.......................................................................................... 61
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6. RECOMMENDATIONS
Recommendations ............................................................................................... 63
7. CONCLUSIONS
Conclusions ......................................................................................................... 65
SCOPE FOR FURTHER RESEARCH ............................................................................................... 66 REFERENCES ..................................................................................................................................... 67
ANNEXURE ........................................................................................................................................ 69
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LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1: Gender Distribution .............................................................................................. 34 Figure 2: Age Group ............................................................................................................... 35 Figure 3: Response for monthly income level .................................................................... 36 Figure 4: Response for awareness about Big Bazaar .......................................................... 37 Figure 5: Response for frequency of visits at Big Bazaar .................................................. 38 Figure 6: Response for category of products preferred by customers at Big Bazaar ..... 39 Figure 7: Response for average spending in a visit at Big Bazaar .................................... 42 Figure 8: Response for average time spent at Big Bazaar .................................................. 43 Figure 9: Response on planned and unplanned buying behavior ................................... 45 Figure 10: Response for preferred time to visit Big Bazaar............................................... 46 Figure 11: Response for offers to make the purchases ...................................................... 50 Figure 12: Response about satisfaction of customers ........................................................ 51 Figure 13: Response for level of satisfaction of both male and female ........................... 53 Figure 14: Response for level of satisfaction of males....................................................... 53 Figure 15: Response for level of satisfaction of females ................................................... 54
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The market scenario is changing from time to time as so are the customers taste and preferences. Todays customers are much more dependent on the organized retail stores such as supermarkets and hypermarkets than to the unorganized stores to buy their requirements. So, it is important to have an insight and better understanding of what the customers buy, how they buy and when do they buy from these organized stores. My research project aims at analyzing the buying behavior of the customers at big bazaar store. The research has been done by me in order to have a better understanding and insight into what the customers of big bazaar buy, why they buy and how do they buy, what are the factors that influence the buying behavior and what is the satisfaction level derived by the customers of big bazaar. To meet the objectives of the research I did a quantitative research. Survey method was adopted in order to collect primary data for the research purpose. A questionnaire based on the objectives of the study has been
prepared for the purpose of primary data collection. The questionnaire was administered to the customers of big bazaar and the responses were recorded. The secondary data have been collected from databases like ebsco and ScienceDirect.com and previously published research articles have been reviewed. The primary data once collected was analyzed using the statistical tools, graphs and pie charts. The results after the analysis shows that the target segment of Big bazaar store are the middle income group customers. Most of the customers who visit the store are price conscious. They mostly buy food products, groceries and cosmetics item from the store. Price, offers, range of products are the main factors that influence the customers to buy their requirements from the store. Most of the customers are satisfied with the services provided at Big Bazaar store. Their satisfaction level of the customers is average.
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CHAPTER -1 INTRODUCTION
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INTRODUCTION ABOUT THE STUDY In the present world, there have been rapid innovations in the retail industry with reference to their products, services and technologies used. Innovations are challenges for companies but possibly the most challenging concept in marketing deals with understanding why buyers do what they do or dont do. But such knowledge is critical for marketers since having a strong understanding of buyer behavior will help shed light on what is important to the customer and also suggest the important influences on customer decision-making. Using this information, marketers can create marketing programs that they believe will be of interest to customers. Understanding consumer purchase behavior involves not only understanding how decisions are made but also understanding the factors that influence purchases. The ever-increasing focus on the customer will encourage all retailers to investigate the best way to foster and retain customer loyalty. My study is based on a survey done on customers of a hypermarket named Big Bazaar. It is done to study the buying behavior of the customers in Big Bazaar . Big Bazaar is a new type of market which came into existence in India since 1994. It is a type of market where various kinds of products are available under one roof. The Survey done on the customers of Big Bazaar will help me analyze the buying behavior pattern of customers in Big Bazaar. It will help me determine the satisfaction level derived by the customers of the retail store and will also help me analyze and determine the factors that are important for the customers of Big Bazaar to make the purchases from the retail store. The study includes the use of both primary data and secondary data to analyze the buying behavior. The analysis includes the use of statistical tools , graphs and pie charts to meet the objectives of the research study.
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RESEARCH MOTIVATION
As customers tastes and preferences are changing, the market scenario is also changing from time to time. Todays market scenario is very different from that of the market scenario before 1990. There have been many factors responsible for the changing market scenario. It is the changing tastes and preference of customer which has bought in a change in the market. Income level of the people has changed; life styles and social class of people have completely changed now than that of olden days. There has been a shift in the market demand in todays world. Technology is one of the major factors which is responsible for this paradigm shift in the mark. New generation people are no more dependent on haat market and far off departmental stores. Today we can see a new era in market with the opening up of many departmental stores, hyper market, shoppers stop, malls, branded retail outlets and specialty stores. In todays world shopping is not any more tiresome work rather its a pleasant outing phenomenon now.
Organized retailing provides an ideal shopping experience through consumer preference analysis, excellent ambience and choice of merchandise. Changing lifestyles, strong income growth and favorable demographics are the drivers for the fast growth of this sector. Rising income level, education, acceptance of smart and credit cards and global exposure have an impact on the Indian consumers shopping habits. Impact of factors like availability of favourite brands, social status, buying behavior during discounts, influence of family and friends over the store and brand choice, relationship between store and store brand, and consumer perception towards store and national brands while shopping from a store, have not yet been gauged much by marketers. Thus, this study is an endeavor to understand and study consumer shopping behavior towards organized retailer, Big Bazaar so as to have a better insight of consumers buying behavior.
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RETAIL INDUSTRY IN INDIA The Indian retail industry is the fifth largest in the world. Comprising of organized and unorganized sectors, India retail industry is one of the fastest growing industries in India, especially over the last few years. Though initially, the retail industry in India was mostly unorganized, however with the change of tastes and preferences of the consumers, the industry is getting more popular these days and getting organized as well. With growing market demand, the industry is expected to grow at a pace of 25-30% annually. The retail industry in India is currently growing at a great pace and is expected to go up to US$ 833 billion by the year 2013. It is further expected to reach US$ 1.3 trillion by the year 2018 at a CAGR of 10%. As the country has got a high growth rates, the consumer spending has also gone up and is also expected to go up further in the future. In the last four year, the consumer spending in India climbed up to 75%. As a result, the India retail industry is expected to grow further in the future days. Retailing in India is gradually inching its way toward becoming the next boom industry. The whole concept of shopping has altered in terms of format and consumer buying behavior, ushering in a revolution in shopping in India. Modern retail has entered India as seen in sprawling shopping centers, multi-storied malls and huge complexes offer shopping, entertainment and food all under one roof. The Indian retailing sector is at an inflexion point where the growth of organized retailing and growth in the consumption by the Indian population is going to take a higher growth trajectory. The Indian population is witnessing a significant change in its demographics. As the contemporary retail sector in India is reflected in sprawling shopping centers, multiplex- malls and huge complexes offer shopping, entertainment and food all under one roof, the concept of shopping has altered in terms of format and consumer buying behavior, ushering in a revolution in shopping in India. This has also contributed to large-scale investments in the real estate sector with major national and global players Alliance University, School of Business Page 12
investing in developing the infrastructure and construction of the retailing business. The trends that are driving the growth of the retail sector in India are Low share of organized retailing Falling real estate prices Increase in disposable income and customer aspiration Increase in expenditure for luxury items.
The Indian retail industry is divided into organized and unorganized sectors. The organized sector retailing refers to the trading activities undertaken by the licensed retailers. These includes the corporate backed hypermarkets and retail chains and also the privately owned large retail businesses. The unorganized retailing on the other hand refers to the traditional formats of low cost retailing, for example , the local kirana shops, owner manned general stores, paan/beedi shops, convenience stores, hand cart and pavement vendors, etc. Another credible factor in the prospects of the retail sector in India is the increase in the young working population. In India, hefty pay packets, nuclear families in urban areas, along with increasing working-women population and emerging opportunities in the services sector. These key factors have been the growth drivers of the organized retail sector in India which now boast of retailing almost all the preferences of life - Apparel & Accessories, Appliances, Electronics, Cosmetics and Toiletries, Home & Office Products, Travel and Leisure and many more. With this the retail sector in India is witnessing rejuvenation as traditional markets make way for new formats such as departmental stores, hypermarkets, supermarkets and specialty stores.
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MAJOR RETAILERS IN INDIA 1. Pantaloon Retail: It is headquartered in Mumbai with 450 stores across the country employing more than 18,000 people. It can boast of launching the first hypermarket Big Bazaar in India in 2001. An all-India retail space of 5 million sq. ft. which is expected to reach 30 mn by 2010. It is not only the largest retailer in India with a turnover of over Rs. 20 billion but is present across most retail segments - Food & grocery (Big bazaar, Food bazaar), Home solutions (Hometown, furniture bazaar, collection-i), consumer electronics (e-zone), shoes (shoe factory), Books: music & gifts (Depot), Health & Beauty care services (Star, Sitara and Health village in the pipeline), e-tailing (Futurbazaar.com), entertainment (Bowling co.) One of their recent innovations include e-commerce hybrid format of small shops , the area for these stores will be 150 sq. ft. fitted with 40 digital screens. Customers will be encouraged to browse through the entire range of products on digital screen. They will be able to place the order, the delivery of which will be arranged by the shop to their homes within a few hours. 2. K Raheja Group They forayed into retail with Shoppers Stop, Indias first departmental store in 20 01. It is the only retailer from India to become a member of the prestigious Intercontinental Group of Departmental Stores (IGDS). They have signed a 50:50 joint venture with the Nuance Group for Airport Retailing. Shoppers Stop has 7, 52, 00 sq ft of retail space with a turnover of Rs 6.75 billion. The first Hypercity opened in Mumbai in 2006 with an area of 1, 20,000 sq. ft. clocking gross sales of Rs. 1 bn in its first year.
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Crossword brand of book stores, Homes stop a store for home solutions, Mothercare a concept stocking merchandise related to childcare are also owned by them. Recently, Rahejas have signed an MoU with the Home Retail Group of UK to enter into a franchise arrangement for the Argos formats of catalogue & internet retailing. 3. Tata group: Established in 1998, Trent - one of the subsidiaries of Tata Group - operates Westside, a lifestyle retail chain and Star India Bazaar - a hypermarket with a large assortment of products at the lowest prices. In 2005, it acquired Landmark, India's largest book and music retailer. Trent has more than 4 lakh sq. ft. space across the country. Westside registered a turnover of Rs 3.58 mn in 2006. Tatas has also formed a subsidiary named Infiniti retail which consists of Croma, a consumer electronics chain. It is a 15000-17000 sq. ft. format with 8 stores as of September 2007. Another subsidiary, Titan Industries, owns brands like Titan, the watch of India has 200 exclusive outlets the country and Tanishq, the jewellery brand, has 87 exclusive outlets. Their combined turnover is Rs 6.55 billion. 4. RPG group: One of the first entrants into organised food & grocery retail with Foodworld stores in 1996 and then formed an alliance with Dairy farm International and launched health & glow (pharmacy & beauty care) outlets. Now the alliance has dissolved and RPG has Spencers Hyper, Super, Daily and Express formats and Music World stores across the country. RPG has 6 lakh sq. ft. of retail space and has registered a turnover of Rs 4.5 billion in 2010.
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5. Landmark group: Were launched in 1998 in India. Lifestyle is spread across six cities, covering 4.6 lakh sq. ft. with a turnover of Rs 3.5 billion in 2007. A new division named Lifestyle International has emerged for their international brands business comprising Bossino, Kappa and Springfield in their portfolio. Their retail mix includes Home solutions (Home centre), fashion (lifestyle, landmark International), value retailing (max retail), hypermarkets & supermarkets (Max), kids entertainment (Funcity). They plan to invest Rs. 300 crores in the next two years to expand on Max chain, and Rs 100 crores on Citymax 3 star hotel chain.
6.
AV Birla Group
They have a strong presence in apparel retailing through Madura garments which is subsidiary of Aditya Birla Nuvo Ltd. They own brands like Louis Phillipe, Van Heusen, Allen Solly, Peter England, Trouser town. 7. Reliance Indias most ambitious retail plans are by reliance, with investments to the tune of Rs. 30,000 cr ($ 6.67 bn) to set up multiple formats with expected sales of Rs 90,000 crores ($20 bn) by 2009-10. There are already more than 300 Reliance Fresh stores and the first Reliance Mart Hypermart has opened in Ahmedabad.
8.
Piramal Group
In September 1999, Piramal Enterprises announced their arrival into retail with the launch of three retail concepts: India's first true shopping mall of international standards, called Crossroads; a lifestyle department store named Piramyd Megastore; and a family entertainment centre known as Jammin. Piramyd Megastore and Jammin were anchor Alliance University, School of Business Page 16
tenants for Crossroads (recently sold to Pantaloon for Rs 4 billion). In 2001, the group entered the business of food & grocery retail with the launch of TruMart supermarkets in Pune. BIG BAZAAR: OVERVIEW Big Bazaar, is the chain of retail stores of the big banner Pantaloon Retail (India) Ltd., which in turn is a segment of the Kishore Biyani, regulated Future Group of Companies. Big Bazaar, a part of the Pantaloon Group, is a hypermarket offering a huge array of goods of good quality for all at affordable prices. Big Bazaar with over 150 outlets in different parts of India, is present in both the metro cities as well as in the small towns. Big Bazar has no doubt made a big name in the retail industry of India, moreover shopping here is further made a memorable experience with the varied rates of discounts on products as well as discount vouchers available in a variety of amounts, like INR 2000, INR 3000, INR 4000, INR 5000 and INR 10000 on all Big Bazaar products and accessories. Big bazaar is not just another hypermarket. It caters to every need of your family. Where Big Bazaar scores over other stores is its value for money proposition for the Indian customers. At Big Bazaar, you will definitely get the best products at the best prices that what they guarantee. With the ever increasing array of private labels, it has opened the doors into the world of fashion and general merchandise including home furnishings, utensils, crockery, cutlery, sports goods and much more at prices that will surprise you. And this is just the beginning. Big Bazaar plans to add much more to complete their customers shopping experience. The Variety of product range at Big Bazaar This large format store comprise of almost everything required by people from different income groups. It varies from clothing and accessories for all genders like men, women Alliance University, School of Business Page 17
