DEPARTMENT OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

TEZPUR UNIVERSITY

A SUMMER INTERNSHIP REPORT SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE

REQUIREMENT FOR AWARDING THE DEGREE IN MASTER OF BUUSINESS
ADMINISTRATION, SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT SCIENCES, TEZPUR UNIVERSITY

Session: 2015-2017
Title of the project
An Empirical Study on Customer Preference and Perception Regarding
Different Brands During End of Season Sale in Mens Denim Section,
Pantaloons

Under the guidance of

Academic Guide: Organization Guide:

Dr.Anjan Bhuyan Mr. Sandip Pal
Associate Professor Assistant Department Manager
Department of Business Administration Mens Denim, Pantaloons
Tezpur University Guwahati 781006

Submitted By:
Hiruj Dihingia
(BAM15033)
 DECLARATION

I, Hiruj Dihingia, student of MBA 3rd Semester, Department of Business Administration, Tezpur

University hereby declare that I have completed my Summer Internship project in Aditya Birla

Fashion and Retail management Guwahati, on the project entitled- An Empirical Study on

Customer Preference and Perception regarding different brands during end of season sale with

special reference to Mens Denim Section, pantaloons.. This project has been undertaken under

the guidance of Mr. Sandip Pal, Assistant Department Manager, Mens Denim, Pantaloons and

Mrs Stuty Borpujary, HR, Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited, Guwahati and Dr. Anjan

Bhuyan, Associate Professor, Department of Business Administration, Tezpur University.

The contents of the report are written by me and are exclusively based on my own experience

during the Internship period.

Date: Hiruj Dihingia

Place: MBA- 3rd Semester

Dept. of Business Administration
School of Management Sciences
Tezpur University
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This project entitled An Empirical Study on Customer Preference and Perception

regarding different brands during end of season sale with special reference to Mens Denim
Section, Pantaloons. would not have been possible without the support and guidance of a number
of people, to whom I want to express my gratitude.

At the outset, I express my thanks to the management of Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail
Management Guwahati for giving me the opportunity to carry out the project assignment in their
organization.

I express my sincere thanks to my department guide, Dr.Anjan Bhuyan, Associate

Professor, Business Administration Tezpur University, for the time and effort he spent helping and
guiding me towards the completion of the project.

I offer my sincere gratitude to my organization project guide, Mr Sandip Pal, Assistant

Department Manager, Mens Denim, Pantaloons and Mrs Stuty Borpujary, HR, Aditya Birla
Fashion and Retail Limited, Guwahati for her supervision and valuable guidance during the course
of my summer training period.

I will also remain grateful to all the other employees of Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail
Limited, Guwahati who helped me in one way or other in the completion of the project regardless
of their busy schedule

Lastly I would like to offer my sincere and heartfelt affection to all my family
members for their moral and financial support which helped me to complete this project work

Hiruj Dihingia

MBA 3rd Semester

BAM15033
Dept. of Business Administration
 PREFACE

Any formal education is not complete without a project. And in professional course like
MBA, doing a project in real life corporate scenario gives a practical knowledge and better
understanding of the subject, which we are studying. MBA students are imparted with strong
theoretical knowledge about the business operations and the methods of running a successful
business, in their curriculum. But, to strengthen this practical knowledge, students are assigned
projects in various corporations to understand the practical working style.

I was assigned as an intern in Aditya Birla Fashion and retail Limited, Guwahati. I
worked on the project entitled An Empirical Study on Customer Preference and Perception
regarding different brands during end of season sale with special reference to Mens Denim
Section, Pantaloons for the period 1.06.2016 to 31.07.2016.

On the basis of the collected data, a report has been prepared and information has been
provided in an abridged and organized manner. Suggestions have been made herein on the basis
of the survey findings. I will be satisfied if the organization gets benefited from the findings and
the suggestions

. Also, every effort has been made by me to avoid any mistakes and I crave for forbearance
of the reader for the errors that might have crept in the report unintentionally. This study gave me
immense organizational exposure which I believe would help me in the near future.
 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

ORGANISATION:
Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Ltd., Guwahati

TITLE OF THE PROJECT:

An Empirical Study on Customer Preference and Perception Regarding Different Brands During
End of Season Sale with Special Reference to Mens Denim Section, Pantaloons.

ORGANISATIONAL GUIDE:

Mr. Sandip Pal

Department Manager
Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Ltd., Guwahati
INSTITUTIONAL GUIDE:

Dr. Anjan Bhuyan, Associate Professor,

Dept. of Business Administration

Tezpur University, Tezpur (Assam)

Duration:

2 months (6th June to 31st July)

GEOGRAPHICAL EXTENT:
Pantaloons Guwahati Store
Objective:
The study has been conducted to fulfil the following objectives:
1. To know the brand awareness level of different brands available in Mens denim Section
2. To know the customer preference regarding different brands in mens denim section
3. To know the perception of customers regarding different brands in mens denim Section
SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This study aims at understanding the customers preference towards various national and
international brands in mens casual wear. It further analyses what brands do the consumers
prefer and what stores they visit and the reasons for buying of various brands and shopping in the
pantaloons.
The study seeks responses from the customers in Pantaloons Guwahati store. Guwahati store is
the geographical extent where the study has been carried out. The study can be generalised for
the Guwahati city only.

LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY:

Following are the limitations that were faced during this study:
1. The Customers were busy and reluctant to answer the questionnaire.
2. The possibility of respondents responses being biased cannot be ruled out.
3. The sample size was small because of the limited time frame.

Sampling Design and Procedures:.

Population: Customers of Pantaloons Guwahati

Elements: Customers of Pantaloons, Guwahati having children up to 16 years.

Extent: The study has been conducted in the Pantaloons, Guwahati store.

Time: The period of study was two months, i.e. from 1st of June to 31st of July, 2016

Sampling Technique:
The sampling procedure used for this study was non-probabilistic in nature. Out of the different
non-probabilistic sampling procedures, Convenience sampling was used for the data
collection.
Convenience Sampling: Convenience sampling is a non-probabilistic sampling technique
that attempts to obtain samples of convenient elements which was used for collecting data
from the population. This method was selected based on certain conveniences like
availability of the sample, ease of obtaining the sample, samples willingness to provide the
information as per their convenience and as such.

Method of Data collection:

Survey Method: A survey was conducted in the Pantaloons Guwahati store to fulfil the
objectives of the study. The customers were selected on the basis of convenience.
Sample Size:
The sample size for the study was 100 customers of Pantaloons Guwahati in the Mens Denim
section, Pantaloons, Guwahati

MAJOR FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS:

1. Only 12% of respondents are aware of all of the brands in Mens Denim section, pantaloons
Guwahati, while 81% are aware of most of them.
2. It is found that awareness level of the NPT (non-pantaloons) brands is comparatively much
higher than PT (Private Level or Pantaloons) brands.
3. LEVIS is the most preferred brand in overall, while CELIO is most preferred brand in top
wear and again LEVIS is also the most preferred brand in bottom wear

4. Pantaloons is the most favourite store in followed by reliance trends in Guwahati City.

5..Brand image is the most important attribute of an apparel that influence buying decision,
followed by Fabric Quality and price in third position

6. The respondent have highest positive perception for LEVIS as a brand, followed by PEPE in
second position and CELIO in third position., whereas Bare Denim is lowest in ranking as
compared to others.

7. Out of 100 respondents 63% respondents strongly agrees that pantaloons private level brands
are reasonably priced while only 6 % respondents strongly disagree that private level brands are
reasonably priced
8. Out of 100 respondents 41% respondents strongly agrees that pantaloons private level brands
are of good quality, 15% are neutral regarding the quality, while 9% respondents totally disagree
that PT Brands are of good quality

9. Out of 100 respondents only 12 % agrees that PT Brands are better than international and
international brands. On the other hand 32% of respondent disagree and 39 % of the respondent
totally disagree that PT Brands are better than other national and international brands.

10. Out of 100 respondents 45 % respondent strongly agrees that PT brands are reliable and durable
while 5% of the respondent strongly disagrees to it.

11. 45% of the respondents feel that it is always good to have help from the support staff.

12. 42% of the respondents sometimes get influenced by the salesperson while purchasing.

