Retail Experience Research Articles

Role of marketing and technological innovation on store equity, satisfaction and word-of-mouth in retailing

PurposeDespite the importance of innovation in business performance, investigation into innovation in services is scanty and lacking consensus. In retailing, it is a topic that has been awakening considerable academic and business interest in recent years. In this study context, this work aims to analyse innovation in retail experiences from two aspects – marketing innovation and technological innovation – to understand the role it exercises in satisfaction and subsequent recommendation.Design/methodology/approachThe authors’ objective is to investigate the direct and indirect influence of marketing and technological innovation on satisfaction and word-of-mouth (WOM) through three core constructs: store image, consumer value and store brand equity. SEM methodology is applied on a sample of 820 retail customers of grocery, clothing, furniture an electronics store.FindingsThe results show that technological innovation is more important than marketing innovation in shaping image, value and satisfaction. At the same time, store image is the variable that most influences customer satisfaction and that satisfaction is a very significant antecedent of WOM behaviour. Practical implications for retail managers and further research are presented.Originality/valueThe main value of this work has been to go deeper into the study of retail innovation, both in marketing and technologies, and its direct and indirect effects on satisfaction and subsequent recommendation through store image, consumer value and store brand equity. It is a new line of study, which is still fragmented and with little empirical evidence.

Empowering the empowered? Slum tourism and the depoliticization of poverty

Mumbai’s Dharavi slum occupies a plot half the size of Central Park. It is home to one million people, with almost half of residents living in spaces under 10m2, making it over six times as dense as daytime Manhattan. Using ethnographic fieldwork and online analysis, this article examines slum tourism and the perceptions and experiences of western visitors. Local tour operators emphasize the productivity of the slum, with its annual turnover of $665 million generated from its hutment industries. Its poor sanitation, lack of clean water, squalid conditions and overcrowding are ignored and replaced by a vision of resourcefulness, hard work and diligence. This presentation of the slum as a hive of industry is so successful that visitors overlook, or even deny, its obvious poverty. Dharavi is instead perceived as a manufacturing hub and retail experience; and in some cases even romanticized as a model of contentment and neighbourliness, with western visitors transformed by ‘life-changing’, ‘eye-opening’ and ‘mind-blowing’ experiences. This article concludes that the potential of slum tours as a form of international development is limited, as they enable wealthy middle-class westerners to feel ‘inspired’, ‘uplifted’ and ‘enriched’, but with little understanding of the need for change.

Mobile payments adoption by US consumers: an extended TAM

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to incorporate mobile payment (MP) self-efficacy, new technology anxiety, and MP privacy concerns into the basic TAM to explore MP adoption, particularly tap-and-go payment, among US consumers.Design/methodology/approachData were collected through an online survey conducted among students at a Midwestern University in the USA. A total of 254 participants provided 240 useable responses.FindingsMP self-efficacy significantly impacts perceived ease of use (PEOUMP) and perceived usefulness of MP (PUMP). These in turn impact MP attitude, which affects intention to use MP. Privacy concerns also impact attitude towards MP and MP use intention. New technology anxiety impacts PEOUMP, but not PUMP.Research limitations/implicationsThe study uses a convenience sample of young US consumers, which could limit the generalisability of the results. The study is also limited to tap-and-go payment.Practical implicationsUS retailers have information on some of the factors that encourage MP adoption. Retailers need to address self-efficacy concerns, MP privacy concerns, and consumers’ perceptions of usefulness of the technology.Originality/valueThere has been little research on factors impacting tap-and-go payment adoption in the USA. The study highlights the roles of self-efficacy and privacy concerns. It focusses on tap-and-go payment, since this technology can enhance consumers’ retail experience.

