Retail Organizations Research Articles

Decoding Retail Realities: Traditional Retailers' Outlook on Sales Erosion to Modern Retail Economy

The traditional retail landscape in Indian metropolises has changed significantly in the last several decades, mostly due to the modern retail economy's growth, including corporate chain stores and e-commerce sites. Small merchants have been gradually displaced as a result of this paradigm shift, which has been exacerbated by changed Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) laws that have brought significant money into the Indian market, as well as a rise in consumer disposable income and the wave of digitalization. This study explores small merchants' consequences as they contend with the growing power of organized retail and e-commerce behemoths. Despite earlier research studies mostly focusing on the organized trade's exponential rise due to changing customer behavior, this paper fills this gap by illuminating the traditional retailer’s perspective towards the contemporary retail landscape and highlighting the threats to small businesses with a traditional focus. The study uses empirical analysis using tools like SPSS and SEM models to examine the initial troubles faced by small retailers of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), highlighting the difficulties they face in competing with the powerful forces of deep discounting, massive sales events, and evolving consumer tastes. This exploratory research analyzed the undermining factors like utilitarian and hedonic, purchasing patterns, menaces, hindrances, pecuniary and location as reasons for the retail paradigm from traditional to modern trade. The outcome emphasized that utilitarian factors like ambience, experience, status, variety, payment modes, single-store distribution and assortment are the drivers behind the explosion of traditional trade by the modern trade in retail economy.

Consumer Preference towards Organised Retail Stores

This research article explores the rise and impact of organized retail stores in the modern market. Organized retail, characterized by standardized operations, large-scale management, and diverse product offerings, has revolutionized the shopping experience for consumers.The article highlights the various formats of organized retail stores, including supermarkets, department stores, and specialty stores. These stores offer convenience, a wide range of products, and professional sales techniques, attracting customers through strategic marketing and promotions.However, organized retail also faces challenges like intense competition, evolving consumer behavior, and high operational costs. To thrive, these stores must adapt by providing personalized services, incorporating new technologies, and offering unique products.Furthermore, the article examines the impact of organized retail on the broader economy. It creates job opportunities, generates tax revenue, and fosters economic growth. However, concerns regarding the impact on traditional small businesses and local communities require consideration.In conclusion, organized retail stores offer a multitude of benefits for consumers, businesses, and the economy. By acknowledging the challenges and fostering a balanced approach, this sector can ensure its continued success while minimizing potential drawbacks.

7-day patterns in Black-White segregation in 49 metropolitan areas

While residential segregation is a persistent attribute of metropolitan areas, recent studies find segregation levels fluctuate throughout the day, reaching their lowest levels during daytime hours. This paper shows hourly variations in Black-White segregation from Monday through Sunday for the top 49 most populated metropolitan areas with Global Positioning System (GPS) data collected from mobile phones from October 2018. I find that segregation levels are higher on average over weekends compared to that of weekdays. I use models to identify the characteristics of neighborhoods with higher levels of segregation on weekends, which include all demographic variables and nearly a third of 35 sectors of businesses and organizations, such as retail, personal care, and religious organizations. I also find more than a third of the sectors are associated with higher levels of segregation during business hours on weekdays, including academic institutions, health care, manufacturing, and financial institutions. Findings from this paper display the significance in the distinction between weekdays and weekends with where people spend their time and how this relates to racial segregation. Specifically, Black people, on average, stay in their home census tracts and visit non-White neighborhoods for organizational resources more so than White people. Significant patterns of associations between racial segregation and the majority of businesses demonstrate the salience of race for more industries than previously understood.

Has the Consumer Perception Changed? An Overview of Consumer Behavior towards Organized Retail Sectors in Kolkata, India

The research paper focuses on the change of consumers’ perception towards purchasing different commodities in the organized retail outlets of Kolkata. The study revealed that the behaviour of a consumer towards a particular outlet mainly depends upon factors like product availability, spending pattern, sales man services, store layout etc. The research shows that currently a large section of consumers is attracted towards the organised retail outlets because of wide range of services like variety of payment options provided by the store, visibility of the billing counter, wide range of brands availability, quality of the products, and better service at the store have majorly attributed to preference of organized retail store over the unorganized outlets. Also, parameters like visibility of display of MRP, discount offers, quality of service at the organized store, trolley service facilities etc. are some of the reasons of inclination of consumers towards organized retail stores as compared to traditional retail formats. The study has found mostly the younger generation consumers are tending to have a tendency towards making new experiences mainly for groceries and have an urge to make spontaneous purchases compared to older generation of consumers. Apart from the positive aspects, the study also observed a bunch of constraints that restricts a consumer from going to an organized retail store which are the factors like lower budget, inability of the lower income group of people due to financial constraints, lack of advertisements, unavailability of low-priced products, most of the necessary products being easily available in the traditional markets, illiteracy etc. are some of the major constraints found in the study which have contributed to 19.48% of variance and has been further renamed as consumers perception by using the Principle Component Analysis (PCA) method.

