French Retail Research Articles

Distorted competition: Below-cost legislation, ‘marges arrière’ and prices in French retailing

The aim of this article is to demonstrate that the French Galland Act, outlawing below-cost resale via new and more severe invoicing regulation, has reduced the intensity of price competition among retailers in relation to branded goods. Moreover, the reduced intensity of price competition in the retail industry has encouraged a lessening of competition among the manufacturers of major industrial brands. Together, these two effects have sown the seeds of a sustained increase in the price of major brands, accentuating retail competition based more on differentiation than on price. These sustained policies have favoured the development of retailer brands and of hard discount stores and finally encouraged new types of reactions from major retailers and leading manufacturers, such as new types of promotions circumventing the Galland Act and a more intense lobbying activity in order to reform it.

The Impact of Loyalty Programmes on Repeat Purchase Behaviour

The purpose of this research is to contribute to a better knowledge about the impact of retailing loyalty programmes on repeat purchase behaviour. It is based on the BehaviorScan single-source panel which has been crossed with the store data base of a French retailer. We implemented the multinomial Dirichlet model, in order to test the impact of loyalty programmes on the general market structure. The double jeopardy phenomenon is present and loyalty programmes do not substantially change market structures. When all companies have loyalty programs, the market is characterized by an absence of change of the competitive situation.

A new approach for understanding hindrances to collaborative practices in the logistics channel

PurposeThe paper attempts to determine whether decision‐makers in the manufacturing and retailing industry really wish to implement cooperative logistical relationships in the long term.Design/methodology/approachIn order to answer the question, the authors have resorted to studying decision‐makers' private speech and to trying to discover the real meaning of their declarations. An original content analysis technique is implemented, which makes identifying hindrances to collaborative practices in the logistics channel possible.FindingsFrom the main results, it can be concluded that logistical relationships still tend to lead to vertical competition. This finding is surprising when confronted with the development of academic literature on the so‐called foreseeable evolution of food marketing channels.Research limitations/implicationsThe research relies on a reduced sample of 17 managers of major French manufacturing and retailing firms. Moreover, the data are generated by face‐to‐face interviews, which may introduce a biased view linked to the willingness to give a positive image of the firm.Originality/valueThe main results underline that the generalization of collaborative practices in the logistics channel is not always present in the frame of mind of decision‐makers as it appears through their private speech. From this point of view, the research can help in conducting negotiations, as well as in training future decision‐makers in business schools.

Meat safety as a tool of differentiation for retailers

PurposeSince several food crises have strongly affected the production of animal food products, food safety has become one of the most important aspects of quality products for both consumers and retailers. The aim of this article is to analyse how the health crises have contributed to increasing the segmentation of the supply of fresh and little‐processed food products under the impetus of a reinforcement of regulations (affecting the supply chain as a whole) and of strategies adopted by the stakeholders.Design/methodology/approachThe authors carry out an empirical and comparative analysis of the reactions of two neighbouring countries (Spain and France) faced with major health crises caused by similar events: the emergence of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) cases. A special focus is made on the initiatives taken privately by two French retail groups (Carrefour and Auchan) operating in both countries.FindingsThe analysis shows that retailers have developed systems of quality insurance developed in order to reduce uncertainty and to restore consumers' confidence in the quality of the products they buy. These programmes of actions pave the way for policies of product differentiation. In a relatively different context from that of France, the two big French retail groups Carrefour and Auchan operating in Spain have developed similar approaches, which had not been the case in France. In a context of sharp competition between quality designation on the one hand, and the relative dissatisfaction of the retailer with respect to “minimum quality” standards on the other, the two groups have adopted marketing communication strategies adapted to the Spanish situation, and have used “supply chain brands” as tools of differentiation to ensure consumers' loyalty.Originality/valueProvides an analysis of the effects of health crises on the segmentation of the supply of fresh food products.

