The Chuper Market

Weekends I spend at home with children. They play alone, in pairs, groups and sometimes do mono acts. I closely observe and listen to their conversations. They are vigilant of the surroundings and are influenced by some characters in real life, movies and cartoons. One Saturday afternoon I discovered something enlightening from my four year aged daughter.

It was a rainy day. I was feeling lazy to do anything. Although I took a book to read, the cold weather tempted me to cuddle myself inside the blanket. I neither felt sleepy nor felt completing the last few pages of the book I was reading. There came my sweet little girl asking me “Sleeping?” I pretended as if I am, she came closer and stood there for few minutes. I asked if she would like to sleep beside me. If she sleeps I will get some free time, but she requested if I can play with her. I told “Ask you brother”. “No, he will not like this kind of play; please Amma”. With a desperate face she said. At times we never turn back to their emotions, so I agreed. I could feel the excitement and happiness with in her when she sat beside me and narrated the guidelines of the game.

The POS

I have a shop and I am the shop keeper. You will be coming to my shop to buy things”. She said, opening her piggy bank and gave me 50 one rupee coins and a wallet. The rule is I have to pretend as different customers every time I go to her shop which she called “The Chuper Market”.

That’s how my LKG girl pronounces most of the words beginning with “S”. She continued, “When you want something, you should enquire the price, and I will tell, for example 70 rupee, you handover a one rupee coin imagining it is 70”. That was the deal. I asked what is in offer for me. She held my hand and took me to our living room where she had arranged the merchandise in a chair for sales.

The Layout

I was amazed to see the attractive layout in that single square feet space. This could be the smallest retail space possible and she has utilized the available space to display the assortments well. One of the armrests had clothing, well folded frocks in different colors, tops, skirts and pants sorted. The other arm rest which resembled a real display rack had fancy items. The seating was divided in to sections holding whatever she could procure from a household including stationary. Below the chair was foot wear in every category.

Experience from the smallest retail space

“Original & Inspiring”

She said, “Let’s start the game, its day one” I, pretending as a customer to buy dress for my daughter reached her Chuper market. She was seated. Her behavior from then gave me the real feel of a retail. As soon as she saw me, stood up from her chair, greeted with a pleasant smile and asked me in that sweet voice “Entha vendathu”. I smiled and replied “I need dress for my daughter”. Though in disguise as retailer she was glad to hear that and helped me choose the best dress. I liked the way the products were marketed. She expressed different values for each of them 60, 70 and 90 when I enquired the price. Her face reflected they are all reasonable. I purchased two pieces and as per agreement took 2 coins for 2 items. Before I pay she asked “Nothing for your son?” She’s smart enough to act a real retailer. I said “no next time”. She received payment and said “Thank you”.

Get Inspired

In my next turn, I didn’t plan anything specific, she greeted me standing up, smiling, asked what I am looking for. Her visual merchandising skills attracted me to the 7 colours of nail polish in the fancy section. All were priced “rupees 20”. I chose two. She promoted the nail cutter which I didn’t notice. I was taking time to decide whether to buy or not. She explained “Your nails will look beautiful with nail polish after trimming them”. I said “I have one at home” On her little palm were two nail cutters. “The big one is rupee 10 and small one is rupee 5” I nodded and thought; she’s developing marketing skills through observation and have pricing logic too. As I left she remembered to thank me.

That day I had to take role of a school boy and a grandmother. As grandma I went to her shop for footwear. After the transaction, She informed that different colours of threads are available and asked plainly if I would like to buy one. I was interested. She asked my preferred colour. As I didn’t have any plan, I was confused but she created impulse in me to take one. She thought for a while and offered me a brown thread and said “Take this, it has a needle, will be useful to stitch torn clothes”. Sometimes common sense adds value to business. Then she said “The day is over, shop opens only tomorrow”. Meanwhile I noticed her counting the coins received on that day. Closed her accounts and started fresh next day.

This time, I saw that empty racks were refilled with battery, scissors, mobile pouch etc. She was thrilled to show me the new arrivals. As a new customer I asked “don’t you have vegetables?” She said “No, you may purchase clothes, stationary, fancy items and foot wear by pointing her hands across the space. If you need vegetables there is one at the entrance of our apartment”. I thanked her and left. She remembered to say “Thank You” for that also.

For a moment she forgot the shop, when her favourite music was heard in TV. But in few seconds came running and said “don’t come to the shop now, I am not available, if you have emergency ring me and check if the shop is open” in a single breath and ran away to listen to her favourite music. I appreciate her for the relationship management idea.

My next turn was a parent to buy pencil. She took one and said its rupee 100. I said that is too expensive and do not prefer it. To inform her reality I told, pencils costs less than rupee 10. She realised it and did not offer me the same for a lesser price, instead took another one and said this is only rupee 5. In that half an hour, I learned lessons that were not taught in Management text books or in retail management workshops.

As a customer, I noticed that she consistently greeted me standing, smiling and checked the requirement. When I ask for something in general she confirms the specifications before she takes it and promoted things which are of no use by demonstrating its utility in some innovative way. Every time a section becomes empty, it is refilled and ensured that she made sales. Her way of thanking the customer for every purchase motivated me for repeat visits. She had products to offer to different segments. I really enjoyed playing with her and learned essentials of retail management in 30 minutes.

I understand that children do not have the patience to do same thing for more than half an hour. They get diverted. Till she told me that “enough for today and tomorrow we will play hotel” she was in that retailer suite and never displayed the child ego in her and myself in disguise of several customer profiles kept away my parent ego with that matured retailer.

From this Chatarday (Saturday) Chuper Market (Super Market), I recalled many concepts in management from #marketingmix to #CRM, #segmentation, #CustomerRetentionStrategy, #visualmerchandising, #layoutdesign, #categorymanagement, #customerdelight, #valueaddedservices, #sales, #communication, #PromotionalStrategies, #referrals, #innovation, #InventoryManagement including #OptimumUtilizationOfAavailableResources.

She must have learned this by keen observation when she accompanied me to super markets for various purchases. When I was four years I haven’t seen an organized retail at all. This generation imagines nothing less than a Chuper Market.