and children, playthings, stationary and toys, footwear, plastics, home utility products, cosmetics, crockery, home textiles, luggage gift items, other novelties, and also food products and grocery. The added advantage for the customers shopping in Big Bazaar is that there are all time discounts and promotional offers going on in the Big Bazaar on its salable products. GROUP VISION, MISSION AND CORE VALUES Group Vision To deliver Everything, Everywhere, Every time to Every Indian Consumer in the most profitable manner. Group Mission We share the vision and belief that our customers and stakeholders shall be served only by creating and executing future scenarios in the consumption space leading to economic development. We will be the trendsetters in evolving delivery formats, creating retail realty, making consumption affordable for all customer segments for classes and for masses. We shall infuse Indian brains with confused and renewed ambition. We shall be efficient and cost- conscious and committed to quality in whatever we do.
Core Values Indian ness: confidence in ourselves. Leadership: to be a leader, both in thought and business. Respect & Humility: to respect every individual and be humble in our conduct. Alliance University, School of Business Page 18
Introspection: leading to purposeful thinking. Openness: to be open and receptive to new ideas, knowledge and information. Valuing and Nurturing Relationships: to build long-term relationships. Simplicity & Positivity: Simplicity and Positivity in our thought, business Action. Adaptability: to be flexible and adaptable, to meet challenges. Flow: to respect and understand the universal laws of nature.
SWOT ANALYSIS OF BIG BAZAAR Strengths: High brand equity enjoyed by Big Bazaar State of the art infrastructure A vast variety of stuff available under one roof Everyday low prices, which attract customers Maximum percent of footfalls converted in sales Huge investment capacity Biggest value retail chain in India It offers a family shopping experience, where entire family can visit together. Available facilities such as online booking and delivery of goods
Weakness: Unable to meet store opening targets on time Falling revenue per sq ft General perception: Low price = Low quality Overcrowded during offers
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Long lines at billing counters which are time consuming Limited only to value offering low price products. A number of branded products are still missing from Big Bazaars line of products.
Opportunity: A lot of scope in Indian organized retail as it stands at approximately 4%. Increasing mall culture in India. More people these days prefer to visit big stores where they can find large variety one roof
Threat: Competition from other value retail chains such as Shoprite, Reliance (Fresh and trends), Hypercity and D mart. Unorganized retail also appears to be a threat to Big Bazaars business. A large population still prefers to visit local convenient stores for daily purchases Changing Government policies International players looking to foray India
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CHAPTER -2 LITERATURE REVIEW
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LITERATURE REVIEW Though many studies have been done to understand consumer behavior but only a few studies have been done to understand consumer buying behavior in organized retailing. Farhangmehr, Marques and Silva (2001) after their study expressed hypermarket as a symbol of modernization. They opined that it not only changed the traditional retailing structure but also the consumption behavior of people. Their results showed that, for consumers, the hypermarket is the preferred type of retail store, due to convenience (it is more practical) and low prices.
Nicholls, Li, Kranendonk and Roslow (2002) in their study investigated changes in the shopping behavior of todays mall patrons as opposed to those in the early 1990s. Although not many differences were found between the demographics of the respondents in the earlier and later periods, they discovered significant differences in shopping patterns and purchase behaviors. Compared with the shoppers in the early 1990s, todays mall patrons tend to be more leisure driven, they have a greater concern for merchandise selection, and they visit the mall less often but make more purchases per visit. The findings also reveal that situational variables are more likely to have an impact on shoppers purchase decisions today than they did before.
Choo, Jung and Pysarchik (2004) in their study noted that Indian consumers attitude towards new products is changing significantly and this can increase their intention to shop in new retail formats such as supermarkets / hypermarkets / malls. Thus, product attributes such as quality, price and availability of new products are important constructs within the Indian context. At least in theory, the closer a retail center is located to where a consumer lives or works, the more convenient it should be for them to
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shop there. However, the vast body of out shopping research empirically shows that consumers will not always visit their closest retail facility. In the process of seeking to maximize value, consumers may visit a more distant center if it offers better entertainment or convenience opportunities. In the context of the latter, out oftown malls seek to compensate for their outlying location by offering consumers other forms of convenience such as onestop shopping and easier access and parking.
Ailawadi and Keller (2004) stated in their research that location of a hypermarket / store and the distance that a customer must travel to shop, there are the basic criteria in store decisions. A convenient location is one of the most important attributes that puts a retail store into the customers consideration set. Once its in the consideration set, other factors like price, image, and service and product assortment determine whether a consumer will actually shop at the store.
Lather and Kaur (2006) in their paper studied various malls and established the relationship between the shoppers behavior and various attributes / indicators of stores in malls. They observed that most of the customers do not look at the pricing alone. They are looking for a sense of belongingness, a brand of quality and innovation they can trust. Small retailers no longer remain the primary source for the basic monthly shopping basket. The consumer normally gets better prices, quality selection and convenience for these purchases at organized retail chains and shopping malls. Their results also suggested that if proper window displays and other proper methods of presentation of merchandising are done, the retailers are able to attract more shoppers. They established that in the past few years, there has been a significant shift in India from individual retail outlets, owned separately and managed distinctively, to
professionally managed retail stores. Their findings also supported the positive effect of Alliance University, School of Business Page 23
location on store traffic and sales. They established that the most preferred retail outlets are multibrand outlets and exclusive outlets. Every type of shopper wants to visit the stores, while they may or may not buy but curiosity is there for visiting the malls. The study also examined alternatives to discounts when negative quality inference was likely to occur, and it was found that free gifts were effective in increasing sales and market share. They suggested that for shoppers to have a good mall experience, the retailers should focus on creating a pleasant shopping environment by using an optimum blend of variables like temperature, air quality, lighting, scent, noise level and layout amongst others.
Rajaguru and Matanda (2006) in their paper studied consumers perception of store and product attributes and customer loyalty in Indian context. Store attributes are assessed in the dimensions of store appearance, service quality and convenience of store. Product attributes dimensions investigated include product quality, price and availability of new products. In their study, customer loyalty was considered as repeated purchasing behavior of consumer towards a store. The results suggested that except product price, other store and product attributes have positive effects on customer loyalty. Store attributes such as service quality and convenience of store and product attributes such as product quality, price and availability of new products, show significance towards customer loyalty.
Bhattacharjee (2009) highlighted the attraction points of shopping food and groceries in hypermarkets. In his study he identified seven attraction points to visit a store and a retail format: price, promotions, hangout place, product range, product mix, ease of travel and parking comfort. He further said that the tolerance to commute is lowering. The people are willing to go 4 km or even more for hypermarkets / shopping malls, Alliance University, School of Business Page 24
while for small format modern stores not more than half a kilometer. Expectation for a kirana store is less than 500 metres. Johan Anselmsson (2006) did a study on sources of customer satisfaction with shopping malls, a comparative study of different customers segments, the study mainly focused on customer satisfaction and visit frequency at shopping malls among customer segments based on age and gender. It was found eight underlying factors are important to customer satisfaction. Those are selection, atmosphere, convenience, sales people, refreshments, location, and promotional activities and merchanding policy.
Graeme D. Hutcheson and Luiz Moutinho (1988) study on measuring preferred store satisfaction using consumer choice criteria as mediating factors attempts to model causal effect that consumers perception of choice criteria used to determine supermarket patronage has on the levels of perceived satisfaction with a preferred store. The likely importance of quality and value for money as choice criteria was reinforced by strength of their relationship with satisfaction, a variable generally believed to be one of the most important in determining store patronization and repatronization.
Robert A. Westbrook, (1981) study on sources of consumer satisfaction for a large conventional department store has found that satisfaction from multiple sources serves to raise overall satisfaction while dissatisfaction from multiple sources corresponding lowers it. Peter Kennings (2007) study found that an overall positive effect of trust buying behavior in food retailing. It is also found that general trust has no influence on specific trust and the meaning of specific trust for buying increases when general trust is low.
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Rajagopal (2008) in his Study on point of sales promotions and buying stimulation in retail stores analyses buying behavior in reference to the point of sales promotion offered by retailing firm and the determinants of sensitivity towards stimulating shopping arousal and satisfaction customer in order to build store loyalty have been discussed in this paper. It is found that loyal customers are attracted to the store brands.
Kuruvilla, Joshi and Shah (2009) explored the possibility that there are gendered differences in mall shopping attitude and behavior. The study indicated that, overall, women have a more positive attitude to mall shopping and that they purchase fashion related categories more often than men. But men visit more often and spend more time and money. While most men and women spend 24 hours on an average at the malls, men reported spending more time and visiting more frequently. If the fact that mall shopping is usually a family affair is taken into consideration, it could be that men perceive themselves as spending more time. But this explanation seems improbable, as both genders have not shown significant difference in their recreational approach to shopping. Malls seem to be popular destinations to purchase clothes, footwear and accessories for both men and women. Footwear and accessories also seem to be popular purchases. But in all categories women report more frequent purchase. At the same time, it is also reported that men spend more. One possible explanation can be that men spend on merchandise other than fashion, but it is more likely that as the purse bearers of the family, men do spend more than the women.
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CHAPTER -3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
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RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Objectives of the study The objectives of the study help the researcher to plan the ways and implement the same to make the study a successful one. It helps us know about the purpose of doing or carrying out the study. The objectives of the study are formulated and are based on the title of the project. The objectives of the study are as follows To analyze the buying behavior of the customers at Big Bazaar. a. To analyze the factors that are important for customers to make buying decisions at Big Bazaar. b. To analyze the satisfaction level derived by the customers at Big Bazaar. Research Design: Descriptive Research Descriptive research is also called Statistical Research. The main goal of this type of research is to describe the data and characteristics about what is being studied. Descriptive research can be either quantitative or qualitative. Descriptive research is done with a specific research question in mind. It gives a set view of the subject, population, market segment or problem. Scope of the study The study is based on the survey done by me on the customers of Big Bazaar . The scope of this research is to identify the buying behavior of customers of Big Bazaar. This research is based on primary data and secondary data. This study only focuses on urban buying behavior of customers. The study does not say anything about rural buying behavior of customers because rural norms/status/attitude & acceptance of the rural customers differs with urban customers. It provides help to further the research for organized retail sector. It aim to understand the skill of the company in the area like
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technological advancement, competition in management. The research also provides and insight into the various factors which are important to customers for making the purchase decisions at Big bazaar. The research study also focuses on the satisfaction level derived by the customers by shopping at Big Bazaar.
Sampling Technique : Non Probability Convenience Sampling This type of sampling was done by me to obtain the responses from the easiest population members. The subjects are selected just because they are easiest to recruit for the study. It would be ideal to test the entire population, but for my study purpose, the population is just too large that it is impossible to include every individual. This is the reason why I relied on sampling techniques like convenience sampling, which is the most common of all sampling techniques. Population: The entire customers of the Big Bazaar retail store is a large population out of which a few samples have been selected for my study purpose as it is not possible to include every individual for the survey. Sample size: 100 samples The primary data was collected from 100 respondents who visit Big bazaar, in order to study the buying behavior of the customers at Big Bazaar. The respondents were asked to respond to the questionnaire which was prepared by me based on the objectives of the study. The responses from 100 respondents were collected and were then analyzed to meet the objectives of the research study.
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Data Collection Methods : Data for the study purpose was collected from both Primary and the Secondary Sources. Both the data sources were important in order to meet the objectives of the study and to get insights and better understanding of the subject matter. Data Collection from Primary Sources: Survey Method: The Primary source of data collection was a survey of the customers of Big Bazaar. From a large number of customers of Big Bazaar, 100 customers were selected and were asked to respond to the questionnaire prepared for the response collection. Convenience sampling method was used for the less time taking and easy collection of the data. The response from the sample respondents were collected and recorded. The questionnaire was prepared and administered to the samples based on the objectives of the research. Data collection from Secondary Sources: Data were also reviewed and collected from the secondary sources for a deep understanding and getting more insights about the subject matter. The secondary sources of the data collection were online websites, journals, articles and research papers accessed through Ebsco , Proquest , Science Direct and other databases. Books were also referred for the data collection purpose and previously published reports related to the subject matter were also reviewed by me.
Tools of Analysis:
The data collected was analyzed using the statistical tools in order to meet the objectives of the research. The tools used for the analysis of the data were Microsoft Office Excel 2007 and
SPSS. The data was also be analyzed with the help of various graphs and pie charts. The Alliance University, School of Business Page 30
tests done in order to analyze the data were Factor analysis, Cross tabulation and ChiSquare Tests. Limitations of the study Certain limitation do creep in research study due to constraints of the time, money human efforts. The present study is also not free from certain limitation, which were unavoidable. Although all efforts were taken to make the result of the work as accurate as possible as survey but study based on the survey has following limitations:
Some Customers were not willing to respond to the questionnaires. Due to a large population, only selected sample of customers were asked to respond to the questionnaires. Some respondents were not cooperative as they did not provide a few details that were required. Personal biases might have come while answering the questions. Due to time constraint and other imperative work load during the time period it could not be made possible to explore more area of concern pertaining to the study
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CHAPTER -4 DATA ANALYSIS
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PLAN OF DATA ANALYSIS Questionnaire Design Data collection is one of the most important methods for any research. Without data collection the research work is incomplete. After reviewing various literatures and articles a questionnaire was designed based on the objectives of the study. The questionnaire contains close ended and scaled response questions. The questionnaire was designed using maximum close ended questions and a few scaled response questions designed to collect requisite information from the respondents Collection of data The questionnaires were administered to the 100 sample respondents who are the customers of Big Bazaar store and data was collected and recorded for the analysis. Analysis The analysis has been done using various statistical tools like Microsoft excel and SPSS which was done very carefully keeping into account that maximum possible accuracy was obtained. The various statistical tests done for analyzing the collected sample data were Descriptive Analysis Factor Analysis Cross Tabulation Chi- Square Analysis
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DATA ANALYSIS DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS 1. Gender Distribution

