11 APRIL- 16 APRIL’11

HAMLEYS-ONE of world’s largest toy stores is set to storm Indian market under its tie-up with one of

India’s largest retail brands- Reliance Retail. A subsidiary of Mukesh Ambani owned Reliance Industries

Limited (RIL), Reliance Retail is an extension of this private major.

Currently, it operates in 1,000 stores in more than 85 cities across the country. Under its tie-up with

the UK based toy store, Reliance Retail launched the first Hamleys toy store in Asia in the city of

Mumbai in April 2010. Reliance Retail President and Chief Executive Officer, Bijou Kurien reported that,

“Our first store in Mumbai which is spread across 21,000 square foot has got a very good response. It

was a pilot store. Now this is a large store. With this we have plan to open 18 stores in India over the

next seven years.”

Hamleys as a brand is a very strong and reputable. The flagship store is considered one of London’s

major tourist attractions, and receives about five million visitors a year. The USP of such a mammoth

establishment lies in its superior range of products, variety and quality.

As far as Indian toy market is considered, it is presently valued at Rs. 15,000 crore, growing annually by

almost 15%. Fuelled by a vast domestic market, the industry has now turned its attention to global

markets and is fast gearing up to meet international demands.

In an effort to realize this expectation, Reliance Retail has joined forces with one of world’s top toy

marketers as a part of expanding its footprint. The new stores in India will be launched under ‘Pilot

Store-Large store’ category, spread across 11,000 to 21,000 square feet of space.

Hamleys Global CEO Gudjon Reynisson said that the company holds all ‘local partnerships’ for

merchandising their toys in any country. And an opportunity to spread out alongside India’s largest

retail brand is an added incentive.

While Reliance Retail will guide the process through their extensive knowledge of domestic market,

cultural diversities and distribution network, Hamleys will provide the merchandises and also give

creative direction to the whole course of action.

Reference: http://indiaenews.wordpress.com

Not only has English become an international language; it is used by more and more people around the

world as a medium of post-school study. To help universities and colleges to select students with

sufficient English skills to succeed in their courses, The IELTS test was introduced in 1989 to assess

“whether candidates are ready to train in the medium of English”. It is now used for this purpose

around the globe.

Depending in the course of study that students plan to take, students must select to sit either the

Academic IELTS test or the General Training IELTS test. This choice must be made when applying to sit

for the test. The Academic IELTS test is necessary for students who plan to study at university

(undergraduate or postgraduate courses), and will test the student’s ability both to understand and to

use complex academic language. The General Training IELTS test is required by other institutions, such

as colleges and high schools, for courses that require less complex language skills, and is also as a

general test of English proficiency e.g. for immigration purposes in Australia, Canada and New Zealand.

The Test Format

There are four sub-tests, or modules, to the IELTS test: Reading,

Writing, Listening and Speaking.

Total Test Time- 2 hours 45 minutes

IELTS listening test lasts for about 30 minutes. It consists of four

sections, played on cassette tape, in order of increasing difficulty.

Each section might be a dialogue or a monologue.

The test is played once only, and the questions for each section must be answered while listening,

although time is given for students to check their answers.

IELTS reading test lasts for 60 minutes. Students are given an Academic Reading test, or a General

Training Reading test. Both tests consist of three sections, and in both tests the sections are in order of

increasing difficulty.

IELTS writing test also lasts for 60 minutes. Again, students take either an Academic test, or a General

Training test. Students must perform two writing tasks, which require different styles of writing.

IELTS speaking test consists of a one-to-one interview with a specially trained examiner. The examiner

will lead the candidate through the three parts of the test: An introduction and interview, (an

individual long turn where the candidate speaks for one or two minutes on a particular topic), and a

two-way discussion thematically linked to the individual long turn. This interview will last for

approximately 11-14 minutes.

Reference: http://www.ielts-exam.net/

Handling a Client complaint…

Most clients don't complain. Often if they are dissatisfied they just stop doing business with you. If a

client does complain about you or your service however they are doing you a service and enabling you

to improve your business. Here are some tips on handling the complaint:

1. Listen: Resist the temptation to argue with the client. Instead you need to ask the questions to

get to the bottom of the situation. What is the client really upset about? Get the proper

information about the issue first & then find out the solution.

2. Don't be defensive: If you get defensive you'll build a wall between you and the client. So try to

be calm & soft in your approach while talking to the client.

3. If it was your mistake fix it immediately and apologize: We all do make mistakes at times.

Check to see if there is anything in your office procedure that can help you to avoid a similar

mistake again.

4. Research the problem before you make any decisions: Find out what actually happened. Is a

system in your office not working correctly? Does it need to be fixed? Has the client

misunderstood something? For complex problems give yourself time to figure out a resolution.

5. Look for lessons in the situation: If the situation was caused by something you or your staff

control, find a way to fix it for the future. This means assessing the systems you have in place

and your methods and procedures. It also may mean retraining an employee or employer.

6. Follow up with those who complained to make sure that they are fully satisfied: If you have

altered a system or changed a way of doing business and the client is affected by that change,

follow up the same to be sure that the client noted the change.

Reference:-http://www.expertlaw.com

Growth of Retail Companies in IndiaGrowth of Retail Companies in IndiaGrowth of Retail Companies in IndiaGrowth of Retail Companies in India

Growth of Retail Companies in India exhibit the boom in the retail industry in India over the years. The

increase in the purchasing power of the Indian middle classes and the influx of the foreign investments

has been encouraging in the Growth of Retail Companies in India.

Growth of Retail Companies in India: Overview

Growth of Retail Companies in India is still not yet in a matured stage with great potentials within this

sector still to be explored. Apart from the retail company like Nilgiri's of Bangalore, most of the retail

companies are sections of other industries that have stepped in the retail sector for a better business.

The Growth of Retail Companies in India is most pronounced in the metro cities of India; however the

smaller towns are also not lagging behind in this. The retail companies are not only targeting the four

metros in India but also is considering the second graded upcoming cities like Ahmedabad, Baroda,

Chandigarh, Coimbatore, Cochin, Ludhiana, Pune, Trivandrum, Simla, Gurgaon, and others. The South

Indian zone have adopted the process of shopping in the supermarkets for their daily requirements

and this has also been influencing other cities as well where many hypermarkets are coming up on day

to day basis.

Reasons for the fast Growth of Retail Companies in India:

The retail companies are found to be rising in India at a remarkable speed with the years and this has

brought a revolutionary change in the shopping attitude of the Indian customers. The Growth of Retail

Companies in India is facilitated by certain factors like -

1. Existing Indian middle classes with an increased purchasing power

2. Rise of upcoming business sectors like IT and engineering firms

3. Change in the taste and attitude of the Indians

4. Effect of globalization

5. Heavy influx of FDI in the retail sectors in India

Some of the major & upcoming Retail Companies in India includes the following:

• Big Bazaar

• Giants

• Shoppers stop

• Lifestyle

• Pantaloons

• Landmark

• Indus Fila

• Fame Adlabs

• Inox India

• PVR Cinemas

Reference: http://business.mapsofindia.com/