The case study entailed making a strategy in the times of COVID-19 for Retailersbook, which is a B2B e-commerce (FMCG) startup connecting brands directly to retailers. It aims to provide sales and distribution solutions for brands aiming presence in retail without investing in the traditional distribution systems. The aim is to capture the maximum number of retailers in the shortest possible time with the lowest cash burn.

1. Retailersbook - Case Study Competition
Presented by Biswadeep Ghosh Hazra
Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar

2. Snapshot of the Unorganized Retail
Sector in India
The unorganized retail
sector, although
gradually diminishing
in size is still
dominating the Indian
market. The Kirana
stores represent a huge
opportunity for
Retailersbook to
capture right now.
With the lockdown in
effect, and online e-
Commerce stores
delaying orders,
customers are now
heavily relaying on
Kirana stores for their
essentials.
Tying up Hyperlocal and e-Commerce to add
more value to customers
Hyperlocal refers to concept of catering the needs of a
specific geographical area. The service provider sources
the products locally and delivers the same to the
customers (retailers) in the same area at unmatched
speeds. The Hyperlocal Market is estimated to be worth
$344 Mn in 2020. The e-Commerce Hyperlocal Business
Model is lucrative in terms of growth, funding from
investors and value addition scope
Retailersbook
Retail-I
(Kirana
Stores)
Retail-II
(Super-
Markets)
Retail- III
(Malls)
Retail-IV
(Paan and
Cigarette
Shops)
Pharmacies
The figure beside
describes the
broad sectors
where
Retailersbook can
market itself to
be their primary
sales and
distribution
solution partner
Segmentation of Retail Shops in Delhi/NCR
Kirana Stores [Branded and local
FMCG Products](2.57 lakh stores+)
Malls [Only branded FMCG products]
 (100+ Malls)
Super Markets [Mostly branded,
some local FMCG products] (230+)
Pharmacies [Limited branded FMCG
Products] (18,200+)
Paan and Cigarette Shops [Branded
and Local FMCG Products] 
(99,981 rounded to 1 lakh+)
The process of Guesstimate has been used in order to
find the rough number of each of the above Retail
format to be used by Retailersbook. The next slide
shows the number obtained using the approach used

3. TAM-SAM-SOM
TAM or Total Addressable Market would be the global market comprising of
all retail outlets selling FMCG Products. Since, that is not the target of
RetaliersBook, TAM is kept at rest for now. SAM or Serviceable Addressable
Market refers to the segment of TAM that can be targeted by products or
service offerings. SAM here represent the entirety of India. SOM or
Serviceable Obtainable Market is the portion of SAM that can be captured
SOM here represents to Delhi/NCR region where
Retailersbook started its pilot operations and where
it can currently expand its base. Since Delhi is a
Tier-I city and the capital of the country, it is an
ideal place to start base operations and later branch
out to states like Haryana, Punjab, UP, Uttarakhand
and Bihar (the Northern States) and later to the
rest of India
Premium Feature (Mobile Application)
An additional revenue stream for
Retailersbook can be a Premium
feature wherein the retailer will be
able to keep a log of the inventory
sold and based on those logs,
reports will be generated
i) Inventory Counting Systems
For retail stores with automated
inventory counting mechanisms (in
super markets and malls, the
inventory counting systems will be
Perpetual while for Kirana stores and other retail
formats which do not have automated systems,
Periodic system of counting inventory will be put into
place. Special training will be given to the retailer with
this regard
Technicalities of the
Premium Feature
ii) Economic Order Quantity (EOQ)
The Premium feature will calculate the EOQ, the order
that will minimize the total cost for the retail shop.
Demand will be calculated with the help of various
kinds of Forecasting(Moving Average, Weighted
Average, Exponential Smoothening, Trend Adjusted,
Linear Regression, etc); depending upon which
method suits the scenario best. Quantity Discounts is
another aspect that needs to be considered too
iii) Different Models
Depending on the retailer’s preferred choice, either
Fixed Order Model or Fixed Interval Model,
Reordering will be triggered; in the first case Reorder
Point Ordering (ROP) and in the latter by fixed time
interval (days, weeks, months)
Based on all these inputs,
the App will perform-
Syncing with POS system
for inventory counting
Demand Analysis and
Forecasting
Automatic Reordering
through Retailersbook
Determining the EOQ
(with or without Discounts)
ROP (above) , EOQ (below)

