Retail Performance Research Articles

Effects of Supplier’s Competitive Factors on Relationship Performance and Product Recommendation in Crop Protection Retail Sector

The changes in distribution channels of the crop protection industry are accelerating the influence of crop protection retailers on farmers’ product purchase decisions. This study aims to identify the critical competitive factors; ‘product quality’, ‘supply price’, ‘brand awareness’, ‘flexibility’, and ‘promotion support’; of crop protection manufacturers. And it empirically analyzes effects of the critical factors on relationship performance and product recommendation of crop protection retailers. This research also examined the difference among these major factors according to the level of trust of crop protection companies as suppliers. Survey data were collected from 660 retailers by the crop protection distribution market in South Korea. As for the results, the five factors were defined as the crop protection suppliers’ competitive factors. Supply price, promotion support, brand awareness, and flexibility had a positive (+) effect on relationship performance. Brand awareness, promotion support, product quality, and flexibility had a positive (+) effect on customer recommendation. Furthermore, supply price significantly affected relationship performance in a group with high trust, and promotion support significantly affected a group with low trust.

Exploring Coupled Open Innovation for Digital Servitization in Grocery Retail: From Digital Dynamic Capabilities Perspective

Open innovation and digital servitization have been hot topics in existing research. Moreover, the latest research in entrepreneurship and general management justifies that the performance results of specific innovation strategies are usually influenced by dynamic capabilities. However, there is little empirical research on the linkage of open innovation, digital servitization, and micro-foundations of digital dynamic capabilities that affect alliance performance. The emerging literature on open innovation provides partial insight into the micro-foundations of digital dynamic capabilities. Based on it, from a dynamic capability perspective, this paper constructs a conceptual model of research including coupled open innovation of collaborative partners, alliance’s formation phases, and dynamic digital capabilities and their micro-foundations which impact alliance performance in grocery retail. The paper aims to provide an overarching view of the digital servitization process of grocery retailers and unpack the micro-foundations of the digital transformation of their business models to sustain advantages. Thus, the paper contributes to the research on open innovation, blockchain technology, artificial intelligence, and dynamic capabilities and provides two theoretical propositions. Then, having employed two illustrative case studies, this paper empirically tests theoretical propositions and justifies the role of coupled open innovation strategies for digital servitization and its micro-foundations.

Managing the retail operations in the COVID-19 pandemic: Evidence from Morocco.

Novel coronavirus disease (COVID‐19) and resulting lockdowns have contributed to major retail operational disturbances around the globe, forcing retail organizations to manage their operations effectively. The impact can be measured as a black swan event (BSE). Therefore, to understand its impact on retail operations and enhance operational performance, the study attempts to evaluate retail operations and develop a decision‐making model for disruptive events in Morocco. The study develops a three‐phase evaluation approach. The approach involves fuzzy logic (to measure the current performance of retail operations), graph theory (to develop an exit strategy for retail operations based on different scenarios), and ANN and random forest‐based prediction model with K‐cross validation (to predict customer retention for retail operations). This methodology is preferred to develop a unique decision‐making model for BSE. From the analysis, the current retail performance index has been computed as “Average” level and the graph‐theoretic approach highlighted the critical attributes of retail operations. Further, the study identified triggering attributes for customer retention using machine learning‐based prediction models (MLBPM) and develops a contactless payment system for customers' safety and hygiene. The framework can be used on a periodic basis to help retail managers to improve their operational performance level for disruptive events.

The Role of Social Customer Relationship Management in Improving Relationship Performance in Small Businesses

The advent of social media allows SMEs to use marketing information gleaned from social media to develop functions that enable them to serve their customers better. Small businesses can improve their communication with customers through social media to understand their ideas and thereby increase their profits. Small businesses can gain brand awareness on social media at a lower cost, as consumers can spread word of mouth to more potential customers on social media. SMEs can get information about changing customer preferences for products and services by communicating with customers on social media. Marketing insights gained from social media can support innovative strategies to improve retailer performance. SMEs can use information obtained from customers via social media to make accurate and timely brand innovation decisions. This research uses the PLS-SEM method to study the relationship between social factors in information processing and customer relationship performance. Data collection using interviews and distributing questionnaires to SME merchants. This study aims to influence customer relationship performance by studying the impact of social customer relationship management (s-CRM) and customer relationship store positioning on customer engagement and social information processes.