Adoption of artificial intelligence tools by retail organisations

Recent advancements in information and computing technologies have created a new category of artificial intelligence (AI) tools which are now being adopted by the retail industry. History reveals that every new technology-based tool faces barriers before becoming widely and successfully adopted, and AI tools are no exception. While numerous studies have already confirmed the benefits of these tools for multinational corporations, many retailers are facing significant barriers in adopting them. A review of the literature showed that the primary barriers are in the areas of human resources, strategic planning, project management and legacy IT systems. To build on these findings and find the AI adoption barriers, an international study of 13 retail and retail technologies experts from eight different countries was conducted. The results suggest that there is a preferred way for retail organisations to be structured and act in order to be successful at adopting AI tools. Based on the literature review and empirical results, a conceptual model for successful AI tools adoption is proposed. This model with broader research results contributes to the literature on AI tools adoption in retail organisations, suggests the steps organisations can take to be more successful, and highlights the importance of company culture and potential return on investment (ROI) of the AI solution for successful adoption.

To trust or not to trust? Trust landscape of organic animal husbandry: Mapping consumer attitudes and information demands in Germany

A mainly positive attitude of consumers towards organic animal husbandry with its higher keeping standards compared to the legal regulations is evident. However, less is known about consumers’ detailed expectations of organic husbandry and in particular their attitude and trust along the value chain of organic animal products. Which consumers trust the most, and how do they want to be informed about organic animal husbandry? Where along the chain are trust deficits that should be addressed in the future to support sustainable food consumption with high animal welfare standards? To answer these important questions a survey was conducted among 729 German meat consumers. Using a cluster analysis, various consumer groups were identified based on their trust levels. Further, these groups were characterized regarding their general attitude, their information behavior, their evaluation of current media reporting, and their preferred way to be informed (emotional/rational) about organic animal products. The results revealed three clusters that clearly differ in their trust level of organic husbandry. Respondents assigned to the first cluster are committed organic consumers with high trust and the most positive attitude. The second cluster, combines respondents who are generally open to organic meat consumption and showing the second highest trust level and positive attitude towards organic. They show a slight favor for a more rational presentation of information. The third cluster is the smallest and can be described as the skeptics with a low interest in organic. The results indicate a general moderate to high trust level along the value chain of organic animal products, with the highest trust in organic retailers and farmers and the least trust in processing and conventional retailers. These are important insights for the organic sector in order to improve consumer trust and therewith increase the market share of organic meat products.

Adaptive Clothing for the Elderly of India: Analysis of the Current Market Scenario

Since the beginning of civilisation, clothing has played a vital role in the lives of mankind. Humans use clothing to express themselves and build a positive relationship with others in the society. However, the fashion business has always concentrated on a narrowly defined retail client based on modern cultural notions of beauty: young, conventionally beautiful, and able bodies, with very little inspirational work done in inclusive fashion clothing (Azer et al., 2012; Carroll, 2015). Most of the elderly people struggle with limited body movements and functions and therefore find it difficult to fit into the clothes made by the fashion retail industry. They require clothing that are adaptive, meaning clothing that are easily accessible, made to fit their body requirements and do not compromise on style. The good news is that there is a noticeable shift in the fashion industry and there are many brands which are working in the domain of adaptive clothing. In the international market there are a number of retail organisations that have a dedicated clothing line for the elderly. However, the adaptive clothing market in India is at a nascent stage. There are just a handful of brands working in this sector. The objective of the research was to study the current market players offering adaptive clothing in India. The data was collected from the social media pages of five home grown brands. An in-depth analysis was done in terms of the product range, their functionality, available sizes, choice of textiles etc. The percentage of elderly population is growing in India but the number of products and choices offered by these Indian brands are limited. Therefore, this sector has a huge potential. Research should be carried out to identify the needs of the consumers and suitable product line should be developed.

