Self (&) Reliance

What do you get when you cross a Fortune Global 500 companyย with the numero unoย blogging platform? An interactive consumer experience, that’s what! And so it came to be when Indiblogger announced the Reliance Digitalย Experience. So what was the catch? Nothing really, except, that I hate following instructions.

As kids, whenever we were expecting guests, mom made a special point to mention (to me most of the times) to be on our bestย behaviour. How I behaved makes for another post altogether, highly avoidable right now. But it made meย realize, wouldn’t the staff be well prepared to meet and greet us? Will that give me an unbiased view of the store? Nope, I didn’t think so. And my devilish mind set to work. I took the print out of the invite I was supposed to carry. 15th June, 2013, 10 am is what it showed on my laptop. Venue headed to, Infinity Mall, Malad.


“Hi, I am BlogwatiG and here is my invite.”ย 

As if on cue, the staff in blue appeared, verified some details and with utmost respect, ushered her and the child towards the informal presentation.ย Once they were in, my phone rang.ย I was ten steps behind them. ย 

“Mom, we are in and we told them we want to browse around. They said to ask for help if we need anything.”

“Good girl. Now call me if you get stuck anywhere and behave as if you want to buy something. OK?” And with that I hung up on my daughter who was accompanying my mom, the ‘BlogwatiG’ for the day! Thus, leaving me free to explore the store, incognito. Yes, I have all the makings of a criminal.ย 

As I walked in, I did get a few eager faces who tried to help. I told them, I was good and went on to explore the store. The red, blue and whiteย ambianceย of the store was broken by ย orange shelf headers. Nice. Products were categorized and neatly stacked on eye level facilitating easyย viewing. The display range was inviting and the staff were forthcoming with assistance. In house branding was evident with a series ofย panels advertising Reliance benefits and educating customers on buying smart.ย Plus One.



A group of bloggers were being briefed by the store manager. I casually walked across to the next row from them, glancing at the products andย challengingย my hearing abilities. I am happy to report, the transmission was clear, also because Vishal (learnt his name later) had a very commanding voice. He was giving the group a walk-through about the ideals, goals and customer service levels of brand Reliance Digital. Well, actions speak louder than words, I said to myself. I was about to get into Test Drive Mode. Oops, someone recognized me and almost waved. I aborted eye contact and went asking for DSLR Cameras. Phew!


Now my unsuspecting victim was walking in from the Reliance TimeOut Corner, which BTW can do with some seriousย up haul. Two rows of shelves had absolutely no books. Minus one.ย 


I asked the executive about the Nikon D3100 as I had recently purchased one and was equipped with information. He went on to compare the Canon 600D, Nikon D3100 and D5100. He left them on par and let me be the judge as to what would be suitable to my needs. Very nicely done. Plus One. However their DSLR range was very limited. I could say the same for quite a few products.ย Minus One.

I turned my attention to the air coolers. A slow moving product generally does not feature on the staff roll call. This should be good. I was right. There were only two models on display. However the executive at the section managed to give me a full fledged demo with a faulty piece which was not in stock. He even offered to take down my number and get back to me with my requirements. I had a hard time notย volunteeringย my details. Plus One.

While browsing I came across the in-house brand Reconnect. Apt name choice. Immediate brand recall value. This desktop that I set my heart on looked pretty sleek to match theย competitionย too.ย Plus One.ย 


Most stores offer extended warranty. At Reliance it comes with a name that rescues you from your misery with after sales service. ResQ, once again, great brand recall value and value for money with their add on coupons. Plus One.

If I have to summarize The Reliance Digital Experience in 5, I’d say

a) Staff productย knowledge is A1. Keep it up. Overall look is A-Okay too. Yes, I would be inclined to visit again. Brand Reconnect looks promising.ย 

b) Increase the product range if you are planning on becoming the one stop digital shop. I can’t choose from 2 camera brands, if you know what I mean.

c) Give me reasons to not shop abroad. If I am looking for aย pedometer or a digital ย dictionary bookmark, a karaoke machine or hi-tech camera lens, give me that option to buy it here.ย 

d) Schemes way beyond market standards is what I call a bargain. Make me an offer I can’t refuse.


e) Every store space needs to generate revenue. If a particular section is not, for e.g., the books section, do away with it and addย somethingย that will.ย 

In short, go the length and breadth to provide that Happiness in Store.ย 

Well, I was almost done being a detective when I bumped into twoย gorgeousย hunks who went on to have a very animated conversation about hair care. Who ever said men are all about gadgets? I am the one without the beard, BTW. And thank God for that!


Oh yes, almost forgot. Mom and the princess were rewarded with lunch for their subtle efforts. The princess toh went one step ahead and refused to acknowledge me when we crossed paths in the store. Yup, she is gonna be an actress or aย politicianย maybe? Their take, it was nice. Staff was sweet. Wish they had a coffee shop too!


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38 responses to “Self (&) Reliance”

  1. Aditya Iyer avatar
    Aditya Iyer

    I get featured on BlogawatiG’s blog! *bounces*

    1. Blogwati Gee avatar

      Ha ha ha ha ha ha Adi …………….hugs! So did you buy that comb?

    2. Aditya Iyer avatar
      Aditya Iyer

      No I think I already have one or two already existing in the house lol when I get I’ll let you know ๐Ÿ˜€

    3. Blogwati Gee avatar

      I await with bated breath ๐Ÿ˜›

  2. Ritu avatar

    Nice review, really innovative!