Learning from failure to enhance performance: a systematic literature review of retail failure

PurposeThe objective of this paper is to develop a map of the contours of the phenomenon of retailer failure by aggregating, parsing and extracting known findings regarding business failure in marketing, business and other streams of inquiry to provide a comprehensive understanding of research on the topic. Defined as the converse of retailer performance, an understanding of retail failure is expected to yield insights for performance measurement and benchmarking studies.Design/methodology/approachThe paper includes a systematic literature review, employing state-of-the-art tools such as VOSViewer.FindingsThe analysis reveals patterns in the intellectual structure of the research on retail failure, as well as patterns of influence. While the discipline of marketing has been surprisingly limited in the study of retail failure, study of retail failure has been pursued by other branches of the business discipline, and even some disciplines other than business.Originality/valueThis paper provides a comprehensive and systematic literature review on the topic of retail failure.

Evaluating the Digital Transformation Performance of Retail by the DEA Approach

In recent years, under the impact of digitization, all industries around the world have undergone unprecedented changes. Such changes have not only altered people’s consumption behavior but have also forced enterprises to accelerate the pace of digitization and actively start digital transformation. In this study, a literature review and focus group interview (FGI) were used to develop the dimensions and criteria to assess enterprise digital transformation status. To illustrate the digital transformation criteria proposed in this research, the retail industry was used as an example to measure the overall digital transformation performance by data envelopment analysis (DEA). The results show that the poor technical efficiency demonstrated by a vendor was not only due to the gradually decreasing returns to scale of the market; a decline in pure technical efficiency was also a contributor. In addition to adjusting their production on the basis of market conditions, vendors should properly manage their internal operations and pay attention to their resource and scale allocations to prevent reductions in their pure technical efficiency.

The Impact of Absorption Capability, Innovation Capability, and Branding Capability on Firm Performance—An Empirical Study on Vietnamese Retail Firms

This study aims to explore the impact of absorption capability, innovation capability, and branding capability on the performance of retailers. Using the resource-based view (RBV), this study proposes a research model on the direct impact of absorption capability, innovation capability, and branding capability on firm performance as well as the indirect impact of absorption capability on firm performance which is mediated by both innovation capability and branding capability. By surveying 201 middle and senior managers representing 201 Vietnamese retailers, PLS-SEM was used to test the hypotheses. The research results show the important role of developing innovation capability and branding capability in improving retailer performance. The findings also reveal the significant impact of absorption capability on retailers by an indirect mechanism through innovation capability and branding capability. Based on the findings, practical implications for Vietnamese retailer managers are suggested to improve their performance by strengthening and developing absorption capability, innovation capability, and branding capability.

An application of delphi and dea to performance efficiency assessment of retail stores in fashion industry

Efficiency management is increasing its importance in the improvement of the chain sustainability. As such, this study aims to assess the performance efficiency of retail stores in fashion industry. The integrated approach of Delphi and DEA techniques was employed to address the performance efficiency assessment problem. The Delphi method was used to define the input and output variables, whereas the DEA was applied to evaluate the performance efficiency. The proposed approach was then applied into a fashion company in Hochiminh city of Vietnam to assess its retail chain performance. The results showed that labour, operational costs, size of store, number of customers, and sales revenue are considered as input and output variables in the retailing performance efficiency evaluation. Besides, it is also concluded in the study that most of efficiency retail stores are located in the dynamic districts and the efficient stores can be at any size. The proposed approach verifies its usefulness in the retailing sector. Therefore, it can be applied to the performance efficiency of retail stores in all industries. In terms of theoretical contribution, the input and output variables proposed in this study may devote to the literature in the concept and assessment of the performance efficiency. Moreover, comprehensive and multi-variable assessment of retailing sector may bring lots of benefits not only to the decision-making units but also the authorities or association with constraint funds.

Product Perceptual Similarity Evaluation: From Attributive Error to Human Knowledge Hierarchy

Abstract A crucial part of any recommendation system for manufactured goods is the method used to evaluate the similarity of products. However, despite being central to the performance of many online retailers, current ways of evaluating product similarity are inconsistent with several characteristics of human perception and consequently often generate obvious errors when applied in practice. This paper proposes a new approach that uses the results of a perceptual evaluation of respondents to determine their “inherent knowledge hierarchy.” Using this characterization of the user, we propose a new strategy for determining the perceived similarity of products (PSIM strategy). After a preliminary verification of the proposed approach, we found that the performance of the PSIM strategy is much better than current strategies in terms of both accuracy and robustness. Beyond the application of PSIM in product recommendation systems, the findings of this study have the potential to help designers and companies better understand their customers’ emotional needs.

