TO STUDY THE EFFECTIVENESS OF CUSTOMER SERVICE OF

RELIANCE FRESH STORES IN BHUBANESWAR

By
Ganesh Panigrahi (PGDM 09017)
Satyam Kr.Prasad (PGDM 09028)
Priyanka Raj (PGDM 09034)

A Management Traineeship Segment Report Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the

requirement for the Post graduate Diploma in Management

MTS Advisors
Prof. Madhumita Das (HDFSOM)
Mr. Sabyasachi Biswal (Reliance Retail Ltd)

Previous degree:
Satyam Kr. Prasad Priyanka Raj Ganesh Panigrahi
B.A (History Hons.) B.C.A (Computer Hons.) B.Tech (Comp.Sc.)
Chotanagpur College (Ramgarh Cantt.) Nalanda College Biharsharif R.I.T Berhampur
Vinoba bhave University Magadh University B.P.U.T

Organizational Attachment: Reliance Retail Limited, Bhubaneswar

HDF School of Management

Cuttack, Odisha, India
July 2010

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Nothing concrete can be achieved without an optimal combination of inspiration and

perspiration. No work can be accomplished without taking the guidance of the experts. It is
only the views and advice from ingenious intellectual that help in the transformation of a
product into a quality product. We take this opportunity to place on record our grateful thanks
and sincere gratitude to Mr Sabyasachi Biswal and Mrs. Luxmi Verma from Reliance Retail
Limited who gave us valuable advice and inputs for our study. Our study could not have been
completed if we had not been able to get the reference materials from the company. We are
immensely grateful to our esteemed guide Prof. Madhumita Das (Economics) and our MTS
coordinator Prof. Pabitra Kr. Rath from HDF School of Management whose continued and
invaluable guidance can never be forgotten by us. Without them, this study could not have got
present shape.
Last but not least, we would also like to express our thanks to our family members who
inspired us to put in our best efforts for the Research/Project Report. Also, we are really
grateful for the cooperation of all the store employees in all the Reliance Fresh stores in
Bhubaneswar.

Ganesh Panigrahi
Satyam Kr. Prasad
Priyanka Raj

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 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
I Title : To Study the Effectiveness of Customer
Service of Reliance Fresh stores in BBSR
II Organisation : Reliance Retail Limited
III Reporting Officer : Mr. Sabyasachi Biswal
IV Faculty Guide : Prof. Madhumita Das
V Participant's Name : Priyanka Raj, Ganesh Panigrahi
Satyam Kr. Prasad
This study is intended to help Reliance Retail decide upon the steps to be taken care for
customer satisfaction so that the growth of the company keeps on improving. Also assess the
factors responsible for customer satisfaction in Reliance Fresh in Bhubaneswar. Primary data
have been used for analysis. However, secondary source have yielded preliminary
information. Research conducted was descriptive in nature. Descriptive research helped us to
develop the concept to clearly establish priorities, to divulge adequate information which
helps us in decision making and thus essential for making the study a success. A structured
questionnaire was used to obtain required information and to assess the customer satisfaction
level and to find the ways through which the company can come up to the expectation of
customer so that the optimum satisfaction level can be achieved. We have used random
sampling for our project survey. Care was taken that the respondents were as diversified as
possible. A sample size of 200 respondents was taken from each of the nine stores in
Bhubaneswar. We collected data and analyzed them. We have critically analyzed each and
every question in the questionnaire and then given the managerial implication. This analyzed
data was later converted into bar diagrams and pie charts for convenience. This also made it
easy to draw a conclusion based research and provide a presentable format for the report.
Along with this we also got lot of ideas about how a Reliance Fresh Store operates. A better
strategy to satisfy customer is only the way to gain customer attention and to penetrate more
in own catchment area. Strategy must be in all area like Promotional offer/Scheme, Product
Pricing, Employee behavior, Billing Process, Product Assortment, Product quality .It is found
in the research that customers are price sensitive. Reliance Fresh should give those offers
which can facilitate more money saving as the customers are price sensitive. Last but not least
Bhubaneswar is not as much developed as metros as thinking and attitude of customers is
conservative. So the concept of retail that is Touch and Feel the product would take time to be
properly applied.

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER TITLE PAGE

Title Page
Acknowledgement I
Executive Summary II
Table of Contents III
List of Figures IV
List of Tables V
List of Abbreviations VI
CHAPTER-I INTRODUCTION 1
1.1 Background 1-15
1.2 Relevance of the study 15
1.3 Objective of the study 15
1.4 Scope of the study 15
1.5 Chapter plan 16
CHAPTER-II LITERATURE REVIEW 17
CHAPTER-III METHODOLOGY 18-20
3.1 Research Methodology 18
3.2 Research Process 18
3.3 Research Design 18
3.4 Sample design 19
3.5 Data Collection Method 19
CHAPTER-IV TABULATION AND ANALYSIS OF DATA 21-38
CHAPTER-V RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSIONS 39-40
Findings 39
Recommendations 39
Limitations 40
Conclusion 40
Annexure 41
Bibliography 42

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 LIST OF FIGURES

Figure no. Title Page no.

Figure No. 1 Age of the Customers 21

Figure No. 2 Number of Male and Female respondents 22
Figure No. 3 Salary of Customers 23
Figure No. 4 Numbers of times visited Reliance Fresh in a month 24
Figure No. 5 Staffs Availability 25
Figure No. 6 Helpfulness of Staff’s in the Store 26
Figure No. 7 Availability of branded products in the store 27
Figure No. 8 Opinion about products of Reliance brands 28
Figure No. 9 Opinion about price and quality of vegetables and fruits 29
Figure No. 10 Opinion about price and quality of other products 30
Figure No. 11 Opinion about store ambience 31
Figure No. 12 Opinion about billing timing 32
Figure No. 13 Reliance one card holder 33
Figure No. 14 Benefit of Reliance one card 34
Figure No. 15 Response while enquiry or complain 35
Figure No. 16 Response while returning or exchanging the products 36
Figure No. 17 After purchase evaluation 37
Figure No. 18 Compare Reliance Fresh to other malls 38