13. The salesperson should involve and interact with the customers more.
 CONTENTS

CH-1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 RETAIL SCENARIO IN INDIA..01
1.2 PRIVATE LABEL BRANDS...02
1.3 ABOUT THE COMPANY ..03
1.4 THE MENS CASUAL WEAR SEGMENT... 04
1.4.1 MENs CASUALWEAR MARKET IN INDIA.4
1.4.2 MENs CASUALWEAR BRANDS IN PANTALOONS.. 05
1.5 PANTALOONS GREEN CARD......07
1.6 PROBLEM STATEMENT... 08
1.7 APPROACH TO THE PROBLEM....... 09

CH-2 LITERATURE REVIEW.10

CH-3 OBJECTIVES, SCOPE AND LIMITATION

3.1 OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY...12
3.2 SCOPE OF THE STUDY.... 13
3.3 LIMITATIONS 13

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
4.1 Data Sources........14
4.2 Sampling: Design and Procedures..15
4.3 Data collection instrument...... 16
4.4 Variables to be measured.... 16
DATA ANALYSIS, RESULTS& INTERPRETATIONS
5.1 OBJECTIVE 1 ...... 18
5.2 OBJECTIVE 2 .21
5.3 OBJECTIVE 3..27

VISUAL MERCHANDING
6.1 WHAT IS VISUAL MERCHANDING. ..38
6.2 VISUAL MERCHANDING IN PANTALOONS.43
6.3 SWOT ANALYSIS...44
 MAJOR FINDINGS
7.1 FINDINGS46

RECCOMENDATION AND CONCLUSION

8.1 RECOMMENDATION...48
8.2 CONCLUSION....48
BIBILIOGRAPHY....50
ANNEXURE...51
 List of Tables

Tables Table name Page number

Table 5.1.1 Brand Awareness Level of the Customers 19

Table 5.1.2 Store preference of the customers 21

Table 5.2.1 Overall brand preference 21

Table 5.2.2 Brand preference in Top wear 22

Table 5.2.3 Brand preference in Bottom Wear 25

Table 5.2.4 Ranking of different factors affecting consumer behaviour 26

Table 5.2.5 Mean of factors influencing buying behaviour 26

Table 5.3.1 Perception of Customers regarding different brands 27

Table 5.3.2 Mean of Perception of Customers regarding quality 28

Table 5.3.3 33
Seek help from the salesman

Table 5.3.4 33
Influence of the salesman in purchasing

Table 5.4.1 35
Household Income of the respondent

Table 5.4.2 35
Life Cycle Stage of the respondent

Table 5.5.1 39
ANOVA test (a)

Table 5.5.2 39
ANOVA test (b)

Table 5.5.3 40
ANOVA test (c)
 List of Figures
Figure Figure Name Page Number

Figure 5.4.1 Gender of the respondent 18

Figure 5.4.2 Age of the respondent 18

Figure 5.1.1 Awareness Level of all Brands 19

Figure 5.1.2 Overall Brand Awareness Level of the Customers 20

Figure 5.1.3 Brand satisfaction of the customers 20
Figure 5.2.1 Brand Preference of Customers 24
Figure 5.2.2 Ranking of different factors affecting consumer behaviour 25
Figure 5.3.1 Perception of Customers regarding different brands 27

Figure 5.3.2 Perception of Customers regarding Price of PT Brands 25

Figure 5.3.3 Perception of Customers regarding Quality of PT 25

Brands
 CHAPTER: 1
INTRODUCTION
1.1 RETAIL SCENARIO IN INDIA:

The Indian retail industry is going through a transition phase. In our country most of the
retailing is still in the unorganized sector. There is a wide gap between the two countries in
spread out of the retails in US and India shows. Though retailing in India is in undergoing a
rapid growth stage, the road ahead is full of challenges.

What is retailing?

Retailing is derived from the French word retailer which means: To cut off a
piece or to break bulk. (www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/retail)

The word "Retail" has originated from a French-Italian word. Retailer is someone who sheds
or cuts off a small piece from something. Retailing is a set of activities which is related to
marketing products or services to final consumers for their own personal or household use.
Retailing functions by organizing the availability of goods and services on a relatively large
scale and supplying them on a relatively small scale to the customers. Retailer is an Agent or
Agency or Company or Organization or a Person who is instrumental in reaching the Goods
or Merchandise or Services to the End User or the Ultimate Consumer.

SCENARIO OF RETAILING IN INDIA

Retailing is the one of the most attractive and active sector of last decade. The retailing
industry has been present in our country since ages, it is only the recent past that it has
witnessed so much dynamism. The emergence of retailing in India is because of increased
purchasing power of buyers, specially post-liberalization and increase in product variety,
increase in economies of scale, and alsowith the help of modern supply-chain distributions
solution.
1|Page
 The retailing industry in India today is at an interesting crossroads. The retail sales are at the
highest point in history and new technologies are improving the retail productivity, though
there are many opportunities to start a new retail business, retailers are facing numerous
challenges.

The retail industry in India has risen as one of the most dynamic and fast-paced growing
industries due to the entry of several new players. The retail industry in India accounts for over
10 per cent of the countrys Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and about 8% of the employment.
India is the worlds fifth-largest global destination in the retail space. (The Retail industry in
India-www.ibef.org).

The major retailers in India are Aditya Birla retail ltd, reliance retail ltd, future group and the
famous apparel retail stores are pantaloons, shoppers stop, big bazaar, reliance trends, Westside
and many more. The organised retail sector is booming and many people are becoming brand
loyal to these retail stores.

1.2 PRIVATE LABEL BRANDS:

Private level brands in simple words are brands which are manufactured and sold by a same
retailer. Every retailer tries to differentiate themselves with other retailer in terms of their own
respective private level brands. Earlier private level brands are considered to be a cheap or
economic product but now the concept has been changing, the image of the private level brands
are changing. Consumers across the globe has very accepted these private level brands and
they even consider these private level brands of some retailer like Marks&Spencer,etc. to be
better than other international brands.
National brands (or manufacturers brand) have long dominated the retail scene. In recent
times, however an increasing number of wholesalers and retailers have created their own store
brands (or private brands). A brand created and owned by a reseller of a product or service is
called a private label brand. Store brand sales are soaring. In fact these private level brands are
growing much faster than national brands. The trend has arrived in India as well. Retailers like

2|Page
 shoppers stop, pantaloons, big bazaar, reliance and wills lifestyle are promoting their own
brands in competition with other national brands.(Kotler & Armstrong, 2010, p. 207).

1.3 ABOUT THE COMPANY:

Voted as 'India's Most Trusted Apparel Retail Brand,' (Brand Equity Survey
2014/2015), Pantaloons, a division of Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited has always been
one of the most loved large format fashion retailers in India. Pantaloons fashion and retail limited
is an premium clothing retail chain in India. The first Pantaloons store was launched in Gariahat,
Kolkata in 1997 by the future group led by Kishore biyani. It was acquired by the Aditya birla
group in 2013,Post-acquisition by Aditya Birla Nuvo Limited in 2013, Pantaloons is today the
fastest growing large format retailer in the country. The rate of opening new stores has increased
from one in every two months to one in every two weeks. The brand is now present in 50 Indian
cities. It operates across categories of active wear, party wear, ethnic wear, formal wear, and casual
wear for men, women and kids. Womenswear is the lead category contributing to half of total
apparel sales. Here non-apparel products include handbags, footwear, cosmetics, perfumes,
fashion jewellery and watches. After acquisition by the Aditya Birla Group, significant
investments were made focused on store up gradation, deeper pan-India penetration, expansion,
more portfolio enrichment, brand building and organisation processes to lay the foundation for its
future growth.(Pantaloons-profile,-www.adityabirla.com).