The influence of neurodiversity management on affective commitment and turnover intention: the role of neurodiversity awareness

PurposeIn the wake of labor shortages in the retail industry, there is value in highlighting a business case for employing neurodivergent individuals. Drawing on signaling theory, this study explores whether perceived neurodiversity management (neurodiversity policies and adjustments) helps enhance neurodiversity awareness and affective commitment and whether affective commitment leads to lower turnover intention.Design/methodology/approachA cursory content analysis of publicly available documents of randomly selected four retail organizations was undertaken, which was followed by an online survey of the Australian retail workforce, leading to 502 responses from supervisors and employees.FindingsThe content analysis shows that retail organizations barely acknowledge neurodiversity. The findings of the main study indicate that neurodiversity policies are positively associated with both neurodiversity awareness and affective commitment, while adjustments were positively linked to affective commitment. Moreover, affective commitment was negatively associated with turnover intention. Affective commitment also mediated the negative effects of neurodiversity policies and adjustments on turnover intention.Originality/valueThis study supports, extends and refines signaling theory and social exchange theory. It addresses knowledge gaps about the perceptions of co-workers and supervisors in regard to neurodiversity management. It provides unprecedented evidence for a business case for the positive attitudinal outcomes of neurodiversity policies and adjustments. The findings can help managers manage neurodiversity for positive attitudinal outcomes.

Reviving unorganized retail stores post-COVID-19

ABSTRACT The COVID-19 pandemic threatened people’s lives and livelihoods, which induced an existential hapax, changing their consumption choices. The unexpected disruption in physical retail due to the measures to control the pandemic, and changes in consumer preferences have forced organized retailers to leverage technology and adopt omnichannel strategies. However, small, unorganized retailers, popular in emerging markets like India, do not have state-of-the- art digital technologies to compete with online and organized retail. Thus, they need consumer insights to devise effective marketing strategies for sustaining. This research uncovers post-pandemic consumer values that drive preference for fragmented unorganized retailers, based on qualitative data collected from 32 respondents using in-depth interviews. The findings highlight that the altered consumer values of spiritualism, minimalism, self-transcendence, altruism, reciprocity, and hedonic shopping orientation guide preference for unorganized retailers. Small retailers’ can leverage these consumer values by providingpersonalized products and services, communicating relevant store values, and adapting their operations to harness the opportunities in the new normal to revive and grow their businesses.

A machine learning framework for predicting weather impact on retail sales

The weather affects the sales of many retail products worldwide. As the weather becomes more erratic due to climate change, retail organizations must respond by incorporating weather information into their sales forecasting models. This study proposes a modeling framework for identifying, quantifying, and evaluating the use of weather information in forecasting models. The models are developed using several time-shifted weather features and machine-learning techniques. Our method is applied to a dataset encompassing individual products and product categories obtained from a large Canadian retail organization. We find that using weather information improves the accuracy of sales forecasts significantly, explaining up to an additional 47% of the variance for the individual products and up to an additional 56% for the product categories, on top of the variance explained by a baseline model. By analyzing the parameters of the trained models, we can also determine the importance and influence of each weather feature, including time-shifted features. Our research findings contribute to both the literature on forecasting in the retail sector and the decision-making of retail organizations. By comparing a model developed with and without weather information, the organization can better determine the value of weather in its planning. Customer expectations of future weather significantly influence sales and should be considered for future studies. Our work provides a basis for researchers and retail organizations to forecast sales of individual products using weather information.

From Data to Decisions: Enhancing Retail with AI and Machine Learning

Purpose: The recent advancements in computational power have presented unprecedented opportunities for businesses to harness data. A noteworthy development in December 2022 was the introduction of OpenAI's [1] ChatGPT, signifying the rise of generative AI tools including, but not limited to, Bard [2], Midjourney [3], GitHub Copilot [4], Amazon Bedrock, and Google's Gemini [5]. This research paper aims to harness AI capabilities within retail organizations, using data (customer) to expand business reach and enhance customer satisfaction. Data and AI form the core of this research.
 Methodology: In this research, we have trained a Large Language Model (LLM) by providing it with database schemas, including tables, to interact with centralized data and gain insights through simple prompts. We can leverage data for data Analysis and create reports, dashboards, understand customer behavior.
 Findings: Our research findings that AI serves as a pivotal force in amplifying the retail industry's potential. AI's applications span from improving customer experience by enabling voice orders, emotional insight, exclusive Deals just for you, product design, email campaign, optimizing inventory to facilitating targeted marketing strategies, list goes on. Yet, as we navigate this AI-augmented retail landscape, it is imperative to address challenges related to data privacy, algorithmic bias, implementation costs, and the need for expertise.
 Unique contributor to theory, policy and practice: In essence, generative AI is more than a fleeting trend; it epitomizes the future of retail, demanding both adoption and circumspection. Our recommendation to use AI for enhancing retail business and use it ethically.