Assessing the moderating effect of brick-and-mortar store on omnichannel retailing

PurposeThis study aims to investigate the moderating effects of brick-and-mortar (BM) store characteristics and customer satisfaction on the relationship between ship-to-store (STS) retailing and BM store performance in an emerging economy. The purpose is to explore how BM store characteristics and customer satisfaction influence online buying behaviour when customers visit the stores to pick up their products.Design/methodology/approachThis study collected secondary longitudinal data from 615 BM stores from one of Brazil's largest retailers and performed a panel-data regression analysis using the following moderating variables: customer satisfaction with BM stores, BM store's size, convenience and inventory transparency.FindingsCustomer satisfaction with BM stores moderates the effect of STS transactions on the revenue per store. Results also show that BM store's convenience, size and inventory transparency moderate STS online customers' impact on BM store cross-sales.Research limitations/implicationsThe STS strategy can increase online and BM store performance. Some BM store characteristics and customer satisfaction influence online customers to buy more products when they visit BM stores to pick up their products, providing a more complex model for the relationship between STS strategy and BM store performance.Practical implications Companies in emerging economies can use the BM store more strategically in combination with the STS strategy to increase overall retailer performance. By managing some BM store characteristics, managers can improve retail sales.Originality/valueThis study demonstrates how new moderating factors expand the understanding of the relationship between online and physical retailing in emerging economies. Also, the panel data regression results control for extraneous variables and provide more robust evidence of the relationships observed.

The Effects of Social Media Tools Towards Online Retail Businesses in the Consumer Electronics Industry

Businesses nowadays have been adapting to technological advancements since the 21st century to promote their products. The majo]rity of the global population has been exposed to the digital world, and retail businesses have engaged themselves in the online environment. Social media tools have become a significant factor in advertising products and have taken big steps to create innovations in their platforms. Using social media has given online businesses options on managing their performance towards their brand and how to interact with consumers. These digital enhancements toward flourishing online retail businesses have boosted the consumer electronics industry. The study's objective was to provide extensive knowledge of how the different social media platforms and tools significantly affected the performance of online retail businesses belonging to the consumer electronics industry. A quantitative research approach was utilized in this study. The researchers conducted online survey questionnaires and were distributed to 185 respondents. Lastly, the study aims to benefit retail businesses, consumers, and future researchers, who engage in online businesses and how they can stand out from prospective competitors.

An empirical investigation of forward-looking retailer performance using parking lot traffic data derived from satellite imagery

In this research note, we study the effectiveness of parking lot traffic in predicting forward-looking retailer performance (measured by Tobin's q). We obtain parking lot car count data derived from satellite images to construct a quarterly aggregate measure of parking lot traffic for 15 general merchandise retailers. To mitigate endogeneity concerns, we exploit the exogenous shocks of mass shootings that provide exogenous variations in parking lot traffic. Applying the control function approach and a panel firm fixed-effects estimator on 402 retailer-quarter observations, we find that quarterly aggregate parking lot traffic significantly predicts forward-looking retailer performance. Moreover, drawing on the perspectives of organizational competency, we find that the positive relationship between parking lot traffic and forward-looking retailer performance is moderated by factors that are related to a retailer's store management competency, namely, a retailer's existing store management competency (measured by comparable store sales), its proactivity to maintain the competency (reflected by store management intensity, i.e., the total number of store openings and closings relative to the total number of stores), and the external environment (measured by industry concentration) that affects its store management competency.

