Smart marts

RETAIL: The booming IT segment is getting ready to make shopping an attractive experience for its customers.

If you thought only apparel and home furnishings need to be displayed in big showrooms, think again. A host of information-technology (IT) companies are now showcasing their personal computers, notebooks and other peripherals in attractive retail spaces.

For instance, Hewlett Packard, best known for its laptops, imaging and printing products, is focusing big time on retail. It has opened close to 400 stores across the country in all the major metros and is now venturing into tier B and C cities.

The size of the HP stores could vary from 500 to 800 sq feet to 1,500-2000 sq. depending on the city they are located in. But the products are far better displayed and the customer can actually touch and feel the product before buying it.

According to Nitin Hiranandani, country sales manager, personal systems group, HP India, it is a combination of several factors which has brought about changes in the way the IT companies are looking at retailing. "With a wide range of laptops or desktops on offer, customers seek to compare the products and see what is best for them."

Also, the notion that while buying a computer you don't need to touch and feel the product has been long dispelled. Companies are offering multimedia products where sound and visual quality are critical. Clearly, such models require an attractive display.

Says Apurv Chamaria, category manager, HCL Technologies: "Retail is a potential goldmine and we want to capitalise on the boom which is happening in the sector."

Besides laptops and desktops, the showrooms also display peripherals like printers, scanners or even speakers which consumers are keen to buy. "People want a more sophisticated shopping experience when they go out to buy technology products and brands are doing just that," adds Chamaria.

"It is about providing a unique experience even if it's for buying a laptop," says Hiranandani. So be it a shirt or a laptop, one seeks to "feel" the product which one is buying and that's exactly what IT companies are gearing up to offer.