Pros And Cons Of Retailing

1.1 What is Retailing?

Any business that directs its marketing efforts to satisfy the ultimate consumers by selling goods and services is known as “Retailing”. Retailers are the direct link with the end- consumers.

Retailers study the needs of their consumers and they serve to satisfy those needs. Retailers offer value to their consumers with effective merchandising and they co-ordinate all their efforts to deliver the same.

1.2 Global Retail Scenario

Retailing is one of the world’s largest industries. Its global share is USD 9 trillion. Retail share to the world’s GDP is 27 per cent and to USA’s GDP is 22 per cent. The share of organized retail to the developing markets amounts to 20 to 55 per cent. Among the Fortune 500 Companies, 47 companies

In the USA market, Wal-Mart, the world’s leading retail chain has about 8 per cent share amounts to USD 2,350 billion. Similarly in the UK market, TESCO has a market share of 13 per cent amounts to USD 406 billion. Globally, the main value propositions that most of the retailers use are low-price, ‘all-under-one-roof’ convenience and ‘neighborhood’ availability.

The modern retail gives the benefits of increased productivity, economic growth, capital investment, job creation and exports. The global retail industry employs more than 150 million people and contributes about 9 per cent to Global GDP directly and another 20 per cent indirectly. According to the National Retail Federation, 1 in 5 American workers are employed in the retail

An annual fair for a month was conducted in the present day Meerut District of Uttar Pradesh. It was called as “Nanchandi Mela” held after Holi, every year and attracted lakhs of people. In the early years, those fairs were conducted to sell horses. Along with that animal trade, other cattle and rural craftsman products trading were also happened. They were named as melas and fairs, primarily conducted for two aims. One for trading and the other one for entertaining. Modern retailing is no way different from them and it involves all activities related to selling of goods and services in small quantities to end-consumers and they make the consumers’ shopping experience as pleasurable and memorable one. India is one of the world’s most attractive future markets and it has become the fastest growing economy in the world over the next two decades. By bringing a large number of manufacturers and consumers together at a single point, retailers make it possible to sell the products and to do their business. India's retail and logistics industry gives employment opportunities to 40 million Indians which amounts to 3.3 per cent of the total Indian population.

Worth of Indian Retail Industry is USD 270 billion and it is growing at the rate 13 per cent per annum. Among this, organized retail share is 4.6 per cent which amounts to USD 12.42 billion.

Notable fact is that 85 per cent of the India’s urban retail market is focused