Statistics Gender Distribution N Valid Missing Mean Std. Deviation Variance Kurtosis Std. Error of Kurtosis 100 0 1.3700 .48524 .235 -1.736 .478
Gender Distribution Cumulative Percent 63.0 100.0
Valid
Male Female Total
Frequency 63 37 100
Percent Valid Percent 63.0 63.0 37.0 37.0 100.0 100.0
Gender_Distribution
60
Percent
40
20
0 Male Female
Gender_Distribution
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Analysis & Interpretation: The response collected from the sample respondents included both male and female respondents. The percentage of male customers who responded to the questionnaire was 63% and the percentage of female respondents was 37 %.
2. Age Group
45 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 Series1
19
55
91
13
25
31
37
43
49
61
67
73
79
85
Interpretation: Most of the customers from the sample respondents who responded to the questionnaire were between the age of 20 to 30 years. The people between the age group of 20 to 30 years were more responsive and were willing to take part in the survey conducted by me.
97
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3. Monthly income level of the sample respondents:
Monthly Income Statistics
Frequency Valid Below 10000 10000 to 30000 30000 to 50000 Above 50000 31 33 27 9 100
Percent 31.0 33.0 27.0 9.0 100.0
Valid Percent 31.0 33.0 27.0 9.0 100.0
Cumulative Percent 31.0 64.0 91.0 100.0
Total
Graphical Representation
Below 10000 10000 to 30000 30000 to 50000 Above 50000
9% 31% 27%
33%
Analysis & Interpretation: Out of 100 respondents who took part in the survey, 33 % of the respondents were between the monthly income level of Rs 10000 to Rs 30000, 31% of the respondents are between the monthly income level below Rs 10000 and 27 % of the respondents are between the monthly income level of Rs 30000 to 50000. 9% are above the monthly Alliance University, School of Business Page 36
income level of Rs 50000. This shows that the customers who visit Big Bazaar fall in the category of middle and upper middle income group who are price conscious customers. 9% customers who are above the income of Rs 50000 are the upper class people who are not that price conscious customers and who dont mind spending more money and who are more likely to shop more from exclusive stores. This shows that the target customers of Big Bazaar belong to the middle and the upper middle income group. This shows that the target customers of Big Bazaar belong to the the middle and the upper middle income group. 4. How did you come to know about Big Bazaar?
Statistics N Mean Std. Deviation Variance Range Valid Missing 100 0 2.6100 .94168 .887 4.00
How_did_you_come_to_know_about_Big_Bazaar ? Cumulative Percent 20.0 28.0 94.0 97.0 100.0
Valid
Friends Family Advertisements Spouse Others Total
Frequency 20 8 66 3 3 100
Percent Valid Percent 20.0 20.0 8.0 8.0 66.0 3.0 3.0 100.0 66.0 3.0 3.0 100.0
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Graphical Representation:
60
Percent
40
20
0
Friends Family Advertisements Spouse Others
Analysis & Interpretation: From the descriptive statistics and the graphical analysis above , it is clear that 66 % of the total sample respondents knew about the Big Bazaar retail store from the advertisements. 20% of the respondents were aware about the retail stores through friends. 8% of the respondents were aware through family members and 3% were aware about the store through their Spouse. The rest 3% of the respondents were aware through other sources. This says that majority of the customers of Big Bazaar are aware of the organized retail store from the advertisements in news papers, televisions and magazines , hoardings etc. Few customers are aware of the retail store through their family member, friends and spouse.
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5. How frequently do you visit Big Bazaar ?
Frequency_of_visits Cumulative Percent 36.0 49.0 52.0 62.0 100.0
Frequency Valid Once in a month Once in a week Twice in a week During special offers Whenever the need arises Total 36 13 3 10 38 100
Percent 36.0 13.0 3.0 10.0 38.0 100.0
Valid Percent 36.0 13.0 3.0 10.0 38.0 100.0
40 35 30 25 20 15 Series1
10
5 0
Once in a Once in a Twice in a month week week
During special offers
Whenever the need arises
Analysis & Interpretation: From the descriptive statistics and the graphical analysis above we can interpret that 38% of the respondents visit big bazaar whenever need for shopping from the retail store arises. 36 % of the respondents visit big bazaar once in a month. 13% of the respondents visit the store once in a week, 10% of the respondents visit the store during special offers and the rest visit twice in a week. From this data we can infer that most of the customers Alliance University, School of Business Page 39
of big bazaar visit the retail store only once in a month or whenever the need arises to buy from the retail store. This also indicates that many customers buy products from Big Bazaar in bulk quantities. Only a few customers buy their requirements from the store once in a week and during special offers. A very small number of customers buy their requirements from Big Bazaar twice in a week. 6. What Category of products do you prefer to buy from Big Bazaar? Data Summary Category Clothes Grocery Food products Cosmetics Footwear Electronic items Other Total Responses 35 50 77 36 11 12 0 100 Percentage 35 % 50 % 77% 36% 11% 12% 0% 100%
80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0
Series1
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Analysis & Interpretation: From the data summary and the above given graphical representation , it is observed that the sample respondents who took part in the survey mostly prefer to buy food products, grocery, cosmetics and clothes. Only a few respondents prefer to buy electronic items and foot wear items. Therefore it can be analyzed that a major percentage of customers who shop at Big Bazaar prefer to buy food products, grocery, cosmetics and clothes from the retail store and only a few customers prefer to buy electronic items and footwear items from the store. Majority of the customers are interested in buying food products and grocery from the retail store. 7. On an average, how much do you spend in a visit at Big Bazaar?
Statistics Average Spending N Valid Missing Mean Std. Deviation Range 100 0 2.3300 1.16389 4.00
Average Spending Cumulative Percent 28.0 62.0 82.0 95.0 100.0
Frequency Valid Rs 1000 Rs 1000 to Rs 2000 Rs 2000 to Rs 3000 Rs 3000 to Rs 5000 Rs 5000 and above Total 28 34 20 13 5 100
Percent 28.0 34.0 20.0 13.0 5.0 100.0
Valid Percent 28.0 34.0 20.0 13.0 5.0 100.0
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Graphical Representation: Average Spending
35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 Rs 1000 Rs 1000 to Rs 2000 to Rs 3000 to Rs 5000 Rs 2000 Rs 3000 Rs 5000 and above Series1
Analysis & Interpretation: The above descriptive statistics and the graphical representation show that 34% of the sample respondents spend Rs. 1000 to Rs. 2000 on an average in a visit to Big Bazaar. 28% of the respondents spend Rs. 1000 and average in a single visit at the retail store. 20 % of the respondents spend Rs. 2000 to Rs. 3000, 13% of the respondents spend Rs 3000 to Rs. 5000 and the rest spend Rs. 5000 and above. Therefore from the data we can infer that majority of the customers of big bazaar spend Rs 1000 to 3000 on an average in a single visit at Big Bazaar. Only a few big bazaar customers spend Rs 3000 to Rs 5000 and above Rs 5000 in a single visit at the retail store. This also shows that the customers of Big Bazaar belong to the middle income group and not high income group. The target customers are the middle income segment who are the potential customers of Big bazaar.
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8. How much time do you spend in a visit at Big Bazaar?

