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The Symphony store next to Metro cinema sees a steady footfall for the low price tags. Picture by Amit Datta |
Half a decade ago, the only haunt for audiophiles was the ubiquitous “cassette-er dokan” around the corner, or at best, its bigger avatars in the form of the Symphonys, the Melodys and the Rhythms. With the coming of dedicated music superstores — as Emami Landmark, Music World and Planet M — the whole concept of music-buying has changed.
The sprawling stores presented a completely different scenario from the corner-shops, where one had to shove and shout to get what one wanted. The coming of the superstores has naturally taken a toll on sales, but more significantly, it forced them to revise strategy and focus on hitherto unknown concepts such as customer service, and, yes, discounts.
“Price is our advantage,” says Prem Gupta of M Biswas and Symphony, the 22-year-old shop beside Metro cinema hall. A gospel truth in the highly price-sensitive Calcutta market, it has been the sole factor for Symphony to hold steady, both in terms of sales and crowds.
Every piece of music or VCD sold carries a price tag lower than the superstores, since items are sold at wholesale prices. “The common man feels cheated at these big stores,” continues Gupta. “The same blank CD that costs Rs 24 at our shop comes for Rs 65 at those stores.”
The browse-before-buy format of the superstores has forced Symphony to play around with its shop layout, just a bit. So, compared to earlier times when the buyer could only ask for the title from the person at the counter, the CDs are now neatly laid out in accessible boxes.
But given the space jam, not many can, actually, browse. Compared to the average floor-space of 6,000 to 7,000 sq ft that a Music World or Planet M occupies, Symphony takes up a mere 450. “But plans are afoot to re-design the shop within the next few months to provide better customer comfort,” assures Gupta.
A hit in sales in the wake of superstore invasion is something Gupta is not willing to concede. “Our sales have steadily increased at the rate of five per cent in the past few years,” he insists.
That enthusiasm or fortune, however, is not shared by other old favourites, such as Treasure Island’s Rhythm, New Market’s Laveena (now renamed and relocated as Do-Re-Me a few shops away from its earlier location) or the two other Symphony outlets on Lenin Sarani and in New Market. None of the shops has any expansion plans.
“It’s not all that bad and not all that great either,” says Rhythm’s Peter Eugene. “Our old customers still come to us and we are concentrating exclusively on the international range now, particularly jazz and blues.”
Predictably, the superstores don’t see the presence of these shops as a threat. “There will always be that small section which will go for discounts,” says Music World’s Manan Singhi.
“But the natural advantages of a big store and our particular focus on customer service help us remain on top,” adds Singhi, at the country’s largest-selling Music World outlet.