You would be remembering about the stationery stores within max 300 to 450 sq.ft, fully congested, unhygienic with household items. Buying stationery was a big fuss and there were not many options for selection wise also. Most shops were handled by one man, or two, and we have to wait in the shops for our turn to get our things packed.
But now, it has changed to pave the way for a retail culture. No more stationary shops are there. Everything has changed. Now you can see big malls with vast space, under one umbrella you can get everything. Wide range of selections. You can spend long hours in search of your ideal item… Shopping malls became a destination for one day trip where you can relax and get fun and entertainment. This is the outcome of retail revolution In India.
Many Global giants as well as Domestic tycoons entered the Retail sector realizing its potential. They have spent billions and built big malls offering various kinds of job opportunities to youth. , international business tycoons like McDonald’s, Pizza Hut, Levis, Nike, Adidas, Sharp, Kodak and Sony ventured into retail business.
Now shopping malls employ energetic youth specially trained to behave polishly with customers. They have to treat the customer as the king. They are well aware about the products. There are many categories of employees working in retail malls … from packing section to managers all are well dressed with a smile to serve you. What else you want???
Latest Trends in Retail Industry
There are many small and big academic courses related to Retail industry conducted by Association of India, Indian Retail School and various universities which open vast opportunity in the Retail sector. The academic courses are Customer Relationship, Retail Brand Management, Psychology of Retail Shoppers, Management and Organization Behavior, Supply Chain Management, Marketing Information, Finance Management, Accounting in Retail, Electronics Retailing, Marketing and Business Communication, Sales Promotion with Public Relation, Event Management etc. MBA in retailing too has commenced in many institutions to attract youth to retail industry.
MBA in Retail Management
MBA in Retail Management is a vast area of study. It tries to cover the socio- economic- psychological aspects of retailing, in exact terms the aspects related to the customer. All shopping mall owners employ a great strategy towards their retail business management. They take best expertise from industry; purchase garden fresh products eliminating middleman entry, always try to display fresh items in the shops even at lowest price. They also effectively advertise to promote their products. So you can see the New age mall management is so organized.
Syllabus of MBA in Retail Management
Curriculum of MBA in Retail Management includes different aspects of Retail business.
The Syllabus includes the theories of marketing, customer satisfaction, business development strategies , starting website for the brand ,online and offline marketing, promotional advertisements, developing healthy customer relationship, inventory management, plan the strategies to get an edge over competitors, discount and reward plans, logistics, festival and special occasion offers, franchise outlets and many more subjects are there.
MBA Retailing can be done through distance education scheme too.
The profiles that one can look into by getting a Retail Management degree
- Store manager
- Customer care executive
- Merchandise officer
- Public relations executive
- Sales executive
- Inventory monitoring officer
- and many more.
Post graduate Diploma in Retail Management
PGPRM [Post graduate Diploma in Retail Management] is a course conducted by the Retailers Association of India. They will publish notification for the admission status.
Duration of the course: 18 months
Eligibility criteria: 50% mark in any graduation subject
Admission is done on the basis of CART [Common Admission Retail Test] Entrance
15 business schools conduct P G Diploma in Retail Management. Out of these, 7 business schools belong to food sector .
They are as follows:
- Asian School of Business Management, Hyderabad.
- Bangalore Management Academy, Bangalore
- Chennai Business School, Chennai
- IFIM Business School, Bangalore
- International School of Business and Media, Bangalore
- KLE Society College of Business & Administration, Belgaum
- Vasavi Institute of Management & Advanced Studio, Bangalore.
Retailers Association of India conducts a two- month short term course too. Garware Institute of Career Education and Development under the Mumbai University provide diploma course in retailing for those who have passes +2.