I

GRADUATION RESEARCH PROJECT

PANTALOONS FASHION & RETAIL LIMITED

Optimum development of option plan

BY

Brahmbhatt Raj

Batch 2013-2015

Master of Fashion Management

NIFT, Mumbai

Industry Mentor

Mr.Jatinder bassi – Senior Buyer – Menswear , PFRL

College Mentor

Mrs. Sonali R Saldanha, Asst. Professor, NIFT, Mumbai

II

ACKNOWLEGEMENT

I am highly grateful to “Pantaloons Fashion & Retail ltd.” for providing me the opportunity to

complete my Fashion Internship Training with them.

I express my whole hearted thanks to my mentor Mr Jatinder Bassi (Sr. Buyer) for his engagement

and support and constant guidance in organizing my work and giving me valuable inputs in my

learning.

I will be failing in my duty, If I do not mention the name of Mentor Mrs Sonali R. Saldanha for the

help she has extended in my Graduation Research Project.

Lastly, I am thankful to friends and families for providing me with great support in my entire

endeavor.

Brahmbhatt Raj

Master of Fashion Management

Department of Fashion Management Studies

III

DECLARATION

This is to certify the completion of the project on “Working Under Category & Optimum

development of option plan”, submitted towards the starting of semester IV of Masters Of Fashion

Management, NIFT, Mumbai By –

Brahmbhatt Raj

MUM13MM24

Department Of Fashion Management Studies

This is his original work carried out during the period 15th Jan 2015 to 17

th April 2015 under my

guidance and the project report is based on the research done by him.

Mrs Sonali R Saldanha

Asst. professor

Date: 14th May, 2015

Place: NIFT, Mumbai

IV

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

In the first 15 days of my internship I worked under Men’s wear buying team in which there are two

brands SF jeans and Bare denim so I joined at the time of Range Presentation which is for AW 15

season. so I was assisting buyers. Making Visual merchandising sheet in which best style will go for

store wall , window displays so here I haven’t work with numbers as in Sales , margins , Sale through

purely buying so there Sir also asked me about my opinion for a particular style even I tried so many

clothes as how it looks like and then we decide accordingly whether to buy it or not ( it includes Past

year sales for that kind of fabric , what is in the market , what style do customer like ,

Also Designers give opinions (that this particular print is not looking nice on fabric it will look better

on different fabric) so this is how buyers select the product range. Apart from this buying Store zonal

Managers are also come for the range presentation and see how will be the next season range so they

can identify the best zone and they also give advice to the buyers and designers to produce or buy

more or less for the particular product. Also company CEO and Head of the Departments come and

see the range and make suggestions where needed.

Pantaloons go online so Trend in also came for buying according to their requirements and analysis of

Pantaloons online sales and data they also buy. So for that Buyers showcase their selected product

range to them so out of them they selected Perticular styles according to their requirements. ( nb

After Range Presentation I was shifted to Men’s wear formal wear brand Lombard Sport brand

Byford and Party wear F-factor as well as Bare leisure and JM sport

In buying after Range presentation and selection of the product range there is order placement ( final

order sheet , vendor management ,negotiations, and close closure.)

Merchandise category code ( MCC ) which includes all the description about the product

classification. I collected the garment samples from designers put the pictures of that in the sheet also

cut the swatches for the same. This sheet also includes

I have done this for all the five brands Byford, Lombard , F-Factor, Bare leisure and JM sport so this

also includes collecting samples from sourcing team sometimes they don’t have it I contacted

Vendors directly to get the samples for that I have to negotiate for the delivery dates.

This activity is to be done to know the product description and in this I also mentioned online website

Trendin’s Rating and quantity for the same which is discussed before. Taking a picture for the rest of

the garments and if the sample is not ready have to collect swatches for the same from sourcing team

or else from designers ( CAD ) and then take a picture and put it in the MCC which is very time

consuming process.

It almost took a month to complete this activity while doing this activity I also given a task from a

designer to do a research for a new brand for which I have to make a looks, styling (garments,

accessories, shoes etc.) so I was doing that also at the same time. So I mailed all the possible looks

which I found it would be better for the brand.

After that I started working for AW14 seasonal performances for all the five brands in which I did

analysis according to the data given which is as follows :

V

Best sellers, Average sellers, slow movers of all the five brands in which I worked are Byford,

Lombard, F-Factor, Bare leisure, JM sport. by which buyer can identify the Perticular product that

which product did well in the last season and according to the data given he can categorized the same

and take the decision whether to repeat the style or to discontinue. So I made the presentation

accordingly and buyer gave it in front of all team of the brands which includes designer , head

designer , senior buyer , assistant buyer and I also attended the presentation. Where they have

discussed about brand portfolio also that this particular style is very good in business in the market so

it should be repeated.

While giving presentation we were showcasing the real sample also so that designer get to know

about the fabric also that this particular Fabric done well in the season or it should be done on another

fabric base.

After that I worked for PC MRP review ( COST review ) and a small project named Optimum

development of option plan.