Statistics Average_time_spent N Mean Std. Error of Mean Median Std. Deviation Variance Range Valid Missing 100 0 2.7200 .10452 2.0000 1.04524 1.093 4.00
Average_time_spent
Frequency Valid Less than half an hour Half an hour to 1 hour 1 hour to 1.5 hours 1.5 hours to 2 hours More than 2 hours Total 6 45 29 11 9 100
Percent 6.0 45.0 29.0 11.0 9.0 100.0
Valid Percent 6.0 45.0 29.0 11.0 9.0 100.0
Cumulative Percent 6.0 51.0 80.0 91.0 100.0
9% 11%
6% Less than half an hour Half an hour to 1 hour 1 hour to 1.5 hours 45%
29%
1.5 hours to 2 hours More than 2 hours
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Analysis & Interpretation: From the graphical representation and the descriptive statistics given above, it can be interpreted that 45 % of the sample respondents spend an average time of half an hour to 1 hour at Big Bazaar store. 29% of the respondents spent an average time of 1 hour to 1.5 hours at the retail store in a single visit. 11% of the sample responded that they spend an average time of 1.5 hours to 2 hours in the store and 9% and 6% of the sample respondents responded that they spend an average time of more than 2 hours and less than half an hour. Therefore , it can be said that most of the customers of big bazaar in a single visit spend an average time of half an hour to 1 hour in the retail store. A few number of customers also spend 1 hour to 1.5 hours average time in a visit to the hypermarket. Very few customers of Big Bazaar spend an average time of 1.5 hours to 2 hours or more than 2 hours at a visit to the store.
9. Do you visit Big Bazaar with a planned list of products?