Vision
To be a premium global conglomerate, with a clear focus on each of the businesses.
(http://www.adityabirla.com)

Mission
To deliver superior value to our customers, shareholders, employees and society at large.
(http://www.adityabirla.com)

Values
Integrity: Acting and taking decisions in a manner that is fair and honest. Following the
highest standards of professionalism and being recognised for doing so. Integrity for us means
3|Page
 not only financial and intellectual integrity, but encompasses all other forms as are generally
understood.
Commitment: On the foundation of Integrity, doing all that is needed to deliver value to all
stakeholders. In the process, being accountable for our own actions and decisions, those of
our team and those in the part of the organisation for which we are responsible.
Passion: An energetic, intuitive zeal that arises from emotional engagement with the
organisation that makes work joyful and inspires each one to give his or her best. A voluntary,
spontaneous and relentless pursuit of goals and objectives with the highest level of energy and
enthusiasm.
Seamlessness: Thinking and working together across functional groups, hierarchies,
businesses and geographies. Leveraging diverse competencies and perspectives to garner the
benefits of synergy while promoting organisational unity through sharing and collaborative
efforts.
Speed: Responding to internal and external customers with a sense of urgency. Continuously
striving to finish before deadlines and choosing the best rhythm to optimise organisational
efficiencies. (http://www.adityabirla.com)

1.4 THE MENS CASUAL WEAR SEGMENT:

Casualwear: The Sunlight Segment in Indian Fashion Retail

The shift from formal attire to comfort oriented casual attire is driving the fashion retail market,
and casualwear brands in India see potential in all segments, and are focusing their energies on
creating more variety and pushing production to meet demand.

The casualwear market in India comprises mens and womens casualwear encompassing casual
shirts/tops, casual trousers/skirts, denims, T-shirts, active wear, and daily wear. The following
key trends related to consumer behaviour, revolution in retail channel, and retailers market
approach, are having an immense impact on the evolution of the casualwear market in the
country.

4|Page
1.4.1 Mens Casual wear casual Market in India

Market Size and Growth

The Indian apparel market has demonstrated resilience and growth in an environment
characterized by slow economic growth. India remains one of the most promising markets for
apparel due to the ever burgeoning economic activities and ever widening consumer base. The
Indian apparel market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 9%, from USD 41 billion in 2013 to USD
102 billion in 2023.Further the recent omission of excise duty on branded apparel has provided an
impetus to retailers in terms of the overall market sentiment.(The casualwear market in India-
technopak analysis,2013)

1.4.2 Mens Casualwear brands in Pantaloons:

The product range has a variety of top wears and bottom wears consisting of t-shirts, polo shirts,
casual shirts and shorts, jeans, cargos, three-fourths in bottom wear. The various brands available
in Mens Denim section in pantaloons can be bradly divided into 2 categories:

1) Pantaloons or PT Brands( Private Level Brands)

2) Non-Pantaloons or NPT Brands

The various PT brands available are:

Ajile: It is a sports lifestyle brand that imbibes a distinctively

vibrant and casual look. The collection offers a wide range of
athletic apparels and sports casuals, sweatshirts, dry fit T-
shirts, shorts, three fourths, track pants and more to make your sporty life exciting.

5|Page
 Bare Denim offers a range of denim wear that compliments
everyday life. Choose from a wide variety of checkered shirts,
graphic t-shirts, printed tops, denims, dresses and shorts to keep
your wardrobe always updated with daily trends.

Outdoor, Utility and Casual lifestyle, thats the heart of this

brand. Specially designed for the free-spirited individuals. Those
who love to take the uncharted off the beaten track. Always ready
to travel, always ready to explore.

Edgy rock star inspired and tough, San Frisco Jeans Co, Its
grunge inspired fashion for men and women. The collection
offers distressed fashion denims, leather jackets, lace dresses,
racer backs, crop tops, graphic prints inspired by hard rock and more to add edgy glamour to your
wardrobe.

Its a casual life style brand it makes fashion polo tees, shirts, graphic tees,
trouser, knee length bottom wear, etc. The brand reflects the beauty of
nature in the form of various prints and graphics in its apparels.

6|Page
Non-Pantaloon or NPT Brands in Pantaloons:

The following are the very well-known and reputed brands in mens denim section in pantaloons,
Guwahati.

1.5 PANTALOONS GREEN CARD:

1 STAR 3 STAR 5 STAR 7 STAR

2 points per Rs.100 3% discount as 5% discount as 7 % discount as

points
No questions asked points points
No questions
Exchange Policy, valid asked Exchange No questions No questions asked
for 90 days, bill not Policy, valid for 90 asked Exchange
days, bill not Exchange Policy, valid
required required Policy, valid for for 90 days, bill not
Instant Redemption on Instant 90 days, bill not required
Redemption on
next bill at cash counter
next bill at cash
required Instant Redemption
Convenient Mobile counter Instant on next bill at cash
based program Redemption on counter
Sale Preview

7|Page
 Complimentary Home- Convenient next bill at cash Convenient Mobile
Drop of altered apparel Mobile based counter based program
program Convenient Sale Preview
Sale Preview Mobile based Complimentary
Complimentary program Home-Drop of altered
Home-Drop of Sale Preview apparel
altered apparel Complimentary Exclusive Billing
Exclusive Billing Home-Drop of Counters
altered apparel
Counters Reimbursement of
Exclusive
paper carry bags (as
Billing Counters
reward points)
Reimbursement
of paper carry
bags (as reward
points)

1.6 PROBLEM STATEMENT:

The Mens casual section is a very critical and diversed market. There is immense completion
in this segment, there are many well-known national and international brands like levis,
PEPE,etc. which have earned great popularity globally. Also there are few Pantaloons private
level brands like Urban Eagle, Rig, etc. which too have earned a good brand image in the
market over the last many. And as we know that the contribution of private level brands is
much more towards the companys profit therefore inclination to brands especially private
label brands is of great importance. So this study has been made to know the consumers
psychology towards various brands in this segment this study has been made. Moreover in a
big size store like Guwahati pantaloons, the contribution of Mens Denim department is around
19-20 %.( Pantaloons section wise contribution, company profile, 2015). So study of the Mens
casual section is of immense important.

8|Page
 1.7 APPROACH TO THE PROBLEM:
The retail market in Guwahati is has increased great deal in the recent years, the number of
retail stores and brand outlets have increased a lot in the recent years. The competition has
increased. So in order to study the different brand preferences of people. The study has been
done to find out how Pantaloons can market their products in the mens casual apparel section
to increase their sales in the Guwahati market.

9|Page
 CHAPTER:2

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 LITERATURE REVIEW:

Several authors have defined satisfaction in a different way. There are some definitions of
customer satisfaction that will give us clear idea about satisfaction concept. Prabhakaran Satya
(2003) mentioned that the customer is the king. Heskett et al. (1997) argued that profit and growth
are stimulated primarily by customer loyalty. Several researchers including Tariq and Moussaoui
(2009), Han et al. (2008) and Ehigie (2006) found that loyalty is a direct outcome of customer
satisfaction. Generally speaking, if the customers are satisfied with the provided goods or services,
the probability that they use the services again increases (East, 1997). Also, satisfied customers
will most probably talk enthusiastically about their buying or the use of a particular service; this
will lead to positive advertising (File and Prince, 1992; Richens, 1983). The significance of
satisfying and keeping a customer in establishing strategies for a market and customer oriented
organization cannot be ignored (Kohli and Jaworski, 1990).

Veronica Liljander, , , Pia Polsa Allard van Riel in Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services ,
Volume 16, Issue 4, July 2009, Pages 281290 published an research article Modelling
consumer responses to an apparel store brand: Store image as a risk reducer tried to understand
different attributes that affects buying decision in a store brand. And they found that Perceived
value and quality of Sore brand apparel appear to be the main drivers of purchase intentions, also
that the store image affects purchase intensions indirectly by reducing perceived risk and
increasing the store brands quality perception

C.V.Krishna, Dr. Manjusmita Dash (2012) in his research paper CONSUMER PREFERENCES
TOWARDS PRIVATE LABEL BRANDS IN INDIAN APPAREL which has been published
in International Journal of Research in Management, Vol. 2 (March-2012); have tried to analyse
consumer perception regarding various brands specially private level brands in apparel market.

10 | P a g e
In his study he found that consumer nowadays are preferring private level brands more in apparel
market because they can save money. In other words consumers are much satisfied with the
private level brands and are positively accepting private level brands in fashion and apparel
market. Retailers are also also increasing the number of private level brands in their portfolio as
they are getting a higher margin of profit in private level brands.