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 LIST OF TABLES

Table No. Title Page

Table No.1 Age of the Customers 21
Table No.2 Number of Male and Female respondents 22
Table No.3 Salary of Customers 23
Table No.4 Numbers of times visited Reliance Fresh in a month 24
Table No.5 Staffs Availability 25
Table No.6 Helpfulness of Staff’s in the Store 26
Table No.7 Availability of branded products in the store 27
Table No.8 Opinion about products of Reliance brands 28
Table No.9 Opinion about price and quality of vegetables and fruits 29
Table No.10 Opinion about price and quality of other products 30
Table No.11 Opinion about store ambience 31
Table No.12 Opinion about billing timing 32
Table No.13 Reliance one card 33
Table No.14 Benefit of Reliance one card holder 34
Table No.15 Response while enquiry or complain 35
Table No.16 Response while returning or exchanging the products 36
Table No.17 After purchase evaluation 37
Table No.18 Compare Reliance Fresh to other malls 38

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 ABBREVIATIONS USED
ASM - Assistant Store Manager
BBD - Best Before Date
CSA - Customer Service Associate
CSD - Customer Service Desk
DC - Distribution Center
DSD - Direct Store Delivery
EAN - European Article Number
EDC - Electronic Data Capture
EOD - End Of Day
GRDC - Goods Returned to Distribution Center
GRN - Goods Received Note
GRV - Goods Returned to Vendor
GRW - Goods Returned to Warehouse
HHT - Hand Held Terminal
ILO - Integrated Line Out
JPC - Japanese Product Code
MBQ - Maximum base quantity
MFT - Membership Finance and Traveling
MSR - Membership Service Representative
PI - Physical Inventory
PO - Purchase Order
POP - Point of Purchase
POS - Point Of Sales
SEL - Self Edge Label
SM - Store Manager
STN - Stock transfer note
UPC - Universal Product Code

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 CHAPTER-I

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background
1.1.1 Retailing
Retail has emerged as a booming sector in India, especially after the liberalization of our
economy paving newer avenues by generating potential sources of employment in different
areas of specialization and accelerating the pace of economic progress and productivity. The
business of retail thrives on an integrated approach from every department aiming at
satisfying both the unexpressed and expressed customer needs which ultimately be
multiplying the profitability of the company.

1.1.2 Reliance Retail Ltd.

Reliance Retail Limited (RRL) has grown into an organization that caters to millions of
customers, thousands of farmers and vendors. Based on its core growth strategy of backward
integration, RRL has made rapid progress towards building an entire value chain starting from
the farmers to the end consumers. Reliance Retail recorded sales of Rs 4,500 crores in the
financial year ended March 2010. It operates nearly 1,150 stores in 86 cities across 14 states.
Reliance Retail has strategic tie-ups with a few international brands such as Marks & Spencer,
Pearle Europe, Asics Corporation (Japan) and British toy major Hamleys. The company
reported a decline in its losses to Rs 239 crores in the year ended March 2010 from Rs 424
crores a year ago. Reliance is gearing up to revolutionize the retail industry in India. Towards
this end, Reliance is aggressively working on introducing a pan- India network of retail
outlets in multiple formats. Reliance Retail has announced plans to set up one store for every
3,000 families within a radius of 2 km across all locations by 2011. The company is
competing directly with the large number of traditional local provision stores. Reliance Retail
is either going to set up new stores in the identified areas or take over existing stores. The
company has already done that in Mumbai and other cities. Of the four million sq ft of retail
space to be created under the “Reliance Fresh” brand (for groceries), one million will be
through acquisitions. The retailer is also moving into laundry, personal care and apparel
product lines, in which it plans to launch private labels.

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1.1.3 Mission
To generate inclusive growth and prosperity for farmers, vendor partners, and consumers,
Reliance Retail Limited (RRL), a subsidiary of RIL, was set up to lead Reliance Group’s
foray into organized retail.

1.1.4 Vision
To become the largest organized retail in the country by creating value for the share holders
as well as for the consumers.

1.1.5 Objectives
• To enrich customer's shopping experience through customized offers, private
labels and 'value-for money' merchandise.
• To foster relationships with partners that will create new avenues of value
enhancement for its customers.
• To bolster its agribusiness & dairy value chain to support its rapidly expanding
store footprint.
• To ensure fair and timely payments to the farmers.
• To reduce spoilage through its state of-the art supply chain and logistics network.
• To provide high quality product to its customers.

1.1.6 Strategies
• To set up a chain of hypermarkets, supermarkets, discount stores, specialty stores,
and convenience store formats in 800-odd cities and towns across the length and
breadth of the country at an investment of around Rs 30,000 crores (US$ 8
billion).
• To establish a pan-India presence of all its formats, targeting not only the major
metros and cities, but also the 2nd-tier towns and semi-urban and even rural
centers.
• To include a pan-India footprint of its stores, across multiple formats and
categories, in more than 800 cities and towns, and in record time.
• To make the company profitable by strengthening presence in multi-format retail
stores, focusing on hypermarkets, building world class infrastructure and training
facilities.

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1.1.7 Products and Services
Food & Grocery Lifestyle Products and Services
Apparel & Footwear Healthcare, Financial
Consumer Durables and Membership, Travel
Electronics Auto and Entertainment
Furniture & Furnishings Services
FMCG & Personal Care

1.1.8 SBU’s of Organization

• Reliance Fresh(Super Market) • Reliance Footprint

• Reliance Mart • Reliance Timeout
• Reliance Digital • Reliance istore
• Reliance Trends • Reliance Jewels
• Reliance Wellness • Reliance AutoZone
• Reliance Super(Mini- • Reliance Living Home ware
Hypermarket) • Reliance brands limited
• Reliance Petro marketing limited

1.1.9 Competitors
1) Pantaloon Retail
2) Raheja Group
3) Tata Group
4) RPG Group
5) Landmark Group
6) Piramal Group
7) Bharti - Walmart
8) A V Birla Group

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1.1.10 Key Executives
Name Designation

