INTRODUCTION
Retailing is the final link between producers of goods and services and the ultimate consumers. Retailing is the last stage in the distribution of goods and services, the earliest retailing activity could be seen from the European craftsman and those people that produces what they gold to the users, craftsman could be gold smiths, silversmiths and tailors, the traveling merchants made the development between European and other outside countries by carrying goods from place to place according to needs. As the traveling merchants move on, they operate their trading activities.
As marketing stated to play essential roles in industrial activities, they come up with what is regarded as general stores. The general stores stocked so many types of products and they are some how enlarging their stock.
At a time, they need some helpers of marketing activities and those include transportation, communication, banking activities and system with helper of trade, the retailing establishment experienced. Some sort of revolution, secondly the growth of trade in Africa was as a result of the fact that most African countries have their system patterned along their colonial counterparts.
1.1 THE BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
For an insight into the personnel management and Administration in City Gift Supermarket, Enugu, I would try to give a brief history of City Gift Supermarket, Enugu. The shop was built at an estimated cost of N26,000.00 (Twenty six million Naira) to help in reducing unemployment problem in the society and to make goods and service available to the customers. It was established in late 90s.
The establishment is divided into many departments, purchasing department, distribution and warehousing department. Each of the department are headed by the head of that department. This retailing establishment employs about fifty workers, (50) in various departments. The retailing outfit have many products which they handled. The products are flours of all kinds electronics sets of all kinds. Good stuffs, medicines of all kinds and numerous other product the company can boast of selling thousands of items everyday for the company to continue to exist therefore, expertise are highly needed in the company.
Coming to employment, majority of the workers from the area were employed since the company was established. Again the establishment helped in a big way in reducing unemployment problem. The establishment is completely very well as far as other retailing establishment are concerned
LITERATURE REVIEW
What is Retailing: A retailing is define as the process of selling goods in a small quantities to our ultimate consumer. The retailing establishment stock different kinds of goods in order to satisfy the needs of their customers, or consumers. The retailing establishment are usually engaged in this type of trading, in order to make profit. The retailing establishment are those that are not manufacturing or producing goods.
They also provide money or capital for buying the goods they are selling. Examples of retailing establishment are Leventis, U.A.C. Lennards shoes Bata Shoes etc.
Michael (1984 : 278) in his introduction to marketing text book stated that most dictionary define retailing as the sales of goods in a small quantities to an ultimate consumers. A retailing organization can define as a business enterprise which sell directly to end users by simply acting as an intermediary between the producers or wholesalers or stocklist and the coming public.
Philp (1988 : 169) in his principle of marketing textbook, define retailing activities as the selling of goods and services directly to final consumers for their personal or non-business use. Any business organisation that does this whether a manufacturer or wholesaler or retailing is doing retailing. It does not matter how goods and services are sold by the person, mail, telephone or vending machine or where they are sold. In a store, on the street or in the consumers home. On the other hand, retailing store in any business enterprise whole volume primarily comes from retailing.
Stanton (1987 : 350) in his fundamentals of marketing define retailing as an activities which directly related to the sales of goods and services, to the ultimate consumers for personal use. A retailing business is an enterprise that sales primary (owner one-self the store volume) to household consumer for non-business use. We can also define retailing as taken from a court decision, retailing is a “sales made to consumer rather to a dealer or merchant for resale. In the same court decision, it is said that quantities of goods sold or price of which they are sold immaterial in determining whether sales is at retail.
Richard (1989 : 314) principle of marketing text book, define retailing establishment as the predominant means through which the consumers obtain goods and services, particularly every manufacturer of consumer goods must use from the retail distribution in order to place his production in the hands of the consumers. It is easier to go in to retailing that virtually any other trade profession, or line business, to practice pharmacy, medicine or law, one must pass state licensing examinations.
Also to start manufacturing firm, one must acquire union membership and some union have strick apprenticeship provision. But to operate a retailing establishment, no examination are required. Further more people entering retailing have the idea that no training or special experience are needed.
