CUSTOMER SATISFACTION IN HYPER MARKET STORES

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1 KAAV INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS,COMMERCE & BUSINESS MANAGEMENT CUSTOMER SATISFACTION IN HYPER MARKET STORES SHAVITA DESHWAL Assistant Professor Department of Business Administration, MSI ABSTRACT Retailing, considered a sunrise industry today after InfoTech, is the most happening industry with almost all the big players vying for a share of the coveted pie. Buoyed by a strong increase in private consumption, retailing is one industry that is waiting to explode. Today India is the fifth largest global destination in the world for retail. The share of retail sector in country's gross domestic product is more than 10% and around eight per cent in employment. The research paper attempts to evaluate customer satisfaction in organized retail hyper market stores. All the data has been collected through a sample survey of 300 customers purchasing goods from hypermarket stores in South Delhi. The sample was drawn by random convenient sampling. The result revealed that customers were satisfied by physical facilities of the stores and problem solving was unheeded by the stores. Key Words: Retail, Hypermarket Stores, Customer Satisfaction INTRODUCTION India is one of the fastest growing major markets in the world.indian retail market is one of the most promising sector in Asia.Today India is the fifth largest global destination in the world for retail. The share of retail sector in country's gross domestic product is more than 10% and around 30

2 eight per cent in employment. India s retail market is expected to double to US$ 1 trillion by 2020 from US$ 600 billion in The concept of retail which includes the shopkeeper to customer interaction, has taken many forms and dimensions, from the traditional retail outlet and street local market shops to upscale multi brand outlets, especially stores or departmental stores. Therefore, this concept of retail marketing through stores, which is coming up in a big way in India was decided to be studied. CUSTOMER SATISFACTION Indian retail industry is the biggest industry in comparison to other industries.retailing is the biggest private industry in the world. The relationship between the retailer and customer is very close in comparison to other chains of distribution.success of any organization depends upon the quantity and quality of customers. Customer Satisfaction is a promising tool that empowers marketers to maintain their presence in the vivacious marketing environment.previously, companies have stressed only on differentiation of products and services for retaining and satisfying the customers. But due to stiff competition in the market as new players were entering in the market the customers have wide variety of choices with them which has forced marketers to adapt new customer oriented strategies to make the customer satisfied. Oliver (1980)defined that customer satisfaction is the evaluation process of pre purchase expectation of the customer and the actual experience after the consumption.kotler (1996)defined customer satisfaction as the level of a person felt state resulting from comparing a product s perceived performance or outcome in a violation to his/her own expectations. Ciavolino and Dahlgaard (2007) research efforts focused that customer satisfaction can be defined as the overall evaluation of the service performances or utilization. SERVICE QUALITY Service quality is a comparison of expectations with performance. Customer satisfaction is based on perceived service quality. Improved service quality will increase the economic 31

3 competitiveness. Service quality is a crucial factor for the success of the business firm; if the service provider is rightly aware about the different dimensions of the service quality then it is easy to make the customers satisfied.parasuraman et al. (1985)defined service quality as the global evaluation or attitude of overall excellence ofservice. So service quality is the difference between customers expectations and perceptions of service delivered by service firms.zeithaml et al (1990)examined the association between customer s perception of quality of service and their willingness to recommend the service.he found a big difference between the quality perception of customer who would and those who would not recommend their services. Ladhari (2009) found that service quality is regarded as the top priority of firms at the present time because it gives the company a competitive advantage. It also helps for future growth and increases efficiency. DIMENSIONS OF SERVICE QUALITY The variables chosen for the study are based on Retail Service Quality Scale Model developed by Dabholkar(1996).The scale consists of Physical Aspect, Reliability, Personal interaction Problem solving and Policy of the store. OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY To explore the customer satisfaction for service quality in organized retail hypermarket stores. RESEARCH METHEDOLOGY The sample of the study comprised of 300 customers purchasing products from hypermarket stores taken from South Delhi. Primary data for the study was obtained through structured questionnaire administered in person to customers visiting the hypermarket stores in South Delhi. Study was conducted on a micro level due to constraint in time and resources on the basis of random convenient sampling. A structured non disguised questionnaires based on Retail Service Quality Scale was used to solicit information on hypermarket stores. Dabholkaret. al (1996)developed a model forassessing retail service quality known as retail service quality scale. 32

4 It has five dimensions. In order to measure the satisfaction of customers amongst the target group, Retail service quality scale (RSQS Scale)was used. Table 1: Variables of Retail Service Quality Scale by Dabholkaret. al (1996) S.No. Dimension Meaning 1 Physical Aspects It emphasize on external presentation of the building and internal layout of the store. 2 Reliability It comprises of the authenticity of the promises made and the propensity for doing it right. 3 Personal Interaction It involves inspiring confidence in the customer through convincing communication 4 Problem Solving It includes return or exchange of the goods. 5 Policy It includes the factors like high quality goods, good operating hours and convenient parking HYPOTHESES In order to achieve the research objectives, the following main hypotheses were developed for testing: H 01 : There is no significant difference in customer satisfaction for service quality in hyper-stores for all the variables of retail service quality scale. H 11 : There is significant difference in customer satisfaction for service quality in hyper-stores for all the variables of retail service quality scale. ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION Table 1: Distribution of respondents on the basis of gender Age No of Respondents Male 60 Female 240 Total

