Retail Management: Challenges and Opportunities in the Indian Retail Industry

Abstract

Retail management is considered as the last step which involves the delivering of the product to the final consumer, who uses the product for their personal use. Here the person who sells the product to the final consumer is called the retailer. The retailer is the only person who maintains a close contact with the final consumer for whom the product was designed for. Over the years the retail management techniques have varied widely. One of the main reasons for this variation is due to the fact that the demands of the people are changing over time. The advancement of technology is also a major reason why the retail market is not the same any more. The change in the retail market has put more distance between the producers and the final consumers. The wheel of retailing as proposed by Malcomb McNair at Harvard University states that the retailer goes through 3 stages as his earning increases.Retail price index is an important measure of the inflation rate of the economy, which is determined based on the cost of several retail good in various retail outlets across the country. Online websites through which people shop nowadays is one good example of the retail industry today. Here retailers do not interact with the customers directly any longer but still final customers get the product from them. Retail industry plays a very important role in in the economy of India. One of the main problems faced by the retail industry in India is that they are not recognized as an industry. In India retail industry is divided into both organized and unorganized sectors. Over the past years the organized sector has come up putting the majority unorganized sector behind them. Foreign direct investment in the Indian retail industry is not allowed, but they can subject to certain conditions. According to FDI India is considered as the country second in terms of attractiveness for business ventures. The retailers who are already in business also face a lot of problems from within the industry itself. A majority of these issues can be solved by taking further steps to make the retail industry a recognized industry in India. Retail management can contribute positively to the upliftment of the Indian economy provided suitable steps are taken to ensure them.