Past research mostly used survey methods that directly measure consumers attitudes towards
products and their attributes. According to Lang and Crown (1993), the possibility of interaction
effects among attributes is usually overlooked. The preferences of female consumers for apparel
items may depend on the joint influence of product attributes such as quality, style and price.
Thus, the joint effect of several product attributes on the final decision to purchase a specific
item of clothing should be taken into consideration when researching consumer purchasing
decisions.

11 | P a g e
 CHAPTER: 3
OBJECTIVE, SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS
3.1 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY:

A projects main aim is to derive some new findings on a certain topic. To attain this goal the
project sets some objectives. The main objectives of this project are:

Objectives:

1. To know the brand awareness level of different brands available in Mens denim
Section
The main aim of the objective is to measure the awareness level of the customers regarding
different brands that are available in Mens department in Pantaloons, Guwahati. It also tries
analyse that whether there is a relationship between awareness level and brand preference of
the customers.

2. To know the customer preference regarding different brands in mens denim

section
The main aim of this objective is to find the customers preferences among different brands
available in Mens Denim department of pantaloons, Guwahati. This objective tries to analyse
about the different reasons of preferring or not preferring a particular brand.

3. To know the perception of customers regarding different brands in mens denim

Section
Brand Perception is the image of a brand that a consumer has in his mind, how he feels for
particular brand, it is his views and opinion regarding a brand. Managers need to understand
how customers perceive and select brands in specific product categories and market
segments. Customers think about your brand. This objective helps in understanding what
consumer think of different brands in mens casual

3.2 Scope of the Study:

The study aims at understanding the market of mens casual wear and peoples preference
towards the various private label brands and national and international brands. It further analyses
12 | P a g e
what brands do the consumers prefer and what stores they visit and the reasons for buying of
various brands and shopping in the pantaloons.
The study seeks responses from the customers in Pantaloons Guwahati store. Guwahati store is
the geographical extent where the study has been carried out. The study can be generalised for
the Guwahati city only.

Fig 2.1: Visual representation of the geographical area under study. Source: Google map

3.3 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY:

Following are the limitations that were faced during this study:

1. The Customers were busy in their shopping and hence they had very little time and were
reluctant to answer the questionnaire.
2. Difficulty in making the customers read the questionnaire and make them understand the
questionnaire and hence answer the questions properly.
3. The possibility of respondents responses being biased cannot be ruled out.
4. Since a smaller sample was chosen so it may not be true representative of population under
study. However it is tried to be made the most representative.

13 | P a g e
 CHAPTER: 4
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
4.1 Data Sources

All the data related to the project report An Empirical Study on Customer Preference and
Perception regarding different brands during end of season sale with special reference to
Mens Denim Section, pantaloons. were collected mainly from primary sources. Thus, major
emphasis was given on gathering the primary data whereas the secondary data were used in order
to make the things more apparent.

1) For this study, the primary source of data:

a) Questionnaires
b) Personal observation
c) Interaction with the organization guide, staff and consumers.

2) Secondary source of data:

In order to get some additional information regarding the study, some secondary sources
of data were also referred to namely:

a) Internet
b) Book
c) Data from Pantaloons Office, Guwahati

4.2 Sampling: Design and Procedures:

Population: Customers of Pantaloons Guwahati.

Elements: Customers of the mens denim section of Pantaloons, Guwahati.
Extent: The study has been conducted in the Pantaloons, Guwahati store.
Time: The period of study was two months, i.e. from 1st of June to 31st of July, 2016

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4.3 Sampling Technique:

The sampling procedure used for this study was non-probabilistic in nature. Out of the different
non-probabilistic sampling procedures, Convenience sampling was used for the data collection.

Convenience Sampling: Convenience sampling is a non-probabilistic sampling technique that

attempts to obtain samples of convenient elements which was used for collecting data from the
population (Malhotra & Dash, 2012, p. 335). This method was selected based on certain
conveniences like availability of the sample, ease of obtaining the sample, samples willingness to
provide the information as per their convenience and as such.

4.4 Method of Data collection:

Survey Method: Surveys are best suited for Descriptive Research. Surveys are undertaken to learn
about peoples knowledge, beliefs, preferences, satisfactions and so on and to measure these
magnitudes in the general public. Thus a survey was conducted in the Pantaloons Guwahati store
to fulfil the objectives of the study. The customers were selected on the basis of convenience.

4.4.1 Sample Size:

The sample size for the study was 100 customers of Pantaloons Guwahati in the Mens Denim
Department.

4.3 Data collection instrument:

4.3.1 Questionnaire: A questionnaire is a structured technique for data collection that consist a
series of questions, written or verbal, that a respondent answers (Malhotra & Dash, 2012, p. 292).
In this study questionnaire is used as one of the instruments to collect the required data and as a
guide to interview the target audience.

A questionnaire containing both open ended and closed ended questions along with some
descriptive questions is used to make interactions more result oriented.

15 | P a g e
4.3.1.1 Variables to be measured:

The questionnaire floated consisted of 13 questions measuring 6 major variables.

(i) Brand awareness: It is a very important variable in determining the brand strength and
success of a particular brand. Brand awareness helps to find out whether the customers
are aware of a particular brand and what brand they prefer. Four questions have been
used to measure this variable.
(ii) Brand Perception: It means how the customers think of various brands available in
mens denim section. 5 questions have been used in ordinal scale to measure this
variable
(iii) Price: It is a very important factor for buying a product, every person checks the
price of a product before buying it. Price represents an extrinsic cue and provides one
of the most important forms of information available to a consumer when making
purchasing decisions. (Jin and sternquist,2002). Three questions have been used to
measure this variable.
(iv) Perceived Quality: It has an important role to play in determining the private label
purchase. It affect the consumer perceptions about private labels.(Sethuraman and
cole,1999). Three questions have been used to measure this variable.
(v) In store promotions and offers: In store promotions and discounts play an supporting
role with the price of the product. The in store promotions and discounts can play a
great role in increasing purchase of private labels.(Putsis and Dhar,2001). Three
questions have been used to measure this variable.
(vi) Influence of the salesperson: The role of the salesperson is very important in the sales
of private label brands. As they are directly involved with customers in the buying
procedure, they have a great role in influencing the customers for inclining towards
private brands. Two questions have been asked to measure this variable.
(vii) Income of the Respondent:. Income of the consumers plays an important role while
purchasing any product. Thus in this study I have tried to analyse the relationship
between the respondent and their preference and perception regarding various brands.
One questions have been used to measure this variable.

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 (viii) Criteria of brand preference: Customers are asked to rank the various attributes of
a apparel, to find out the most important and least important attribute of a apparel that
influences purchase behaviour.
(i) Green Card Membership: Green card membership is a loyalty program of pantaloons, an
effort has been made to analyse is there any relationship between green card membership and
brand awareness

4.3.2 Personal Interview: Along with the questionnaire, the customers are being asked questions,
to get better insights about Pantaloons Guwahati and their buying preferences.
4.4 Analyse the Information:
The next step is to extract the pertinent findings from the collected data. The data collected through
survey was analysed and summarised using MS Excel , SPSS and Weighted Average.

4.5 Presentation of findings:

This is the last and important step in the research process. The tabulation, bar diagram, column
diagram and pie charts were drawn according to the responses using MS Excel and SPSS.

