“Retailing is a tough and competitive business but we have been able to reap good profits,” says T. Thanushgaran, Chairman, Kannan Departmental Store, which operates 32 stores in Tamil Nadu spanning 7,67,452 sq. ft. of retailing area across convenience, supermarket, hypermarket and wholesale formats, apart from its warehouses and corporate offices . Progressive Grocer brings you the inside story of the company’s growth journey, its fastest-selling product categories, the new and emerging categories at its stores that has propelled the company into becoming a major retailing force in south India.
What is the customer proposition and marketing positioning of your store?
Over the years, we have been able to position ourselves as a reliable retailer to our customers. This has been accomplished because of the visionary approach taken by the company and its staff members to search, refine and filter the best of products and cater it to the customers at a reasonable price tag.
What are the retail formats under which Kannan stores operate?
We have 32 stores across convenience, supermarket, hypermarket and wholesale formats, which ranges from 3,500 sq.ft to 100,000 sq.ft.
What kind of people frequents your stores and what is the age group?
It is the middle class and upper middle-class shoppers who are the regular customers in our stores. We have not experienced a vast change in the customer profile. However, the customer segments have definitely evolved over the years. Customer segments are evolving based on the huge change in the consumption patterns by different demographics, their usage pattern, and the desired benefits they seek from the products.
Tell us about your product basket. Which are the categories and range of your merchandise you specialize in as a retailer?
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