By Zainab Morbiwala Images Retail December 2008 THE HISTORY OF CATALOGUE RETAILING IS INTERESTING. WHAT BEGAN OUT OF NECESSITY, SOON DEVELOPED INTO A CHANNEL OFFERING CONVENIENCE OF SHOPPING FROM HOME. WITH THE TREND OF CATALOGUE RETAILING YET TO GAIN MOMENTUM IN INDIA, MOST RETAILERS - STILL FOCUSSED ON THE BRICK AND MORTAR FORMAT- ARE YET TO FULLY EXPLOIT THE TRUE POTENTIAL OF THE MEDIUM. THE ROOTS As the name suggests, Catalogue retailing is a non-store retail format where the retail offering is communicated through a catalogue to the consumers. Mail-order catalogues debuted in 1856 when Orvis began selling fishing gear…
By Aniruddha Basu MUMBAI (Reuters) Friday December 5, 2008 Textile companies may not benefit much from the rupee's weakness as a slump in global demand and prior currency hedges trim bottomlines in an industry dominated by exports, officials said. The partially convertible rupee has fallen almost 21 percent in 2008 and hit a record low of 50.65 rupee against the U.S. dollar on Tuesday. But demand from some large retailers overseas has slowed, company executives added. "Because of the recession, what is happening is that demand for products are going down," said Jayesh Shah, chief financial officer, at apparel maker…
Whatever you might say about "customer relationship management", you can't fault some companies for trying. Only, sometimes they just try too hard. For instance, one bank (that shall remain unnamed) sent an email with birthday wishes WEEKS after the event. You could laugh at the mistake, blame it on a fault with the IT system, whatever. But what do you do when the very next day they follow it up with an emailed apology that says: "Dear Customer We apologize for inadvertently e-mailing a Birthday wish to you. Kindly accept our sincere apology for the inconvenience caused to you. We…
In 1998, Stan Davis and Christopher Meyer, two collaborators of the Ernst & Young Centre for Business Innovation, wrote a groundbreaking book under the title: 'BLUR. The speed of change in the connected economy.' The authors defined blur as 'the accelerating pace of change of our post-modern economy'. They wrote: "Because we are so newly caught up in the whirlwind of this transition, we are experiencing it as a blur." In the meantime, in some business circles, 'BLUR' has acquired the status of a cult book. Raving about this book may be exaggerated, but its main message is certainly worth…
For all those who have admired the consistency and presentability of produce in western supermarkets, hereโs proof that tough times really focus us on substance and force us to look beyond skin-deep beauty. Even in fruits and vegetables. British supermarket Sainsbury has challenged European Union guidelines that restrict the sales of fruits by certain physical standards. Sainsbury's is questioning EU regulations that prevent selling "ugly" fruit and vegetables. Due to EU regulations such as size of cauliflower (minimum 11 cm diameter) and the shape of carrots (requirement that there should be a single root, not multiple), Sainsbury estimates that up…
Geopolitical friction has again sparked renewed concerns over inflation and rising input costs for FMCG companies as @itmeansjustice @whysnavi write. @devangshu commented.
