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Retail Business Environment

Notes Because McCain is a market-focussed company, it recognises that it has to respond to what
its consumers want. There are clear indicators that today’s consumers want to live a
healthier lifestyle.
Consumers are increasingly aware of food content and food issues. More and more people
look at food labelling and read information in the press about what is good for them. They
listen to people like Jamie Oliver and government spokespeople. They listen to advice
from teachers and nutritionalists.

The challenge has been, and continues to be, to prepare chips and potato products in the
healthiest way possible. Fortunately for McCain, it has market researchers and food
technologists who enable the company to keep in tune with the changing environment.
McCain’s advertising supports the company’s message that chips are nutritionally
acceptable provided they are made in the right way. The challenge now is to keep listening
to consumers and to the external environment in order to continue to give those consumers
the best value healthy chips and other food products.

Of course the choice rests with the consumer. What do you think? Is McCain doing the
right thing?
Question:

How McCain responded to changes in social factors?

2.8 Summary

Retaining environment combines various factors such as the competitive, technological
and the global environment.
Retailing, one of the largest sectors in the global economy, has become the most active
and attractive sector of the last decade.

The retail market in India is expected to reach ` 20,000 billion by 2008. This is possible
through the growth of organized retailing in both food and non-food segments.

India has the most unorganized retail market.
However, the government policies have contributed a lot to make it organized.
2.9 Keywords

Economic environment: It refers to the stage of economic development of the country like
developed or developing, state of agriculture, industry and service sectors, level of national
income, its composition or source-mix.
Industry attractiveness: The overall attractiveness of an industry is determined by the interaction
of these key structural forces.

Industry structure analysis: The initial analysis of industry structure provides a snap of the
competitive environment.
Market size/age: Is the market relatively small or large, and can it be broadly characterized by
its stage of development (start-up, emerging, growth, maturing, declining)?
Private label: It is a label unique to a specific retailer, account for about 20 percent of sales
The Legal Environment: Market economy in India is much more inclined towards the central,
state and local governments.

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