- SAMPLE UNIT …45
- SAMPLE SIZE …45
- SAMPLE SELECTION …45
- DATA COLLECTION TOOLS …45
- PRIMARY DATA …45
- SECONDARY DATA …45
- VARIABLES INVOLVED …46
- SCALING TECHNIQUES USED IN QUESTIONNAIRE …46
- DATA COLLECTION …47
- PRIMARY DATA COLLECTION …47
- SECONDARY DATA COLLECTION …47
- LIMITATIONS AND CHALLENGES WHILE UNDERGOING RESEARCH …48
CHAPTER-6 ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION …50
- ANALYSIS OF PRIMARY DATA …51
- SUMMARY OF GIFTS DISTRIBUTION …78
CHAPTER-7 FINDINGS AND RECOMMANDATIONS …79
- SWOT ANALYSIS …80
- FINDINGS …81
- RECOMMANDATIONS …82
BIBLIOGRAPHY
APPENDIX
CHAPTER-1
INTRODUCTION TO BISLERI INTERNATIONAL PRIVATE LIMITED
1.1 INTRODUCTION
1.1.1 GENESIS
The name that epitomizes mineral water today was first introduced in Mumbai in the early 60's. In 1965 Signor Felice Bisleri an Italian by origin, came up with the idea of selling bottled water in India. His company Bisleri Ltd. offered mineral water in two Variants- bubbly and still.
In 1969 Parle bought over Bisleri (India) Ltd. and started bottling Mineral water in glass bottles under the brand name 'Bisleri'. In due course Parle switched over to PVC non-returnable bottles and finally advanced to PET containers.
1.1.2 EXPANSION
Under the leadership and vision of Mr. Ramesh J. Chauhan, Bisleri has undergone significant expansion in their operations. The company has witnessed an exponential growth with their turnover multiplying more than twenty times in a short span of 10 years. The average growth rate over this period has been around 40% with Bisleri enjoying more than 60% of the market share in the organized mineral water segment.
Currently Bisleri has 11 franchisees and 8 plants across India, with plans of setting up 4 new plants on the anvil. The overwhelming popularity of 'Bisleri' and the fact that it was the pioneer of the bottled water industry in India has made it synonymous to Mineral water and a household name. So naturally 'When you think of bottled water, you think Bisleri'.
Rigorous Research and Development and stringent quality controls have made it market leaders in the bottled water segment. Bisleri has always been committed to offering every Indian pure and clean drinking water. Hence Bisleri water is put through multiple stages of purification, ozonisation and is hygienically packed for final consumption.
To maintain strict quality controls in every unit, Bisleri not only purchase caps from approved vendors, but also manufacture own bottles, in-house. To be at par with International standards, they have recently procured the latest state-of-the-art machinery which has not only helped them improve packaging quality but has also reduced raw material wastage and doubled production capacity. One can rest assured that they are drinking safe and pure water when they consume Bisleri. Bisleri is free of impurities and is 100% safe. Enjoy the sweet taste of Purity!
1.1.3 BISLERI TODAY
The Indian consumer today enjoys the sweet and pure taste of Bisleri mineral water. However in an effort to offer something special to there loyal consumers they have recently introduced - water brought to consumers from the foothills of the mountains situated in Himachal Pradesh. This newly launched offering has widened Bisleris product range to two variants: Bisleri with added minerals and Bisleri Mountain Water. Bisleri’s registered office is in Mumbai.
1.1.4VISION
Our vision is to be the dominant player in the branded water business where the second player is less than 20% of our business.
1.1.5MISSION
We are in the business to serve the customer. He is the most important person. He is the only one who pays. He deserves the best quality and presentation at a worth of the price. We must have world class quality, at the lowest production & distribution cost. This will make us an unbeatable leader, and will have satisfied loyal customers.
1.1.6VALUES
Integrity, Leadership, Teamwork, Co-operation, Quality, Passion, Openness & Transparency.
1.2 PRODUCTS
Bisleri has developed 8 unique pack sizes to suit the need of every individual. It is present in 250ml cups, 250ml bottles, 500ml, 1L, 1.5L, 2L which are the non-returnable packs & 5L, 20L which are the returnable jar packs.
1.2.1 BISLERI WITH ADDED MINERALS
This product is bottled drinking water at its best. Bisleri with added minerals has a TDS count (total dissolved solids count) of approximately 100. It contains minerals such as magnesium sulphate and potassium bicarbonate which are essential minerals for healthy living. They not only maintain the pH balance of the body but also help in keeping one fit and energetic at all times.
Bisleri with added minerals is also put through multiple stages of purification to ensure the elimination of all forms of bacteria. This makes the water you drink completely safe to consume. Bisleri with added minerals is available in 250ml cups, 250ml bottles, 500ml bottles, 1 litre bottles, 1.5 litre bottles, 2 litre bottles and 5 and 20 litre cans.
1.2.2 BISLERI MOUNTAIN WATER
Bisleri Natural Mountain emanates from a natural spring, located in Uttaranchal and Himachal nestled in the vast Shivalik Mountain ranges. Lauded as today's 'fountain of youth', Bisleri Natural Mountain Water resonates with the energy and vibrancy capable of taking you back to nature.
Bisleri Natural Water is bottled in its two plants in Uttaranchal and Himachal Pradesh and is available in six different pack sizes of 250ml, 500ml, 1 litre, 1.5 litre, 2 litre and 5 litres.