VI

CHAPTER

NUMBER

TITLE

1 Company Profile

1.1 Introduction

1.2 PFRL

1.3 Company hierarchy

1.4 PFRL brands

1.5 Departments

1.6 Buying process

2 Range Presentation

2.1 Outline of project

2.2 Merchandise Category code

2.3 Seasonal performance

2.4 PC MRP review

3 Option plan

3.1 option plan

3.2 Optimum development of option plan

4 Conclusion

4.1 conclusion

4.2 key learnings

VII

Chapter 1

Company profile

1.1 Introduction

The India Retail Industry is the largest among all the industries, accounting for over 10 per cent of the

country’s GDP and around 8 per cent of the employment. The Retail Industry in India has come forth

as one of the most dynamic and fast paced industries with several players entering the market. But all

of them have not yet tasted success because of the heavy initial investments that are required to break

even with other companies and compete with them. The India Retail Industry is gradually inching its

way towards becoming the next boom industry.

ADITYA BIRLA GROUP

A US $40 billion corporation, the Aditya Birla Group is in the League of Fortune 500. It is anchored

by an extraordinary force of over 136,000 employees belonging to 42 different nationalities. The

Group has been ranked Number 4 in the global 'Top Companies for Leaders' survey and ranked

Number 1 in Asia Pacific for 2011. 'Top Companies for Leaders' is the most comprehensive study of

organisational leadership in the world conducted by Aon Hewitt, Fortune Magazine, and RBL (a

strategic HR and Leadership Advisory firm). The Group has topped the Nielsen's Corporate Image

Monitor 2012-13 and emerged as the Number 1 corporate, the 'Best in Class'

50 per cent of the Aditya Birla Group's revenues flow from its overseas operations. The Group

operates in 36 countries – Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China, Egypt, France,

Germany, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Italy, Ivory Coast, Japan, Korea, Laos, Luxembourg, Malaysia,

Myanmar, Philippines, Poland, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden,

Switzerland, Tanzania, Thailand, Turkey, UAE, UK, USA, and Vietnam.

The Aditya Birla Group is an Indian multinational conglomerate named after Aditya Vikram Birla,

headquartered in the Aditya Birla Centre in Worli, Mumbai, India.

The Aditya Birla Group is the world's largest producer of Viscose Staple Fiber industry. It operates

from India, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia and China. It owns the Birla Cellulose brand. Apart from

viscose staple fiber, the group also owns acrylic fiber businesses in Egypt and Thailand, viscose

filament yarn businesses and spinning mills in India and South East Asia. The group has pulp and

plantation interests in Canada and Laos. It's two companies i.e. Aditya Birla Nuvo Ltd. and Grasim

Bhiwani Textiles Ltd. which is a subsidiary of Grasim Industries are in textile business.

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Our Vision

To be a premium global conglomerate, with a clear focus on each of the businesses.

Our Mission

To deliver superior value to our customers, shareholders, employees and society at large.

Values:

Integrity:

We believe in growth of the organization with the growth of our people.People are our

investors, partners (Vendors), employees, customers and stakeholders of the companies.

Commitment:

Aditya Birla is a name known for higher value and good quality. We do what we commit to

our people.

Passion:

Our excellence in every field of business and promise to provide the best shows the passion

of the organization.

Seamlessness:

We work beyond limits; we go one step ahead of others to serve and to benefit.

Speed:

Growth is important but timely growth is the key to success. We believe to act early.

IX

Aditya Birla nuvo Ltd.

Aditya Birla Nuvo Ltd. (ABNL) is a US$ 4 billion premium conglomerate. It is part of the Aditya

Birla Group, a US$ 40 billion Indian multinational operating in 36 countries in six continents.

Vision

To be a premium conglomerate building leadership in businesses and creating value for all the

stakeholders.

Mission

Investing in promising sectors

Building leadership in businesses

A platform to drive synergy of resources

Delivering best value to all the stakeholders

To be a responsible corporate citizen

Over the years, Aditya Birla Nuvo has transformed itself from a manufacturing company to a

diversified conglomerate.

Hindalco

Grasim

Aditya Birla Nuvo

Ultratech

Idea

Novelis

X

The razor-sharp focus on each business has made it a leading player in most segments, including

viscose filament yarn, branded garments, agribusiness, textiles and insulators. Over the past few

years, Aditya Birla Nuvo, through its subsidiaries and joint ventures, has made successful forays into

life insurance, asset management and other financial services, telecom, business process outsourcing

(BPO) and IT services.

With an optimum mix of revenue and profit streams, the company is in a strong position to maximise

long-term shareholder gains.

Market Position:

Financial Services: ABNL is among top 5 fund managers (excl. LIC)

Fashion & Lifestyle: Largest premium branded apparel player, largest manufacturer of linen

Telecom: Among top 3 cellular operators by revenue market share

IT-ITeS : Among the top 10 BPO companies by revenue size

Agri business: Second-best energy efficient urea plant

Rayon: Second largest manufacturer of VFY

Insulators: Largest manufacturer of insulators.

Financial Services

Asset Management

Life Insurance

NBFC

Private Equity, Broking, Wealth Management,

General Insurance Advisory

TelecomFashion and

Lifestyle

Madura

Pantaloons

Textiles

IT-ITeS Manufacturing

Agri

Rayon

Insulators

XI

Among Aditya Birla Nuvo’s joint ventures and subsidiary companies are:

Idea Cellular Limited, which is among the top three cellular operators in India, in terms of

revenue market share.

