Analysing Competitive Advantage of Retail Industry in South Africa

Abstract

Abstract Strong competitive advantage is a common goal shared among many retailers. Generally, to establish a competitive advantage, many retailers all over the world will focus on the three primary methods of gaining a leg up on their competitors which are cost leadership, differentiation and strategic alliance. However, the environmental issues regarding the pollution, waste, climate change and global warning are changing the competitive landscape of many industries such as the retail industry. Considering the strict environmental regulations and the consumers’ increasing interest in the environmental problems, managers can no longer ignore the need to implement and develop innovative strategies that incorporate environmental aspects. The aim of the study was to the investigate the impact of environmental protective strategies such as environmental performance, green image and customer requirements on the competitive advantage of retailers in Southern Gauteng. The study adopted a quantitative approach to survey a sample of 200 managers and general employees from the retailer’s businesses in Southern Gauteng, province of South Africa. A convenience sampling technique was applied to collect data from the respondents. Data were analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (26.0). Moreover, confirmatory factors analysis was applied to examine and test the relationship between observed constructs and their casual latent construct. Smart PLS 3.0 was also used to test the hypothesised relationships between the constructs. The current study revealed that green image, environmental performance and customer requirements are determinants of competitive advantage. The results also showed that there is a negative relationship between green image and environment performance. The results of the study also revealed that, through green image, customer requirements and environmental performance sustainable competitive advantage can be achieved.