1.2.3 BISLERI HIMALAYA WATER
The Himalayas, the abode of the Gods, where the earth meets the heavens and where in lies nature's untouched bounty. White glaciers, snow-capped mountains and a plethora of exotic herbs and other flora that have therapeutic properties. This is where one will find a treasure trove of hidden natural spring water that flows through natural purifying filters, mineral rich rocks and herbs from which it absorbs many healing properties. Bisleri bottle this pristine spring water directly at source, at the foothills of the Himalayas.
This Water is available in 500ml. bottles & 1 litre bottles.
1.3 PURIFICATION
Every drop of Bisleri water is purified as per international standards to ensure that customers Bisleri experience always remains pure and satisfying for longer. The following is a brief understanding of the water treatment process.
CHLORINATION
Kills micro organisms. Remove organic matter.
ARKAL FILTER
Removes suspended matter and turbidity.
CARBON FILTER
Removes residual chlorine & odours
REVERSE OSMOSIS
Removes organic material. Controls total dissolved solids in the water.
ADDITION OF MINERALS
For the purpose of maintaining a balanced mineral content.
MICRON FILTRATION
Additional safety measures to guarantee purity.
OZONATION
Ensures water remains bacteria free for longer life.
1.4 PACKAGING
The most critical aspect of Bisleris bottling process that sets them apart from the rest of the industry is the fact that there bottles remain untouched right through the rinsing, filling, capping and labeling operations.
1.4.1 FILLING
Bottles are fed by an air conveyor from the blowing unit directly into the in-feed of the RFC. Our RFC equipment is neck run and it boasts of a monoblock unit, which means that every bottle is held by the neck automatically while being inverted, rinsed and sprayed with ozonated water at 2 Bar pressure. After draining, the bottles are re-inverted and transferred to the filler. At the filler these bottles are straightened up and gradually lifted to the filling valves which open only when a bottle is placed under them. Filling is then done systematically through gravity.
1.4.2 CAPPING
After the filling process the bottles are then transferred to the capping section. Here ozonated-water rinsed caps are screwed on the bottle with uniform torque. Since our water is ozonated all product contact parts are of 316L grade stainless steel and the rubber parts are of EPDM. (All components are water lubricated above the table top.)
1.4.3 LABELLING
From the capping section the bottles are directly sent to the labeling section. All Bisleri bottles are labeled on a hot melt reel feed BOPP labeling machine. This machine allows each individual bottles to be spaced out and fed to the labeling station where precisely cut labels with a strip of hot melt glue at the leading and trailing edge, get rolled around the bottle. These labels are fed into the machine in a roll form too.
1.4.4 QUALITY CHECK
From here on, the bottles go through an online check where qualified personnel inspect each bottle for any leaks or breakages. They are then packed into sturdy cartons which are dispatched to the market by our fleet of trucks.
1.5 BISLERI JAIPUR
Bisleri has total number of 8 plants in country, Mumbai being the biggest. Jaipur plant is smallest of all. Its share is around 2.5 percent in production. This plant supplies Bisleri packaged drinking water to whole of the Rajasthan state.
Its importance lies in the fact that it covers the hottest region of country and also supplies to a major tourist attraction region. Maximum number of tourists in country visits Rajasthan, hence during winters there is huge demand of packaged water in this particular state. Apart from that Rajasthan is very hot region there for there is always a demand of water in form of packaged water.
Bisleri have there offices in all the major cities of Rajasthan but there is only a single plant, in Jaipur. This plant has the capacity of fulfilling demand of whole of the state. The plant is located in one of the major industrial areas of Jaipur- Vishwakarma Industrial Area, away from the main city, on Sikar highway. Its location helps its operations in form of supplies as all the major highways are connected to this highway. Major distribution channels are setup in cities of Jodhpur and Udaipur which are situated in further west and south of Rajasthan further helping its distribution.
There are major three external distributers for Jaipur city itself. There is Shyam enterprises, Radhey enterprises and one being a new distributer which took place of another one because of his incapability’s to supply and lot of complains being filed upon him by the retailers in this survey.
At administration level staff there is only one person held responsible in Jaipur that is being DGM of company – Mr.Neeraj Kumar. There is around a staff of 20 people in a company including Sales Manager and Human Resource Manager. There are three salesmen for Jaipur city and company is looking forward to hire more of them.
As we enter plant which is located in basement of building we find plant manager who is always there to look after the proper functioning of plant. The whole process from bottle making to packaging is divided among around 6 machines. Firstly bottles are made out of plastic capsules, and then they are cleaned. Water which has already undergone 7stage purification is filled in it. Then labeling and packaging takes place. Then 12 bottles cartons are filled and moved up to the storage room, from there carriage takes place and operational cycle is completed.
1.6 COMPETITORS
The bottled water industry is one of the most thriving sectors in India. The market is growing at a whopping rate of about 55 per cent annually and is expected to cross Rs. 1000-crore mark within the next couple of years.
Almost all major national and international brands have taken a plunge. Parle's Bisleri that virtually monopolised the bottled water market is now vying with Nestle, Coca Cola, PepsiCo, Manikchand, UB and Britannia. According to a national-level study, there are close to 200 bottled water brands in India. Nearly 80 per cent of these are local brands.
1.6.1 MAJOR COMPETITORS IN REGION
1.6.1.1 AQUAFINA
Aquafina is a brand of Pepsi co. It was first distributed in , in 1994, and was distributed across the , , , , , and . As of 2003, it had become the ' top-selling bottled water brand in measured retail channels. Aquafina uses PepsiCo's own seven-step purification system, which it calls HydRO-7, which includes pre-filtration treatment to remove larger particles, two stages of , charcoal filtration, , and sterilization . PepsiCo states in marketing material that this system removes substances that may be in other brands of bottled water.