17 | P a g e
 CHAPTER: 5
DATA ANALYSIS, RESULTS& INTERPRETATIONS
5.1 RESPONDENT DETAILS:
1. Gender

Gender of ehe responednt

26%
74%

male female
Figure 5.1.1.: Gender of the respondent
Analysis: We can see that from the above figure that 74 % of the respondent are male while
26% of the respondent are female
2. Age of the respondent:

Age of the respondent

15%

35%

50%

16-25 26-35 36-45

Figure 5.1.2. : Age of the respondent

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 Analysis:
From the above figure we can see that most of the respondent i.e. 50 % are in the age
group of 26-25, followed by 35 % in the age group of 16-25 and 15 % of the respondent
are in the age group of 36-45

3. Household Income of the respondent

Frequency Percent
Valid 21,000-50,000 30 30.0
51,000-1,00,000 53 53.0
Above 1,00,000 17 17.0
Total 100 100.0

Table 5.1.(1): Household Income of the respondent

Analysis:

From the above table we can see that most of the respondent i.e. 53% have household
income in the income group of 51,000-1, 00,000, followed by 30 % in the income group
of 21,000-50,000 and 17 % of the respondent are in the income group of 1,00,000 and
above.
4. Life Cycle Stage of the respondent

Frequency Percent
Valid married 13 13.0
married with 27 27.0
children
unmarried 60 60.0
Total 100 100.0

Table 5.1.(2): Life Cycle Stage of the respondent

Analysis:

From the above table we can see that 60 % of the respondent are not married, while 27 % are
married with children and 13 % are married without children

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 5. Occupation of the respondent

Occupation of the respondent

45%
40%
35%
30%
25%
44%
20%
33%
15%
10%
14%
5% 7%
2%
0%
student Professional Home maker business service

Occupation

Figure 5.4.3: Occupation of the respondent

Analysis: we can see from the above figure that out of 100 respondent 44% of the
respondent are doing service, 33% are student, 14% are homemaker, 7 % are self-
employed or business & 2 % are professionals
6. Pantaloons Green Card Membership :

Green CardeMembership

16% yes,
84%

yes No

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 Analysis: We can see from the above figure that most of the respondent 84 % have
pantaloons green card while only 16 % of the respondent dont have green card.

5.2 Objective 1:
To measure the brand awareness level of different brands available in Mens denim Section
1) Are you Aware of All brands available in this section

12% 7%

no, none of them

Yes, some of them

yes, all of them

81%

Fig 5.2.1 brand awareness of the consumers in the Mens casual apparel section

Analysis: from the above figure, it can be interpreted that most of the customers have some
knowledge of the brands present in the kids section if not all. As 81% respondents have answered
they are aware of some of the brands present. Whereas 12% have no knowledge about the brands
present. This indicates that customers are quite knowledgeable in the Pantaloons store.

2) Brand awareness of the customers in pantaloons Mens Denim department (0= Not
Aware,1=Just Aware,2=Aware,3=Quite Aware & 4=Fully Aware)

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 Brand Awareness level

0 1 2 3 4 Weighted Average
NA JA A QA FA Score
1. CELIO 0 19 0 53 28 290 2.9

2. JOHN PLAYER 0 0 37 46 17 280 2.8

3. LEE 0 13 38 25 24 260 2.6

4. LEVIS 0 0 21 36 43 322 3.22

5. PEPE 0 0 25 37 38 313 3.13

6. SPYKAR 0 0 46 33 21 275 2.75

7. AJILE 0 23 44 30 3 213 2.13

8. BARE DENIM 0 26 38 30 6 216 2.16

9. RIG 0 30 56 14 0 184 1.84

10. SF JEANS 0 36 31 33 0 197 1.97

11. URBAN EAGLE 0 25 39 36 0 211 2.11

Table: 5.2.1 Brand Awareness Level of the Customers

3.5
BRAND AWARNESS LEVEL
3.22 3.13
3 2.9 2.8 2.75
2.6
2.5
2.13 2.16 2.11
1.97
2 1.84

1.5

0.5

0
CELIO JOHN LEE LEVIS PEPE SPYKAR AJILE BARE RIG SF JEANS URBAN
PLAYER DENIM EAGLE

Figure 5.2.2: Brand Awareness Level of the Customers

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Analysis: From the above figure and table, it can be interpreted that Levis is the most popular brand
among all 100 respondents i.e. its average weighted score is 3.22 followed by PEPE having a score of
3.13. While RIG score the lowest i.e. 1.84

3) Customer satisfaction regarding the number of available brands

14% 20%

no, not at all

yes,somewhat
yes, absolutely
66%

Fig 5.2.3 Brand satisfaction of the customers

Analysis:
Most of the customers are somewhat satisfied by the no. of brands present in the section as 66%
have responded yes, somewhat but 20% have responded no, not at all and only 14% have
responded that they are absolutely satisfied with the no. of brands present.

5.2.1 HYPOTHESIS TESTING :

Chi Square test: Relationship testing between the brand satisfaction of the customers
and the age and gender of the customers.

On the basis of the responses from the customers during the survey, an attempt was made to
find out if there is any significant relationship between the brand satisfaction of the
customers and the age and gender of the customers. This was done using Chi- square test in
SPSS. The two hypotheses are:

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 Null hypothesis (H0):There is no relation between the brand satisfaction of the customers and
the age and gender of the customers.

Alternate Hypothesis (H1): There is a relation between the brand satisfaction of the customers
and the age and gender of the customers.
CROSS TABULATION RESULTS

1. Satisfied with the number of brands * age of the respondent

Age of the respondent

16-25 26-35 36-45 Total
no, not at all
13 6 1 20
satisfied with yes, somewhat
the number 39 23 4 66
of brands
yes, absolutely
7 6 1 14

Total 59 35 6 100

Table no 5.2.(a) Crosstab

Value df Asymp. Sig. (2-sided)

a
Pearson Chi-Square .769 4 0.943
Likelihood Ratio .766 4 0.943
N of Valid Cases 100

a. 1 cells (16.7%) have expected count less than 5. The minimum expected count is 4.62.
Table no 5.2.(b) chi-square tests.

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2. Satisfied with the number of brands * age of the respondent

gender of the respondent

male female Total

no, not at all 15 5 20

Satisfied with the

yes,somewhat 50 15 66
No. of brands
yes, absolutely 9 6 14

Total 74 26 100

Result: From the above result of Chi-Square test obtained from SPSS, we can see that the P
value of Pearson Chi Square, sig= 0.695 & 0.943, are greater than the value of the level of
significance, = 0.05, and thus we cant reject the null hypothesis at 95% confidence level.

Null hypothesis (H0): There is no relation between the brand satisfaction of the customers and
the age and gender of the customers.
From the cross tabulations, It can be concluded that there is no significant relation between
the brand satisfaction i.e satisfied with the no. of brands present in the Pantaloons with the
demographic feature like age and gender of the customers.

3. Store preference of the customers

RATING RANKING

1.Pantaloons 508 1

2.Big bazar 402 4

3.Reliance trends 412 2

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 4.Sohum emporia 342 6

5.Hub 341 7

6.Other malls 410 3

7.Single stores 399 5

Table 5.2.3 Store preference of the customers

Analysis:
It is evident from the rankings that Pantaloons is the most preferred store by the customers,
followed by reliance trends which is very closely followed by some of the other smaller malls
present in Guwahati. Hub and Sohum emporia occupies the last two slots as they have a
premium range of collections.

5.3 Objective 2:

To know the customer preference regarding different brands in mens denim section
1) Brand Preference of the customers:
NP=Not Preferred LP=Least Preferred P= Preferred
QP= Quiet Preferred MP=Most Preferred
Brand Brand Preference Overall
0 1 2 3 4 Weighted Average Score
Score
NP LP P QP MP
CELIO 0 0 31 42 27 296 2.96
JOHN PLAYER 12 23 48 11 0 152 1.52

LEE 0 10 37 41 12 255 2.55

LEVIS 0 0 26 31 43 317 3.17

PEPE JEANS 0 0 31 28 41 310 3.10

SPYKAR 6 17 39 38 0 209 2.09

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 AJILE 0 0 47 44 9 262 2.62

BARE DENIM 0 14 53 33 0 219 2.19

RIG 0 0 68 23 9 241 2.41
SF JEANS 0 0 64 29 7 243 2.43

URBAN 0 7 44 40 9 251 2.51

EAGLE
Table 5.3.1: Overall brand preference

Brand Brand Preference Top Wear

0 1 2 3 4 Weighted Average Score
Score
NP LP P QP MP
CELIO 0 0 22 13 65 343 3.43
JOHN PLAYER 10 23 48 11 8 184 1.84
LEE 0 10 40 41 9 249 2.49
LEVIS 0 0 58 18 24 266 2.66
PEPE JEANS 0 5 32 27 36 294 2.94
SPYKAR 6 17 39 38 0 209 2.09
AJILE 0 0 41 44 15 274 2.74
BARE DENIM 0 14 53 33 0 219 2.19
RIG 0 0 68 23 9 241 2.41
SF JEANS 0 0 69 29 2 233 2.33