The Role of Secondary Packaging on Brand Awareness: Analysis of 2 L Carbonated Soft Drinks in Reusable Shells Using Eye Tracking Technology

Even with new technologies emerging daily that reduce the barriers to identify and purchase products, the average consumer still reports having less time to devote to shopping. A study conducted at Clemson University, sponsored by a reusable packaging company, Rehrig Pacific Company, investigated if a unique shipping shell/crate design with on‐message and product branding (direct colour print onto the shell) increased brand awareness, attention and purchase intent when placed directly onto the retail shelf. Reusable packaging for 2 L bottles of carbonated soft drink packaged in proprietary reusable shells with a multicolour logo of the major US beverage company was chosen for the study. The branded proprietary reusable shell was evaluated against a standard reusable shell in the industry used by the same company. Testing was conducted using state‐of‐the‐art eye tracking hardware and CUshop™, a full immersion consumer retail experience laboratory. Data captured from 89 study participants indicated a strong preference for the new branded reusable shell. Statistical analysis demonstrated a 47% increase in eye fixations on the branded display and an increase in fixation duration, a measure of how long consumers looked at the display, of 34% (p < 0.05). More significantly, an increase in the visual saliency of the primary package, the 2 L bottle, was illustrated by an increase in fixation duration of 46% (p < 0.05) and an increase of the number of fixations of 54% (p < 0.01) when displayed in the branded reusable shell. Thus, results indicate that in‐store marketing incorporating a unique secondary packaging may lift brand awareness and increase purchase intent. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Estudos de caso na internacionalização varejista: uma revisão de literatura

A pesquisa em internacionalização varejista (IV) passou por intensa fase de desenvolvimento desde a década de 1990, dominada por pesquisas de natureza quantitativa e com base na experiência de varejistas de grandes formatos, como supermercados. Entretanto, a internacionalização do setor varejista evoluiu em bases que os modelos existentes não têm sido capazes de explicar, gerando uma demanda por pesquisas com métodos mais profundos de conhecimento. O resultado foi um notório aumento de artigos publicados desde o início da década de 2000 baseados pesquisas de natureza exploratória e qualitativa, como estudos de caso. Este artigo pretende responder identificar quais foram as contribuições no conhecimento sobre IV oriundas de estudos de caso. Com base na literatura disponível, 42 artigos foram selecionados, sumariados e discutidos com vistas à identificação das contribuições mais relevantes para diferentes tipos varejistas, bem como para assuntos em IV ainda pouco pesquisados.

On happiness, sadness or indifference

PurposeVia an experimental approach, this study therefore seeks to examine the effects of outcome valence upon service perception in the higher education setting where academic services form the core service element. To further extend this inquiry, the purpose of this paper is to explore the carryover effect of these emotional states to a subsequent unrelated service encounter which is classified as a peripheral service element which is hedonic in nature.Design/methodology/approachBy using a simulated laboratory experimental procedure involving 300 participants, the authors examined the extent to which a student’s feeling toward an online test result has a bearing upon the teaching evaluation and a subsequent service experience in a branded retail context.FindingsThe results gathered from this study highlight the variability of the carryover effect of outcome valence from a work-related service context that serves as incidental emotions to a subsequent unrelated service encounter which is hedonic in nature. From the results gathered, variations were observed in relation to the dynamics of outcome valence in affecting core service evaluation where teaching quality was assessed, and in the peripheral service context in the form of retail experience at a branded cafè. From the basis of these findings, the psychological role of retail stores operating in a valence-oriented industry such as the higher education is discussed in this study.Practical implicationsEssentially, this study contributes to the academic literature and managerial practices by extending the knowledge in the dynamics of valence and its impact upon service perceptions.Originality/valueThis study adopts a simulated experimental design to assess the transference effect of valence in specific service encounters. This methodological approach offers greater reliability compared to existing studies which undertake a retrospective approach via questionnaire survey to examine outcome valence in service experiences. The results from this study provide important managerial implications by assessing the impact of valence upon customer satisfaction ratings which are commonly used for performance appraisal of service staff members. Additionally, the outcome of this study potentially assist managers to account for incidental emotions which may have an impact upon customer’s service experience.