4. A)Targeting the Retail Stores using a locator
In order to track down the Retail stores to service in a
particular region, it is best to develop a Store Locator
with the help of JavaScript API
Link to all Google Map tagged Kirana stores in
Delhi/NCR- https://bit.ly/3ePMAT5
Links to “How to make the Google Maps embedded
store locator application”-
https://bit.ly/2KujwlQ || https://bit.ly/2VPZQ1c
The Steps involved in accessing the application
The User will enter a location in the Search field
and select a Search Radius within which the answers
will be restricted and displayed
After the Search button is clicked, the relevant
results will be displayed from the database
This tool can be embedded into the application
that the Retailersbook Sales Force will use to rapidly
track and convert customers (Retailers)
Almost all forms of Retail Shops will be covered
with this approach
B)Convincing the Retailer to tie up
The Retailersbook Advantage for Retailers-
-Recordkeeping- Retail shops often use a
combination of multiple brand specific distributors
who deliver the goods to them in different lots.
Retailersbook will serve as a unified distributor
solution distributing goods irrespective of the brand
-Availability- Many a times, in the traditional model
of distribution, there is lead time delay which affects
sales for the retailers. This is because the retailers in
the unorganized sector seldom keep safety stock
-Smooth payments and customer services- Unlike
the traditional systems, Retailersbook with its
seamless payment, App integration and customer
service will definitely put the mind of retailer at ease
-Premium Feature- Inventory management, demand
analysis, forecasting, for the retail shop if they avail
the premium feature from Retailersbook
Targeting the Retail Stores using a locator-II
C) Sales Force Training
a)Sales force selection- The sales agents will be
selected from in and around Delhi itself as they will
have a good working knowledge of the city and can
quickly track and convert customers
b)Training- Agents will be trained in Design Thinking
to empathize with the customer’s pain points. They
will go through probable scenarios so that they are
ready to answer the customer’s queries
c)Technologies used- The latest Customer
Relationship Management (CRM) technologies &
Internet of Things (IOT) which in combination with AI
and ML will better analyse the data generated on
field. Sales Force will also be trained in the Store
Locator tool that has been discussed before
d)Communication Skills- The basis of steady sales is
communication. As agents and distributors will be
selected locally, they can communicate easily with the
customers in their mother-tongues
e)Competitive advantage in commissions- Setting a
relatively high commission rate will incentivize and
boost the productivity of the sales agents towards
achieving higher target rates
f)Flexibility in salesforce- The sales agents must be
flexible to mould their sales pitch according to the
client at hand; for example, show sophistication while
dealing with branded retailers and show fluency in
local language while dealing with local kirana stores
In addition to the Store Locator (which will be
embedded into the Retailersbook application used
by the Sales Agents), websites like Fundoodata can
be used to find out retail stores by Name,
City/State, Industry , Company Type and many
other criteria. Links- https://bit.ly/3eUUkDg ||
https://bit.ly/2Y1iXrY

5. Distribution and Logistics Channel for Retailersbook
References-
• https://bit.ly/3bDs4mk
• https://bit.ly/2S6bqUL
• https://bit.ly/3cOgsxf
Improving online
presence
Facebook Page
Instagram
LinkedIn Page
Website
1)Retailersbook should
actively increase its reach
and engagement in order to
gain traction in the online
world
2)Posting insightful blogs
about the changing retail
system in India
3)Discussions with
customers on Facebook
Groups or Chat Rooms to
increase engagement
4)The rates for advertising
are mentioned in the table
Channel Cost
YouTube ₹0.70 to ₹17/view
Pamphlets in Newspapers ₹7000 for 5000 pcs
Ads on OTT services (Hotstar) Video Ads- ₹0.24 per impression
Newspapers Front Page- ₹ 950 Back Page- ₹ 770
Facebook ₹9.3 per 1000 impressions||₹2.85 (CPA)- Cost
Per Action
Strategic Roadmap
Short Term Strategy (3-6 months)- (i)Tying up with
retail stores (group of kirana stores in an area or
supermarkets) to process their last mile delivery.
Things to keep in mind while designing this system
would be- Proximity of delivery points from the
stores, Frequency of orders, number of routes and
respective deliveries (ii) Raising debt in short term
to keep inventory can be done via two ways 
Raising loans from banks or trade payable from
suppliers. [An optimum mix of both or one option].
If inventory is maintained, making sure to mark
them on the basis of either a) FSN (Fast, Slow, Non-
Moving); b) VED (Vital, Essential or Desirable) or c)
ABC (Cost of items consumed) (iv) Optimizing
Routes with the help of Transportation Problems
(Minimum Cost Method, Vogel’s Approximation
Method (VAM), North West Corner Method)
Long Term Strategy (6months - Future)- (i) As
discussed the Premium Model is one of the ways of
earning revenues while organizing the retail
situation in India on a technical level (ii) The last
mile distribution system can be further developed
(iii) All the features discussed before to be added in
the application (iv) Following the best practices of
competitors like Jumbotail
Strategies to follow irrespective of roadmap-
Launching a separate brand of Retailersbook FMCG
products. However, it is not possible at the present
as market research, building a brand, packaging it,
and finally selling it requires huge effort and now is
not the right time for the same
The many levels of distribution
(Primary, Secondary and Tertiary)
Retailersbook mainly looks at secondary distribution which implies the flow of
goods from the Primary Distributors directly to the Retailers. Taking hold of the
Tertiary Distribution or the Last Mile Delivery will ensure that Hyperlocal delivery
system is implemented much more seamlessly thereby catering to people
efficiently by being self contained into a particular geographical area
Retailersbook can take charge of the entire distribution system for upcoming
local brands after carefully judging their potential to capture the future market.
This will give Retailersbook a head start in the local brand market
Incorporating the 5S and Lean Methodology into everyday logistical operations