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Mr R. Radhakrishnan, GM, South Zone, HPCL, addressing students of the Vael’s Institute of Business Administration at a BL Club meeting.

Our Bureau

Chennai, Oct 25 Product quality and quantity besides courteous service are the key determinants of whether a retail outlet would be patronised by customers, according to Mr R. Radhakrishnan, General Manager, South Zone, Hindustan Petroleum Company Ltd (HPCL).

Referring in particular to the development of the new format petroleum retailing outlets, he said the changed business environment ushered in about six years ago and characterised by the arrival of a clutch of new players, changing customer expectations and a regulated fuel pricing mechanism, had forced a change in the way oil companies functioned. The existing Indian brands had to distinguish themselves and reinvent themselves to survive in the liberalised environment.

Speaking from his experience with developing the Club HP brand, Mr Radhakrishnan outlined HPCL’s efforts to stay in the race. In the process, he gave the students of the Vael’s Institute of Business Administration (VIBA) a sense of the marketing exercise undertaken. He was addressing the students at a meeting organised under the aegis of the BL Club lecture series. VIBA, located at Pallavaram near here, is part of the Vel’s College of Science.

According to him, the Club HP brand was now recognised as a unique customer experience. Based on market research, the company had categorised its urban customers under the following heads — the upwardly mobile brand-conscious customer; Hum Log, or the segment that sought value for money and was particular that the basic services were extended; the highly indulgent Gen Next brigade that was particular about quick fills; the dependants, including the elderly and women, whose main requirements were for courteous service and quick fills; and finally the walk-ins for whom convenience of location and service were important.

The company had designed retail formats to address the needs of each of these segments, offering them a differentiated and relevant value proposition.

Thus, while HPCL outlets located near colleges and educational institutions were likely to have fast-food outlets, those located on the highway were more likely to have washrooms, refreshments counters, and phone booths, he said.

In order to tackle the problem of cheating by staff at the filling stations, he said the company had launched the concept of the e-fuel station. All the facilities at such outlets were wired to a central server that was constantly updated with the volumes drawn and the cash transactions happening at the retail end of the chain.

The automation and the uplinking of these facilities were expected to bring down the incidence of pilferage across the network, he said.

More Stories on : Retailing | Tamil Nadu

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