Self-started versus Family Inherited Businesses: A Comparison of Managing Unorganized Food Grocery Retail Stores in an Emerging Economy

This study aims at analyzing the difference in food grocery retail store logistic management between self-started and family inherited retail businesses. The study has been carried out through in-depth personal interview of 40 unorganized grocery retail stores in Lucknow Uttar Pradesh, using a structured questionnaire. Simple statistical techniques such as descriptive statistics and cross-tabulation have been applied on the survey data. Chi-square test has been used to analyze the statistical difference in the processes of retail store management between self-started and family inherited business grocery stores. Findings indicate that those who joined the family run businesses are younger in age as compared to the ones who self-started their grocery stores. Similarly, the average retailing experience of self-starters is (10 years) and family inherited retails is (5 years), showing significant difference statistically, implying that both the groups have different level of retailing experiences. The study also analyzes the difference in methods of logistics management across the different types of unorganized retailers. Analysis indicates that both self-started and family inherited retail businesses follow similar management practices. There are a limited number of in-depth studies on unorganized retail operations based on primary data analysis. The findings of this study provide practical insights on difference in profile of self-started versus family inherited retail businesses and adoption of logistics processes in managing their stores.

Inside the Mind of the Millennial Shopper: Designing Retail Spaces for a New Generation

Challenges facing retailing abound. Retailers and brands are struggling to find new ways to appeal to shoppers. Yet, research has shown that the store's physical design plays a crucial role in whether a shopper enters a store and engages with a brand. The latest generation of shoppers, the millennials, are a powerful cohort representing 75.4 million individuals in 2016 and accounting for $200 billion in annual consumer spending. Although this generation is well known for online shopping, research has shown that the majority (75%) of their retail dollars are still being spent in brick–and–mortar stores. This has generated awareness in viewing the retail store as a tool for brand–building, motivating brands to reevaluate their store designs. This exploratory study seeks to understand the elements of the retail environment that catch the attention of the millennial shopper and their response to them. The methodology employed photo elicitation for data collection using personal smartphones that allowed the millennial participants to combine photography with captions, creating an annotated image bank of retail environments. This image bank revealed tangible and intangible dimensions of the retail experience that offer insights into the mind of the millennial shopper. The identified themes have design implications for both education and practice that can inform the process of creating dynamic, engaging retail environments for this generation.

Comfort in brick and mortar shopping experiences: Examining antecedents and consequences of comfortable retail experiences

This paper explores the comfort construct in brick and mortar retail settings. As a psychological construct, consumer comfort reflects a sense of ease and peace of mind during a shopping experience. Previous research suggests comfort carries a number of positive consequences for managers, such as strengthening customer relationships and increasing customer satisfaction (Gaur and Xu, 2009). However, these studies take a more interpersonal relationship theory approach and have not considered the impact of non-social aspects of retail environments on consumers' comfort. Moreover, these extant studies have not considered how comfortable environments create value for consumers. Consequently, this study examines how atmospheric elements contribute to creating consumer comfort, and how comfort impacts consumers' perceptions of shopping value. Findings from survey data demonstrate that not all atmospheric elements influence consumers' comfort levels. Moreover, comfortable environments were found to increase both utilitarian value and hedonic value. The implications of the findings for academics and managers are discussed.