Birla Sun Life Insurance Co. Ltd., which is among the top five private sector life insurance

companies in India, in terms of new business premium.

Birla Sun Life Asset Management Co. Ltd., which is the fourth largest asset management

company in India, in terms of assets under management.

Aditya Birla Minacs Worldwide Limited, which is the sixth largest Indian BPO company by

revenue size.

1.2. PANTALOONS FASHION AND RETAIL LTD.

Pantaloons Fashion & Retail Limited is an Indian premium clothing retail chain. The first

Pantaloons store was launched in Gariahat, Kolkata in 1997. As of November 2013, there are

76 Pantaloons stores in 44 cities. Pantaloons was previously controlled by the Future Group,

but has now been taken over by Aditya Birla Nuvo Limited (ABNL).

Spotlighting today's buoyant youth, Pantaloons Fashion Retail Ltd., India's premium lifestyle

apparel company offers chic and trendy fashion to meet their ever-changing needs. With

innovative designs, concepts and products, the company brings the latest trends in fashion

and clothing styles to the apparel market. Pantaloons reflect the ideology of always keeping

alive the 'newness factor' through fashion apparel and accessories that are visually appealing

and fashionably upbeat.

The first Pantaloons store was launched amidst much fanfare in Gariahat, Kolkata in 1997.

Over the years, the brand has undergone several transitions and re-invented itself to bring

XII

forth compelling trends and styles catering to the evolving fashion hub.

Since its inception, Pantaloons progressed from retailing just a mix of brands to its very own

popular private labels as well, designed by the in-house Design Studio. With a sharp focus on

bringing the latest in fashion, the Design Studio combines its prowess in design and

aesthetics to present styles that keep the consumer fashionably dressed each season.

Initially positioned as a store catering to the fashion needs of the entire family, Pantaloons

has now transitioned to a fashion and lifestyle brand with an emphasis on youth and a focus

on designs that are inherently in sync with current fashion trends. This compelling

combination has helped Pantaloons retain its place on the style radar of every consumer's

wardrobe.

Pantaloons stores have an abundance of choices across categories that range from western to

Indian wear, formal to party wear and active wear for men, women and kids. To further add

to the customer's innumerable choices that reflect style, attitude, and comfort, Pantaloons has

extended its horizons to fashion accessories like fragrances, footwear, handbags, watches,

sunglasses and much more.

With a chain of 81 fashion stores across 40 cities and towns, Pantaloons is constantly

extending its foot-prints into the rest of modern India.

Pantaloons which was previously controlled by the Future Group has now been taken over by

Aditya Birla Nuvo Limited ['ABNL']. ABNL is a part of the prestigious Aditya Birla Group,

a $40 billion Indian multinational, operating in 36 countries across the globe with over

136,000 employees.

The company offers an incredible and complete one-stop shopping experience to its buyers

through its vast collection of more than 100 prestigious brands for the discerning fashionista.

The 81 aesthetically designed stores spread across the country display a range of classy and

trendy merchandise that truly lives up to Pantaloons’ maxim of ‘fresh fashion’.

A typical Pantaloons store is spread across a sprawling retail space of about 28,000 sq. ft.,

comprising a brand portfolio that runs across a wide gamut of styles that spell class. The

collection includes ready-to-wear western and ethnic apparel for men, women and kids,

complemented by an exhaustive range of accessories.

The women’s section houses the private labels — Bare Denim, Bare Leisure, Rig, Annabelle,

Honey, and Ajile — in western wear, as well as the choicest ethnic wear from RangManch,

Trishaa and Akkriti. Popular brands like Lee Cooper, Biba and W are also available.

The private labels for men in western wear include Lombard, Rig, Bare Denim, Bare Leisure

and JM Sport apart from trendy brands like Urbana, Scullers, John Miller, and Indigo Nation.

Akkriti provides a wide selection of ethnic wear.

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Kids can choose from private labels like Bare Denim, Bare Leisure, Rig, or indulge in

exclusive brands like Lee Cooper Juniors, Chalk exclusive, Chirpy Pie & Bare in addition to

international brands like Barbie and Disney. For the ethnic look, they can opt for traditional

wear from Akkriti.

Pantaloons offer much more than just apparel. Customers can shop from an assortment of

watches from renowned international brands like Tommy Hilfiger, Esprit, Kenneth Cole,

Citizen, Timex, and Titan, among other brands.

Trendy sunglasses from Polaroid, Guess, Police, Scott, I Dee and Allen Solly are also

available. The accessories and beauty segments display an attractive collection of lady’s

handbags from Lavie, Caprese, Fiorelli and Fastrack. Also available are products from colour

cosmetic brands such as Bourjois, Chambor, Deborah, Faces, Revlon, Maybelline, and

Lakmé, as well as a wide collection of exotic fragrances.

With its overwhelming repertoire of lifestyle apparel brands, Pantaloons is focused on growth

while continuing to create fresh fashion. Pantaloons isrecognized by its warm personalized

service that completes the core proposition of this trendy chain.