Assessing the Productivity of the UK Retail Sector

Several recent comparative studies have shown a labour productivity gap in respect of UK retailing when compared with other countries, notably France and the USA. This article seeks to identify, through an overview of existing data and related research, the extent to which retail productivity in the UK compares to global competitors and attempts to reach a consensus on the factors that determine retail productivity, while highlighting common performance measures for retailers and Government to use in measuring future productivity trends. Methods employed include a review of published studies; interviews with industry participants in the UK and a small number of leading retailers in the USA; and an analysis of a specially created database of the performance of over 200 US, UK and French retail companies. The authors find that it is unwise to draw definitive conclusions from aggregate international economic analyses of the sector; that a wide variety of efficiency indicators are employed by the sector in practice; and that there are significant differences in the structure, operating and regulatory environment for retailing in the UK which impose costs on retailers that are not necessarily incurred in other countries.

Transfer of managerial practices by French food retailers to operations in Poland

Executive Overview We studied French food retailing chains operations in Poland over a period of ten years to assess their ability to transfer their managerial practices and work routines to Polish store management and floor personnel. We discovered that the retailers experienced great difficulty in reproducing their model in Poland because knowledge transfer was impeded by the differences between the management model of the French retailers and the behavior model of their Polish recruits. Both models were embedded in quite dissimilar home country administrative heritages. The resulting blockage threatened the growth potential of French hypermarkets, which relied on the rapid training of large numbers of store management and staff. We show that the French retail managers went through three phases in attempting to transfer their practices. In the first phase, they endeavored to impose the home office practices without adapting to the different attitudes of the first Polish employees. In the second phase, they overcame the period of confrontation of the two models by adapting their practices and creating a shared common space for learning with their employees. By diverging from the home office methods, they succeeded in training their Polish employees to run the first hypermarkets. In the third phase, currently under way, the retailing home offices are re-imposing standardization of methods, to ensure globalization of their business model. We conclude that, despite the temporary divergence led by local managers in adapting to local conditions, multinationals will eventually re-centralize and impose home-office approved practices because the knowledge encompassed is considered fundamental to the firm's business model.

Comparing student employment in French and Irish retailing

In this article the importance of students as staff in a selection of multi‐national stores in France and Ireland is compared. The employment of students was significantly lower in the French than Irish stores, and it is argued, using the work of Rubery and Gadrey et al., that this is related to cross‐national differences in the organisation of retailing in each country; in particular the skills sought of staff, their wage costs, and the organisation of working hours. The combination of these factors results in students being sought‐after employees in the Irish retail system, while in the French retail system students are rarely viewed as an effective labour source.

Does Entry Regulation Hinder Job Creation? Evidence from the French Retail Industry

Are product market and entry regulation key sources of low employment growth in many European countries? We investigate this question in the context of the French retail industry. Since 1974, approval by regional zoning boards has been required for the creation or extension of any large retail store in France. We exploit a unique database that provides time and region specific variation in boards' approval decisions. We show that stronger deterrence of entry by the boards, and the increase in large retail chains' concentration it induced, slowed down employment growth in France.

Does Entry Regulation Hinder Job Creation? Evidence from the French Retail Industry

Are product market and entry regulation key sources of low employment growth in many European countries? We investigate this question in the context of the French retail trade industry. Since 1974, approval by regional zoning boards has been required for the creation or extension of any large retain store in France. We exploit a unique database that provides time- and region-specific variation in boards' approval decisions. We show that stronger deterrence of entry by the boards increased retailer concentration and slowed down employment growth in France.