Constituents and consequences of smart customer experience in retailing

Smart retail technologies have the potential to improve the customer retail experience by providing superior and personalized retail services. However, when shoppers have to deal with technologically sophisticated retail services, concerns arise regarding the customers' adoption and their psychological reactions towards smart retail technologies. This study explores the factors which constitute customers' experience with the smart retail technologies and examines an innovative construct (i.e. smart customer experience) in retailing. The development of a conceptual model explores smart customer experiences and their consequences on smart technology, customer, and retailer-level outcomes. Guided by technology adoption research, this research examines the relationships between smart customer experience, customer satisfaction, perceived risk, behavioral intentions, word-of-mouth intentions, stickiness to retail store, shopping effectiveness, and consumer well-being. This study uses a multi-phased research approach. Findings indicate that smart customer experience directly enhances satisfaction and reduces perceived risk towards smart retail technologies. Customer satisfaction increases behavioral intentions, word-of-mouth intentions, stickiness to retailer, shopping effectiveness, and customer well-being. Perceived risk reduces behavioral intentions, word-of-mouth intentions, shopping effectiveness, and stickiness to retailer. Finally, customer satisfaction and perceived risk both mediate the relationships between smart customer experience and outcome variables.

Fitting room or selling room? Millennial female consumers’ dressing room experiences

AbstractAs retail experiences have become more important to the modern consumer, the store environment has taken on greater significance. The store environment is especially of great significance to the millennial consumer. These consumers tend to spend more time in the fashion retail store, while their expenditure on fashion items increases on a yearly basis. The dressing room must be seen as the clothing retailer's selling room – the place where the retail environment plays an immense role with regard to a consumer's cognitions, emotions and purchasing behaviour. The purpose of this study was to explore and describe young millennial clothing consumers' Functional, aesthetic, emotional and symbolic dressing room experiences. A qualitative research strategy was followed. Two unstructured interviews were held with 15 participants. Participants had to take photos of retailers' dressing rooms before the second interview. A photo‐elicitation technique was employed during the second interview. Findings revealed that participants had specific expectations with regard to the functionality and aesthetics of the dressing room, as well as with regard to the symbolic messages and the emotions that they expected to experience. If the dressing room did not meet their expectations they got disappointed, experienced negative emotions and thoughts and the need to leave the dressing room. The behavioural response of avoidance strongly came to the forth. Findings of this research point to the importance of the dressing room as part of the retail experience and have implications for consumer specialists and retailers.

Culture & Retail SST: Case of Hypermarkets in Jakarta

Developing economies like Indonesia are enticing global retailers with an attractive and expanding middle class, and a steadily growing economy. Dynamic changes in retailing across the globe have fostered technological advancements in organised retail. The entire retail experience is now leaning on revolutionary technology. But are all countries world-wide ready to accept this change? The Asian continent is held by strong cultural dimensions like team work, materialistic nature and risk-aversion tendency. Adoption of self-efficacy and acceptance of innovations in technology has a bearing on shopping experiences as compared to dependence on humans. This research paper explores the insights for the same in the Indonesian capital city of Jakarta.

A Study Management in Logistic System Service Idea of Retailers in Bangkok

The objectives of this research were to study of the idea of retailer about service, study about idea levels of retailer of logistic service and study of problems in other services included commendation and recommendation about the solving problem and improving in term of logistic service. This research was a survey research. The sample group in this research was retailers that collected data by distribution questionnaire for 400 samplings then to data analysis by percentage, mean, standard deviation t-test and f-test. The research result found that most of respondents were women for 200 persons, age around 30-40 years, married status, bachelor’s degree and retail experience above 5-10 years, the idea about logistic service in term of quantity of products which had corrective order, time of delivery to fast, convenience, value added product service and communication with purchasing department that total had average at high level respectively. The hypothesis testing found that personal factors were gender, age, status, education levels and retail experience difference. The idea of quality of logistic service of retailer was not different statistical significance level of 0.05 therefore retail learnt about the key of logistic service principles.