The Aditya Birla Group ranks high in the League of Fortune 500 Corporations of the world

with a strong mix of talented and capable personnel comprising of 42 different nationalities,

who are credited with anchoring the organization and scripting one brilliant success story

after another.

Backed by the giant conglomerates, ABNL and Future Group, both the entities will work in

tandem to derive operational synergies for back-end, supply chain and other crucial value

drivers of the business.

With its overwhelming repertoire of lifestyle apparel brands, Pantaloons is focused on growth

while continuing to create fresh fashion. Pantaloons is recognised by its warm personalised

service that completes the core proposition of this trendy chain.

XIV

1.3. Company Hierarchy

XV

1.4. Under the apparels section, PFRL is currently operating with Private labels in

different categories:-

Women’s wear

Casual Wear : Honey

Ethnic Wear : Rang manch

XVI

Akriti

Trishaa

XVII

Active wear : ajile

Formal Wear : annabelle

XVIII

Evening Wear : annabelle

Men’s wear :

Casual Wear : J M sport

XIX

Ethnic Wear : Akriti

Active Wear : ajile

Evening Wear : F Factor

XX

Kid’s wear

Boy’s wear : chalk

Girl’s wear : chalk & akriti

There are also some brands which are :

Men’s wear

Private label : SF Jeans,Altomoda,Bare denim,bare leisure,byford,Lomabard, RIG , F-

factor

Non private label : Blackberry, Celio, Fifa, Lee, Levis, Manyavar, Pepe, Spykar, Turtle

Madura Fashion & Lifestyle: Allen Solly Men, Louis Philippe, LP Sport, PE Casual, PE

Traditions, Peter England, Van Heusen, Vdot, VH Sport

Women’s wear

Private label : SF Jeans,Altomoda,Bare denim,RIG

Non Private label : 109f, And, Chemistry, Kraus, Levis, Pepe, Remanika, Spykar, Arha,

Biba, Fusion Beats, Global Desi, Miss Unique, Rain & Rainbow

Madura Fashion & Lifestyle : Allen Solly Women, Van Heusen

Kid’s wear

Private label : Bare, Chirpie Pie, Disney, Rig Kids

Non Private label : Barbie, Gini N Jony, LC Kids, Levis, Zero

Madura Fashion & Lifestyle : Allen Solly Kids

Accessories are also present in the stores for the customers to choose from various

brands. PFRL doesn’t have any private label for accessories.

Non Apparels (Accessories) :

Cosmetics: Lakme, Loreal, Nautica, Revlon Etc.

XXI

Diamond Jewellery: Manorama, Creation, Nakshatra, Sangini, Cygnus Etc.

Fashion Jewellery: 109F, Akkriti, Barbie, Biba, Disney, Gini N Jony, Kuber, Umm Etc.

Fragrances: Adidas, Ajmal, Benetton, Boss, Burberry's, Calvin Klein, Christian Dior,

Ck, D&G, Diesel, Dupont, Emporio Armani Etc

Handbags: 109f, Adidas, Ajile, Akkriti, Allen Solly, Annabelle, Baggit, Converse,

Fasttrack, Guess Etc.

Footwear: Action, Adidas, Allen Solly, Buffalo, Canvax, Cat, Clarks, Converse, Hush

Puppies Etc.

Sunglasses: Allen Solly, Calvin Klein, Casio, Converse, Creative, Dior, Fastrack, Hugo

Boss, Lens eye etc.

1.5. Departments of Pantaloons Fashion Retail Ltd:

There are following department in Pantaloons Fashion and Lifestyle Ltd

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All the above departments work closely with each other to complete their task and achieve

their individual goals. Each department is interdependent with each other. The objective of

these departments is to accompolish mission and vision of the company.

Design Department: This department is basically developing sample of merchandise and

developing range of merchandise for upcoming season and work closely with buying

department. Designer attains fashion events and shows to keep tap on current and upcoming

trends.

Buying Department: This department is selecting what merchandise will be stocked in store

based on discussion happened with planning team. They work closely with design department

to approve sample and range of merchandise, attain fashion events and forecast the trends.

They also interact with other departments like marketing, sourcing, planning and quality

control to get appropriate advice that will help them in achieving company’s ultimate target.

Apart from this, they frequently keep in touch with suppliers and vendors.

Sourcing Department: It is management of a supply market to ensure access to adequate

resources required for the long term needs of the firm: understand market characteristics,

identify relevant potential suppliers, define a strategy for the firm, and set the objectives for

any market shaping effort. Sourcing frames the agreement with the suppliers involved in the

strategy, without necessarily going into the details of the contract. Sourcing teams include

elements internal and external to the firm to reach their objectives, to include the eventual

optimization of specifications in coordination with engineering, marketing, and / or research.

Sourcing is the strategic management of external resources.

They have to figure out different vendors who can give them better value in terms of price,

production, lead time, shipment mode and other production aspect after the budget allocates

for range by other departments, coordinates with buying and design department.

Planning Department: This department is making OTB plan, Option plan, allocation, offers,

monitors day wise sells, end of season sell, stock in warehouse and store. They also

recommend buyer about which style is hitting the shopping floor, monitor sales, stock in

warehouse and shop floor, sell through, offer planning and do allocation of merchandise

according to requirement of particular merchandise in particular store. This is also known as

Inventory Management and Distribution Management. Planner are the backbone of any

company if there over stock or stock out its planner responsibility to control inventory and

coordinate with other team like buying and also do meeting with other senior people of

company.