Statistics N Mean Std. Deviation Variance Range Valid Missing 100 0 2.2400 .79290 .629 2.00
Planned_or_unplanned_buying Cumulative Percent 22.0 54.0 100.0
Frequency Valid Yes No Sometimes Total 22 32 46 100
Percent 22.0 32.0 46.0 100.0
Valid Percent 22.0 32.0 46.0 100.0
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50 40 30 32 22 Series1 46
20
10 0
Yes
No
Sometimes
Analysis & Interpretation: From the above graphical representation and the descriptive statistical data, in can be analyzed that 46% of the sample respondents who took part in the survey responded that when they visit big bazaar, they visit the store with planned list of products sometimes. 32% of the sample respondents responded that they do not visit the Big bazaar store with a planned list of products and 22% of the respondents responded that they visit the hypermarket with a planned list of products. Therefore it can be interpreted that majority of the customers of Big bazaar visit the store with a planned list of products sometimes. They sometimes plan in advance what their requirements are and then visit the store and directly move to the departments according to their requirement and they sometimes do not plan in advance and show impulse buying behavior at the retail store. Around 1/3rd of the customers who visit big bazaar never visit the store with a planned list of products and therefore engage into impulse buying behavior whenever they visit the store. They move at all departments of the hypermarket and buy whatever they feel is required. A few percentages of customers always visit the shop with a planned list of products in advance and therefore do not engage into impulse buying behavior. They directly move to the departments with their planned list and buy their requirements.
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10. What time of a day do you prefer to visit Big bazaar?