Raghu Pillai Director, Chief Executive and President of

Retail Operations & Strategy
Venkataramana B Sr.Vice President - HR

Tina Khurana Chief Manager- Buyer for Speciality format

Mohit Kanodia Vice President and Zonal Head
Ajay Baijal President of Corporate Planning
Manu Kapoor Senior Vice-President of Corporate Affairs
Division
Bijay Sahoo Head of Human Resources

Nikhil R. Meswani, Hital R. Meswani, Executive Directors

Hardev Singh Kohli, PMS Prasad and R.
Ravimohan
Gwyn Sundhagul Chief Executive of Value-Format Division

(Rs. in
1.1.11 Financial Highlights of Reliance Retail Limited (2009-10)
Crore)
Capital
5,730.00

Reserves
(13.75)

Total assets 5,984.76

Total Liabilities 5,984.76

Investments 167.77

Turnover/Total Income 290.72

Profit Before Taxation

(7.00)

Provision For taxation (25.22)

Profit After Taxation

18.22

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1.1.12 Reliance Fresh
Type- Neighborhood store/convenience store
Founded- 30 October 2006
Headquarters- Mumbai, India
Key people- Mr. Mukesh Ambani, CEO
Industry- Retail
Punch line- Growth through Value Creation
Website- www.ril.com
Reliance Fresh is the convenience store format which forms part of the retail business of
Reliance Industries of India which is headed by Mukesh Ambani. The company already has in
excess of 560 reliance fresh outlets across the country. A typical Reliance Fresh store is
approximately 3000-4000 square feet and caters to a catchment area of 2–3 km.

1.1.13 Products and Services

1. Staples 9. Confectionaries
2. Processed Food 10. Dairy
3. Non-vegetarian 11. Non Food
4. Hard-line 12. Apparel
5. Homecare 13. Fresh Fruits & Vegetables
6. Personal care 14. Bakery
7. Baby Care 15. Stationary
8. Beverages

1.1.14 SWOT Analysis

Strengths Weakness
Private label sale – own products Poor inventory control
(Reliance Select) Staff – Lack of knowledge about
Contract Farming products
Network – 1600 channels in villages Parking
Opportunities Threats
Farm to fork, No middlemen, Farmers – International Retail Giants: Carrefour,
Customer Metro AG, Tesco.
Hundreds of farmers – 1 million farmers Bharti – Wallmart (Farm to Fork)
– next five years Operating cost are too high

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1.1.15 Stores in Bhubaneswar
Store location Date of inauguration Total area in square ft.
Kalpana Square 7/10/2007 2600
Gopabandhu Square 9/10/2007 3259
Lewis Road 30/10/2007 2200
Bomikhal 7/11/2007 6368
Samantrapur 4/11/2009 2358
Nayapalli , IRC 17/11/2007 4935
Baramunda 24/11/2007 4176
Unit –IV 23/2/2008 3428
Sahid Nagar 03/09/2008 5254

1.1.16 The Hierarchy of Employees in the Store

Store Manager

Assistant store manager Finance and Accounts

Manager

Supervisors

Customer Service
Associates

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1.1.17 Inside the Stores
(1) Bay

Bay is the combination of shelves which are present in the store to accommodate the products.
There are two types of bays in Reliance Fresh one is of 90 cm and the other one is of 60 cm.

(2) Jackets (3) Rack

These are used to display the promotion or
offers which are running in the store on
that day. As it can be seen from the figure,
discount of 7 Rs. has been given on
Britannia Butter 500gm. That means on
that particular day this offer was running.
In the store everyday some offers are
given.
It is combination of Bay, which are being
used to display the product. It has five or
six shelves. The counting of shelves starts
from the bottom. The bottom most is the
1st self and accordingly it is counted
upwards. There are two types of rack that
is wall rack and impulse rack.

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(4) Alligator
It is used for keeping those products which
is to be sold in a short period. It is also
used to display that product on which there
is an offer or the product whose price falls
that time, also the product who’s BBD
(Best before date) is nearer.
(6) Open Chiller
It is a freeze which is used to keep the cold
drinks, dairy items like milk and curd, also
seasonal fruits. It is made open so that the
customer can easily pick up those items
that they want. Its temperature is kept
between 2 to 4 degree Celsius.
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(5) Weight Machine
The weight machine is used to weight the
loose items of staples like rice, pulses,
pease and vegetables. CSAs weight any
staples and vegetables then a slip is
outcome through machine on which price
and weight is printed.
(7) Frizzer
This is also a freeze whose temperature is
kept between -4 to -8 degree Celsius. In
this freeze mainly the ice creams are kept
to protect them from melting. The Frizzer
is generally kept in front of entry gate in
the stores.
(8) Frozen
It is used to keep some perishable goods
which can be destroyed in open air like
cold drinks, butter, peas. Its temperature is
kept between -18 to -24 degree Celsius.
One CSA always present here and he/she
give products to customers.
(10) Customer Desk
It is on the entrance gate. The quarries of
the customers are solved here. Easy
recharge of Air-Tel, Reliance and Tata
Indicom are also done here. The authorized
person sitting over there has to see the
promotion and offers and accordingly
he/she has to make a print out of the same
to be pasted in the jacket.
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(9) Shelf Edge Label (SEL)
A label having the price of the product
along with its barcode is placed on the
shelves to make the customer aware of the
price of that product in this SEL name of
the product, price of the product, bar code
and date is mentioned.
(11) POS
This POS is nearby exit gate where the
billing is done and the complete process of
purchasing ends. Here the cash counter is
automatically locked; it cannot be opened
unless and until the billing of a customer is
not complete. Nearby POS some items like
chocolate are kept because no one comes
intentionally to buy the chocolates, chips.
(12) POP (13) Bins

POP is point of purchase. It is the area The container which is used to keep the

where a customer collects his required loose items like rice, Pease, pulses is

products from the store is called the POP. known as Bins.

Here the sales persons assist the customers

and help them in searching the goods that
they want.
(14) HHT
It is the device which is used to evaluate the price. It has the item code that is feeded and by
that, the price can be known. We can also take out the print that is called SEL (shelf edge
labeling).