5 Out of total 300 respondents, 80 % (240) were females and rest 20 % (60) were males, as purchasing being female domain. Table 2: Percentage Score of Customers Satisfaction as per RSQS Scale for Hyper Stores S. DIMENSION MAXIMUM OBTAINED PERCENTAGE No SCORE SCORE SCORE 1 Physical Aspect Sub Dimension- Appearance 1.1 The store has modern looking equipment and fixtures. 1.2 The store and its physical facilities are visually attractive. 1.3 Materials associated with this store s service (such as shopping bags, loyalty cards, and catalogues) are visually appealing. 1.4 The store has clean, attractive, and convenient physical facilities. Sub Dimension- Convenience The layout of the store makes it easier for customers to find what they need. 1.6 The layout of the store makes it easier for customers to move around in the store. TOTAL Reliability Sub Dimension Promises 2.1 When the store promises to do something (such as repairs, alterations) by a certain time, it will do so 2.2 The store provides its services at the time it promises to do so

6 Sub Dimension Doing it right 2.3 The store performs the service right the first time. 2.4 The store has merchandise available when the customers want it. 2.5 The store insists on error-free sales transactions and records. TOTAL Personal Interaction Sub Dimension- Inspiring Confidence 3.1 Employees in the store have the knowledge to answer customers questions 3.2 The behavior of employees in the store instills confidence in customers. 3.3 Customers feel safe in their transactions with this store. Sub Dimension -Courteousness/ Helpfulness 3.4 The employees in the store give prompt service to customers. 3.5 Employees in the store tell customers exactly when services will be performed. 3.6 Employees in the store are never too busy to respond to customer s requests. 3.7 The store gives customers individual attention. 3.8 Employees in the store are consistently courteous with customers. TOTAL Problem Solving 4.1 The store willingly handles returns and exchanges 4.2 When a customer has a problem, the store shows a sincere interest in solving it. 4.3 Employees of the store are able to handle customer complaints directly and immediately

7 TOTAL Policy 5.1 The store offers high quality merchandise. 5.2 The store provides plenty of convenient parking for customers The store has operating hours convenient for all their customers. 5.4 The store accepts all major credit cards TOTAL Percentage score of physical aspect for hyper market is 63.5%.It is 53.88% for reliability. Problem solving have the minimum score of 50.33%.For policy it have a score of 50.75%.For customer satisfaction in hyper market customers have highest precedence for physical aspect. These stores have proper layout for moving and for finding the merchandize. The stores are visually attractive and have shopping bags of good quality. Personal Interaction plays a vital role in hyper stores as courteousness and individual attention are the factors which make the customers feel that they are valued. They got a feeling of belongingness with the store. They feel safe in transactions and staff members are always open to answer for query or a problem. Non availability of stock has never been an issue. To summarize we can say that the customer are not equally satisfied for all the variables under study. So our null hypothesis (H 01 ) is rejected and alternate hypothesis (H 11 ) is accepted. EPILOGUE In this study an effort has been made to develop an insight about the customer satisfaction for different variables of retail service quality scale. Satisfied customer is the key for success for any organization. Based on the above results we can conclude that the customers are not equally satisfied by the service quality of hyper market stores. LIMITATIONS AND SUGGESTION FOR FUTURE RESEARCH As with any research, this study has several limitations that should be acknowledged. The first limitation of this study is that of the data collected which was self-reported, thus, common 36

8 method bias may be present. Second, the sample size was small.the study can be strengthened by increasing the sample size and including participants in other geographical areas.third, the study was conducted for hyper-stores in South Delhi, so that results cannot be generalized to all other cities. Future studies should go beyond this to assess the customer satisfaction. REFERENCES Oliver, Richard L. (1980), "A Cognitive Model of the Antecedents and Consequences of Satisfaction Decisions." Journal of Marketing Research, Vol. 17 (September), pp Kotler, P and Armstrong, G (1996), Principles of Marketing.Prentice Hall, New Jersey. Ciavolino, E &Dahlgaard, JJ (2007), Customer satisfaction modeling and analysis: A case study. Journal of Total Quality Management, Vol.18(5), pp Zeithaml, V.A., Berry, L.L. and Parasuraman,A. (1990) Delivering Service Quality. New York.The Free Press. Ladhari, R. (2009). A review of twenty years of SERVQUAL research, International Journal of Quality and Service Sciences, Vol.1(2), pp Dabholkar, Pratibha, DayleThorpe and Joseph Rentz (1996). A Measure of Service Quality for Retail Stores: Scale Development and Validation, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Vol.24 (Winter), pp