Time_of_Visit
Frequency Valid Morning Noon Evening At night Any time Total 4 11 65 8 12 100
Percent 4.0 11.0 65.0 8.0 12.0 100.0
Valid Percent 4.0 11.0 65.0 8.0 12.0 100.0
Cumulative Percent 4.0 15.0 80.0 88.0 100.0
Morning Noon Evening 4% 8% 12% 11% At night Any time
65%
Analysis & Interpretation: From the above graphical representation and data statistics it can be analyzed that 65% of the sample respondents who took part in the survey responded that they prefer to visit the big bazaar store in the evening time. 12% of the respondent responded that they prefer visiting the hypermarket to shop anytime they feel like visiting. 11% of the respondents said that they prefer visiting the retail store at noon time. 8% of the respondents said that they prefer visiting the retail store during night and 4% of the respondents said that they prefer visiting the retail store in the morning time. Therefore, it can be interpreted that most of the customers prefer visiting the retail store in the Alliance University, School of Business Page 46
evening. Very few customers prefer visiting the retail store in the morning , at night and at noon time. 11. Factors that influence the customers to buy from Big Bazaar retail store: FACTOR ANALYSIS
KMO and Bartlett's Test Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of Sampling Adequacy. Bartlett's Test of Sphericity Approx. Chi-Square Df Sig.
.840 510.490 36 .000
Communalities Initial Price Quality Offers Convenience Brand_Image Range_of_Products Ambience Cleanliness Service_Provided 1.000 1.000 1.000 1.000 1.000 1.000 1.000 1.000 1.000 Extraction .742 .511 .820 .538 .447 .756 .809 .848 .697
.Total Variance Explained Rotation Sums of Squared Loadings % of Cumulative Total Variance % 3.176 2.991 35.290 33.238 35.290 68.529
Component Total 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 4.694 1.474 .795 .653 .419 .320 .253 .201 .192
Initial Eigenvalues % Cumulative of Variance % 52.151 16.378 8.836 7.255 4.659 3.555 2.807 2.228 2.130 52.151 68.529 77.365 84.620 89.280 92.835 95.642 97.870 100.000
Extraction Sums of Squared Loadings % of Cumulative Total Variance % 4.694 1.474 52.151 16.378 52.151 68.529
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Component Matrix(a) Component 1 Price Quality Offers Convenience Brand_Image Range_of_Products Ambience Cleanliness Service_Provided .651 .706 .801 .733 .646 .768 .678 .719 .781 2 -.564 .111 -.423 .010 -.174 -.408 .591 .576 .297
Rotated Component Matrix(a) Component 1 Price Quality Offers Convenience Brand_Image Range_of_Products Ambience Cleanliness Service_Provided .861 .438 .872 .526 .589 .839 .087 .127 .364 2 .037 .565 .243 .511 .317 .230 .895 .912 .752
Analysis and Interpretation: The first table shows the KMO and Bartlett's Test. This is used to measures the sampling adequacy which should be greater than 0.5 for a satisfactory factor analysis to proceed. Looking at the 1st table above, the KMO measure is 0.840. From the same table, we can see that the Bartlett's test of sphericity is significant. This also shows that degree of common variance is quite high, therefore factor analysis can be done. Communalities is the proportion of each variables variance that can be explained by the principal components. It is defined as sum of squared factor loadings. The initial value of communalities in the principal component analysis is 1.0. The values in the extraction column indicate the
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proportion of each variable's variance that can be explained by the principal components. Variables with high values are well represented in the common factor space, while variables with low values are not well represented. The Total variance explained table shows that how the variance is divided among the 9 possible factors. Note that the 1st two factors have eigenvalues more than 1 which is common criterion for a factor to be useful. When the eigenvalues is less than 1.0, this means the factors explain less information than a single item would have explained. Looking at the % of Variance" column it can be seen that the first component explains 52.15% of the information from the original variables and the second component explains 16.37% of the information from the original variables. Looking at the Cumulative % column shows that choosing two components would explain 68.52% of the information from the original variables. Therefore looking at this output from a factor analysis you would conclude to use two factors and that these two factors could still explain over 68% of the information contained in the original variables. In the Rotated Component Matrix table, t he first column of the table lists the names of the variables you originally entered into the analysis. The second column is titled
Component. The sub-columns of this column are numbered to match the components from the Total Variance Explained table that had eigenvalues greater than one. These are the factors. Each factor has a list of numbers associated with each of your original variables. These values represent how well each of the original variables fits into each of the new factors. The values range from 1 to 1. The closer a number is to 1 or 1, the better that variable fits into that factor. A value of 1 means that factor explains 100% of the information from that variable. A value of 1 means that factor explains 100% of the information from that variable but explains the exact opposite of that variable. This will be important to remember when calculating the factor scores. A value of 0 means that factor
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does not explain the information contained in that variable. Generally, a value bigger than 0.5 or smaller than 0.5 means that variable fits well with that factor. Therefore looking back at the Total Variance Explained table shows that there were two components with eigenvalues greater than one. As a result, the Rotated Component Matrix also contains two components, or factors. Looking at the results according to the factor analysis the rotated component matrix has 2 factors extracted. The extraction method used is varimax with Kaiser Normalization. Based on the rotated component the factors are identified. The first component has Price, Offers, Convenience and Range of products as the most important factors which influence the buying behavior of the customers. The second component has cleanliness, services provided , ambience as the most important factors which influence the buying behavior of customers at big bazaar. 12. Do you wait for the offer to make purchases?
Statistics
Frequency Valid Yes No Total 48 52 100
Percent 48.0 52.0 100.0
Valid Percent 48.0 52.0 100.0
Cumulative Percent 48.0 100.0
52 50 48 46 Yes No 48 52 Series1
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Analysis & Interpretation: From the statistical data and the graphical representation above it can be analyzed that from the sample size of 100 respondents, 52% of the sample respondents who took part in the survey responded that they do not wait for any offers or schemes to make their purchases from the Big Bazaar store. 48% of the respondents said that they did wait for offers or schemes to make purchases from the retail store. Therefore, it can be interpreted that almost half of the customers of Big bazaar wait for the offers or schemes to buy their requirements from the store and similarly almost half of the customers of the store do not wait for the offers and schemes to buy their requirements from the store. 13. Are you satisfied with the services provided by Big Bazaar?
Customer satisfaction
Frequency Valid Yes No Total 84 16 100
Percent 84.0 16.0 100.0
Valid Percent 84.0 16.0 100.0
Cumulative Percent 84.0 100.0
Yes No
16%
84%
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Analysis & Interpretation: From the above graphical representation and statistical data it can be analyzed that 84% of the sample respondents who took part in the survey are satisfied by the services provided at Big Bazaar. 16% of the sample respondents responded that they are not satisfied by the services provided at big Bazaar. Therefore we can infer that most of the customers of Big bazaar are satisfied by the services provided at Big Bazaar and very few customers are not satisfied with the services provided at the retail store. 14. Level of Satisfaction: CROSS TABULATION
Count Satisfaction_level Very Satisfied Somewhat Satisfied 22 27 18 45 12 34 Total Extremely satisfied 0 0 0 63 37 100
Not at all satisfied Gender Male Female Total 6 0 6
Slightly satisfied 8 7 15
Chi-Square Tests Asymp. Sig. (2sided) 3 3 1 .227 .096 .560
Value Pearson Chi-Square Likelihood Ratio Linear-by-Linear Association N of Valid Cases 4.341(a) 6.343 .340 100
df
a 2 cells (25.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is 2.22. The Chi-Square test shows the difference in Satisfaction level among the respondents both male and female. Alliance University, School of Business Page 52
Graphical Representations:
Total
Not at all satisfied Very Satified Slightly satisfied Extremely satified 0% 6% 34% 15% Somewhat Satisfied
45%
Satisfaction Level: Male
30 25 20 15 10 5 0 Not at all satisfied Slightly satisfied Somewhat Satisfied Very Satified Series1
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Satisfaction Level: Female
18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 1 2 3 4 5
Series1
Analysis & Interpretation: Cross tabulation was done in order to analyze the satisfaction level towards big bazaar services on the basis of gender. The above graphs and statistical analysis data shows that from the total sample respondents who took part in the survey 6% of them were not at all satisfied by the services of Big Bazaar store, out of which 6 were male and there were no female who were not at all satisfied. 15 % of the total respondents were slightly satisfied by the services provided by the store, out of which 8 were male and 7 were female respondents. 45 % of the total sample respondents are somewhat satisfied with the services of big bazaar; out of which 27 respondents were male 18 were female. 34% of the total respondents responded that they were very satisfied with the services of Big bazaar, out of which 22 respondents were male and 12 were female. Therefore this shows that the satisfaction level of majority of the customers, both male and female is average. They are neither dissatisfied and nor extremely satisfied. They are somewhat satisfied with the services of Big Bazaar. A few customers are also very satisfied with the services provided at Big Bazaar. The satisfaction level of the male customers is more as compared to the
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female customers. They exhibit a higher satisfaction level as shown in the statistical data. A small percentage of customers of big bazaar are slightly satisfied with the services of big bazaar. 15. CHI- SQUARE ANALYSIS This statistic tool is used to test the statically significance of the observed association in a cross tabulation. It assists in determining whether a systematic association exists between the two variables. In this research chi-square is used to find the gender difference in the Buying behavior towards big bazaar store. A few parameters have been considered for buying behavior at the store and the gender difference is then analyzed. Table 1: Gender * I like shopping at big bazaar Cross tabulation
Count I_like_shopping_at_big_bazaar Strongly agree Gender Male Female Total 20 5 25 Chi-Square Tests Agree 34 23 57 Undecided 8 6 14 Disagree 0 2 2 Strongly Disagree 1 1 2 Total 63 37 100
Value Pearson Chi-Square Likelihood Ratio Linear-by-Linear Association N of Valid Cases 7.131(a) 7.994 4.578 100
Df 4 4 1
Asymp. Sig. (2sided) .129 .092 .032
a 4 cells (40.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is .74. The Chi-square test does not show much gender difference in the parameter I like shopping at big bazaar. The cross tabulation shows that male respondents are much
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more interested in shopping from Big bazaar and they visit the retail store more as compared to the female respondents.
Table 2: Gender * I prefer to shop at Big Bazaar even if other retail outlets offer new deals Cross tabulation
Count I prefer to shop at Big Bazaar even if other retail outlets offer new deal Strongly Agree Gender Male Female Total 4 1 5 Agree 22 17 39 Undecided 19 5 24 Disagree 15 10 25 Strongly Disagree 3 4 7 Total 63 37 100
Chi-Square Tests
Df 4 4 1
Asymp. Sig. (2sided) .253 .232 .597
a 4 cells (40.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is 1.85. The Chi- Square test signifies that there is not much gender difference towards the parameter I prefer to shop at Big Bazaar even if other retail outlets offer new deals and the cross tabulations show that male respondents prefer to shop more from the Big bazaar store even if the other retail outlets offer new deal as compared to the female respondents.
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Table 3: Gender * I occasionally prefer this store for my purchase Cross tabulation
Count
I occasionally prefer this store for my purchase