(15) Category
The Category is the basic unit of analysis of making merchandising decisions. It is the
assortment of items that gives the customer reasonable substitutes for each products as well as
makes them easily differentiated. In Reliance Fresh there are different categories like Staples,
Processed Food, Non- Food, Dairy etc.

(16) Facing
The total number of products for a particular SKU in a horizontal row is known as the facing
for that product.

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(17) Depth
The total number of products for a particular SKU kept back to back for a single facing is
known as the depth for that product.

(18) Stacking
The total number of products for a particular SKU kept one above the other for a single facing
as well as back to back is known as stacking.
1. Horizontal Blocking :-
 Sub Brick Blocking
 Brand Blocking
 Pack Size (Smallest to largest, from left to right)
2. Pack Size Location:-
 Larger pack should be located at the bottom of the shelves. (To minimize
accident).
 Smallest to largest , from left to right
3. To arrive at facing and MBQ ( maximum base quantity):-
 By sales
 Product lead time from D.C. to store
 Safety stock

(19) Universal Product Code (UPC) and European Article Number (EAN)
The machine-readable representation of the UPC Bar codes is read by a scanner that passes
over the code and registers the UPC. The width of each black line and the subsequent white
space between each line coincides with the numbers of the UPC. Universal Product Code
(UPC), a unique 12-digit number assigned to retail merchandise that identifies both the
product and the vendor that sells the product. The UPC on a product typically appears
adjacent to its Bar code, the machine-readable representation of the UPC. The first six digits
of the UPC are the vendor’s unique identification number. All the products which a vendor
sells will have the same first six digits in their system. The next five digits are the product’s
unique reference number that identifies the product within any one vendor’s line of products.
The last number is called the check digit that is used to verify that the UPC for that specific
product is correct. There are now five versions of UPC (A – E) and two versions of EAN
(European Article numbers; version 8 - 13). The Japanese Article Numbering (JAN) code has

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a single version identical to one of the EAN versions with the flag characters set to ``49''.
UPC and EAN symbols are fixed in length, can only encode numbers, and are continuous
symbolize using four element widths.

(20) Article Number

Article Number is the internal numbering code of Reliance retail which is used to recognize
the product on the basis of number as the software can easily recognize the article no and it
remains constant whereas EAN always varies due to offer. E.g. If the a product is having an
offer and there is both old and new stock is available in the store, then on the basis of Article
no EAN is changed on that product in which offer has been promoted.

(21) Indenting
It is the core process of the store which ensures adequate stock on the shelves. Accurate
indenting (request by the store to the category for SKUs to be delivered) will lead to the right
quantity at the right time at the right place. Indenting has implications on the customer
satisfaction, store popularity as well as supply chain efficiency. It can be done only once a day
before 11 am. After the indenting is done the list of required products is sent to either
distribution center or to the vendors.

(22) Reliance One Card

Reliance One Membership Application. It is the loyalty program to retain the loyal customer
of Reliance Fresh. It provides discounts to the loyal customers, makes them updated regularly
about offers in reliance fresh .Through this card a customer can get points on purchasing of
any product from any of the stores across the country. If the customer purchases products
worth 100 rupees then he will get one point. When the tally of points reaches to 25, one can
redeem the discount for any purchase. A customer gets discount of 70 paisa for each point.
When tally of these points reaches 25 points, the customer gets a permanent plastic R-ONE
card. Through reliance one card customers knows about the offers, new products also. With
the help of luxmi Mam and commercials managers of stores we were assigned to do the task

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on system. With the help of ROMA we had to take out the total points, number of
transactions, last purchase date and last purchase amount. The whole day we sit on the system
to do this work. We were dealing with the customer query, solving their problems regarding
R-One card, exchanging their goods and other minor inconvenience faced by the customer in
the store. At customer service desk, customer come and enquires about the points they had in
ROMA, about the permanent R-ONE card, and issuing of the R-ONE card. We used to solve
these problems and if not then we directly call Reliance customer service (Headquarter at
Mumbai). We were totally involved in this activity. We also told about the benefit of Reliance
one card to the customers who had not the card or totally unaware about the reliance one card.
We also made loyalty card holder in different stores. Also we helped those people who didn’t
get their plastic card.

(23) SAP
SAP as all the work which is performed in the Reliance Fresh is done through SAP. SAP is
actually software which is specially designed for retailing purpose, basically there are 2 kinds
of software used in Retail Sector to handle all the operational work and they are called
1. RETALIX 2. SAP
But the most widely used software is SAP and with the help of SAP almost each and every
work becomes systematic and easier to do because we have not to maintain each and every
manual files if we are using SAP as once the data is entered in SAP then it is automatically
received by Head Office and the most important thing is that the chance of error is reduced
when we use SAP. In Reliance Fresh we call it as RETALIX STORELINE. Some of the
important works which are done through SAP are as following:-
1. GRN 5. EOD
2. PO 6. Store Performance
3. PI 7. Store to Store
4. Commercial Activity Transfer

These are the some major activity which is performed through SAP else each and every
activity has to be entered in the SAP so that the work goes smoothly.

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(24) Daily Activity which are Performed in the store are
1. Milk Indenting 14. DSD GRN
2. F&V Indenting 15. Date Code Check
3. Milk Receiving 16. Update Reports
4. F&V Indenting 17. Store Performance ( afternoon)
5. Morning Briefing 18. SOP Audit Checklist
6. Job Allocation 19. Customer Voice Entry
7. Float at POS 20. Quality Audit
8. DCC 21. Dump
9. Energy Portal(morning) 22. Markdown( food)
10. SEL Portal 23. GRN Deposit
11. Promo Check 24. EOD
12. Store Performance (morning) 25. Footfall Report
13. Bread Intending 26. DC GRN

(25) Weekly Activity

1. Price Benchmarking

2. Leafleting

3. Impress Submission

4. Mark Down(Non Food)

(26) Monthly Activity

1. Physical Inventory

2. Update Registers

3. Consumables Indenting

4. Consumables Booking

These were the activity which we did practically on daily basis for this week, and learnt
almost all the activity which is performed in the store.

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1.1.18 Customer Service
Customer service is the provision of service to customers before, during and after a purchase.
Customer service may be provided by a person (e.g. sales and service representative), or by
automated means called self-service.