Linking retailing experiences with life satisfaction

Purpose – A common assumption holds that retailers generally contribute to customer life satisfaction – retailers offer products and services that solve consumer problems – large and small. However, some retail experiences have been found to generate dissatisfaction, stress and unhappiness for some customers but not for others. Research is needed to not only demonstrate how retail experiences impact customer life satisfaction. The purpose of this paper is to address the question: why does satisfaction with various store types impact customer life satisfaction differently? Design/methodology/approach – The research context of this study is grocery retailers (neighbourhood convenience stores, super markets, and grocery discounters) in Austria. Using stratified random sampling across store types, a total of 379 personal interviews with grocery store customers were conducted. OLS regression analysis was conducted to test the research model. Findings – The study results suggest that satisfaction with a store type impacts customer life satisfaction depending on store-type congruity with shoppers’ identity. That is, satisfaction with a store type (e.g. neighbourhood convenience stores, super markets, and grocery discounters) is found to influence life satisfaction if the store type is congruent with the shoppers’ self-image and lifestyle. Practical implications – An emphasis on store-type congruity with shopper’s identity allows retailers to shift their attention towards creating more meaningful shopping experiences. Such a shift in focus may not only benefit retailers due to increase in customer loyalty for that store format. It also benefits shoppers themselves – the shopping experience contributes to shoppers’ life satisfaction. Originality/value – This research introduces store-type congruity with shopper’s identity as a key concept that connects shopping experiences to customer life satisfaction. This contributes towards building the hierarchical theory of shopping motivation. It demonstrates under what conditions shopping experiences impact consumer life satisfaction – a research topic that has received little attention in the retailing literature to date.

The efficacy of problem-based learning of plus-size design in the fashion curriculum

As obesity rates have grown in the past decades, so has interest in plus-size fashion. With more than 50% of US and Canadian women reporting that they wear a size 14 or higher, it is critical to address this demographic. To respond to this trend, fashion designers and merchandisers have been encouraged to incorporate plus-sizes into their lines [Kim, H. Y., Jolly, L., & Kim, Y. K. (2007). Future forces transforming apparel retailing in the United States: An environmental scanning approach. Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, 25(4), 307–322. 10.1177/0887302X07306851)]. Plus-size options are available although there are challenges for apparel designers and merchandisers when trying to create the ideal fit and inviting retail experience. To help undergraduate apparel students gain confidence, learn about critical issues and problem-solving approaches for the plus-size market, a project was created and implemented in an undergraduate design course at a US university in the Pacific Northwest. In the course, using the problem-based learning method, students researched, designed and produced an original plus-size prototype swimsuit for a prominent competitive swimwear company. Student feedback following the project was largely positive, with most students demonstrating increase in confidence and necessary skills through a hands-on approach.

Are consumers aware of top-bottom but not of left-right inferences? Implications for shelf space positions.

We propose that the horizontal and vertical position of an item on a display is a source of information that individuals use to make judgments. Six experiments using 1 × 5 or 5 × 5 displays show that consumers judge that products placed at the bottom (vs. top) and on the left-hand (vs. middle and right-hand) side of a display are less expensive and of lower quality (Study 1a using a bar display, Study 1b using wine, and Study 1c using Swatch watches). Results support the claim that verticality effects (top-bottom) are attenuated when participants are less involved with the decision task (Study 2 using Swatch watches and chocolates) and when they are exposed to information that questions the diagnosticity of using vertical position as a cue (Study 3 using wine). However, the horizontality (left-right) effect is robust to both of these manipulations. Horizontality effects are exacerbated for participants primed with a number line (Study 4 also using wine), suggesting that exposure to the number line (where higher numbers are on the right) is a possible antecedent of the horizontality effect. The verticality effects may, on the other hand, reflect people's retail experience of seeing higher priced products on higher shelves, which leads to their forming a similar expectation. The paper concludes with a discussion of theoretical implications for visual information processing as well as practical implications for retail management.