Aquafina entered in Indian market in 2000-2001 and it used its Parent concerns established distribution network.
Now when we talk about the market, there are various startegies used by Aquafina in Rajasthan. Like they are giving away free water bottles to retailers with purchase of cola cartons and they are not letting any other drink to be stored inside the refrigerators provided by them to the retailers. In that case small retailers are unable too keep Bisleri bottles cold and propsing one of the major reason to not to buy Bisleri then to buy any other water. Consumer always ask for cold water because of heat in Jaipur.
1.6.1.2 KINLEY
Kinley is owned by and sold in many Central European countries and India. Its forms are used for , and also available in a variety of fruit flavors.
The Kinley brand is used by Coca-Cola for two types of drinks:
-A Carbonated water with a wide array of variants: tonic, bitter lemon, club soda and fruit flavored. Available in , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , and .
-A High quality bottled water available in , , , , and .
When we talk about the market Kinley also follows similar strategies to Aquafina of giving away free water bottles with there cola cartons and not letting retailers kep any other product inside there complimentary refrigerators.
1.6.1.3 BAILLEY
Bailley, brand is owned by Parle Agro Pvt. Ltd. Parle Agro’s other products are Frooti, Appy, LMN, candies like mintrox etc. It is the first water brand to be issued an ISI certification. The first to launch special four-sided 200ml bottles catering to premium airlines like Jet Airways and British Airways. Bailley is available in 200ml, 330ml, 1 Ltr. & 2 Ltr. PET.
The reason behind Bailleys success is that they are offering bottles to the retailers at very low price hence giving them opportunities to gain considerable margins. In few areas Bailley distributers were supplying water at nominal price of five rupees to the retailers. Retailers believe that brand name does not make a difference when it comes to water and they always go for cheaper available variant to them.
1.6.1.4 KINGFISHER
Kingfisher is mainly a beer brand manufactured and marketed by united breweries ltd. It is one of the largest selling beer in country commanding a 29% market share in country. Its not been very long since it entered into Packaged drinking water segment. The only strategy behind this was diversification henceforth emerging as one of the main competitors to Bisleri. Kingfisher also makes use of its already set network and it’s a major supplier of water to wine shops.
1.6.1.5 FOSTERS
Based in Melbourne, Australia, and publicly listed on the Australian Stock Exchange, Foster's products are sold in over 100 countries. They have around 200 premium brands, and operations stretching over to five continents.
Fosters beer is very popular in India among youth that creates a kind of loyalty to the brand further showing a glimpse in packaged drinking water segment. Fosters also use low price strategy to sell its packaged drinking water in market.
1.6.1.6 OTHER COMPETITORS IN MARKET
- ALFA
- ATLAS
- GOLDEN EAGLE
- GOLDEN VALLEY
- DEW DROPS
- HELLO
- HIMALAYAN
- INTIMATE
- KENABAR
- NAKSHATRA
- NESTLE PURE LIFE
- PRISTINE
- RAINDROPS
- SUN
- SPRINT UP
- SPA AQUA
- GAGAN
- VINAYAK
CHAPTER 2:
MARKET OVERVIEW
2.1 INTRODUCTION TO JAIPUR: THE PINK CITY
Jaipur is the first planned city of India, located in the desert lands of Rajasthan. The city that once had been the capital of he royalty, now serves as the capital city of Rajasthan. Founded in 1727 by Maharaja Sawai , the ruler of , the city today has a population of more than 5 million residents. The very structure of Jaipur resembles the taste of the Rajputs and the Royal family. In the present date, Jaipur is the major business centre for the natives of Rajasthan with all requisites of a metropolitan city. The city of Jaipur, painted in pink, grasp the appreciation of every visitor. One can see that hoary charm still alive in the avenues of Jaipur.
The active streets of Jaipur get plenty of visitors, every year at their footsteps. The Ancient Testimonials in the form of mind-blowing monuments remind one of the past ages. The city comprises the famous structures like Hawa Mahal, City Palace and Amber Fort, the best architectural examples of India. Artistic temples and gardens of Jaipur, marks the atmosphere of serenity and aestheticism to the lands of Rajasthan. The lively city observes its ethnicity by celebrating various festivals like Kite festival, Elephant festival and many others, of Indian origin.
All theses features make Jaipur, one of the most sought after tourist destinations of Rajasthan, India. The glorious city boasts of its cultural heritage from every nook and corner. Jaipur is the reservoir of Indian customs, traditions, civilization and legacy. Jaipur lies at a distance of 260 kms from Delhi, the capital of India and the city is well-connected with other major cities of India. Every year, People across the globe come to experience this royal capital city of Rajasthan.
The climate and weather of Jaipur is usually hot. The summer season persists from Mid-March to June reaching to the maximum temperature of 45o C. The showers of Monsoons come usually in the month of July preceded by dust and thunderstorms. The city doesn't receive much rain. During the post-monsoon season in September, Jaipur gets hot spell once again. In winters, the city of Jaipur observes bright and pleasant sunny days, though the temperature can reach a low of around 5o C during the nights.
2.2 GUIDE MAP:JAIPUR
2.3 MARKETS COVERED
2.3.1 MARKET A
2.3.1.1 M.I.ROAD
Mirza Ismail road is a very old main street area of Jaipur. Water selling Shops (although limited) on both sides of road are since its birth and acts as loyal customers to Bisleri. Mirza Ismail Road or M I Road is an ideal a place to shop for jewellery and branded readymade garments in Jaipur. The road is actually curved and boasts of ancient architectural shop. A happening hang-out for tourists, M I Road is Jaipur's equivalent of Delhi's Connaught Place. Its location is right next to the wall city of Jaipur.