1.2 Relevance of the Study

• This study on effectiveness of customer service of reliance fresh stores in
Bhubaneswar will help the organization to understand that customer is satisfied or not
of the service of the stores.
• Identify the need and demand of the customers.
• To come up with relevant and innovative ideas for the growth of reliance fresh.

1.3 Objectives
To know the actual need and expectation of the customer at Reliance Fresh.
To assess the effectiveness of customer loyalty program.
To assess the effectiveness of customer service provided in Bhubaneswar.
To find out the causes of satisfaction and dissatisfaction of customers.
To increase the footfall in the stores.
To understand what the customers want to improve in customer service of Reliance
Fresh.

1.4 Scope of Study

This study covers customers of Reliance Fresh in the area of Bhubaneswar. The catchment
area of the Reliance Fresh is Sahidnagar, Baramunda, Unit-4, Kalyan, Samantarapur, Lewis
Road, Nayapalli, Gopubandhu, and Bhomikhal. The study makes effort to ascertain the
satisfaction level of customer of Reliance fresh through survey so that company would be able
to come up to the expectation level of its customer. The company can come up to the
expectation only by finding out the problem that customer are facing during their purchase
from Reliance Fresh. The subject has been taken for the research as it plays key role in the
success of retail sector. The research will also be beneficial in analyzing the overall market
position of the company and measures which should be adopted by the Reliance Retail Ltd.

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1.5 Chapter Plan
In Chapter 1, brief introduction about the Retailing, Retailing in India and Bhubaneswar, brief
introduction about the Reliance Retail, Reliance Fresh and its contribution, objective of the
study, scope of the study, Relevance of the study, also it has been discussed about what is the
learning from the stores. Chapter 2 deals with Literature Review. Chapter 3 reviews the
methodology of project, data collection methods. Chapter 4 explains about the data
compilation, data formulation, data interpretation and data analysis. Chapter 5 reviews about
the project’s findings, recommendations, limitations and Conclusion.

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 CHAPTER-II

LITERATURE REVIEW

Piyush Kr. Sinha, Professor, Marketing and Chairperson, Centre of Retailing, IIMA
said that “Retail industry is growing at a rapid pace due to the changes in the
consumption culture of indian consumers”.
Dwarika Prasad Uniyal, Assistant Professor of MICA said that “Customer Loyalty is
crucial to the success of a store since the catchment area of a store is limited and the
business can survive only when more value is derived out of every customer”.
Top executives of Reliance Retail Limited said that “Reliance Retail expects to break
even in a year or two with the help of better business efficiencies”.
Philip Kotler, Professor of Northwestern University said that “The Indian Retailing
Industry is shaping up to be very different from that of other countries.”
Pankaj Jaju, executive director of Enam Securities Ltd. Said “There is under-
penetration of organized retail in the country. It is easier to create large businesses in
the speciality formats as the margins are better. Food and grocery retail is a difficult
business with lower gross margins and higher competition from the corner shop
(traditional) retail trade”.
Arvind Singhal, chairman of Technopak Advisors Pvt. Ltd, a retail consultancy said
“Food and grocery retail accounts for 30-35% of the overall $22 billion organized
retail trade, followed by apparel retail”.

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 CHAPTER-III

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

3.1 Research Methodology

It is a way to systematically solve the research problem. It may be understood as a science of
studying how research is done scientifically. In it we study the various steps that are generally
adopted by researchers, in studying our research problem along with the logic behind it. It is
essential for the researchers to know not only the research method technique but also the
methodology.

3.2 Research Process

It consists of a series of action necessary to effectively carry out research and the desired
sequence of these steps.
Defining the problem and research objectives
Develop the research plan
Collection of data
Analyze the information
Present the findings
Make the decision

3.3 Research Design

A research design is the arrangement of conditions for collection and analysis of data in a
manner that aims to combine relevance to the research purpose with economy in procedure.
Descriptive research is used in the preparation of the project. There is some point and facts
which were not found earlier. Hence field study research is used. A descriptive research
technique is also used as we again worked upon those facts which were earlier found by some
other. Our studies were completely descriptive and field study research

3.4 Sample Design

For sample the feedback is taken from 1800 customers. The feedbacks are collected from all
of 9 stores in Bhubaneswar. The data is collected from 200 customers from each store.

25
3.5 Data Collection Method
3.5.1 Primary Data
Primary data generally means those raw data or data structures that are collected “first- hand”
and have not any previous meaningful interpretation. For our Summer Internship Project
Report, We have collected such primary data through face to face interview method with the
help of questionnaire.

3.5.2 Secondary Data

Secondary data is also used to find some facts regarding company (Supermarket) through
Internet, Journals, Books, and Newspapers

3.5.3 Primary Data

Through:-
Questionnaire,
Personal interview
Observation.

3.5.4 Secondary Method

Companies’ website, Internet

3.6 Research Apparatus

Survey Method

3.7 Research Instruments

Observation, Questionnaire and Personal Interview

3.8 Sample Universe

Nine stores of the Reliance Fresh: - Sahidnagar, Baramunda, Unit-4, Kalyan, Samantaraipur,
Lewis Road, Nayapalli, Gopabandhu, and Bhomikhal

3.9 Sample Size

The sample size collected is 1800. The data is collected from 1800 customers from the 9
stores in the Bhubaneswar. It was obtained from the loyal and disloyal customers. Loyal
customers mean the customers who are R-ONE card holder at Reliance Fresh. Information
was collected from sample size of 1800 respondents which included both male and female.

26
From that total data analysis is done and some recommendations are suggested so that footfall
will rise at any instance.

3.10 Tools Adopted

For the project study the tools adopted is questionnaire having scale type questions in which it
is measured as Excellent, Good, satisfactory, Fair, Poor. The questionnaire is close-end and
open-end in which Rating scale Semantic differential are used. Also two open-end questions
are asked. In which it is found that what customers want to see improvement in reliance fresh.