URBAN 0 0 30 45 25 295 2.95

EAGLE
Table 5.3.2: Brand preference in Top wear

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 Brand Brand Preference Bottom Wear

0 1 2 3 4 Weighted Average Score

Score
NP LP P QP MP

CELIO 0 0 26 40 34 308 3.08

JOHN PLAYER 5 23 48 11 13 204 1.52

LEE 0 0 33 41 26 293 2.55

LEVIS 0 0 20 31 49 329 3.17

PEPE JEANS 0 0 27 28 45 318 3.10

SPYKAR 0 13 39 38 10 245 2.09

AJILE 0 0 51 40 9 258 2.62

BARE DENIM 0 14 36 33 17 253 2.19

RIG 0 0 68 9 23 255 2.41

SF JEANS 0 0 61 29 10 249 2.43

URBAN EAGLE 0 7 48 40 5 236 2.51

Table 5.3.3: Brand preference in Bottom Wear

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 Brand Preferences in Men's Denim Department
2.51
URBAN EAGLE 2.36
2.95

2.43
SF JEANS 2.49
2.33

2.41
RIG 2.55
2.41

2.19
BARE DENIM 2.55
2.41

2.62
AJILE 2.58
2.74

2.06
SPYKAR 2.45
2.09

3.1
PEPE 3.18
2.94

3.17
LEVIS 3.29
2.66

2.55
LEE 2.93
2.49

1.52
JOHN PLAYER 3.04
1.84

2.96
CELIO 3.08
3.43

0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4

Overall Bottom Wear Top Wear

Figure 5.3.1 Brand Preference of Customers

Analysis: From the above tables and figure, it can be interpreted that LEVIS is the most preferred brand
overall while CELIO is most preferred brand in top wear and again LEVIS is also the most preferred
brand in bottom wear

29 | P a g e
 2) Ranking of Various factors that affects consumer behaviour

Factors Affecting Buying behaviour

60

50

40
Axis Title

30

20

10

0
1 2 3 4 5
Price 7 11 17 25 40
Brand Image 4 11 15 19 51
Design 10 15 16 17 42
Colors and Graphics 15 16 15 17 40
Offers and discount 15 18 30 23 14
Size Availabilty 9 11 34 19 27
Fabric Quality 4 11 15 21 49

Figure 5.3.2: Ranking of different factors affecting consumer behaviour

Least Not so Important (3) Quite Most

important (1) important (2) important (4) important
(5)

Price 7% 11% 24% 19% 37%

Brand Image 4% 11% 15% 22% 48%

Design 10 % 15% 16% 17% 42%

Colors and 15 % 16% 15% 17% 40%

Graphics

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 Offers and 15% 30% 18% 23% 14%
Discount

Size 10% 12% 23% 23% 27%

availabilty

Fabric 4% 11 % 15% 27 % 43 %
Quality

Table 5.2.4: Ranking of different factors affecting consumer behavior

Descriptive Statistics

N Mean

Price 100 3.64

Brand Image 100 3.85

Design 100 3.40

Colors and Graphics 100 3.02

100 3.17
Offers and Discount
100 3.27
Size availability
100 3.55
Fabric Quality

Table 5.2.5: Mean of factors influencing buying behaviour

a) 48 % of the respondents agreed to the fact that Brand Image is the most prominent important
factor in body apparel while 27 % said that Fabric Quality is quite important. 24% believed that
price is important factor

b) From the second table it is quite evident that the brand image of apparels was the most important
attribute which was considered by a customer while buying any apparel, followed by Fabric
Quality and price in third position. It can be also seen that colours is last in ranking.

31 | P a g e
5.4 Objective 3:

To know the perception of customers regarding different brands in mens denim Section

1) Overall Perception of customers regarding the following brands available in Mens Denim
Section, Pantaloons
Brands POOR FAIR Neither Good Good Excellent Weighted
nor Bad score
-2 -1 0 1 2
CELIO 0 0 0 12 88 188

JP 0 0 0 29 71 171

LEE 0 0 0 13 87 187

LEVIS 0 0 0 7 93 193

PEPE 0 0 0 9 91 191

SPYKAR 0 0 0 71 29 129

AJILE 0 8 0 69 23 115

BAREDENIM 0 0 12 79 9 97

RIG 0 0 7 70 23 116

SF JEANS 0 0 6 78 16 110

URBAN EAGLE 0 0 1 80 19 118

Table 5.4.1: Perception of Customers regarding different brands

Perception of Customers Regarding Diffrent Brands

URBAN EAGLE
SF JEANS
RIG
BARE DENIM
AJILE
SPYKAR
PEPE
LEVIS
LEE
JOHN PLAYER
CELIO

0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1.2 1.4 1.6 1.8 2

32 | P a g e
 Figure 5.4.1: Perception of Customers regarding different brands

Descriptive Statistics
N Mean

Celio 100 1.88

John Players 100 1.71

Lee 100 1.87

Levis 100 1.93

PEPE 100 1.91

Spykar 100 1.29

Ajile 100 1.25

Bare Denim 100 0.97

Rig 100 1.16

SF Jeans 100 1.10

Urban Eagle 100 1.18

Table 5.4.2: Mean of Perception of Customers regarding quality

Analysis:

From the above tables and figure, it can be clearly seen that customers has highest positive
perception for LEVIS as a brand, followed by PEPE in second position and CELIO in third
position., while Bare Denim is lowest in ranking as compared to others.

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 2) Perception of Customers regarding price of pantaloons private level brands

Are Pantaloons private level brands

Reasonbly Priced

6%
11%
8%

12%
63%

strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree

Figure 5.4.2: Perception of Customers regarding Price of PT Brands

Analysis:
From the above figure, it can be interpreted that out of 100 respondents 63% respondents
strongly agrees that pantaloons private level brands are reasonably priced while only 6 %
respondents strongly disagree that private level brands are reasonably priced

34 | P a g e
 3) Perception of Customers regarding the quality of pantaloons private level brands

Pantaloons Private Level brands are of

good quality

9%
11%
41%

15%

24%

strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree

Figure 5.3.3: Perception of Customers regarding Quality of PT Brands

Analysis:

From the above figure, it can be interpreted that out of 100 respondents 41% respondents
strongly agrees that pantaloons private level brands are of good quality, 15% are neutral
regarding the quality, while 9% respondents totally disagree that PT Brands are of good quality

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 4) Do you think pantaloons private level brands are better than other national and international
brands

40%

35%

30%

25%

20%

15%

10% 32% 39%

0%
5% 12% 17%
0%

strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Totall Disagree

Analysis:
From the above figure, it can be interpreted that out of 100 respondents only 12 % agrees
that PT Brands are better than international and international brands. On the other hand 32%
of respondent disagree and 39 % of the respondent totally disagree that PT Brands are better
than other national and international brands

5) Do you think pantaloons private level brands are reliable and durable:
SA= Strongly Agree, A=Agree, N= Neutral, D= Disagree, SD= Strongly Disagree

SA A N D SD

45 19 17 15 5

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 45%
40%
35%
45%
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
19%
5%
17%
0% 15%

5%
strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Totall Disagree

Analysis:
From the above figure, it can be interpreted that out of 100 respondents 45 % respondent
strongly agrees that PT brands are reliable and durable while 5% of the respondent strongly
disagrees to it.
6) People say Good about Pantaloons Private Level Brands:

70%

60%

50%

40% 69%
30%

20%

10%
18%
0%
8%
5%
1%
strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Totall Disagree

37 | P a g e
 7. Seek Help from staff:
Frequency

3
No, I never seek help
4
No, I seldom seek help
48
Yes, sometimes I seek help
45
Yes, It is always good to have help
100
Total

Table 5.4.4: Seek help from the salesman

Analysis:
A very high number of respondents have answered that they require or seek help from the support
staff.

8. Influence of the salesman in purchasing

Frequency

20
No, Not at all
34
Yes, but very rarely
42
Yes, but sometimes only
4
Yes, always
100
Total

Table 5.4.5: Influence of the salesman in purchasing

Analysis:
Most of the respondents have responded in yes, the frequency is higher on sometimes only and very
rarely, so it indicate that the salesperson have a role to play in the buying decision of the buyer.

