Retail branding

In todays world of cut throatcompetition, Retail has become a challenging business, with competitionspopping out of the blue. Retailers who are able to create a distinct identityfor their stores in the minds of the consumers will be able to sustain in themarket profitably in the long run. This requires building a customer-centricculture and monitoring the global trends on a continuous basis. To setthemselves apart from the competition, retailers must build a brand image fortheir store. This will give them a two-fold benefit of maintaining goodwillwith both the manufacturers and the consumers. Brands are one of the mostvaluable assets, and creating a good brand image is crucial for retailers as itis for the manufacturers, especially as retail competition is at its peak inthe recent years. Brand building consists of creating an image for the retailstore, advertising, and implanting their store logo in the consumers mind.

The Global Retail Scenario:

Brand plays an important role inthe retail arena. It identifies a particular product and differentiates it fromits competitors. Today nobody goes to the store to buy a soap, or salt orbutter. They want to buy a Lux, or Tata, or Amul. Consumers do not wantto shop in a retail store. They want to shop in Wal-Mart, or Marks andSpencer, Zara, and the like. Such is the presence of brand image in the mindsof the consumers. 16 of the worlds top 50 brands are retail brands.

A successful branding strategyshould:

• Generate customer value,
• Provide perceived value, and
• Be difficult to copy.

Initially, the retailers notionof having a brand image did not go through well. The classic ideas of theretailers did not match with the simplicity of brands. Also, the retailersmind-set to expect an immediate return on their investment did not go with theprolonged time brands need to spread their influence in the market. But lateron, retailers started understanding that, their biggest asset apart from theretail space, and supply chain are the shoppers themselves. So, having a strongbrand image is a pre-requisite for success. Strong brands become transferable,and extend their operation into new service areas.

Textile Retailing andBranding:

Textile industry is one of themost highly competitive industries in the world. In todays textile world,branding has become an extremely complex task. There are so many textilecompanies, and every one of them wants a share in the pie. Retailers began tosee the necessity of having a strong brand in their business to provideexceptional insulation and demand. Gap, Mango, Zara, Marks and Spencer, andH&M are a few to name among the top global retail brands dealing in clothing.Mango operates in 89 countries, Zara 68, and H&M operates in 28 countrieswith a universally strong influence. The ability of the brand determines thecustomers ongoing loyalty, repurchase and retention, ultimately influencingthe retailers profits.

Importance of Branding:

To Consumers:

• Identification of the product source: identifies the manufacturer from whom the product came to the retail store.
• Assign the responsibility to the product maker: in case if there is any malfunction in the product.
• Quality Representation: the owner of the brand will be the source of the quality of the product sold.
• Builds a bond with the retailer: the type of product sold in the store, and the reputation of its manufacturer will satisfy the status requirements of the shopper.

To Retailers:

• Legal protection of unique features: of the in store arrangements of the store.
• Indicates quality level to satisfied customers: the store display and products sold will be a status symbol, and shopping at the store will satisfy the customers self-esteem
• Gains competitive advantage: over the other retail stores selling similar or substitute products.
• Financial returns: will help the retailer to increase customer satisfaction and thereby acquire more profits.