Linked Case Studies Involving Traditional Kirana Stores, Department Stores, and Customers: A Study of Acceptability of Digital Marketing in the Backdrop of COVID-19

Abstract

Indian retail sector is going through an enormous change mainly in cities and towns in the new COVID-19 scenario. Organised retail formats, which include malls, hypermarkets, supermarkets, and departmental stores, have gained importance over the last two decades. Small traditional local kirana stores have faced a lot of competition from this organized sector. Customers too have been trying to cope with these new paradigms in the retail sector. The role of digital platforms is becoming increasingly important for all the three stakeholders. It is obvious that experience gained during the pandemic is going to play a critical role in the retail sector of the future. In this paper, a case study is presented from a POV (point-of-view) concept that links the three major stakeholders in the current COVID-19 scenario related to acceptability of digitalization in business. We begin with a case study of a neighbourhood traditional kirana store that initiates the usage of digital platforms to retain and expand its business, but faces stiff competition from another modern departmental store in the neighbourhood, which is better equipped to use digital platforms for its business. Finally, the third stakeholder, the customer, also tries to adapt to digital platforms and re-evaluates its relationship with the two kinds of stores. The case study presents three linked case studies with the three stakeholders and attempts to address the main issues that guide business strategy for the two types of stores and decisions of the customers. The goal of the case study is to understand how the two types of stores adopt and utilize digital platforms for managing finance and merchandising, and the graded acceptability of the customers to these new practices in the backdrop of COVID-19. It is expected that the answers that emerge from these linked case studies will lead to best practices in the retail sector.