3.11 Data Analysis Method

Statistical tools
1. Bar graph 2. Pie chart 3.Column graph

27
 CHAPTER-IV

TABULATION & ANALYSIS OF DATA

4.1 Age of the customers

Table 4.1: Age of the Customers

Age group division No. of Respondents Percentage

18-25 354 20

25-30 264 15

30-40 750 41

>40 432 24

Total 1800 100%

Figure 4.1: Age of the Customers

AGE

>40 18-25
24% 20%

25-30
15%

30-40
41%

Customers between 30-40 age groups today are highly salaried employees and are not so price
sensitive and like to have a good purchasing experience. Working women and house wives of
this age group are like to come to the Reliance fresh more. So we found more customers in
this age and they are also having high purchasing power.

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4.2 Number of male and female customers respondents

Table 4.2: Number of Male and Female respondents

Male/Female No. of Respondents Percentage

Male 739 41%

Female 1061 59%

Total 1800 100%

Figure 4.2: Number of Male and Female respondents

SEX

M
41%
F
59%

It is found that females take more interest in purchasing the household products than their
male counterparts and they come to Reliance Fresh because they are not finding the
difficulties as they do in the Kirana store. We also took more interest in surveying the female
customer in the hope of getting more concrete findings. These are some reasons for the higher
percentage of female customers.

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 4.3 Salary of the customers (In thousands)

Table 4.3: Salary of Customers

Salary division No. of Respondents Percentage

<15 0 0%

15-25 379 21%

25-35 727 40%

>35 443 25%

No Salary 251 14%

Total 1800 100%

Figure 4.3: Salary of Customers

SALARY

800 40%
600 21%
0% 25%
400 14%
727
200 379
0 443
0 251
<15
15-25
25-35
>35
NO
SALARY

Out of 1800 respondents 14% are students so they don’t have incomes. And it is found out
customers having income 25-35(thousands) purchasing the products more from Reliance
Fresh. It has also marked the customers whose income more than 35 thousand are purchasing
large number of products due to their high purchasing power.

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4.4 Numbers of times visited Reliance Fresh in a month

Table 4.4: Numbers of times visited Reliance Fresh in a month

Reliance fresh visited
in a month No. of Respondents Percentage

Excellent 468 26%

Good 833 46%

Satisfactory 355 20%

Fair 118 7%

Poor 26 1%

Total 1800 100%

Figure 4.4: Numbers of times visited Reliance Fresh in a month

NUMBER OF TIMES VISITED RELIANCE FRESH IN A MONTH

46% EXCELLENT- More than 5

1000 26% times
20% GOOD - 4 times
7% SATISFACTORY- 3 times
FAIR- 2 times
500 1% POOR - One time
833
468
0 355
118 26

While asking this question it is found little difficulty. Because some customers they come
more often but they purchase very few products like milk etc. We put them into excellent. But
some customers they come 2 or 3 times in a month but they purchase everything from
Reliance Fresh for their whole need of their month. We have also put them into excellent. So
it is difficult to relate the footfalls with the purchasing amount.

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 4.5 Staff availability in the store

Table 4.5: Staffs Availability

Staffs Availability No. of Respondents Percentage

Excellent 172 9%

Good 1289 72%

Satisfactory 318 18%

Fair 18 1%

poor 3 0%

Total 1800 100%

Figure 4.5: Staffs Availability

STAFF AVAILABILITY

POOR 3 0%

FAIR 18 1%

SATISFACTORY 318 18%

GOOD 1289 72%

EXCELLENT 172 9%

It didn’t find more customers who are very much dissatisfied with the staff availability.
Because we surprised to see that staff are so cooperative and didn’t mind to do the overtime
when more number of staff are on holiday at a particular time. Yes, more customers didn’t say
excellent because at some stores the attrition is more. So there is no adequate staff availability
all the time.

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4.6 Opinion about Helpfulness of staff in the Store

Table 4.6: Helpfulness of Staff in the Store

Helpfulness of staffs No. of Respondents Percentage

Excellent 187 10%

Good 1368 76%

Satisfactory 227 13%

Fair 16 1%

Poor 2 0%

total 1800 100%

Figure 4.6: Helpfulness of Staff in the Store

HELPFULNESS OF STAFF

FAIR POOR
0% EXCELLENT
1%
10%
SATISFACTORY
13%

GOOD
76%

It is found out very few employees in some stores are not so helpful to the customers when
they need them. It’s very difficult to attend each customer especially in the peak hours, so
that’s why it is found only 187 customers who said that Staff helpfulness is excellent. 76%
customers said that staff is very cooperative, helpful and they help whenever they we didn’t
get anything also provide information about offers and new products.

33
4.7 Availability of all the branded products in the store

Table 4.7: Availability of branded products in the store

Availability of branded products No. of Respondents Percentage

Excellent 35 2%

Good 898 50%

Satisfactory 636 35%

Fair 218 12%

Poor 13 1%

Total 1800 100%

Table 4.7: Availability of branded products in the store

AVAILABILITY OF ALL BRANDS

POOR
1% EXCELLENT
2%
FAIR
12%

GOOD
SATISFACTORY 50%
35%

Very few customers said they don’t feel excellent about varieties of brands available because
customers are very particular about the brands they use. And everybody have their own
choice so some customers don’t get some brands of their choice, so they have put Good
instead of Excellent.

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4.8 Opinion about the products of Reliance brands

Table 4.8: Opinion about products of Reliance brands

About products of Reliance

Total No. of people Percentage
brands

Excellent 8 1%

Good 453 45%

Satisfactory 804 32%

Fair 312 13%

Poor 16 1%

No Comment 207 8%

Total 1800 100%

Figure 4.8: Opinion about products of Reliance brands

PRODUCTS OF RELIANCE BRANDS ARE

EXCELLENT
NO COMMENT
1%
POOR 8%
1%
GOOD
FAIR 45%
13%

SATISFACTORY
32%

207 customers didn’t give any comment because we found they are completely unaware about
the Reliance brand products. The customers who said well they also don’t use all the products
of Reliance Brand. We have seen Reliance Tea is more known to the customers.