Operation Department: They work to make sure that employers' businesses run effectively,

smoothly and professionally. This includes all those who work in the organisation from the

management to assembly line workers up to the guys loading and offloading trucks in

manufacturing and retail distribution centers.

XXIII

VM Department: This department coordinates with designer and buyer for the theme of

season and then they make visual of store accordingly. Their responsibility to change visual

of all store at the same time, this include display of merchandise and lighting. There are some

elements that are involved in visual merchandising are Window Displays, Interior Displays,

Signs, Cosmetic Productions and other Special Sales and Promotions. Team tries to combine

these element and covey their idea to customer.

Marketing Department: They basically communicate the value of product to the customers

for that this department is divided in three teams ATL (Above The Line), BTL (Below The

Line) and LOYALTY. In ATL they are covering large Geographical area by advertising from

Radio, TV and National news papers and in BTL they are covering particular targeted area by

organising fashion events and shows. In LOYALTY they are distributing Cards and coupons

to customer first to check loyal customer and then start analyse about loyal customer’s next

need and offer it to customer on discount. It is one of innovative department and generating

new idea.

Finance Department: Major roles of the finance department are to identify appropriate

financial information prior to communicating this information to managers and decision-

makers, in order that they may make informed judgments and decisions. This department’s

responsibility for organising the financial and accounting affairs including the preparation

and presentation of appropriate accounts, and the provision of financial information for

manager.

Admin Department: They are managing and distributing information within office like

greeting clients and employees, answering the calls, maintaining files, record of expenditure,

stationary, printing, housekeeping, Administrative assistants are responsible for

communicating with clients, outside vendors and staff members on behalf of their employer.

They greet customers, answer the phone, take messages and set up meetings. This department

is interrelated to HR department.

HR Department: Human resource management (HRM) in organizations designed to

maximize employee performance in service of their employer’s strategic objectives. In

Pantaloons, HR is primarily concerned with how people are managed within organizations,

focusing on policies and systems. HR department is responsible for a number of activities,

including employee recruitment, training and development, performance appraisal, and

rewarding. Human resources assistants may process and regularly update personnel, payroll

and job applicant records.

Garment Technology Department: It is divided in three teams one is Construction /Fit

Team, another is Testing team and last is Inspection team. Construction team basically

checking the size measurement and its grading, Testing team are doing chemical like

crocking, bleeding, color fastness to light etc and physical test like pilling, abrasion

resistance etc and inspection team is visiting manufacturing unit to see the directed

production, there also checking for complete garment which is done in last by Testing team.

XXIV

Supply Chain Department: It is the management of the flow of goods. It includes the

movement and storage of raw materials, work-in-process inventory, and finished goods from

point of origin (Manufacturing Unit) to point of consumption (Store).

Main function of supply chain management are as follows: 1)inventory management

2)distribution management 3)channel management 4)payment management 5)financial

management 6)supplier management 7)transportation management 8)Customer service

management. Some of their work is already done by planning team only Inventory

Management and Distribution Management. They closely work with planning department

and interchange information regarding stock delivery from supplier to warehouse and

warehouse to store or if any stock is available for inter store transfer or vendor has to direct

supply to store SCM team take care of this things.

XXV

1.6. BUYING PROCESS

BRAND BRIEF

TREND FORECASTING

BUY PLAN

SAMPLING

RANGE PRESENTATION

SELECTION

ORDER PLACEMENT, VENDOR MANAGEMENT, NEGOTIATIONS

& COST CLOSURE

QUANTITY FINALISATION,

ARTICLE CREATION,

TEXT/ BARCODE FILE CREATION,

PURCHASE ORDERS,

PRODUCTION & DELIVERY

STATUS, COORDINATION

WITH MARKETING

TEAM

PRE-PRODUCTION PROCESS

SHIPMENT SAMPLE

DISPATCHES (VENDOR-WAREHOUSE-STORE)

SALES EVALUATION

EOSS IMPLEMENTATION

CONCEPT PRESENTATION

XXVI

Chapter 2

Range Presentation

2.1. Outline of the project

While Range presentation where designers showcases their collection of a particular season ( AW 15 )

in which they developed certain number of option ( shirts, bottoms etc.) for each brand to show so at

the end of the Presentation if you can check actual number of option then it Is lesser then it was.

Buyers select lesser number of option then it was developed due to Fabric problem, color outcomes ,

print outcomes etc. which incurred wasting of time money and manpower also. so this should be

avoided or minimized.

In Range presentation there is a space allocated for different brands in pantaloons. Range presentation

set up was on the ground floor of the building. Where they have allocated different brands with Visual

Merchandising props , accessories , Mannequin etc.

Designers and with help of Buying team they arranged all the range for the season which they have to

showcase while Range presentation. At the time of joining Pantaloons I was working under Casual

wear brands named SF jeans and bare denim

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Here designer giving description about his Brand ( showing Board Design , theme concept print

Description )named SF jeans which is very edgy young youth oriented brand which targets the

customers age group of 20 – 30 people who loves Jack n Jones can definately go for SF .