French retailers and banks are set for spending spree

French retailers and banks are set for spending spree

Period changes and Inventory Management: the Three Ages of Retail Logistics

The present research paper establishes a framework for analysing changes in French retail logistics. Unlike other studies, in which only two stages are described (the manufacturer-controlled system as stage 1 and the retailer-controlled system as stage 2), the authors have identified three periods or “ages” in retail logistics. This is done by highlighting the two philosophies that the country’s retailer-controlled systems (stage 2) have successively experience: the first one being based on an instrumental orientation; and the second on managerial vision. To illustrate the proposed model, they refer to the location of inventory in the distribution channel, progressively moving from the downstream (outlet) end of the value chain toward the upstream (factories). Logically, this leads to the establishment of closer relationships between large retailers and manufacturers. The paper concludes with a discussion on the different directions a fourth period in retail logistics could take.

Vive la différence: The gendering of occupational structures in a case study of irish and french retailing

In this article, the gendering of occupational structures in 47 non-food shops in France and Ireland is investigated in order to broaden understanding of the factors contributing to this. Although gender stereotyped employment patterns were similar in both countries, occupational structures in the shops studied in Dublin were found to be more feminized than in those studied in Paris. It is argued that this is due to the type of labor demanded in the stores, and to the gender of the supplies of labor available for retail employment in each city. The gendered occupational structures that result from this interaction of demand and supply issues were also found to be related to the regulatory environments existing in each country.

Large format retailers: a French tradition despite reactions

French retailers have initiated large format stores: department stores in the middle of the 19th century and their variety stores; hypermarkets more than a century later. These large format retail stores induced reactions from the French government on several occasions. These reactions consisted in controlling new locations through specific committees. The impact of these reactions did not greatly affect the evolution of large format retail stores like hypermarkets. Regulations hurt variety stores more strongly when they were in competition with hypermarkets, because they were already declining. Otherwise, the hypermarket retail life cycle has not been affected despite some delays. Recent problems could mean the end of development and possibly of maturity stages for these large format retail stores.

Internationalisation of Hypermarket Retailing in Poland

ABSTRACT Retailing in Poland after 1989 was privatised rapidly. There was an explosion in the number of small shops and kiosks. By 1996 rationalisation had begun in the store network. By the mid-1990s foreign retailers were perceiving the Polish market as a potentially lucrative one. Several store formats were introduced. Hypermarket operators from Western Europe have moved into the market strongly since the mid-1990s. French and German retailers are making substantial investments in this format. There are notable implications for the supply chain, logistics and the behaviour of manufacturers of fast-moving consumer goods, particularly food. There are implications also for the training and development of a cadre of managers in operational and strategic functions. The development of hypermarkets represents a significant transfer of managerial know-how from Western to Central Europe. There are also implications for the small shopkeeper sector which has already been affected but is likely to be more heavily affected as hypermarket numbers increase. In the process of the modernisation of retailing in Poland foreign hypermarket operators are playing an important role.

Consumption and the retail change process: a comparative analysis of toy retailing in Italy and France

Set in the context of a review and critique of the retail change literature, this study conceptualizes the importance of cultural diversity in consumption practices, and their dialectical interplay with retail structures. Underpinned theoretically by concepts located in Critical Theory and Bourdieu's studies of 'Distinctions', a grounded approach at a macro-level of analysis is applied to the comparison of the French and Italian toy retail sectors, which serves as an empirical illustration of the conceptual categories and relationships posited. In the comparative analysis of the French and Italian toy retail industry, the links between market structures and macro-economic and demographic factors, on the one hand, and localized consumption habits, on the other, are discussed, highlighting the interplay of the properties of the emergent retail activity and consumption categories of analysis. The impact of global sourcing and market entry of international retailers is assessed. Conclusions point to the importance of the forcefield between localized meaning and the dynamics of toy retail capital. It is argued that the commodity form of toys, together with the values attached to them and the role they play in childhood, is influencing the structures of national toy retail sectors which are also dependent on the overall retail system and broader environmental factors. In this, retail change processes take place as a result of the interactions between the different spheres and their particular expressions cannot be generalized across borders as they depend on the specific dynamics within each system.