38 | P a g e
ANOVA TEST OF CUSTOMERS SATISFACTION AMONG VARIOUS AGE GROUPS:

Ho: There is no significant difference between the customers satisfaction with the number of
brands present in mens denim section and the various age groups.
H1: There is significant difference between the customers satisfaction with the number of brands
present in mens denim section and the various age groups.

Table 4.3.1: ANOVA test (a)

From the above result of One-Way ANOVA test obtained from SPSS, we can see that the P value,
sig=0.628, is greater than the value of the level of significance, = 0.05 at 95% confidence level.

Thus, we do not have enough evidence to reject the null hypothesis and we can say that there no
significant difference between the customers satisfaction with the number of brands present in
mens denim section and the various age groups at 95% confidence level.

ANOVA TEST OF CUSTOMERS SATISFACTION AMONG VARIOUS

OCCUPATION GROUPS:

Ho: There is no significant difference between the customers satisfaction with the number of
brands present in Mens Denim and the various occupation groups.
H1: There is significant difference between the customers satisfaction with the number of brands
present in mens denim section and the various occupation groups.

Table 4.3.2: ANOVA test (b)

From the above result of One-Way ANOVA test obtained from SPSS, we can see that the P value,
sig=0.040, is less than the value of the level of significance, = 0.05 at 95% confidence level.
39 | P a g e
Thus, we have enough evidence to reject the null hypothesis and we can say that there is significant
difference between the customers satisfaction with the number of brands present in mens denim
section and the various occupation groups at 95% confidence level.

ANOVA TEST OF CUSTOMERS SATISFACTION AMONG VARIOUS INCOME

GROUPS:

Ho: There is no significant difference between the customers satisfaction with the number of
brands present in mens denim section and the various income groups.
H1: There is significant difference between the customers satisfaction with the number of brands
present in mens denim section and the various income groups.

Table 4.3.3: ANOVA test (c)

From the above result of One-Way ANOVA test obtained from SPSS, we can see that the P
value,
sig=0.863, is greater than the value of the level of significance, = 0.05 at 95% confidence level.
Thus, we do not have enough evidence to reject the null hypothesis and we can say that there no
significant difference between the customers satisfaction with the number of brands present in
mens denim section and the various income groups at 95% confidence level.

ANOVA TEST OF THE ATTRIBUTES OF APPAREL VARIOUS AGE GROUPS:

Ho: There is no significant difference among the preference for the attributes of a casual wear
(apparel) by the respondents belonging to various age group.
Ho: m1 = m2 = m3 = m4 = m5 = m6
H1: There is significant difference among the preference for the attributes of apparel by the
respondents belonging to various age group.

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H1: m1 m2 m3 m4 m5 m6
m1= mean age of people who give more importance to price over other attributes.
m2= mean age of people who give more importance to brand image over other attributes.
m3= mean age of people who give more importance to fabric quality over other attributes.
m4= mean age of people who give more importance to colours and graphics image over other
attributes.
m5= mean age of people who give more importance to offers and discount over other attributes.
m6= mean age of people who give more importance to size availability over other attributes.

ANOVA Sig.

Colours and Graphics Between Groups .064

Fabric Quality Between Groups .135

Price Between Groups .485

Brand image Between Groups .593

Offers and discount Between Groups .871

Size Availability Between Groups .764

Table 5.11: ANOVA test (a)

From the above result of One-Way ANOVA test obtained from SPSS, we can see that the P
value for different combinations of attributes are greater than the value of the level of
significance, =0.05 at 95% confidence level.

Thus, we do not have enough evidence to reject the null hypothesis and we can say that there is
no significant difference among the preference for the attributes of private label brands by the
Respondents belonging to various income group at 95% confidence level.

41 | P a g e
 CHAPTER 6: VISUAL MERCHANDISING IN
PANTALOONS
6.1 What is Visual Merchandising?
Visual merchandising is a profession that involves displaying merchandise and dcor in a store in a way
that elicits a positive image of the store, gets customers' attention and entices them to buy.

Visual Merchandising is the art of displaying merchandise in a manner that is appealing to the
eyes of the customer. It sets the context of the merchandise in an aesthetically pleasing fashion,
presenting them in a way that would convert the window shoppers into prospects and ultimately
buyers of the product. A creative and talented retailer can use this upcoming art to breathe in new
life into his store products. Passion for design and creativity are essential to be a good visual
merchandiser. A perfect design process and the ability to create ideas that are different are
required. Awareness of happenings in fashion world is needed so as to keep up-to-date with the
dynamics of the market constantly.

Visual merchandising includes window displays, signs, interior displays, cosmetic promotions
and any other special sales promotions taking place.

There are certain things which a retailer needs to take care while proceeding with the process of
displaying his products. These components when combined together in a proper ratio will make a
successful outcome.
Make merchandise the focal point

Right choice of colours is vital

Display themes to appropriately support the product

Display should complement the retailers other strategies

Cleanliness
42 | P a g e
 Change the display settings in frequent intervals

6.2 VISUAL MERCANDHISING IN

PANTALOONS:
This is the VM style of Pantaloons
Guwahati. Various Fixtures like Fashion
Table, Piano, Two- Arm fixture, wall
stacking,etc. are used.

The VM style keeps on changing as and when

required with the advice of the category VM
Head

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 6.3 SWOT ANALYSIS OF PANTALOONS
Strength
Pioneer in the industry, largest market share and capitalization.
Reputation for value for money(Competitive pricing), convenience and a
wide range of products all in one store
Being financially strong helps pantaloons retail India deal with any problems,
ride any dip in profits and out perform their rivals
There are various departments like kids,ethnic,western,formal,etc. having
lots of PT and NPT brands this gives the customer everything under one
roof and keeps pantaloons ahead of their competitors

Weakness
The number of brands available is not satisfactory, as people came in
search of few brands which are not available in the section.
Since Pantaloons Retail India Ltd sell products across many sectors, it may
not have the flexibility of some of its more focused competitors.
There must be a toys section for children as most customers are married
with children and they often want to buy toys for their kids

Opportunity
Opportunities exist for PRIL to continue with its current strategy of
large, super center.
Population of country is growing where the scope of market is kept on
increasing for retail store.
Organized retail less penetrated in India so it acts as great opportunities
to the organization for its growth
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Threats
Many new competitors have come up in Guwahati like Marks& Spencer,
Central Mall
Being number one means that you are the target of competition.(Extra
competition and new competitors entering the market could unsteady
pantaloons retail India)
A slow economy or financial slowdown could have a major impact on
pantaloons retail India business and profits.
Consumer lifestyle changes could lead to less of a demand for
pantaloons retail India products/services
Price wars between competitors, price cuts and so on could damage
profits for pantaloons retail India.

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 CHAPTER 7: FINDINGS
7.1 Major Findings:
1. Only 12% of respondents are aware of all of the brands in Mens Denim section,
pantaloons Guwahati, while 81% are aware of most of them. [Sec 5.2.1].
2. It is found that awareness level of the NPT brands is comparatively much higher than PT
brands. [Sec 5.2.1].
3. Pantaloons is the most favourite store in followed by reliance trends in Guwahati.
[Sec 5.2.4].
4. Most of the customers are somewhat satisfied by the number of brands present in the
section as 66% have responded that they are yes, somewhat satisfied but 20% have
responded no, not at all satisfied. [Sec 5.2.4].
5. LEVIS is the most preferred brand overall , while CELIO is most preferred brand in top
wear and again LEVIS is also the most preferred brand in bottom wear. [Sec 5.3.1].
6. Brand image is the most important attribute of an apparel that influence buying
decision, followed by Fabric Quality and price in third position [Sec 5.3.2].
7. The respondent have highest positive perception for LEVIS as a brand, followed by PEPE
in second position and CELIO in third position., whereas Bare Denim is lowest in ranking
as compared to others. [Sec 5.4.1].
8. Out of 100 respondents 63% respondents strongly agrees that pantaloons private level
brands are reasonably priced while only 6 % respondents strongly disagree that private
level brands are reasonably priced [Sec 5.4.2].
9. Out of 100 respondents 41% respondents strongly agrees that pantaloons private level
brands are of good quality, 15% are neutral regarding the quality, while 9% respondents
totally disagree that PT Brands are of better quality [Sec 5.4.3]
10.Out of 100 respondents only 12 % agrees that PT Brands are better than international
and international brands. On the other hand 32% of respondent disagree and 39 % of
the respondent totally disagree that PT Brands are better than other national and
international brands.