Youth retail tobacco access in Canada: Regional variation, perceptions, and predictors from YSS 2010/2011

PurposeRetail tobacco access is an important determinant of youth smoking prevalence. This study examines perceptions of ease in obtaining cigarettes and how prevalence of self-reported retail tobacco access among youth smokers varies by province in Canada. Additionally, relevant retail experiences, such as being asked for identification by a store clerk, are described. MethodsData from grades 9–12 students who participated in the 2010/2011 Youth Smoking Survey, a nationally generalizable sample of Canadian students (n=31396) were used to examine retail tobacco access and related experiences. Logistic regression models were used to examine differences in retail tobacco access and retail tobacco experiences by sociodemographic and regional characteristics. Results79% of students who never smoked thought it would be easy to get cigarettes. About one-quarter of smokers reported usually buying cigarettes from stores, and the percent of student smokers usually buying cigarettes in stores ranged from 16% in British Columbia to 36% in Quebec. Compared to grade 9 students, grade 12 students had higher odds of report being asked for identification (OR=6.3, 95% CI 1.9–21.5). ConclusionsRetail tobacco access appears to be a significant source of cigarette access among Canadian youth. Retail tobacco access varies significantly by province, which suggests provincial policies should be strengthened.

Everybody wins: servant-leadership

It was evaluation time, again. Anne mentally flipped through her little staff list and was satisfied that everyone was doing well until she got to Jo McAllister. Jo graduated from a state school near her home and attended an online MLIS program while working in retail. Her retail experience gave her good customer service skills, but she had only been able to volunteer a few times at her local library, ending up with little library experience before graduation. It had taken her almost two years to land this position. Anne thought she was killing two birds with one stone by hiring Jo. First, let’s face it, she came in at the bottom of the already low salary scale, and Anne needed to save money. Second, Jo was a first generation college student from a lower class background. Anne thought Jo would bring an understanding of this student population to her job, that she would be out front designing programs and resources for them, but that hadn’t been the case. Anne sighed; more experienced librarians had applied for the job but withdrew when they learned about the salary. Anne needed Jo, not just because she could get her at an entry level salary, but because Anne truly wanted the large number of first generation students at her little rural college to have a better library experience. Jo worked hard, but was it enough? Yes, she was good with patrons, but so was everyone else. Her database skills weren’t that great. She was uncomfortable with her part of collection development, unsure of her choices and always sought a second opinion. And when the other librarians lobbied for a little travel money and time off for the Association of College and Research Libraries conference, Jo volunteered to stick around and take up the slack. She didn’t seem to understand how the conference could help her professionally. Anne wondered if perhaps Jo thought she would be seen as a hard worker if she skipped the conference.

Managing visitors’ dining and retail experiences in South African national parks

In the light of the issue of declining government funding of South African National Parks (SANParks), as well as the negative influence of the poor service levels in shops, restaurants and eating facilities in these parks on visitor spending, SANParks needs to improve the retail and dining experiences at these facilities. This research attempts to provide guidelines for SANParks management in addressing these issues, by determining visitors’ retail and dining preferences and the relationship between these constructs. Quantitative research was conducted in 2011 using a web-based survey on the SANParks’ official website for two months (1st October – 30th November). This method resulted in obtaining 5 464 usable responses for the study. Factor analyses identified three relevant dining experience factors: Quality, Variety and value and Nature ambience and four retail experience factors: Goods and services, Pricing (consisting of two separate constructs: Expensive shops and Pay more inside Park) and Quality. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this was the first time that research was conducted with regard to addressing visitors’ retail and dining preferences at any South African national park, thereby contributing significantly to literature regarding visitor experiences in a nature-based context.

A conceptual model of the holistic effects of atmospheric cues in fashion retailing

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine how the holistic atmospheric cues encountered in a retail environment contribute to the creation of a retail experience. The interaction between these cues, and how they impact on the various stages of the retail experience is also explored. Design/methodology/approach – A qualitative methodology was employed, using protocol analysis and in-depth semi-structured interviews that were conducted with 18 participants. Data were collected in the context of the women’s fashion sector. Findings – The findings highlight the importance of store owners ensuring atmospheric cues create a store image congruent with their target market’s self-image. A model is also developed which highlights how atmospheric cues are able to affect successive stages of the retail experience. Originality/value – This paper provides a holistic understanding of how retail atmospheric cues are able to influence the overall retail experience; from how a retail store is initially evaluated through to the intention to purchase.