Integration and territory coverage of the hypermarket industry in France: A relative entropy measure

This paper proposes an entropy measure to assess territory coverage of retail networks. An application is implemented for the hypermarket industry in France. An application is implemented for the hypermarket industry in France. That application considers the situation of hypermarkets before and after real or potential integration operations and is possible because some of these operations are already done and some are still in negotiation. Through a measure of relative entropy, gains in territory coverage due to integration operations are computed and compared from one integration operation to another. The results show that integration decisions made by French retailers are always justified in terms of territory coverage except in one case concerning an alliance between two French retailers. Finally, a new spatial view of the hypermarket industry in France is shown as it could be in 1998.

Une approche conceptuelle des relations fournisseurs-distributeurs

A new institutional economic approach to analyzing supplier-retailer relationships : the case of wine, counterseason fruit and dairy products. Supplier-retailer relationships in the food industry vary markedly from one subsector to another. This paper aims to explain the diversity in governance structures encountered in three sectors of food products (dairy products, wine and counterseason fruit), with a model grounded in the New Institutional Economics. The model emphasizes consumers' preferences and information issues, which play a key role in the supplier-retailer transactions environment. The basic NIE model is specified and applied to the French retail food industry, using the three products mentioned above. In this context, we use the model to explore in more detail the factors that play a key role in NIE analysis (uncertainty, asset specificity), discuss what the appropriate unit of analysis should be, and analyze the principles guiding the choice of governance structures. This application also allows us to incorporate into the model the critical importance of quality conventions and of technical progress in dealing with information to the choice of specific assets and governance structures in the different subsectors. The paper is primarily programmatic.

La mode sans frontières? The internationalisation of fashion retailing

This paper examines the internationalisation activities of eight French fashion retailers, with particular reference to their motivations and methods of entry into the UK retail fashion sector. The research results suggest that the ‘new wave’ of French fashion retailers (ie those established within the past 20 years), take a more proactive approach to cross‐border expansion than their more established counterparts. Expanding further the traditional motivations for internationalisation, as well as emphasising the importance of wholesaling and master‐franchising to fashion retailer market entry, the research provides a valuable insight into the pan‐national activities of fashion retailers. The paper concludes by making a case for further research into this much neglected, but very important area.

The French food manufacturing and retail systems in the mid-1990s

Food manufacturing and retail food systems are undergoing deep and rapid changes in all OECD countries. Are economists able to forecast the future shape of these systems? They, at least, have to identify the key factors which will determine the paths food production and retailing activities will follow. That is what this article aims at. In other words, if we cannot pretend to predict the details of the future, at least we intend to point out the driving forces which will influence the food manufacturing and retailing system. The first section describes the analytical framework that will guide our study. The second section gives data that will help understand the dynamics of food manufacturing and retailing in France. The third section gives a more qualitative analysis of the French case. We stress the very important role played by the State in the game between retailers and manufacturers. The fourth section analyses the crisis of the system which arose at the beginning of the 1990s. Finally, we make a prospect of future changes, pointing out the latest State decisions regarding the French retailing sector. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Own branding in UK and French grocery markets

Undertakes a comparative analysis of the evolution and development of own branding strategies in UK and French grocery markets. Primary research was carried out through semi‐structured interviews with senior managers of French grocery companies to determine the nature of their own branding strategies and to draw out comparisons with the strategies of their UK counterparts. Results indicate that it is unlikely that French retailers will develop store brands on the scale of Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Marks & Spencer and Safeway in the UK. The organizational structure of French grocery business is less conducive to centralized buying and distribution, and conflict between manufacturers and distributors has led to a less efficient supply chain than in the UK. These factors, coupled with a highly competitive price‐driven market environment, have resulted in most French retailers using own brands as a defensive strategy to combat strong national brands. The exceptions are companies which are well represented in the high street (Monoprix, Casino and Prisunic) and Carrefour, the only hypermarket operator which has ventured down the route of the UK multiples with a more value‐added, differentiation approach.