The main shops sell old silver jewellery and artefacts, antiques, handicraft and apparel. There are also showrooms for Raymonds, Pepe, Woodland, Benetton, and others. Small shops that sell bangles, bedsheets and Jaipuri dresses ensure that one can complete its "Jaipur shopping" at M I Road.
M.I .Road also has sought-after restaurants such as Niros, Suryamahal, Mc Donald, Pizza Hut and Copper Chimney; the famous Raj Mandir cinema hall and famous Lassiwala shops of Jaipur.
2.3.1.2 RAJA PARK
Raja Park Market offers everything ranging from grocery to flowers, from furniture to apparel. This area was given to all the Sindhi and Punjabi Business class people who came to India at the time of division of country. This market is very well organized modern market with all kinds of shops in it. From best of the showrooms to famous Panwala’s of Jaipur have there place in Raja Park.
Raja park is full of juice shops, confectionery shops, chemists, restaurants, general purpose stores which sells packaged drinking water. Considering the fact that all the business men reside in this area and higher class of people visit this area to most there is huge demand of Bisleri water in this area. Here people understand the quality and insists upon it so Bisleri sells most in this region.
2.3.1.3 JAWAHAR NAGAR
On the south-east of the pink city is the colony of Jawahar Nagar. The region of Jawahar Nagar is located towards south-east of the city central of Jaipur. The place is about 4.5 kms away from the centre of the city. The colony consists of well established roads and markets. The place is well provided with schools many tour operators are grounded in the region. The national highway bypass forms the boundary of Jawahar Nagar. Some adjoining areas include Burmese colony and Raja Park. The region is divided into sectors with the streets traversing each other at many points.
This is also one of those markets in which bisleri leads. Just like Raja park all of the business class reside in this area and people visiting these areas also believes in quality. There is square market known as Mama Ki Hotel where all the juice, confectionery and general stores are situated. All these shops in here sells Bisleri and distribution in this area is almost perfect
2.3.1.4 M.D.ROAD
Moti doongri road connects cities most lavish market to old walled city of Jaipur. Its importance lies in the fact that good number of tourists travels through this route and there are few heritage hotels also on this road. There are all kinds of shops on this road where there is limited demand of water but maximum demand is fulfilled by Bisleri only.
2.3.1.5 NARAIN SINGH CIRCLE
Narain singh circle is one of the very popular landmarks of Jaipur. Its one road heads toward Delhi and Agra highways, one towards old city and last one towards Tonk. There is also a small deluxe bus stand on this circle and its also bus stand to all the private buses to Delhi and Agra. Being a bus stand there is huge demand of packaged water. There are around 7-8 small shops which all sells Bisleri. One of the shops here sells around 200 cartons of Bisleri 1ltr here.
2.3.1.6 BANGAR HOSPITAL
On the gate of Bangar hospital there are certain number of chemists and few small juice shops which were also covered by me. In this area there is a mixed demand bottle water. With Bisleri, Bailley also sells here to certain extent.
2.3.2 MARKET B
2.3.2.1 NEW SANGANER ROAD
New sanganer road is one of the major landmarks away from walled city. It’s a long road covered by shops on both sides. From this road there are two major diversions to markets of Nadnpuri and Shyam nagar. All this road is full of juice, cold drink and kulfi shops. Although the area around is not such which can create a demand of bottled water but there are so many number of shops that if just covered well by distributer can give good sales. Tourists hardly visit this region, so there is only seasonal demand on this road.
Nandpuri and Shyam nagar also have good number of small shops which sells water but there were lots of problem associated to this market regarding distribution which I have mentioned later on in my report.
2.3.2.2 22 GODOWNS
22 Godown is right next to the railway track and is part of civil lines. Civil lines is a region in which Chief minister and Governor of Jaipur resides, also ex-vice president of India Mr. Bharo singh shekhawats private house is in this area. So this areas importance can be understood.
There are countable numbers of shops in this area and this is only small market of Market B, in which Bisleri sells in good numbers. There are few medical shops, general & kirana shops, and Juice shops.
2.3.2.3 MAHESH NAGAR
This whole market is parallel to railway line and there are important road like 80 feet road and 60 feet road. All kinds of people reside in this area. Water does not sells in good number in this area but still because of many a juice shops there is certain fix demand is created.
Hardly any tourists visit this area and people do not believe in difference in packaged water here. To them all packaged water is same and they prefer buying whichever gives them maximum margins.
2.3.2.4 V.K.I SIKAR ROAD
Vishwa karma industrial area is one of the major industrial areas of Jaipur situated on Sikar road highway. Here all the big companies have there plants and offices like Coke, TNT, NBC, and Bisleri itself. Its connected to one of the major residential area of Jaipur, known as Vidyadhar nagar.
This whole road is covered by all kinds of shops on both sides. There are no big showrooms or malls in this area but being a highway there are many small hotels on this road. This areas demand is well supported by Bisleris location advantage.
2.3.2.5 AJMER ROAD
This market covers the shops direct from MI ROAD to main Ajmer highway. Shops are scattered around and both sides of this road. There are not too many shops on this road selling bottled water. In this area shops include lots of dairy’s, juice shops and small confectionery & medical shops.
This road also includes the market of nirman nagar in which there is good number of shops supporting needs of people residing in this area. There is limited demand of bottled water in this area that too cheap and easily available.
