A Case for the Corner Grocery Store

We have heard the thought that global retailers would be so great for our economy. Maybe they will be. I am not an Economist, so not in the best position to comment on this. However, I am a customer, and I find that this may not be necessarily true. How did I find that out, you may ask!

This happened today ... Actually, happened earlier, too, but I wasnt blogging then, so ... Had to take my Father in Law to the Hospital ... High BP ... Doctor says nothing to worry about, Thankfully. Of course, he prescribed some Medicines, which we promptly went to buy. As you know, there are two large pharmacy chains in India ... Theres 98.4 and theres Guardian ... These are large chains of pharmacies, and if we apply the logic of the large retailers, then I dont think the experience with them is something which validates the thought process.

The usual scenario here is that if you go there with, say, a prescription for 4 Medicines, they wouldnt, in all probability, have 2 out of the 4. This is interesting ... Durex is always available, in all possible SKUs, but Medicines are a different thing altogether. Whats more interesting thing is, that whenever I have had a scenario where these chains are not carrying a Medicine, the neighbourhood pharmacist usually carries these Medicines in stock.

So, does this mean that the big guys dont know how to plan for restocking of stock? Maybe, they dont. Though, I doubt it. Such large chains would have invested in their Supply Chains, and hence, this shouldnt be the logical explanation. Then, what is the reason? The only reason I can come up with ... The large chains are not customer friendly.

How so? They are not looking at what their customers want. Instead, they are interested more in the vendors who give them the heftiest discounts, and most advantageous terms, and then try to push these things down the customer's throats. Whether customers want it or not, doesnt matter. This is something on the lines of the fact that all news channels will show advertisements at the same time ... Which means that even if you switch channels to avoid the commercials, you would still need to see them.