35
4.9 Opinion about price and quality of vegetables and fruits

Table 4.9: Opinion about price and quality of vegetables and fruits

Price and quality of vegetables No. of Respondents Percentage

Excellent 41 2%

Good 764 42%

Satisfactory 532 30%

Fair 383 21%

Poor 80 5%

Total 1800 100%

Figure 4.9: Opinion about price and quality of vegetables and fruits

PRICE AND QUALITY OF VEGETABLES AND FRUITS

EXCELLENT
2%
POOR
5%

FAIR
21%

GOOD
42%

SATISFACTORY
30%

5% of the customers said that, qualities of the vegetables are poor because they may be not
finding the vegetables are as fresh as the local vendors. Very few people said excellent, they
are generally the very loyal customers and customers who purchase fruits. Very few people
complained about the price and quality of the fruits. 42% customers said that quality of
vegetables and fruits are good than local vendor because they throw out the dump vegetables
and fruits.

36
4.10 Opinion about price and quality of other products

Table 4.10: Opinion about price and quality of other products

Price and quality Total no. of

Percentage
of other products Respondents

Excellent 95% 5%

Good 1127% 63%

Satisfactory 537% 30%

Fair 41% 2%

Poor 0% 0%

Total 1800 100%

Table 4.10: Opinion about price and quality of other products

PRICE AND QUALITY OF PRODUCTS

30%

63%
5% 2%
0%
1127 537
95 41 0

Most of the people found it very difficult to answer. Very few complained about the quality of
products but more number of customers said comparing to the general stores the costs are
high. So they said Good and satisfactory instead of Excellent.

37
4.11 Opinion about store ambience

Table 4.11: Opinion about store ambience

Store Ambience No. of Respondents Percentage

Excellent 127 7%

Good 975 54%

Satisfactory 584 33%

Fair 112 6%

Poor 2 0%

Total 1800 100%

Figure 4.11: Opinion about store ambience

STORE AMBIENCE

POOR 2 0%

FAIR 112 6%

SATISFCATORY 584 33%

GOOD 975 54%

EXCELLENT 127 7%

More Customers found the store ambience Good and Satisfactory but they strongly felt that it
could be improved.

38
4.12 Opinion about billing timing
Table 4.12: Opinion about billing timing

Billing Timing No. of Respondents Percentage

Excellent 70 4%

Good 1176 65%

Satisfactory 383 21%

Fair 78 4%

Poor 11 1%

No Comment 82 5%

Total 1800 100%

Table 4.12: Opinion about billing timing

BILLING TIMING

65%
21%
4% 4%
1% 5%
1176 383
70 78 11 82

More number of customer said the Billing service is Good as comparing to other malls but
They said it should be improved especially in the peak hours and weekends.

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4.13 Reliance one card Holder

Table 4.13: Reliance one card

Reliance one card No. of Respondents Percentage

Yes 1236 69%

No 564 31%

Total 1800 100%

Figure 4.13: Reliance one card

R1 CARD HOLDER

NO
31%

YES
69%

Only 31% customers don’t have Reliance one card. We found these customers are not regular
to the Stores or even if they come but they don’t purchase much. 69% customers have
Reliance one card and they are loyal customers, who purchase products from Reliance Fresh
regularly.

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4.14 Benefit of Reliance one card

Table 4.14: Benefit of Reliance one card

Benefit of R1 card No. of Respondents Percentage

Excellent 18 1%

Good 820 44%

Satisfactory 365 20%

Fair 75 4%

Poor 6 0%

No Comment 516 31%

Total 1800 100%

Figure 4.14: Benefit of Reliance one card

BENEFIT OF R1 CARD

31%
20%
44%
1% 4%
0%
800 558
355 65
16 6

516 customers don’t have their R-one card. Most of the people are quite satisfied with the
cash back benefit the card provides especially who purchases more from Reliance Fresh.

41
4.15 Response while enquiry or complain

Table 4.15: Response while enquiry or complain

Response while
No. of Respondents Percentage
enquiry or complain

Excellent 171 10%

Good 1042 58%

Satisfactory 441 25%

Fair 40 2%

Poor 8 0%

No Comment 98 5%

Total 1800 100%

Figure 4.15: Response while enquiry or complain

RESPONSE TO CUSTOMER ENQUIRY OR COMPLAIN

POOR NO COMMENT
0% 5% EXCELLENT
FAIR 10%
2%

SATISFACTORY
25%

GOOD
58%

5% customers said No comment because they had never done any enquiry or complain. 58%
customers are satisfied and they said that CSA listen their complain and take a quick action
upon it. Also in every stores there are complain books to write the complain.

42
4.16 Response while returning or exchanging the products

Table 4.16: Response while returning or exchanging the products

Response while returning or

exchanging the products No. of people Percentage

Excellent 139 8%

Good 1055 59%

Satisfactory 360 20%

Fair 32 2%

Poor 5 0%

No Comment 209 11%

Total 1800 100%

Figure 4.16: Response while returning or exchanging the products

RESPONSE WHILE RETURNING OR EXCHANGING

NO COMMENT
11% EXCELLENT
POOR 8%
0%
FAIR
2%

SATISFACTORY
20%

GOOD
59%

11% customer never experienced the returning or exchanging situation. And the percentage of
people who said poor about the service is 0%. Because we have seen the staff was really
cooperative whenever the customer needs returning or exchanging.

43
4.17 Feeling after purchase the products from Reliance Fresh

Table 4.17: After purchase evaluation

After purchase evaluation No. of Respondents Percentage

Excellent 198 11%

Good 1005 56%

Satisfactory 594 33%

Fair 2 0%

Poor 1 0%

Total 1800 100%

Figure 4.17: After purchase evaluation

AFTER PURCHASE EVALUATION

56%
1200
1000
33%
800 11%
0%
600 0%

400 1005

200 594 2 1
198
0

Not single customer felt bad after purchasing from Reliance fresh. But most of the customers
can’t able to clearly rate their experience. It was overall a good experience for most of the
customers.