2.3.2.6 JHOTWARA KALWAR ROAD
This market is located in west of the city. Market region covered under this area starts from Jhotwara flyover to Kalwar choongi post. This is also a straight road both side market. Here also there is certain fixed seasonal demand of water as hardly any tourists visit this region.
All shops in this region are small and only support people residing around. There is not a huge demand of water on this road. Retailers here also do not believe in quality in bottled water and preference is given to cheap selling water which gives more margins. Shops in this region include small kirana shops, sweet shops, small juice shops and panwalas.
CHAPTER 3
INTRODUCTION TO SCHEME
3.1 RETAILERS SCHEME CARD
The main job assigned to me at Bisleri Jaipur was distribution of “RETAILERS SCHEME CARD” to all the retailers in assigned market. Jaipur is a big city area wise so it was not possible for just one or two persons to cover whole market. For this purpose there were five summer trainees and 3 sales mans of company. Areas assigned to me have already been discussed in last chapter. There were 265 shops in these markets which I have divided into Market A and Market B. There were two distributers supplying Bisleri products under both of the markets.
The job was to distribute cards to every retailer and note down there name, organization name, address and date of birth in register with same on the card.
3.1.1 SCHEME
This scheme was for a month of May and gave opportunity to retailers to win gifts on buying certain target amount of cartons of Bisleri in month of May. All they needed to do was to attach all the bills of May with the card which was collected from them after end of month. Details of scheme-
This scheme was valid on all products of Bisleri except 20 ltr jars.
3.1.2 SHOPS COVERED
Shops covered under this scheme were all retailers who were selling packaged drinking water whether Bisleri or some other companies product apart from that cards were also distributed to those shops which were prospects for company to sell water.
3.1.3 AIM OF THE SCHEME
The main aim behind scheme was to reach directly to every retailer in town and collect there data.
- To understand the current situation of market.
- To check upon the services of distributers.
- To check upon the working of Sales executives.
- To learn about various schemes and strategies of competitors.
- And last but not the least increasing secondary sales of the company.
CHAPTER 4
PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES
4.1 SCOPE OF STUDY
Marketing is a subject where a person can learn from anybody. As I was into retailers survey work of country’s leading packaged drinking water company Bisleri, I was feeling myself to be a part of organizations family. I had a very good market exposure while undergoing this project because every person came forward with a different opinion and that was very important to know the perception of the retailers. And being my first real exposure to the corporate environment, the training period proved to be very educating and offered me a great chance to learn the practical workings of the FMCG industry.
4.2 OBJECTIVE OF STUDY
The primary objectives of the introduction of Retailers scheme card and research project titled “RETAILERS SURVEY IN JAIPUR WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO BISLERI” are as follows:-
- Understand current market scenario in context of packaged drinking water.
- What attracts retailers most in selection of packaged drinking water?
- What are the various issues related to distribution in various markets?
- What are the various schemes and strategies used by competitors to capture market?
- What are the various demands of retailers?
- How retailer view product of Bisleri in comparison with other companies products?
- To increase secondary sales of the company?
To study and to check upon and thereby to cater to the above set objectives of the project a structured questionnaire was designed and it was approved by the supervising faculty and the companies DGM.
4.3 PROBLEM DEFINATION
- To understand the basis of what services does a retailer makes his choice in buying a packaged drinking water.
- To understand various problems associated with distribution of product.
4.4 RATIONALE OF STUDY
- Being a project for my partial fulfillment of my MBA degree I was motivated to finish this project to the best of my ability.
- My interest in the field of marketing of products was a motivation factor towards this research.
- Stability in operations of fmcg companies irrespective of changing financial conditions was a factor that brought me interest in knowing more about the internal workings of the fmcg industry.
CHAPTER 5
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
5.1 TYPE OF RESEARCH
My research is DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH as it includes a questionnaire survey and it is a fact finding enquiry through retailer’s scheme card. And I am focusing on retailers viewpoint towards packaged drinking water and problems associated
My Project is descriptive research due to the following factor:
- It describes the characteristics of retailers in Jaipur city.
- It is carried out to estimate the approximate percentage of units in a specified population exhibiting certain behavior.
- It helps in determining the perception of product characteristics.
- It helps in making certain predictions related to packaged drinking water.
5.2 SAMPLE DESIGN
Regardless of the method or the design of the research that is used to obtain the primary data, the decision for this very research activity in the field of FMCG and about surveying the entire population of retailers or only a representative portion of the population of the market had to be made. For this research activity the latter was adopted due to the resource constrains which was also the limitation of this research report. With the limited amount resource in the hand, the only feasible way was to survey a representative portion of the population than the entire population as such. The difficulty in forms of time and resources caused the researcher to resort to the sampling approach than census approach as the size of the entire population was huge which could not be catered because of limited resource and time.
5.2.1 SAMPLE UNIT
As the project was being done for the Jaipur branch of the Bisleri the sample unit taken was retailers of Jaipur city.
5.2.2 SAMPLE SIZE
The sample size selected was 265 respondents. This was due to the time and resource constraint faced by the researcher during the project.
5.2.3 SAMPLE SELECTION
Respondents were selected on the bases of assigned markets by the company; all retailers in those markets were covered. Criteria for selection were-
- All retailers selling packaged drinking water.
- Retailers who were not into packaged drinking water but can be a future prospect for a company.
5.3 DATA COLLECTION TOOLS
5.3.1 PRIMARY DATA
Primary data was collected through questionnaire method and also through retailers’ scheme card. The Questionnaire and Retailers card are attached to the annexure of this report. It contained 12 questions and covered the necessary areas needed to complete the research.
