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Availability
India's 627,000 villages are spread over 3.2 million sq km. However, given the poor state of roads, it is an even greater challenge to regularly reach products to the far-flung villages. To service remote villages, stockists use auto-rickshaws, bullock-carts and even boats in the backwaters of Kerela.

Affordability
With low disposable incomes, products need to be affordable to the rural consumer, most of who are on daily wages. Some companies have addressed the affordability problem by introducing small unit packs.

Acceptability
There is a need to offer products that suit the rural market. Because of the lack of electricity and refrigerators in the rural areas, Coca-Cola provides low-cost ice-boxes - a tin box for new outlets and thermocol box for seasonal outlets.

Awareness
Mass media is able to reach only to 57% of the rural population. Creating awareness then, means utilizing targeted, unconventional media including ambient media. For generating awareness, events like fairs and festivals, Haats, etc., are used as occasions for brand communication.

3.4 Developments in Rural Retailing

ITC's Chaupal Sagar
Chaupal Sagar is one of the first organised retail forays into the hinterland. It has been initiated as rural shopping-cum-information centres in Madhya Pradesh. The first rural mall has come up 40 kilometres from Bhopal towards Sehore. Chaupal Sagar offers almost everything - from toothpastes to televisions, hair oils to motorcycles, mixer-grinders to water pumps, shirts to fertilizers. Most of the brands it sells are national such as Marico, LG, Philips, torches from Eveready, shirts from ITC's apparel business, bikes from TVS, and tractors from Eicher.

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* Contributed by -
Harmesh Mehrotra & Manu Arora,
MBA (IB) 2004-2006,
School of International Business,
Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, New Delhi.