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Two Years [Aug 2008 to May 2010, 4 Semesters]
Graduate in any discipline
Delhi, Chennai, Jaipur
Modern retailing has significant front end managerial tasks such as in merchandising, customer relations, shop floor management, visual merchandising, ware housing, store management. The course prepares students with the competences to man these functions for executing such tasks.
Retail is one of India’s largest industry, accounting for over 10% of the country’s GDP and around 8% of the employment. It is one of the fastest growing, most dynamic segments of the economy. The whole concept of shopping has altered in terms of format and consumer buying behaviour, ushering in a revolution of modern shopping in India. Accordingly, the retailing industry in India, estimated at INR 9,300 billion (2003) is expected to grow 5% p.a. and organized retailing is estimated to be on its way to becoming an astounding INR 1,000 billion by 2010.
The course starts with an introduction to the retail industry and the various existing and future retail models and to the basic elements of the fashion market. The main areas of learning are retail strategy, retail merchandising, and marketing and its relation to retail. Technical skills are given a strong foundation through basic inputs on fabrics and garments. Emphasis is also laid on developing communication skills.
As the course progresses, additional emphasis is given to application of the accumulated skills and knowledge of special focus areas such as store planning, retail promotions, retail market analysis and marketing, consumer behaviour analysis, retail buying and merchandising, visual merchandising, using specialized retail software wherever required. You also continue to enhance your knowledge of garment patterns and acquire competence in an international language, viz, German. By semester three, the focus is on skills and knowledge acquisition through project-specific research and exploration. You move into areas relevant to retail specialism, combining sound managerial expertise with entrepreneurship skills in terms of store design and operations, IT applications, and relevant organizational and legal aspects of the retail business
The learning is completed with industry internship and the final dissertation in the last semester. The internship gives exposure to a realistic hands-on experience of retailing skills and techniques. This is followed by a Dissertation Project that demonstrates understanding and learning, and ensures that you apply your skills and knowledge to find solutions to defined problems in the retail industry. The best dissertations receive Special Accruals and such awardees have a further opportunity to present their work to the industry at a public forum. There is also an option to go to Germany on an exchange scheme in operation with LDT, Nagold, an internationally reputed retail academy closely tied with Pearl, where you may acquire exposure to international standards of retailing.
Retail merchandisers are responsible for ensuring that right products appear in the right store at the right time and in the right quantities. This involves accurately forecasting trends, planning stock levels and monitoring performance. Department Managers oversee the sales and manage stores, plan advertising campaigns and sales promotions, hire and train personnel, control inventories, draft budgets, and recommend, establish, or implement store procedures and policies. Managers may also oversee the remodelling of a store, plan store layouts and design displays, decide selling strategies, and represent the store in negotiations with manufacturers. Visual Merchandisers are responsible for conceptualizing, designing and implementing window and in-store displays. Visual Merchandisers must combine their artistic flair and creativity with technical know-how to set up appealing displays. |