Strongly Agree Gender Male Female Total 10 2 12 Chi-Square Tests Agree 31 18 49 Undecided 13 9 22 Disagree 6 8 14 Strongly Disagree 3 0 3 Total 63 37 100
Value Pearson Chi-Square Likelihood Ratio Linear-by-Linear Association N of Valid Cases 6.473(a) 7.651 1.408 100
Df 4 4 1
Asymp. Sig. (2sided) .167 .105 .235
a 3 cells (30.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is 1.11. The Chi-square test shows that there is gender difference towards the parameter I occasionally prefer this store for my purchase . The cross tabulation table shows that the more of the male respondents occasionally prefer the Big bazaar store for their purchase as compared to the female respondents. The female respondents do not prefer to shop occasionally from the store much.
Table 4: Gender * I prefer shopping at Big Bazaar on a weekly or monthly basis Cross tabulation
Count
I prefer shopping at Big Bazaar on a weekly or monthly

Strongly Agree Gender Male Female Total 14 9 23 Agree 29 17 46 Undecided 8 5 13 Disagree 8 4 12 Strongly Disagree 4 2 6 Total 63 37 100
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Chi-Square Tests Asymp. Sig. (2sided) 4 4 1 .997 .997 .737
Value Pearson Chi-Square Likelihood Ratio Linear-by-Linear Association N of Valid Cases .161(a) .162 .113 100
Df
a 4 cells (40.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is 2.22. The Chi-square test shows that there is not much gender difference towards the parameter I prefer shopping at Big Bazaar on a weekly or monthly basis . The Cross tabulation table shows the buying behavior of male customers and female of Big bazaar on the weekly or monthly basis. There is not much gender difference as far as buying behavior on weekly or monthly basis is concerned. More of the male customers shop from big bazaar on weekly or monthly basis as compared to the female customers.
Table 5: Gender * I prefer to shop at Big Bazaar with a planned list of products Cross tabulation
Count I prefer to shop at Big Bazaar with a planned list of products Strongly Agree Gender Male Female Total 8 1 9 Chi-Square Tests Asymp. Sig. (2sided) 4 4 1 .519 .442 .686 Agree 20 15 35 Undecided 15 10 25 Disagree 18 10 28 Strongly Disagree 2 1 3 Total 63 37 100
Df
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a 3 cells (30.0%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is 1.11. The Chi-square test shows that there is not much gender difference towards the parameter I prefer to shop at Big Bazaar with a planned list of products. The Cross tabulation table shows planned and impulse buying behavior of the male and female respondents at big bazaar. More of male customers prefer to shop at big bazaar with a planned list of products as compared to the female customers. Overall there is not much difference in the buying behavior of the male and female customers of big bazaar as judged by analyzing various parameters of customer buying behavior using Cross tabulation and Chi-square tests. The male customers are much more interested to shop from big bazaar as compared to the female customers. They visit the retail store more as compared to the female customers. More of the male customers as compared to the female customers prefer to shop from the hypermarket even if the other retail outlets offer new deals. Most of the customers both male and female prefer to shop at big bazaar on a weekly or monthly basis. More of the mail customers prefer to shop from big bazaar on a weekly or monthly basis as compared to the female customers of the store. More of the male customers prefer to visit big bazaar with a planned list of products as compared to the female customers of the store.
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CHAPTER -5 FINDINGS
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FINDINGS 1.) It mainly targets the middle income group customers who are price conscious customers. They are the potential customers the Big Bazaar hypermarket. 2.) Most of the customers visit the big bazaar retail store once in a month or week. 3.) Most of the customers buy their requirements from the big bazaar store due to variety or range of products, price and offers. 4.) Big bazaar store is a hypermarket with product categories like clothes, groceries, food products, cosmetics, footwear and other items. Most of the customers buy food products, grocery and cosmetics from the retail store. 5.) Many times when the customers visit to the store to shop, the impulse buying behavior comes into play. The customers most of the times do not visit the store with a planned list of products. They sometimes 6) Price, offers and range of products distinguishes the Big bazaar stores from other retail outlets. 7.) Most of the customers of Big Bazaar are satisfied with the services provided by the store persons. The satisfaction level of the majority of customers is average.
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CHAPTER -6 RECOMMENDATIONS
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RECOMMENDATIONS 1.) To increase more footfalls at big bazaar store, more promotional activities should be carried out. 2.) Big bazaar should include more of branded products to its product category so as to attract the brand choosy people to come in to big bazaar. 3.) Often many of the product are not sold because of low visibility, high price so, the product should be properly displayed and discount should be given to attract the customer to purchase the product. 4.) General merchandise has number of departments so staff number should be increased to serve customer during weekend 5.) Proper signage should be there so that customer can locate the products easily. 6.) The waiting time of the customers at the billing counters should be short so that the customers are not annoyed by waiting for long. 7.) It should make different cash counters for different customers. Cash counter and credit card payment counter should be placed differently in order to reduce the rush and save the customers time. 8.) During the off peak hours big bazaar should provide some offers to its customers so that people would be encouraged to come to big bazaar during off peak hours.
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CHAPTER -7 CONCLUSIONS
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CONCLUSIONS The study on consumer buying behavior at big bazaar gave me a better understanding and a lot of insights about the buying behavior of customers at the retail store. The primary data that was collected by me helped me meet my objectives of the research study. The data collected was analyzed using SPSS and Microsoft Excel with the help of tables, graphs and pie charts. The study reveals that the big bazaar has positioned itself in the market as a discount store. The target customers of big bazaar are the middle income group customers who are price conscious. The customers of big bazaar buy their requirements in bulk quantities. The impulse buying behavior comes into play most of the times when customers visit the hypermarket. They do no shop from the store with a planned list of products. There are only a few customers who shop at the retail store with a planned list of products. The customers of big bazaar are influenced to buy from the retail store due to the factors like Price, Range of products, Offers and Range of products. Most of the customers buy their requirements on a weekly or monthly basis. The Average spending of most of the customers in a single visit is between Rs 1000 to Rs 2000 as most of the customers are the middle class people and are price sensitive. The customers mostly buy food products, groceries and cosmetic items from the store. Most of the customers of Big bazaar are satisfied with the services provided by the retail store and a few are not satisfied with the services provided at the store. The satisfaction level derived by majority of the customer of Big bazaar is average. They are neither dissatisfied with the services provided at the store nor extremely satisfied with services provided. The satisfaction level remains at an average level. The study also reveals the difference in the buying behavior of male and female customers at big bazaar. The cross tabulation and Chi- Square tests using SPSS reveals that overall there is not much difference between the buying behaviors of male customers and female customers.
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SCOPE FOR FURTHUR RESEARCH There are several significant research issues for an emerging economy like India. There are several innovations possible with tremendous consequences. Few of the research issues are outlined here: Consumer expectations and perception mapping studies about the organized retail stores. Research on consumers constantly changing buying habits. Exploratory research on new parameters / factors which consumers are considering with time. With the rapid growth of the organized retailing in India, it presents a huge opportunity to the researchers to explore and identify possible improvement areas to confront competition and increase customer satisfaction.
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REFERENCES
Malhotra, N K(2005), Marketing Research an Applied orientation, PHI, 4th Edition. Leon G. Schiffman, Leslie Lazar Kanuk, (2005), Consumer Behavior, 8th edition, Pearson education, Delhi. Alvin C Burns, Ronald F. Bush(2007), Marketing Research, Pearson Education, 5 th Edition. Kotler Phillip, Kevin Keller (2008) Marketing Management., Prentice Hall, Millennium edition (13th edition). William G Zimkund, Thompson SW,(2009), Business Research methods, Published by Cenage Learning products, 8th Edition. M.Iqbal Saif (2009). An Empirical Study of Consumer Impulse Buying Behavior in Local Markets Journal of Scientific Research, Vol. 16. No. 1. Robert A. Westbrook, (2001) Sources of Customer Satisfaction w ith Retail Outlets. Journal of Retailing, Vol. 57 No. 3 Hans Baumgartner, Jan-Benedict E.M. Steenkamp,( 1996), Exploratory consumer buying behavior: Conceptualization and measurement , International Journal of Research in Marketing, Volume 13, Pages 121-137 Dr R.P. Patel , Ms. Praneti Shah, Ms Charmi Shah, (2011), Preference of Consumers towards Hypermarkets , BVIMR Management Edge, Vol. 4, No. 2, PP 1 09. Mr. Manmath Raut, Dr. Saroj Kumar Dash,(2011),The Factors predicting Buying behavior in Organized Retailing, International Journal of Business and Management Tomorrow, Vol. 1 , No. 3, PP 1 -10.
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Gopal Das, Dr. Rohit Vishal kumar, (2009), Impact of Sales Promotion On Buyers Behavior: An Empirical Study of Indian Retail Customers, Globsyn Management Journal, Vol. 3 Issue 1. Retail Industry in India, http://business.mapsofindia.com/ Consumer Buying Behavior, http//: www.knowthis.com http://www.dnb.co.in/IndianRetailIndustry/overview.asp http://www.bigbazaar.org/
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ANNEXURE
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ANNEXURE Consumer Buying Behavior at Big Bazaar Please fill the questionnaire. This will help me collect the responses for the Project. Thank you. * Required
Name * Age * Monthly income level * Below Rs 10000 Rs 10000 to Rs 30000 Rs 30000 to Rs 50000 Above Rs 50000 Gender * Male Female Source of Income * Father/Mother Salaried Business Other: Alliance University, School of Business Page 70
How did you come to know about Big Bazaar ? * Friends Family Advertisements Spouse Other: How Frequently do you visit Big Bazaar ? * Once in a week Twice in a week Once in a month During Special offers Whenever the need arises Who accompanies you for the purchases at Big Bazaar ? * Friends Family members Spouse Alone Why do you prefer to make your purchases in Big Bazaar ? *You can answer more than one options. Ambience Variety/ Availability Quality Alliance University, School of Business Page 71
Services Price Other: What category of products do you prefer to buy from Big Bazaar ? *You can answer more than one options. Clothes Grocery Food products Cosmetics Footwear Electronic items Other: On an average, how much money do you spend in a visit at Big Bazaar? * Rs 1000 Rs 1000 to Rs 2000 Rs 2000 to Rs 3000 Rs 3000 to Rs 5000 Rs 5000 and above How much time do you spend in a visit at Big Bazaar ? * Less than half an hour Half an hour to 1 hour
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1 hour to 1.5 hours 1.5 hours to 2 hours More than 2 hours Do you visit Big Bazaar with a planned list of products? * Yes No Sometimes What time of a day to prefer to visit Big Bazaar? * Morning Noon Evening At Night Any time What distinguishes Big Bazaar from other retail stores ? *You can answer more than one option. Quality Price Ambience Offers Location
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What are the factors that influences you to buy from Big Bazaar ? *You can answer more than one option. Quality Price Offers Convenience Brand Image Range of products Cleanliness/ Ambience Services provided Do you wait for the offer to make purchases from Big Bazaar ? * Yes No Are you satisfied with the services provided by Big Bazaar ? * Yes No How much are you satisfied with the services provided by Big Bazaar ? * Not at all satisfied Slightly satisfied Somewhat Satisfied Very Satisfied Extremely Satisfied Alliance University, School of Business Page 74
Rank the following features of Big Bazaar on the basis of your evaluation. *Rank 1 to 5 , Rank 1 for the best and 5 for the worst . 1 Price Quality Offers Convenience Brand Image Range of products Ambience Cleanliness Services provided 2 3 4 5
Select the appropriate choice. Strongly Agree I like shopping at Big Bazaar Agree Undecided Disagree Strongly Disagree
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Strongly Agree In the past , majority of my shopping has been done at Big Bazaar I prefer to shop at Big Bazaar even if other retail outlets offer new deals I occasionally prefer this store for my purchase I prefer shopping at Big Bazaar on a weekly or monthly basis I prefer to shop at Big Bazaar with a planned list of products Agree Undecided Disagree
Strongly Disagree
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Final Dissertation Report - Manash Verma

