Assignment Instructions

Choose one retail store to visit and write a full report following the template provided below. Before you get started, note the following:

• The Store: It must be a retail store from one of the following segments – fashion (apparel/shoes), home (furniture/home goods), or beauty (cosmetics/make-up). Choosing a store you haven’t visited before will make it easier to observe and pay attention to relevant details you may fail to notice when visiting a store you are used to.
• The Visit: You must visit your chosen store with the single purpose of experiencing, observing,
  and taking notes for this assignment.
• The Report: You are expected to produce a solid and thorough report. Superficial and/or short answers will not fulfill this report’s requirements. For this assignment – MORE IS MORE. The more detailed, the better your grade will be.
• Bring the report template with you when visiting the store. Having the questions on hand will help you collect all the information necessary to write a great report.
• Take notes or voice record your thoughts and observations while visiting the store. It will help you remember in detail what you saw/observed/felt during the visit.
• Don’t use a past visit or a regular visit to a store to write your report. It will not give you enough quality material to answer the report questions properly.

Report Template

Store Information

1. Student Name
2. Store Name
3. Store Address
4. Date of store visit
5. Time: Started at and finished at what time?

Part I: YOU, as a CONSUMER.

1. How was your experience when walking through the store? How did you feel? Welcomed? Confused? Amazed? Surprised? Bored? Describe it in detail. (e.g., I felt anxious as the store was too crowded and noisy; the store was relatively calm, and I could easily find the employee who helped me; the store was bright, clean, and well-organized, despite a large number of customers; etc.)
2. Is there something that makes this store different from others NOTE: Highlight the competitive advantages that this specific store has over the competition; what makes them different?
3. What kind of technology is used within the store?
4. Is there a mobile app to interact with while in-store? If yes, what kind of interaction?
5. How does the store enhance customer experience?
6. Do you feel like returning? Why?

Part II: YOU, as an OBSERVER of consumer behavior.

1. Was the store full of people? Or empty?
2. Were there members of the staff available and interacting with customers? Describe using examples. (e.g., staff was attentive to the elderly’s needs. One senior citizen needed help, and one sales associate promptly stepped up to help her throughout the purchasing process; employees were too busy, and it took me 10 minutes to find someone to help me with shoe sizes, etc.)
3. How were other customers behaving within the store? Were they buying or just walking around? Did they look happy? Satisfied? Confused? Impatient? (e.g., long lines at the registers in the women’s department – I saw two customers leaving without purchasing because of the line size; some customers looked confused when browsing sales items – the products in the clearance area were not well organized; etc.)
4. If you had to estimate a number, what percentage of customers who entered the store actually bought something? NOTE: Sitting or standing outside of the store for a while to observe and count how many customers left the store carrying bags will help you in the estimation. (e.g., 7 out of 10 customers were carrying shopping bags = 70% bought something)

Part III: Conclusions

1. Based on the time you spent within the store, how would you rate your experience as a customer (5-excellent, 4-good, 3-average, 2-not so good, or 1-poor)? Explain why (100-150 words).
2. What improvements could the store make to offer a better customer experience? Suggest at least three improvements, explaining how they would improve in-store customers’ experience.