(From top) A little shopper does a hard day’s work at Wot Not!; diners at Quick Bite right outside the convenience store. Pictures by Rashbehari Das

From dingy bylanes to air-conditioned interiors, vigorous bargaining to courteous personnel ? the shopping experience has undergone a sea change and looks set to stay.

The retail revolution is not limited to central and south Calcutta either, but is fast spanning the eastern pockets of the city as well. Wot Not!, the convenience store chain, after its success in Ballygunge opened another outlet in Lake Town last year that has become a hangout zone in its own right. A number of eating options are available in the vicinity for those who can’t wait to get home and cook the fare!

Goodlife raids the racks and grabs a quick bite?

Address:

Wot Not! on 336 Canal Street, behind the VIP Road and Lake Town bus stop.

“The Bangur-Lake Town-Sribhumi belt has huge potential. People here have high disposable incomes and there was ample room here for a place like Wot Not!. The nearest supermarket is Big Bazaar which is located five kilometres from this area,” says Sidharth Pansari, managing director of the Pansari Group of Industries that owns the Wot Not! chain in the city.

Time:

7 am to 9.30 pm. If you want to shop in peace, try to raid the racks before the rush hour starts from 6 in the evening.

Footfall:

400 to 500 on an average every day.

“The secret of our success lies in three salient features ? competitive pricing, easy accessibility and a cool ambience. And if you provide eating options in the vicinity, footfalls are guaranteed,” smiles Pansari.

Area:

The shop spread sprawls over an area of 5,500 sq feet.

All-in-one:

Stock up your kitchen, drawing room and child’s bedroom all at once. Daily provisions, DVDs and VCDs to fancy toys ? it’s all available under one roof.

“People have very little time today to devote to activities like shopping for groceries and other utility items for the household. As a result, they want to lay their hands on everything under one roof,” says Pansari.

Fringe benefits:

Product visibility, positioning and quick rack replenishment is what makes Wot Not! a favourite shopping destination.

“The same products are also available in the local market. But we score in ambience and a hassle-free shopping experience. Here people can pick and choose at their own pace,” explains Pansari.

“Most of the time we sell below the MRP. We can afford to do this because the involvement of middle men is almost nil here,” he adds.

Quick munch:

Shoppers can rest their bulging bags at the food station outside called Quick Bite, which serves a variety of snacky vegetarian food items, which includes both Chinese and Indian fare.

Chinese specialities include Chinese Chopsuey, Baby Corn with Black Bean Sauce, Crispy Chilli Potato, Hunan Vegetables with Pakchoy and Mixed Vegetables with Thai Sweet Chilli Sauce.

The south Indian section serves Dhania Masala Dosa, Coconut Masala Dosa, Onion Uttapam and Butter Uttapam.

There is some delicious junk food to be sampled as well. Phuchka, churmur, jhaal muri and a variety of chaats will keep any glutton satisfied.

Bookworming:

Bookworms will have reason to hang around here from next month as well. A book corner is to be incorporated in the store with labels supplied by Crossword.

“Due to space constraint we will not be able to display all the labels here,” says Pansari, but promises to home deliver any title within 24 hours that one places an order for.