If an organisation has to survive in the global or local competitive environment, it has to continuously evolve and become more adaptable, resilient, agile, and above all customer focussed. To keep all these qualities or strengths intact the reporting manager has to step in and take over some of the responsibilities of the HR manager. If a good employee leaves the organisation for a reason which could have been addressed, it is not only the loss of the organisation but the reporting manger losses a team member who was an asset to the team.

The mangers of today are not only business driven but also counsellors, mentors, coaches and succession planners. They help motivate team members, and reward and recognise their loyalty.

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TQM is a management approach that was initiated in the 1950’s, and it gained momentum in 1980’s. Rib Collard and Gill Sivyer describe TQM as a cost-effective system for integrating the continuous quality improvement efforts of people at all levels in the organization to deliver products and services which ensure customer satisfaction.

TQM is a necessary approach for achieving outstanding performance to meet customer’s satisfaction with high quality, timely delivery, and reasonable and competitive pricing.

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An organisation drives itself forward in the market because of the human resource talent within organisation. The various strategies in the marketing departments are made by the staff (human resources) in the department. We can say that the human resources are the core of an organisation. Starting from the entry level blue collar employees to the owner or board of directors of the company, we have people working and making decisions.

If we have the right people working at the right places in the organisation, the organisation grows leaps and bounds.

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Marketing has reached new heights since the inception of internet decades ago. Successful managers have utilized data available at their disposal to drive marketing strategies. And, Business-to-business managers have optimally utilized data in driving sales. It has been observed that the organizations which use data for market planning are more successful than the organizations which don’t rely on data.

Once data is available, the next step is to ensure that the organization has the right set of tools as well the right personnel working on it. Unless the employees in-charge don’t do proper data analysis, the data is of no use. It is just set of useless numbers. Organizations who have understood the importance of the data have seen improvement in sales as well as profits.

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Retailers sell products/ goods to final consumers for consumption or use. Retailers buy the products from different sources like manufacturers, wholesalers, traders, etc. basis the need and want in the market. They are considered the final link with the consumer in the marketing/ distribution channel. Most of the retailing in retail stores is through new concept of retailing called non-store retailing. This type of retailing is becoming popular. It is direct selling to customers via infomercials, telecalling, internet selling, ecommerce, direct mail, personal selling, etc.

Retailers can be broadly classifies as small scale retailers and large scale retailers.
i) Small scale retailers –
a) Unit stores – these are general stores or single line stores like clothes, gift shops, grocery stores, utensils, book shops, bakery, etc.

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Wholesalers are the organisations that buy and resell products to other resellers like retailers, other merchants or to industrial buyers, and not in significant amount to end users. They take title to the products they trade in. They buy the products in large quantities and break down the bulk basis the requirement for distribution to retailers, etc. They provide range of services to buyers as well as manufacturers like transportation, buying on credit, etc.

Below are the major functions of Wholesalers-
1. Buying and assembling – The wholesalers buy products from various manufacturers and assemble them for supply to retailers. They store these products in their warehouses, and ensure supply of product as per demand in particular region.

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There are intrinsic differences between Business buyers i.e. business-to-business (B2B) and Individual or final consumers i.e. business-to-consumer marketing (B2C). The differences are a result of the complex and interdependent relationships between buyers and sellers relative to their roles in the supply chain.

Business buying
Business buying is buying products and services by an organisation for end use purpose. Business buying behaviour refers to the actions of employees of an organisation to buy products and services for the organisation which includes the decision making process of selection of suppliers and bearing post purchase consequences.

In this market business buyers buy products on large scale either for production of another product or for their own use. They buy products and add value to the same for selling to Consumers. For example, raw material (crude oil, steel, etc.), final products for company use (generators, printing machines, etc.), office stationary, etc. Due to companies operating on large scale in global markets, they also utilise services of banks for life insurance of its employees, security services, legal services, etc. from other organisations which provide such offerings.

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Brand loyalty takes place when a customer decides to repeatedly purchase a product of the same brand instead of a substitute product produced by a competitor.

Most of the times we see die-hard fans of a certain brand, or super consumers for certain brands like Apple Products, Harley-Davidson, and Royal Enfield. Brand loyalty is emotional attachment to a brand.
Management gurus have coined terms like “King Consumer”, “Lead Consumer”, and “Super Consumer” for a customer who is obsessed with a brand. They are not only heavy users of the product of a certain brand but also have a certain attitude towards it. They are also known as “High passion fans”.
These loyal consumers not only buy products for themselves but also influence everyone in their social circle to buy the brand they follow.

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1) Wholesalers –
These are the organisations that buy and resell products to other resellers like retailers, other merchants or to industrial buyers, and not in significant amount to end users. They take title to the products they trade in. They buy the products in large quantities and break down the bulk basis the requirement for distribution to retailers, etc. They provide range of services to buyers as well as manufacturers like transportation, buying on credit, etc.

There are different kinds of wholesalers and they can be broadly put into the below categories-

a) Full function wholesaler – they buy products/goods from manufacturers and sell them to other resellers like retailers, traders, etc. below the marketing or distribution channel. They buy in bulk from different manufacturers, break down the bulk, store, sell the smaller lots for cash or credit, and also helps with information (advice, education, etc.) to whom he sells. As they take title to the products, they are also responsible for the risk factor involved.

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Consumer Preferences towards Western Origin Fast Foods in Urban India (Chandigarh City)

INTRODUCTION AND RESEARCH OBJECTIVE
1.1 Introduction:
India is the world’s second largest producer of food next to China, and has the potential of being the biggest with the food and agricultural sector. The total food production in India is likely to double in the next ten years and there is an opportunity for large investments in food and food processing technologies, skills and equipment, especially in areas health food. Health food supplement is another rapidly rising segment of this industry that is gaining vast popularity amongst the health conscious.

The revival of the tourism industry in 2003 resulted in a positive spillover effect into the consumer food service market¹ . India is one of the world’s major food producers but accounts for less than 1.5 per cent of international food trade. This indicates vast scope for both investors and exporters. The Indian food industries sales turnover is Rs.140,000 crore (1crore = 10 million) annually as at the start of year 2000. The industry has the highest number of plants approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) outside the USA.

The most promising sub-sectors include -Soft-drink bottling, Confectionery manufacture, Fishing, Aquaculture, Grain-milling and Grain-based products, Meat and poultry processing, Alcoholic beverages, Milk processing, Tomato paste, Fast food, Ready-to-eat breakfast cereals, Food additives, flavors etc²
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