So while giving Range presentation Designers Made particular number of garment ex. In t-shirt CAD

designers made 70 Sample designs out of which designer selects only 60 then he showcases this 60

styles to the buyers then at the end of the Range Presentation buyers selects somewhere around 30 to

40 so here this 30 excess sample is become waste in which so much man power, Money, time,

everything was used which is wasted somehow. So how to reduce this excess is my project here and I

came up with some findings while interacting with each responsible departments.

I also want to showcase what work I have done in this period of time while doing my Internship

In the first 15 days of my internship I worked under Men’s wear buying team in which there are two

brands SF jeans and Bare denim so I joined at the time of Range Presentation which is for AW 15

season. so I was assisting buyers there making Visual merchandising sheet in which best style will go

for store wall , window displays so here I haven’t work with numbers as in Sales , margins , Sale

through purely buying so there Sir also asked me about my opinion for a particular style even I tried

so many clothes as how it looks like and then we decide accordingly whether to buy it or not ( it

includes Past year sales for that kind of fabric , what is in the market , what style do customer like ,

Also Designers give opinions (that this particular print is not looking nice on fabric it will look better

on different fabric) so this is how buyers select the product range. Apart from this buying Store zonal

Managers are also come for the range presentation and see how will be the next season range so they

can identify the best zone and they also give advice to the buyers and designers to produce or buy

more or less for the particular product. Also company CEO and Head of the Departments come and

see the range and make suggestions where needed.

Pantaloons go online so Trend in also came for buying according to their requirements and analysis of

Pantaloons online sales and data they also buy. So for that Buyers showcase their selected product

XXVIII

range to them so out of them they selected Perticular styles according to their requirements. (

According to Online sales and data basis)

Buyers Must have consider this when developing the Range :

the right depth and width of range – ensuring sufficient choice and range completeness

the right price architecture – guiding the customer through the options available

the right quality and value – ensuring the brand and product propositions fit your business

great on shelf availability (with minimal stock investment) – ensuring you maximise your sales

potential off the lowest possible cost base

Also some of the important things which needs to be done

a flexible, responsive, agile supply base – to ensure you can follow consumer trends quickly

a better return per square foot than the last range – to mitigate the ever increasing cost of property

a better shopping experience for the customer – to secure their loyalty, repeat business and increased

basket size

After Range Presentation I was shifted to Men’s wear formal wear brand Lombard Sport brand

Byford and Party wear F-factor as well as Bare leisure and JM sport

In buying after Range presentation and selection of the product range there is order placement ( final

order sheet , vendor management ,negotiations, and close closure.)

2.2. Merchandise Category code ( MCC )

So I started working for Initial MCC for the shortlisted samples in which are as follows :

ADHAR LINE NO MENS MENS

Brand Bare Leisure Bare Leisure

PRODUCT SHIRT SHIRT

SUB CLASSIFICATION SHIRT SHIRT

OPTION 1 1

MC CODE

MC NAME BARELEISURESHIRTS BARELEISURESHIRTS

PRODUCT CATEGORY

XXIX

SOURCING

BLOCK(COLLECTION) FASHION FASHION

ADHAR LINE NO

PHOTO SHOOT

Hit 1 1

SEASON AW15 AW15

Fabric Indent No

AW15/BLM/WYD/SH-

06

AW15/BLM/WYD/SH-

14

PICTURE

PRODUCT LIKE LTL LTL

Mill Name Arvind Arvind

Colour Navy Navy

Count 40*40 40*40

Construction 122*76 122*76

CONTENT 100% COTTON 100% COTTON

Finish Normal Normal

Weave Plain Plain

DESIGN CHECKS CHECKS

YD, PD, Print YD YD

BUYER REF

NAME/POS/COLLECTION URBAN CHECKS URBAN CHECKS

TRENDIN GRADING A C

PT Grading C A

PT QTY 700 1100

TRENDIN QTY 20 16

MCC QTY 720 1116

MRP 899 999

Sleeve HS FS

This is Merchandise category code ( MCC ) which includes all the description about the product

classification. I collected the garment samples from designers put the pictures of that in the sheet also

cut the swatches for the same. This sheet also includes

I have done this for all the five brands Byford, Lombard , F-Factor, Bare leisure and JM sport so this

also includes collecting samples from sourcing team sometimes they don’t have it I contacted

Vendors directly to get the samples for that I have to negotiate for the delivery dates.

This activity is to be done to know the product description and in this I also mentioned online website

Trendin’s Rating and quantity for the same which is discussed before. Taking a picture for the rest of

XXX

the garments and if the sample is not ready have to collect swatches for the same from sourcing team

or else from designers ( CAD ) and then take a picture and put it in the MCC which is very time

consuming process.

It almost took a month to complete this activity while doing this activity I also given a task from a

designer to do a research for a new brand for which I have to make a looks, styling (garments,

accessories, shoes etc.) so I was doing that also at the same time. So I mailed all the possible looks

which I found it would be better for the brand.

2.3 AW 14 Seasonal Performance

After that I started working for AW14 seasonal performances for all the five brands in which I did

analysis according to the data given which is as follows :

1. Byford good seller

XXXI

Average seller

Slow movers

Criteria for Byford

Min 60 stores

Min inward of 1000 Pcs.