Examining the nexus between food retailers certification and its impacts

PurposeThe authors assessed the certification of street food retailers in Ghana in terms of awareness, training, willingness to be certified, determinants, agreement with certification requirements and impacts on performance.Design/methodology/approachPrimary data was sourced from 200 street food retailers. Descriptive statistics, Likert scale, mean comparison test, heteroskedastic probit, inverse-probability-weighted regression adjustment (IPWRA), inverse probability weights (IPW) and augmented inverse-probability weighting (AIPW) were applied.FindingsMost uncertified retailers were willing to be certified. Awareness about certification was high. Most of the certified retailers had been trained on certification, while most uncertified retailers had not been trained. Being a female, being educated, being a migrant vendor, possessing experience in retailing, training in certification, trust in the local certification process, the amount spent in preparing food and the number of customers are crucial variables that increase the probability of being certified among street food vendors. Street food retailers agreed to all the requirements for certification. Certification boosts the performance of street food retailers in terms of the number of customers and contracts received. Training on certification is recommended for street food retailers.Research limitations/implicationsThe limitation of this study is mainly due to the type of food retailers selected. Street food vending in Ghana is done among those who cook food for selling, those who sell processed products such as drinks and those who sell vegetables and other uncooked agriproducts. Meanwhile, the authors selected unorganised retailers who primarily cook local and regional dishes for sale in this study. Thus, the study did not include organised food retailers such as restaurants. Therefore, generalising the study results for street food vendors should be made with caution.Originality/valueSeveral studies have been conducted on street food retailing across the globe on knowledge of food-safety practices, risk practices, bacterial contamination of street retailing food, toxicological hazards of street foods and compliance with technical and hygienic requirements by street food retailers, among others. However, empirical studies on the certification/licensing of street food retailers and its impact have been given little attention. As a result, this study investigates the certification of street food retailers and its impacts on retailers' performance in Ghana.

Optimizing service level, price, and inventory decisions for a supply chain with retailers’ competition and cooperation under VMI strategy

In a vendor-managed inventory (VMI) system, a manufacturing vendor manages their retailer inventories. Studies on VMI-type supply chains mostly have not considered competition between retailers. There are few works on the price competition; however, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, none of the papers formulated a service competition strategy. The service level is one of the competitive factors among competing retailers. Sometimes retailers choose to compete cooperatively instead of competing independently with the manufacturer. The present work investigates service, price, and inventory decisions under retailers’ competition and cooperation. Considering the manufacturer and retailers as the leader and followers, respectively, a Stackelberg game model of the problem is developed. The present study proposes a solution algorithm to search the Stackelberg–Nash equilibrium in the retailer cooperation and retailer independence models. The algorithm is numerically demonstrated to explore the impacts of decision parameters. To validate the model, a number of parameters are subjected to sensitivity analyses. It was found that a higher self-service (cross-service) level parameter would lead to higher (lower) profits of the retailer and manufacturer and the total profit in the two models. Retailer cooperation enhances retailer performance; however, manufacturer and system profits decline. Furthermore, when retailers cooperate, they are motivated to offer lower service levels.

The Role of Propinquity and Coordination in Influencing Competitive Advantage of Retail SMEs in Malaysia

The existence of hypermarkets and supermarkets with modern retail format has affected the performance of many retailers in the category of small medium enterprises (SMEs) in Malaysia. In this era of disruptive marketing, the main challenges of retail SMEs are the ability to survive, to remain competitive and to sustain the business. With the challenges of finding the right strategies to compete effectively, there is now an inclination to look at social networks as means of establishing strong market presence. Engaging and maintaining social networks in their business relationships is essential for retail SMEs if they want to address strategic positions and subsequently build strong competitive advantage in the business. This study postulates that establishing social networks, specifically in terms of propinquity (related with network cluster, network centrality and geographic proximity) among social network members, will enable the gathering of important resources needed by retail SMEs to secure more sustainable competitive advantage. However, only few studies have focused on social networks especially from the Asian context and many have overlooked the importance of social networks in retailing. This study also suggests the need to focus on coordination in relation to propinquity of social networks which refers to the location of retail SMEs and their ability to coordinate efforts to gain competitive advantage. This study extends the literature on social networks by providing a conceptual framework describing the importance of propinquity on coordination of activities leading to the development of competitive advantage for retail SMEs.

Modernizing Retailers in an Emerging Market: Investigating Externally Focused and Internally Focused Approaches

This article studies the impact of business modernization on the sales performance of traditional retailers in an emerging market. The authors define modernization as the adoption of physical structures and tangible practices of organized retail chains (e.g., exterior signage with store name and logo, a database to record product-level information). To address this research question, they implement a randomized field experiment in Mexico City with 1,148 retailers. The sample is randomized as follows: 385 firms are externally modernized in ways that are visible to customers, 383 firms are internally modernized in ways that are not visible to customers, and 380 firms form a control group. The authors find a significant and persistent main effect of modernization on sales. Firms in both treatment groups increase monthly sales by 15%–19% 24 months after study recruitment. In terms of novel mechanism evidence, externally modernized firms improve their store-level branding, while internally modernized firms strengthen their product management. This article also provides an exploratory analysis to guide policy makers, managerial stakeholders, and retailers on how to modernize for the highest returns. This analysis suggests that it is most useful to modernize a firm’s exterior appearance, customer engagement methods, demand analysis, and stock-ordering processes. Finally, the largest improvements come from the initial few modernizing changes, after which returns are diminishing.