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 12. Out of 100 respondents 45 % respondent strongly agrees that PT brands are reliable and
durable while 5% of the respondent strongly disagrees to it.
11. 45% of the respondents feel that it is always good to have help from the support staff.
12.4 2% of the respondents sometimes get influenced by the salesperson while purchasing.
13.The salesperson should involve and interact with the customers more.

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 CHAPTER 8 - RECOMMENDATION &
CONCLUSION
8.1 Recommendations:
After conducting the survey for Pantaloons fashion and retail Limited and with the valuable
responses and suggestions of the customers we are able to provide the company with a few
recommendations which may prove valuable for the organisation.

As I have found in my study the awareness level of customers regarding few private level
brands are very low various measure must be taken to increase the brand awareness level
like advertising in local channels or newspaper, or even host various fashion show where
we can show our private level brands.
Most of the customers were not satisfied with the number of brands present in the section,
so a few more brands should be added to our portfolio.
Customer have ranked pantaloons as there most favourite store in Guwahati, so
pantaloons should always try to update its product portfolio, more and more collections
of the highly selling brands must be kept to stay ahead of its competitors.
I have found in my study that the most influencing or prominent factor in a body apparel
followed by fabric quality therefore we should try to build a strong brand image and also
we should try to improve the fabric quality of our private level brands.
The salesperson should involve and interact with the customers more.

8.2 CONCLUSION:

Conditions of competition are changing rapidly today and companies that strategize and react to
these changes promptly and quickly are the most successful. Conducting a research study is joyous
as well as tiresome. Working on this project was an enriching experience for me. Not only I got
to know about the how a retail store functions i.e. operations of pantaloons but also other different
markets and also other industries related with fashion and retail. Also I had a very wonderful
experience of meeting with different kinds of people (customers) and find out preference for

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various Pantaloons brands and other brands available in Pantaloons store with regards to all other
competitors.

Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited is one of the top most player in fashion and retail sector
in India. From this study I was able to identify the major attributes that customers values while
buying a body apparel.

At last I would like to say that Pantaloons brand name is sufficient for its marketing, expansion.

The only thing is that Pantaloon need to maintain a good relationship with their loyal customers
and increase its loyal customer base by providing quality product at a reasonable price. Overall it
was a great experience in doing Summer Internship in such a great organization.

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 BIBLIOGRAPHY
a) Malhotra, N., & Dash, S,(2012). Defining the marketing research problem and
developing approach. In Marketing research: An applied orientation (6th ed., p.41).
Pearson Education Australia.
b) Malhotra, N., & Dash, S. (2012). Sampling: Design and Procedures. In Marketing
research: An applied orientation (6th ed., p. 41). Pearson Education Australia.
c) Aditya Birla,.(2016) Pantaloons -profile. Retrieved 22 August 2016, from
http://www.adityabirla.com/businesses/Profile/Pantaloons -profile.
d) Marketingstudyguide (2016) Servquals-22-questions.Retrived 22 August 2016, from
http://www.marketingstudyguide.com/servquals-22-questions/.
e) Harris, E. & Strout, E. (2001). Keeping customers happy.
Sales and MarketingManagement, April, 153(4), 69.
f) Book Measuring Customer Satisfaction, A guide to managing quality Customer
Service. ByRichard .F. Garson.
g) Presentations conducted by Faculty members during Class lectures of College.
h) Standard Operating Procedure(2016). Retrieved from
http://www.fao.org/docrep/W7295E/w7295e04.htm.
i) Consumer Insight How to Use Data and Market research to get closer to your
customer. ByMerlin Stone, Alison Bond & Bryan Foss
j) Pantaloons Greencard (2016) . Retrieved from http://pantaloons.com/greencard/.
k) Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services Volume 16, Issue 4, July 2009, Pages 281
290

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 APPENDIX- I
QUESTIONNAIRE
(PLEASE ANSWER IN THE SPACE PROVIDED OR TICK THE QUESTIONS IN THE RELEVANT BLOCK)
Dear Sir/Madam,
Iam a student of Masters of Business Administration, Tezpur University, currently doing a survey
on An Empirical Study on Customer Preference and perception regarding different
brands during end of season sale in Mens Denim Section, pantaloons. We request you to
kindly fill the questionnaire below and assure you that the data generated will be strictly used for research
purpose and shall be kept confidential.

1. How frequently do you shop in pantaloons:

a) once in week b) once in month
c) Once in 3 months d) once in 6 months

2. When do you purchase body apparels:

Regularly Special Occasions Sometimes Rarely

3. Are you aware of all the brands available in this section?

Yes, all yes, some of them No, not at all

4. What is your awareness level regarding the following brands (Rank them 0 = not aware at all,
1=just aware, 2=aware, 3=quite aware & 4= fully aware of the brand )

Brand Awareness level

13. CELIO
14. JOHN PLAYER
15. LEE
16. LEVIS
17. PEPE
18. SPYKAR

19. AJILE

20. BARE DENIM

21. RIG

22. SF JEANS

23. URBAN EAGLE

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 5. Are you satisfied with the number of brands available in the section?
Yes, absolutely Yes, Somewhat No, not at all

6. Rank the following brands as per your preference in Top Wear & Bottom wear. (where 1= not
preferred at all, 2= less preferred, 3= quite preferred & 4 = most preferred brand)

Brand Brand Preference

Top Wear Bottom Wear OVERALL

CELIO

JOHN PLAYER

LEE

LEVIS

PEPE JEANS

SPYKAR

AJILE

BARE DENIM

RIG

SF JEANS

URBAN EAGLE

7. How important are the following factors to you that affect your buying decision. Rank them
according to your preference ( 2= most important, 1 = quite important, 0 = neither important
nor unimportant, -1 = not so important & -2 = not at all important)

Factors -2 1 0 1 2
1.Price

2. Brand Image (status symbol)

3.design

4. Fabric Quality

5. Colors and graphics(prints)

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 6. Offers and discounts

7. Size availability

8. others ( plz mention)

8. What is your overall perception for the following brands. Where 2=Excellent, 1= Good, 0= neither
Good nor Bad, -1= Average & -2 = Poor

Brands POOR Average Neither Good Good Excellent

nor Bad
-2 -1 0 1 2

CELIO

JP

LEE

LEVIS

PEPE

SPYKAR

AJILE

BAREDENIM

RIG

SF JEANS

URBAN EAGLE

9. Do you think pantaloons private level brands are reasonably priced:

Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree

10. Do you think pantaloons private National/International brands are reasonably priced:
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree

11. Do you think pantaloons private level brands are of good quality:
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree

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 12. Do you think pantaloons private level brands are better than other National/International
brands :
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree
13. Do you think pantaloons private level brands are reliable and durable

Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree

14. People say Good about Pantaloons Private Level Brands:

Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree

15. Do you look for help from the support staff ?

a) Yes , it is always good to have help [ ] b) Yes, I sometimes seek help [ ]

c) No, I seldom seek help [ ] d) No, I never seek help [ ]

16. Do you purchase something if the salesperson influences you with their descriptions about the
product?

a) Yes, always [ ] b) Yes, but sometimes only [ ]

c) Yes, but very rarely [ ] d) No, not at all [ ]

Any suggestions to serve you better:

..

Respondent Details:

1. Name :
2. Age : 16-25 26-35 36-45 46 and above

3. Gender: Male Female

4. Household Monthly Income

Less than 20,000 21,000-50,000 51,000 -1,00,000

1 lakh & above

5. Life Cycle Stage

Married Married with children Unmarried

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 6. Occupation :
Student Professional Home maker Business Service

Retired

7. Do you have pantaloons green card: YES NO

Thank You!!!!

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 PICTURES AT PANTALOONS, GUWAHATI

With organizational guide i.e. ADM and SM of Pantaloons, Guwahati

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