5.3.2 SECONDARY DATA
Secondary Data was collected from sources at the office, magazines’, newspapers and websites.
5.4 VARIABLES INVOLVED
- Type of retailers.
- Features of product offered.
- Retailer’s perception on packaged drinking water.
- Retailer’s expectations from company.
5.5 SCALING TECHNIQUES USED IN QUESTIONNAIRE
- QUESTION 1 – Nominal Scale
- QUESTION 2 – Nominal Scale (Dichotomous question)
- QUESTION 3 – Nominal Scale
- QUESTION 4 – Nominal Scale
- QUESTION 5 – Nominal Scale
- QUESTION 6 – Nominal Scale (Dichotomous question)
- QUESTION 7 – Nominal Scale (Dichotomous question)
- QUESTION 8 – Nominal Scale
- QUESTION 9 – Nominal Scale
- QUESTION 10 – Nominal Scale (Dichotomous question)
- QUESTION 11 – Nominal Scale
- QUESTION 12 – Nominal Scale (Open Ended)
5.6 DATA COLLECTION
5.6.1 PRIMARY DATA COLLECTION
Most of the data that were collected for this research activity is primary in nature. The total number of targeted respondents was 265 across the 12 markets and the time constrains were 5 to 6 weeks. Therefore the best method of concluding the data collection was to design a short objective based questionnaire and thereby to proceed with the informal personal interviews with the sample respondents.
The questionnaire was designed by fully keeping the objective of the research in the mind. A proper structured questionnaire which was a combination of an open end and close ended questions was prepared. The reason for it hails from the suggestion given by the industry guide who assisted me in designing the questionnaire; who suggested that the research activity is descriptive in nature and so the questionnaire contained more number of an close end questions; but on the other hand since there is a need to understand retailers perception open ended questions was an essential.
Refer to the appendix for the questionnaire
.
5.6.2 SECONDARY DATA COLLECTION
Most of the secondary data for the research was collected from websites, magazines and newspapers.
5.7 LIMITATIONS AND CHALLENGES WHILE UNDER GOING THE RESEARCH
- First, it was not a consumer’s survey but retailer’s survey; it was really hard to find a free sitting shopkeeper in peek hours of a day when survey was carried out.
- Secondly, no shopkeeper likes to waist there precious selling time in such activities like filling of questionnaires. Here I am thankful to company to provide me with a retailer’s scheme card which helped them attract still there were shopkeepers who were very busy to entertain me.
- Biggest limitation of this report is that in all the markets covered there were 4 distributers and they all have there own way of working. That is the reason there were totally opposite response from some markets to the others with different distributers.
- When I use to cover markets it was noticed that many shopkeepers use to keep there shops closed from 1 to 4 due to heat of Jaipur, because of which there were certain shops missed.
- Another reason because of which many a shops were not covered was that shop owners themselves were not present on shop and it was not possible to handover the scheme to any other person at shop.
- All those retailers who were not into selling of packaged drinking water were hard to convince to give there information.
- Also those retailers which were selling some other companies mineral water proved a challenge.
- There were certain cases in which shopkeepers were not willing to give there information on account of security measures.
- Most of the people in Jaipur believed in hiding there age and did not tell there DOB.
- In certain cases it was seen that few shopkeepers were so unhappy with services provided by Bisleri that they showed there anger by not entertaining me.
- Many of the phone numbers given by respondents were wrong or were not picked by the owners of phone.
The research covers only a minor part of Jaipur city there by doesn’t bring about maximum satisfaction.
But in spite of these obstacles there were many people who really helped me to reach my destination. There were a no. of retailers who patiently heard what I tried to convey them and they also made me aware of the different problems associated with Bisleri and its distribution. But they were very kind to me and some of them even gave a good response by placing order for Bisleri to me.
The main advantage that I had while doing my training was the attractive scheme which I was distributing. After a long there was any scheme introduced by Bisleri and this helped me in ease of conversation with retailers. They took interest because they were getting something out of it.
I also got reference from the existing customers of the Bisleri and they assisted me to track right type of retailers who were interested in selling packaged drinking water.
CHAPTER 6
ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION
6.1 ANALYSIS OF PRIMARY DATA
How many scheme cards were collected back of 265 distributed to shopkeepers?
MARKET A
- Off 117 cards distributed in Market A, 66 that is 56% of cards were collected back.
- This suggests that people in this area do care about such schemes and just don’t throw away the cards considering them useless.
MARKET B
- There were very similar results in Market 2 as well, here also major number of cards that is 53% were collected back indicating the importance of schemes to the people.
- Reason behind not getting cards back were lost cards, misplaced cards and some retailers even threw the cards away.
Q.1 What is your shop type?
- Juice, cold drinks and food shop
- General/Kirana store
- Pan shop
- Dairy an Medical store
MARKET A
MARKET B
- Maximim number of shops in both region are juice,colddrink and food shops and General/Kirana stores.
- But dairy/Medical and pan shops in both regions have there importance as almost each shops of these kind sell packaged drinking water.
Q.2 Do you sell mineral water at your shop?
MARKET A
- In Market A, 87% of the shops covered were selling some or the other kind of mineral water.
- There were just 15 retailers off 117 who were not selling mineral water in Market A.
MARKET B
- There were 38% of the shops covered in Market B which were not selling mineral water.
- This suggests that there are good number of shops which are availaible to Bisleri to be exploited in near future.
Q.3 Which mineral water do you sell at your shop?