Min 16 weeks full value shelf life

Min 0.5 ROS on full price _ good sellers

XXXII

Less than 0.2 ROS on full price _ slow movers ( even on discount rate of sale is bad )

ROS of 0.3 and above on full price & during EOSS where _ average

2. F-factor Good seller

Average seller

XXXIII

Slow movers

3. Lombard Good seller

XXXIV

Average Seller

Slow movers

For another two Brands JM sport and Bare leisure I also did the same Examined all the data

given and find the solution from the criteria given and categorized respectively.

This are the Seasonal Performances for the different five brands by which buyer can identify

the Perticular product that which product did well in the last season and according to the data

XXXV

given he can categorized the same and take the decision whether to repeat the style or to

discontinue. So I made the presentation accordingly and buyer gave it in front of all team of

the brands which includes designer , head designer , senior buyer , assistant buyer and I also

attended the presentation. Where they have discussed about brand portfolio also that this

particular style is very good in business in the market so it should be repeated.

While giving presentation we were showcasing the real sample also so that designer get to

know about the fabric also that this particular Fabric done well in the season or it should be

done on another fabric base.

2.4 PC MRP REVIEW ( COST REVIEW )

After completing Seasonal Performance of AW14 was given a task of completing Cost review

PC MRP review which includes all product’s Cost, MRP, Margin so Cost of all styles was

given to Category team from sourcing department which is finally updated and then Category

decides according to the data base of product Range.

Byford

XXXVI

F-Factor

Lombard

Bare leisure

XXXVII

JM sport

XXXVIII

Chapter 3

3.1 Option Plan

As an assortment planner, you use options to help you plan the optimal assortment breadth

(the number of different products carried by the retailer) and product depth (the number of

variations (options) of each product sold). Based on the selected option-relevant product

attributes for each category, you determine the number of options required for the different

location clusters.

You typically carry out the option planning process well in advance of determining the final

product mix, using historical sales data to help you decide what to sell in the upcoming

assortment season. The process is subject to constraints such as approved purchase budgets.

Category planning

In a multi-channel world, retailers should think about having a single, joined-up category plan

irrespective of the number of channels in order to tie back to the single trading strategy to

align channels towards a common objective. Category roles (e.g. fresh fruits and vegetables

as a destination / impulse category and newspapers and magazines as a convenience / impulse

category) should be applied consistently across channels so that they are aligned to consumer

demands.

Types of option plan

1>

20 crore budget

Value Avgas MRP Qty ( value/Avgas

MRP)

50% denim 10 cr. 1200 80000

30% T-shirt 6 cr. 500 120000

20% Shirts 4 cr. 1000 40000

10*3 10*3*10 300

20*2 20*2*10 400

70*1 70*1*10 700

Prepack

Eaches

1400

600

Total Order 100

70% Prepack total 1400

30% Eaches order 600

Total 2000

No. of options = 40000/2000

= 20 option

XXXIX

2> Capacity wise

Area 480

A

stores

B

stores

Wall

No of Wall Profiles (2ft

Standard) 8 8

Hanging Options Per Fixture 2 2

Stacking Options Per Fixture 6 4

Total Options 64 48

Browser

No of "I" Browser

Hanging Options

Total Options 0 0

No of Two Way Browsers 8 4

Hanging Options 4 4

Total Options 32 16

Table

No of Table 2 2

Stacking Options 28 24

Total Options 56 48

Total Display Options 152 112

3.2 Optimum Development of Option Plan

Objectives :

To reduce the excess sampling - While Range presentation where designers showcases

their collection of a particular season ( AW 15 ) in which they developed certain number

of option ( shirts, bottoms etc.) for each brand to show so at the end of the Presentation if

you can check actual number of option then it Is lesser then it was. Buyers select lesser

number of option then it was developed due to Fabric problem, color outcomes , print

outcomes etc. which incurred wasting of time money and manpower also. so this should

be avoided or minimized.

XL

To bring the transparency between all the departments roles and their inter department

communication

To take new point of all concerned department. & roll out the conclusion on how to