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4.18 Compare Reliance Fresh to other malls

Table 4.18: Compare Reliance Fresh to other malls

Compared to other malls No. of Respondents Percentage

Excellent 400 22%

Good 870 49%

Satisfactory 507 28%

Fair 20 1%

Good 3 0%

Total 1800 100%

Figure 4.18: Compare Reliance Fresh to other malls

COMPARED TO OTHER MALLS

POOR 3 0%

FAIR 20 1%

SATISFACTORY 507 28%

GOOD 870 49%

EXCELLENT
400 22%

0 200 400 600 800 1000

400 customers said excellent out of 1800 because they found it was less rush and peaceful as
compared to other malls. So enjoy the purchasing experience immensely. 870 customers said
it is good particularly due to the shorter queue in front of the billing counter.

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 CHAPTER-V

FINDINGS, RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSIONS

5.1 Findings
• Most of the customers are coming to the Reliance Fresh because of
 Their proximity to the store
 Good quality of the products available here
 For saving time and getting better purchasing experience
• Customers are not satisfied with the replenishment of stocks
• Most of the customers don’t like to purchase vegetables here.
• CSAs are not attending properly to the customers during afternoon hours
• Customer are not getting permanent Reliance one card.
• Indicators for products are not available in some stores.

5.2 Recommendations
• There should be some arrangement for fast billing services during
weekends
• CSAs must be trained to be more knowledgeable about the product and
should be more initiative while attending the customers.
• Watering of the vegetables must be done in a timely manner.
• Varieties of cosmetic products for women must be increased.
• Drinking water facility and sitting arrangement for older people must be
available.
• Promotion of private label products.
• There should be proper indicator in the store for product.
• There should be customer Feedback register as well as complaint box
which should be clearly visible to the customer and it must be monitored
by a single person.

46
5.3 Limitations
Every project has its limitations. This project is no longer exception. We had faced a number
of problems during the project work. Followings are the limitations of the study:-
1. Some people had no time to answer the questions.
2. Sometime respondents were biased.
3. Some of the facts are being left because of lengthiness of questionnaire.
4. Some of the people didn’t know Hindi for which we faced language problem because
we didn’t know Oriya.
5. Time constraint. Because of the restricted time available for the completion of this
project we felt restricted in covering more information for the project.
6. Some of the people got annoyed to answer the questions and they simply avoided us.

5.3 Conclusion
This study has tried to address the need for customer satisfaction in Reliance fresh. From the
foregoing analysis and finding it is evident that customers have much more expectation from
Reliance fresh. Reliance fresh is not able to come up to the expectation level of its customer
fully. Promotional offers are mostly confusing. In terms of RATER Reliance fresh service is
satisfactory. Supply chain must be more efficient, as their most of the time shelves are empty
especially in case of Food & Vegetable, bakery and milk. And also for staples as the sale of
staples is more and it get finish early and it take 3 days for new product come to store.
Respondents suggested that there should be proper communication regarding promotional
offer. That must be easy to understand. A better strategy to satisfy customer is only the way to
gain customer attention and to penetrate more in own catchment area.
Strategy must be in all area like Promotional offer/Scheme, Product Pricing, Employee
behavior, Billing process, Product Assortment, Product Quality, Service quality, etc
Last but not least is not as much developed as metros so thinking and attitude of
customers is conservative. So the concept of retail that is Touch and Feel the product would
take time to be properly applied. As some segment of the customer of Bhubaneswar hesitate
to enter into the retail store. Once the conservative thought would abolish definitely the Retail
will grow with leap and bound, ultimately it would benefit Reliance fresh & Reliance retail.

47
 ANNEXURE

To Study the effectiveness of customer service of Reliance Fresh stores in BBSR

Name: Address:
Age: 18-25 25-30 30-40 >40 Occupation:
Salary: 10-15 15-25 25-35 >35 Tel No:
Sex: Male Female
# Are you a loyalty card holder: Yes No
Please evaluate your visit by Rating your Experience:
Excellent Good Satisfactory Fair Poor
5 4 3 2 1

1. Number of times visit Reliance Fresh in a month _____ _____ _____ _____ _____

2. Availability of staff’s _____ _____ _____ _____ _____

3. Helpfulness of Salesperson _____ _____ _____ _____ _____

4. Availability of all the brands _____ _____ _____ _____ _____

5. Products of reliance brands are _____ _____ _____ _____ _____

6. Price and quality of vegetables _____ _____ _____ _____ _____

7. Price and quality of other products _____ _____ _____ _____ _____

8. Store appearance, arrangement and facilities _____ _____ _____ _____ _____

9. Billing timing _____ _____ _____ _____ _____

10. Benefit of loyalty card _____ _____ _____ _____ _____

11. Response to customer inquiry or complaint _____ _____ _____ _____ _____

12. Response while returning or exchanging _____ _____ _____ _____ _____

13. What you feel after Purchase? _____ _____ _____ _____ _____

14. As compared to other malls this is _____ _____ _____ _____ _____

15. What did you like best about our customer service ?

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

__

16. How could we improve our customer service?

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

__

48
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

Books

LAMBA, A.J. (2007), “The Art of Retailing”, Tata McGraw-Hill Publishing

Company Limited, Retail operations, Pages 373-416
SINHA, PIYUSH KUMAR and UNIYAL, DWARIKA PRASAD (2007),
“Managing Retailing”, Oxford university Press, Building Store Loyalty, Pages
465-469, Understanding shopping and Shopper, Pages 80-100, The Domain of
Retailing, Pages 1-5
SHARMA, ANIL and GUPTA, RUCHI (2009), “Customer service in retailing”,
Biztantra, Introduction of Customer Services, Pages 1-44
BAJAJ, CHETAN and SRIVASTAVA, NIDHI (2007), “Retail Management”
Oxford university Press, Retail Customer, Pages 200-245
KOTLER, PHILIP (2009), “Marketing Management”, Dorling Kindersley
(India) Pvt. Ltd., Managing Retailing, Wholesaling, and Logistics, Pages 430-
437
MURTHY, C. (2009), ”Research Methodology”, Vrinda Publication [P] Ltd.,
Methods of Data Collection, Pages 117-141

Websites

www.wikipedia.com
www.ril.com
www.scribd.com
www.answer.com
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1525112.cms
http://news.franchiseindia.com/retail/Reliance-Retail-Revenue-may-grow-10-
times--2067/
www.retailangle.com
www.livemint.com

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