- Bisleri
- Bailley
- Aquafina
- Kinley
- Kingfisher
- Fosters
- Others please specify__________________________
MARKET A
MARKET B
- Off the total number of shops selling mineral water from question no.2 there were 17 shops in market A which were selling 2 brands of water and similarly 19 shops in market B selling more then 1 brand of water, this chart is inclusive of that data.
- If we compare both the markets, In Market A Bisleri is doing excellent with 70% share in the market, but in Market B it just have 43% of share, which is way below there standards.
- There are no close competitors but Bailley and Aquafina eating up certain sales.
- Major answers for other types were local brands like Sun, Gagan, Intimate and Vinayak.
Q.4 What kind of customer usually visit your shop for packaged drinking water?
- Daily walk in customers
- Regular Customers
- Parties and marriages orders.
MARKET A
MARKET B
- By this question researcher is trying to find out that what are the kinds of customers, visiting retailers, for packaged drinking water.
- Its very clear that maximum number of customers’ are daily walk in.
- But another fact lies behind this question is that retailers involved in regular deliveries and orders are selling way more then those selling to daily walk ins.
- There is one shop in Market A (Jaina Ice-cream parlour) which is involved in orders, sells above 300 cartons every month. And in this scheme month it sold 402 cartons which included around 300 5ltr pet jars.
Q.5 What attracts you the most in choice of mineral water?
- Quality
- Margins provided
- Schemes
- Service provided by dealer
MARKET A
MARKET B
- By studying this question we can understand that what actually attracts retailers in selection of packaged drinking water.
- As found in both the markets valid matching figure of 41% in favor of margins.
- In Market A schemes take second place but in Market B its quality because all those who are buying Bisleri in market B is because of its quality; other companies are providing them more margins then Bisleri.
- Services with 6% and 8% does not affect the retailers much, it just comes as a consolation to them.
- There were 30 non respondents in total in these markets to this question.
- Response to this question brings about the fact that retailers are most attracted towards margins when it comes to choice of a product.
Q.6 Do you have fridge provided by any company?
MARKET A
- This question has its place in questionnaire because customers having fridge provided by any company usually are forced not to buy Bisleri as companies like Coke and Pepsi doesn’t allow any other product to be kept inside there refrigerator.
- In Market A just 29% retailers have fridge provided by any other company that’s why Bisleri sales are not affected here due to this reason.
MARKET B
- In Market B results are almost same but as sales in this region are less then Market A therefore retailers with Fridge are dominant selling other brand.
- These retailers satisfy demand of this region hence Bisleri sales are highly affected.
- And off those who don’t have fridge are very small retailers and don’t have capacity above 15 cartons in a month.
Q.7 Does Bisleri distributer visit your shop?
MARKET A
- In Market A 74% of the shops covered are visited by Bisleri distributer.
- If we compare it with question number 3 that off these 74% retailers almost all buy Bisleri only leaving 4% behind.
- This suggests that distributors are well up to there task in this region.
MARKET B
- Major portion of shops in Market B are not visited by Bisleri distributer.
- Only 68 off 158 shops are visited by Bisleri supplier in this region.
- This suggests that system applied by distributers in this region is not successful.
- If shops are not visited on regular bases they tend to switch to easily available brand and brand which has better supply system.
- This is problem which is being exploded by other companies in this region like Bailley.
Q.8 How often Bisleri Distributer visits your shop?
- Almost every day
- Twice or thrice a weak
- Once a weak
- Never
- I don’t buy Bisleri
MARKET A
MARKET B
- In this question difference between respondents to “Never” and “I don’t buy Bisleri” is that Never respondents prefer to buy Bisleri but nobody visits them and later don’t buy Bisler at all.
- In Market A 25% shops are daily visited by dealer on the other hand just 2% in Market B.
- There are just less then 8% shops in Market A which are not visited but in Market B 31% shops are never visited by dealer and that is taken as a complain against supplier.
- Major portion of respondents in Market A have given positive response as tilt of answers is towards first, second and third option, on the other hand responses are more towards answer three, four and five.
- In Market B there are more then 53% of shops not visited at all by the distributer.
Q.9 What is your monthly consumption of Bisleri?(no. of cartons)
- 0-25
- 25-50
- 50-100
- 100-150
- Above 150 cartons
MARKET A
MARKET B
- It can be clearly seen from both the markets that maximum shops selling mineral water cannot sell more then 0- 25 cartons in month.
- Biggest customers who fall in category of above 150 cartons have capacity of selling 150 to 450 cartons, hence they themselves cover up for companies other 60%-70% customers.
- In Market B company doesn’t have any above 100 cartons customers.
Q.10 Are you satisfied with the services provided by Bisleri distributer?
Please state reason behind your answer___________________
MARKET A
- 61% of shopkeepers in Market A were satisfied with the services provided by the distributer.
- There were 25 non respondents to this question.
- There were just 18% non satisfied shopkeepers.
- Reason behind non satisfied customers were----
- Not providing bills on time.
- There was a case of supply of special railway water of less MRP at normal rates.
- There were few replacement problems with these respondants.
MARKET B
- There were more number of shopkeepers in Market B were unsatisfied with 34%.
- Major reason stated by these people was no supplies or irregular supplies.
Q.11 How often does he provide you a bill on your purchase?
- Always
- Sometimes
- Never
- I never ask for bill
MARKET A
MARKET B
- Only 42 percent and 31 percent shopkeepers in both the markets were getting bills on regular bases.
- Around 14% retailers in both the markets were never getting bills by distributor.