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DISSERTATION ON A STUDY ON CONSUMER BUYING BEHAVIOR AT BIG BAZAAR

Prepared by MANASH VERMA

Registration No. 10SBCM0231

Under the Guidance of: Prof. Jacob Alexander

Alliance University, School of Business

Master of Business Administration Dissertation

Signature of the Student

Name of the Student (in Capital Letters) : MANASH VERMA

Registration No. Alliance University, School of Business

Master of Business Administration

Signature of Faculty Guide:

Name of the Faculty Guide: PROF. JACOB ALEXANDER

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ........................................................................................................ 8

Literature Review ................................................................................................ 22

Findings of the Study.......................................................................................... 61

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

CHAPTER -2 LITERATURE REVIEW

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

CHAPTER -3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

CHAPTER -4 DATA ANALYSIS

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

DATA ANALYSIS DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS 1. Gender Distribution

Gender Distribution Cumulative Percent 63.0 100.0

Male Female Total

Percent Valid Percent 63.0 63.0 37.0 37.0 100.0 100.0

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

3. Monthly income level of the sample respondents:

Monthly Income Statistics

Percent 31.0 33.0 27.0 9.0 100.0

Valid Percent 31.0 33.0 27.0 9.0 100.0

Cumulative Percent 31.0 64.0 91.0 100.0

How_did_you_come_to_know_about_Big_Bazaar ? Cumulative Percent 20.0 28.0 94.0 97.0 100.0

Friends Family Advertisements Spouse Others Total

Alliance University, School of Business

Alliance University, School of Business

5. How frequently do you visit Big Bazaar ?

Frequency_of_visits Cumulative Percent 36.0 49.0 52.0 62.0 100.0

Percent 36.0 13.0 3.0 10.0 38.0 100.0

Valid Percent 36.0 13.0 3.0 10.0 38.0 100.0

Once in a Once in a Twice in a month week week

During special offers