implement the same on the option plan

Option plan for

Lombard Shirts

AW'14

MCC Remarks Mrp Optn count

Optn mix Volume

volume mix

PC-MRP

Intake margin

Avg Mrp

Avg PC

Lombard Shirts 1099

Lombard Shirts 1199 1 2% 2000 3% 28.36% 71.6% 1199 340

Lombard Shirts 1299 19 30% 19183 29% 31.56% 68.4% 1299 410

Lombard Shirts 1399 27 42% 29021 44% 31.24% 68.8% 1399 437

Lombard Shirts 1499 13 20% 12044 18% 28.49% 71.5% 1499 427

Lombard Shirts 1599 4 6% 4014 6% 29.33% 70.7% 1599 469

LMSH Total 64 100% 66262 86% 30.77% 69.23% 1394 429

AW15

MCC Remarks Mrp OPT

PLAN OPT MIX

VOLUME MIX VOL

Avg MRP

Avg CP Margin

Lombard Shirts 1099

Lombard Shirts 1199 23 35% 32% 23000 1199 350 70.8%

Lombard Shirts 1299 26 40% 40% 28600 1299 410 68.4%

Lombard Shirts 1399 16 25% 27% 19200 1399 445 68.2%

Lombard Shirts 1499

Lombard Shirts 1599

LMSH Total 65 100% 100% 70800 1294 400 69.08%

XLI

F-Factor shirts

AW14

F factor shirts 699

F factor shirts 799

F factor shirts 899 6 10% 14108 25% 31.48% 68.52% 899 283

F factor shirts 999 8 13% 7465 13% 29.83% 70.17% 999 298

F factor shirts 1099

F factor shirts 1199 21 34% 18460 33% 30.44% 69.56% 1199 365

F factor shirts 1299 14 23% 9375 17% 30.18% 69.82% 1299 392

F factor shirts 1399 10 16% 5769 10% 30.24% 69.76% 1399 423

F factor shirts 1499 3 5% 1050 2% 31.82% 68.18% 1499 477

F SH-Total 62 100% 56227 73% 30.54% 69.46% 1140 348.2

AW15

OPT PLAN OPT MIX VOLUME MIX VOL Avg MRP Avg CP Margin

F factor shirts 699

F factor shirts 799

F factor shirts 899 6 15% 25% 13125 899 283 68.5%

F factor shirts 999

F factor shirts 1099

F factor shirts 1199 5 12% 11% 5500 1199 365 69.6%

F factor shirts 1299 10 24% 21% 11000 1299 392 69.8%

F factor shirts 1399 12 29% 26% 13200 1399 423 69.8%

F factor shirts 1499 8 20% 17% 8800 1499 477 68.2%

F SH-Total 41 100% 100% 51625 1246 384 69.20%

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

1099 1199 1299 1399 1499 1599

AW 14

AW 15

XLII

Byford shirts

AW14

AW'14

MCC Remarks Mrp Optn count

Optn mix Volume

volume mix

PC-MRP

Intake margin

Avg Mrp

Avg PC

Byford Shirts 1199

Byford Shirts 1299 1 2% 1014 2% 29.64% 70.36% 1299 385

Byford Shirts 1399 4 8% 4339 7% 32.24% 67.76% 1399 451

Byford Shirts 1499 19 40% 27706 46% 30.89% 69.11% 1499 463

Byford Shirts 1599 24 50% 27829 46% 24.14% 75.86% 1599 386

BYSH Total 48 100% 60888 100% 30.83% 69.17% 1534 473

AW15

MCC Remarks Mrp OPT

PLAN OPT MIX

VOLUME MIX VOL

Avg MRP

Avg CP Margin

Byford Shirts 1199 10 21% 21% 12000 1199 380 68.3%

Byford Shirts 1299 14 29% 29% 16800 1299 385 70.4%

Byford Shirts 1399 14 29% 29% 16800 1399 430 69.3%

Byford Shirts 1499 10 21% 21% 12000 1499 440 70.6%

Byford Shirts 1599

BYSH Total 48 100% 100% 57600 1349 409 69.7%

0

5

10

15

20

25

699 799 899 999 1099 1199 1299 1399 1499

AW 14

AW 15

XLIII

Interaction between the departments

1> Sourcing Department

Fabric Sourcing

Following are the reasons which I found while interacting with the fabric Sourcing Team

Incorrect Fabric being Inhoused

Colour outcome , Print outcome or delayed delivery dates

Garment Sourcing

2> Planning Department

Planning team give the option plan they can suggest that particular style can be repeated

through sales (SSPD) of style but basically they give option plan on the basis of Store

(display) Area. Repeating previous best sellers to avoid new development so that

Allocation become smooth.

3> Design Department & Category Department

While introducing the New season theme based collection CAD designer make 130%

options which they have to show to the designers for that they have to make 140% so out

of that Designers developed 120% options out of which finally 100% option is being

finalized.

Category person must have vision of a final product which comes out after development

which is lacking apart from having the knowledge of sales analysis, sale through, buying

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

1199 1299 1399 1499 1599

AW 14

AW 15

XLIV

skills , numbers buyer must have knowledge about the product which is a core thing for a

designer. for buyer it is also needed.

Flow chart representing Interaction between the Departments

Planning

•Give option plan to the category according to store space & budget they have

•Should repeat the best sellers to avoid new development

Design

•Designers Developed 20 % more options

•Cad designers Developed 10% more than that

Sourcing

•fabric sourcing – incorrect fabric , colour outcome, print outcome

•Garment sourcing – delivery dates ( vendor selection )

Buying

•Byford is a new brand so experimenting is the only key to know the performance

XLV

Chapter 4

4.1 Conclusion

I think to Reduce the excess of option plan every person from Category, Design,

Planning, Sourcing Team have to sit together and list down the things which can be

removed or reduce which is lacking to develop the option plan.

4.2 Key Learning

Getting a wonderful Team to be interact with and working under Arivu sir is like doing a Real

Job I sometimes feels like I am an employee. I think Employees are the soul of the company

Punctuality

how to maintain a relation with a co-team

good hand in excel

Even in hard situation here people talks like team mates to solve the company’s

problem/issues

Patience word I really learn from this organization