    1. Blogwati Gee avatar

      Thanks Ritu ๐Ÿ™‚ Had to bribe two women as you can see!

  3. Vidya Sury avatar

    I love how you approached the review. ๐Ÿ˜€ Do you teach, by the way? Methinks ye would do very well as a school principal/dean ๐Ÿ˜€

    I particularly liked the plus one/minus one take. And the summary.

    1. Blogwati Gee avatar

      Ha ha ha, thanks Vidya, I have been tutoring kids since I passed my Grade 10. I must have tutored over 100 odd kids in regular subjects including languages and Accounts, Eco and French. In fact I have a celebrity student too, lol. Yup, I love teaching….someday….will get back to it. So now you know the secret of the plus one and minus one.

    2. Chicky a.k.a. Kaddu avatar

      @Vidya – Wow! Really astute! You aren’t a Virgo by any chance are you? ๐Ÿ˜›
      @Blogwati Gee – Yes the review had depth and the touch of genuineness. Even I liked the plus one minus one approach.

    3. Blogwati Gee avatar

      Thanks Chicky. I am glad you did ๐Ÿ™‚

  4. Purnima Iyer (Poornima Seetharaman) avatar

    Thumbs up to all three ladies! Nice review ๐Ÿ™‚

    1. Blogwati Gee avatar

      Thanks Purnima……….had to edit it thrice to make it shorter……phew! It is still looooooooooooooong!

  5. Diwakar Narayan avatar

    Nice review, BLogwati Gee. Stocks have always been a problem at Reliance Digital, I would say with my experience with them.

    1. Blogwati Gee avatar

      I agree. But they can move up that alley for sure. They must, if they plan to survive.

  6. Ruchira avatar

    Great approach to the review ! Loved it !

    1. Blogwati Gee avatar

      Thanks Ruchira ๐Ÿ™‚

  7. Afshan avatar

    I went to reliance time out in park squaremall Bangalore and enjoyed

    it. I too got a similar snap like princess ;)but here there were MANY books . Hence I liked it more. I didnt explore much but

    many products were nt in stock and there were no many brands like u

    told. Nice review. So comprehensive
    GOOD DAY

    1. Blogwati Gee avatar

      Thanks Afshan. The books were disappointing here….!

  8. Bhavya avatar

    Only you could have done that! Well done BlogwatiG ๐Ÿ™‚

    1. Blogwati Gee avatar

      Lol, Bhavya…..I knew I could make for a mastermind criminal, no?

  9. JANU avatar

    Nice review BG.

  10. Aparna avatar

    Nice one detective BlogwatiG ๐Ÿ™‚

    1. Blogwati Gee avatar

      Ha ha ha ha, Elementary my dear Aparna ๐Ÿ˜›

  11. Smita avatar

    Liked the way u have reviewed it. My experience with the store has been just ok ๐Ÿ™‚

    1. Blogwati Gee avatar

      Well, I believe in giving a chance for improvement. We can all thrash what we don’t like, but then again how does that help growth? Till we don’t show the way, we don’t have the right to judge…..just the way I think ๐Ÿ™‚

  12. Punit Dubey avatar

    So you had a nice experience, great! I have been following the Forum on Indiblogger and many are too negative… Well, I have got a secret to reveal with this IndiConteset…soon after my visit ๐Ÿ˜›

    1. Blogwati Gee avatar

      Being negative is the easiest thing to do. But taking the negative and turning it into a positive is what great organisations do. Fingers crossed and I want to know your secret ๐Ÿ˜›

  13. Roshni AaMom avatar

    LOL!! You are so crafty! I thoroughly enjoyed the length to which you went in order to get an unbiased overview! Hey, you look just like your mom…I bet you hear that all the time! And, your princess is growing up to be a lovely, willowy lady!

    1. Blogwati Gee avatar

      Well, Roshni what is the point of doing something if you aren’t gonna do it differently ๐Ÿ™‚ We three women quite enjoyed moonlighting as detectives, really, lol.

      And actually my sis looks like my mom. I look a whole lot like my dad ๐Ÿ™‚

  14. Suzy avatar
    Suzy

    Sneaky but obviously very effective. Enjoyed reading.

    1. Blogwati Gee avatar

      Sneaky would be my middle name ๐Ÿ˜›

  15. Aditya Iyer avatar
    Aditya Iyer

    And I’m already kissing goodbye to my chances of winning an iPad, so I’ll make an offer to you which you can’t refuse, for the impending iPad win. Just that I haven’t come up with that offer for now ๐Ÿ˜›

    1. Blogwati Gee avatar

      Ha ha ha ha Adi very generous…..but do consider Malad was the most visited store ๐Ÿ™‚

  16. goingbeyondthepages avatar

    Very nicely done ๐Ÿ™‚ crafty but your mom can easily pass off as you… you guys are almost identical.

    1. Blogwati Gee avatar

      Thanks, I’ll let her know. I am sure she will be thrilled…that somewhere I am like here ๐Ÿ˜‰

  17. Vishal avatar

    You’re a carbon copy of your mom.

    Next time you’re visiting Malad soon, let me know… Lacoste ka end of season sale chal raha hai… Wanted a t-shirt ๐Ÿ˜‰

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