- There was also negative sign on part of retailers; 18% in Market A and 14% retailers in Market B never cared to take bills from distributers.
- This states that shopkeepers to avoid taxes and extra charges don’t take bills.
- Also these people were supplied on differentiated rates.
Q.12 Would you like to place any order
- 250ml
- 500ml
- 1ltr
- 1.5ltr
- 2ltr
- 5ltr jar
- 20ltr jar
- There were total of 34 retailers who responded to this question and placed there orders.
- In total there were orders of around 150 cartons in whole.
- This response were majorly from those people who wanted to reach there targets to avail the scheme provided by company.
- In Market B major respondents were those people where supply was very irregular.
- These supplies were made by directly placing order to the distributer by researcher.
6.2 SUMMARY OF GIFTS DISTRIBUTED
CHAPTER 7
FINDINGS AND RECOMMANDATIONS
7.1 SWOT ANALYSIS OF BISLERI
7.2 FINDINGS
During this two months period of my training period I visited every shop more then twice. All these findings are based on my continues interaction with retailers and anlysis of data collected by me.
- Restailers in Jaipur believe that water is just water and it does not make difference fom whom they buy it from.
- Retailers in jaipur mostly believe in what are the margins provided to them by the companies.
- Most positive aspect of Bisleri in market is that people believe that Bisleri is a best quality packaged water in market.
- Apart from all the issues overall Bisleri stil holds it positin as a Market leader.
- Bisleri is a highest priced product in the market, and market customers are daily walk inns ; hence they are not ready to always pay more then 12 rupees for a 1ltr bottle which sells most.
- Companies like aquafina and kinley are providing free product to the shopkeepers with purchase of there cola’s, which is bringing down the sales in many areas.
- Pepsi and Coke provide free refrigerators to retailers in which they are not letting them keep any other companies product., this inturn is breaking sales of Bisleri cause usually a customer asks for cold water.
- Distributers in Jaipur are very reluctant to change.
- Distributers just dont visit any other shops except those which regularly buy from them in other words they just dont move away from there set routes.
- As Jaipur is very old city hence there are lots of shops in small streets which are not covered by distributers , as they usually just move along main roads.
- There were lots of complains in Market B of suppliers, many of retailers responded that Bisleri people doesnt visit at all.
- Retailers in Jaipur are in habit of not asking for bills and suppliers too dont provide bills on regular bases on there own.
7.3 RECOMMANDATIONS
- First of all Jaipur is not a small city, company just have 3 sales man, Bisleri needs to make atleast a team of 5 salesman to cover whole Jaipur to keep a good check on secondary sales of company.
- Bisleri needs to regularly come up with certain attractive schemes so that it can compete with its giant competitors like Pepsi and Coke.
- Distributer in Market A are doing excellent job but story is not same in Market B so company needs to educate there distributers by making them learn about the working of other distributers.
- Bisleri must appraise there suppliers on there good work which will inturn motivate suppliers who are not doing well to work hard.
- Every month a team of people must visit every shop in problem markets atleast ones to remind them of there importance to company.
- Bisleri must give there good and regular customers complimantary gifts to always keep them faithful towards company.
Bisleri still holds biggest share in market and it needs to keep improving upon its services to keep that share intact because its competitors are very strong and have ability of huge investments. I think from my point of view it would be better for Bisleri if it will try to increase the share of cake by increasing the size of the overall cake, not by decreasing the others players share of the cake. It means it should try to increase its customer base not by converting the other companies existing customer, it should try to convert the non customer of packaged drinking water to Bisleri customer.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
WEBSITES
- en.wikipedia.org
- www.bottledwaterindia.org
APPENDIX
QUESTIONNAIRE
Dear Sir/Madam,
As a student of MBA GENERAL 2008-2010, Amity Business School, Amity University I am doing a research on “RETAILERS SURVEY WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO BISLERI”. I ll be grateful for the valuable inputs you give to the following questions. Your responses shall be kept completely confidential, will be merged with other responses and used only for statistical purposes.
NAME: ____________________________________________
SHOP NAME: ______________________________________________
SHOP ADDRESS: _______________________________________
PHONE NUMBER: ______________________________________
DATE OF BIRTH: _____________________________
- What is your shop type?
- Juice, cold drinks and food shop
- General Store or Kirana shop
- Pan Shop
- Dairy and Medical
- Do you sell mineral water at your shop?
- Which mineral water you sell at your shop?
- Bisleri
- Bailley
- Aquafina
- Kinley
- Kingfisher
- Fosters
- Others please specify__________________________
- What kind of customer you are usually visited at your shop for packaged drinking water?
- Daily walk in customers
- Regular Customers
- Parties and marriages orders
- What attracts you the most in choice of mineral water?
- Quality
- Margins provided
- Schemes
- Service provided by dealer
- Do you have fridge provided by any company?
- Does Bisleri distributer visit your shop?
- How often he visits your shop?
- Almost every day
- Twice or thrice a weak
- Once a weak
- Never
- I don’t buy Bisleri
- What is your monthly consumption of Bisleri?(no. of cartons)
- 0-25
- 25-50
- 50-100
- 100-150
- Above 150 cartons
- Are you satisfied with the services provided by Bisleri distributer?
Please state reason behind your answer___________________
- How often does he provide you a bill on your purchase?
- Always
- Sometimes
- Never
- I never ask for bill
- Would you like to place any order
- 250ml
- 500ml
- 1ltr
- 1.5ltr
- 2ltr
- 5ltr jar
- 20ltr jar
RETAILERS SCHEME CARD