Refund Policy and Threat of Encroachment with Consumer Behaviors

Pre-sale orders enable consumers to purchase products in advance, but they may lead to a high level of consumer returns. Based on consumer behaviors, this study builds a two-stage model comprising an incumbent retailer, a competitor, and strategic consumers under the competitive market or the monopoly market. A competitor has the option of entering and exiting the market during the regular sales period. We study the optimal pricing mechanism of both the incumbent and competitive retailer, analyze the impact of consumers’ choice strategies, competitors’ options on pricing decisions, and the incumbent retailer's performance. Our results imply that when the proportion of strategic consumers is large or consumers’ strategic behavior is strong, the competitor's revenue is high while the incumbent's revenue is low. However, a high proportion of loyal consumers and a flexible price strategy favor the incumbent retailer. And the entry of a competitor has a negative impact on the incumbent retailer.

Multibit Coded Passive Hybrid Resonator Based RFID Transponder With Windowing Analysis

This study proposes novel design options for a compact passive transponder that incorporates both stepped impedance resonators (SIR) and rectangular stub resonators in a hybrid approach. The analysis aims to support the progress of chipless radio frequency identification (RFID) technology by overcoming barriers like cost, size, and coding capacity. A step-by-step analysis of the design ensures a 10-bit coding capacity with a physical footprint of 32 mm × 15 mm having -25.66 dBsm of maximum radar cross-section (RCS) response. The same has been analysed at the receiver with a rectangular windowing approach which enhances the coding capacity and security features of the RFID system. Further, this has been analysed with Hamming, Hanning, and Bartlett windows to show the effectiveness of the windowing techniques in RFID coding. The performance of the tag is analysed for different tilt-angles and read-distances to strengthen the detection accuracy. The hybrid resonator (HR) with windowing analysis is a novel approach to enhance the usage of the transponder by improving the coding capacity, information storage capability, and detection performance in various retail and healthcare domains in the RFID industry.

The effect of artificial intelligence and payment flexibility on operational performance: The enabling role of supply chain risk management

This paper investigates the effect of artificial intelligence (product information, recommendation, and social media exposure) and payment flexibility on the operational performance of ecommerce retailers. The study is based on Transactional Cost Analysis, Material Flow, and Technology Integration theories. It considered a sample size of 270 members out of the population of 769 employees from five ecommerce companies operating in the region (Namshi.com, Noon, Joly Chic, Extra, and Styli). The analysis involved constructing a structural equation model to examine the trickle-down effect of the variables included in the study. The study concluded that artificial intelligence and payment flexibility are the core reasons that the retailers in the region are registering operational success in the retail market.

Reliability checking and performance analysis of stake holder of E-SCM using machine learning and petrinets

Electronic commerce or E-commerce (sometimes written as E-commerce) is a business model that lets firms and individuals buy and sell things over the internet.E-commerce provides the sellers with a global reach. They remove the barrier of place. Now sellers and buyers can meet in the virtual world, without the hindrance of location.Supply chain management is coordination of all supply activities of an organization from its suppliers and partners to its customers efficiently and effectively. Electronic supply chain management (E-SCM) is collaborative use of technology to improve the operations of supply chain activities as well as the management of supply chains. The advantages of E-SCM are many, and include timely order-processing, improved inventory tracking and management, improved accuracy in order fulfillment. But which E-SCM is a reliable one is a bothering question of a customer. The customer is the most important and integral part of the supply chain. Neglecting the customer in this chain can cause breakdown of the entire process.The electronic supply chain provides retailers and their suppliers a medium for instant communication. But can a customer rely on a paticular retailer and can the customer expect his product on time. This reliability can be checked by using Bayesian appoach. Then petrinet is used to check the performance of retailers, manufacturers and suppliers and find out when the product will reach the customer through this E-SCM. Using web design tools a webpage is created to give information about supplier. The given information is checked in the background for its authenticity. Later the delivery details will be sent to customer only if information is authentic. This will benefit the customers from fraud sites and help them find a reliable retailer and improves reliability of customer on retailer. Also helps customers in taking decision to place the orders. If order is placed then predicts the number of days taken to deliver that product to customer. Therefore helping the customer to keep track of the order. Hence overall satisfaction of the customer is improved.