Strategy Formation Conceptual Model in Digital Transformation of Fashion Retail Organizations

This research was conducted to introduce the conceptual model of digital transformation strategy formation in clothing retail organizations. The qualitative research method was based on the Many Foundations Data Theory approach. Using CASP, the quality of the input articles was reviewed from 37 articles, in the second part of the many databases strategy, the semi-structured interview method was conducted with 17 experts and senior managers of clothing retail organizations, and its validity was confirmed by the Launched method and the Kappa agreement coefficient. Using the combination of empirical and theoretical grounding, 73 codes were extracted in the form of 23 themes in the form of three main components of decision-making drivers, decision-making elements, and strategic decision-making consequences of digital transformation in clothing retailing, finally with a round-trip and enrichment process. The theory, the strategic decision-making model of digital transformation in Iran's clothing retail was designed.

A STUDY ON CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR TOWARDS ORGANIZED RETAIL STORES IN BHOPAL CITY

Today, Indias retail industry is on a constant growth path. In India, the retail marketplaces are still growing despite everyones expectations. As India is the worlds 5th most preferred shopping destination, increased participation of international and domestic players will lead to intense customer competition. In terms of shopping malls, the retail space is expanding at a rapid pace in Bhopal. Shopping malls and retailers at shopping malls need to be able to attract a larger number of customers to share growth strategies. This study will contribute to examining consumer behaviour concerning the presence of organized retailers in Bhopal. The main aim of the research is be find out the factors that can help organized retail stores to design a better retail mix strategy for attracting more customers and ensuring their long-term survival. To attain the goals of this study, the researcher has collected Secondary data and reviewed suitable literature. The study conducted in Bhopal city reveals that retail store location and discounts & offers are the most important criteria proffered by consumers to choose the outlet. Consumers are also attracted to buy from an organized retail outlet by a wide range of product characteristics, atmosphere, quick payment process, customer service, parking facilities, and a systematic display. KEYWORDS: Organized Retail, Consumer Behaviour, Buying Behaviour, Purchase Behaviour, Retailing.

Examining Psychological Moderators on Factors Affecting Consumers’ Impulse Buying in Organised Retail Stores

This research study focuses on examining the role of in-store elements for impelling consumers’ impulse buying in organised retail stores with the presence of consumers’ psychological moderators. The conceptual framework is developed by exploring the theoretical foundations for impulse buying behaviour. For testing the proposed hypotheses, confirmatory factor analysis–structural equation modelling is utilised. This study explains that each predicting factor positively influences consumers’ impulse buying in organised retail stores. This study is a valuable step to analyse consumers’ impulse buying behaviour in organised retail stores through in-store dimensions and consumers’ psychological moderators.

Dominance of Diarrheagenic E. coli Virulent Types in Integrated Crop–Livestock Farms and Their Antibiotic Resistance Patterns

Microbial ecology on integrated crop–livestock farms (ICLFs) can impact food safety through pathogen transfer between animals and crops. Recent reports of pathogen-contaminated products sold in local organic retail, roadside, and farmers markets highlight the need for assessment of the ecological patterns of bacterial pathogens. This study investigated the prevalence and antibiotic resistance of the virulent type of diarrheagenic E. coli in ICLFs. Over two years, 2973 samples from ICLFs and markets in Maryland and Washington DC were analyzed. Diarrheagenic E. coli was found in 4.30% (128/2973) of collected samples, with a higher isolation rate in environmental (4.42%, 59/1332) and produce (4.20%, 69/1641) samples. Overall, livestock bedding materials had the highest prevalence (8.51%, 4/47). Post-harvest produce exhibited a lower contamination rate of 1.32% (10/756), whereas pre-harvest produce had a higher incidence with 6.67% contamination (59/885), indicating the presence of E. coli. Alarmingly, 92.30% (72/78) of pathogenic E. coli isolates were resistant to common antibiotics. The findings highlight potential risks associated with integrated farming practices and emphasize the importance of safe harvesting and post-harvesting measures, particularly in the context of the growing popularity of local integrated farming. Implementing precautions at on-farm and market levels is crucial to mitigate the risk of antibiotic-resistant E. coli-related enteric illnesses, safeguarding both consumers and the integrity of integrated farming systems.

The role of organizational culture in ERP implementation – The case of replacing an old ERP in a retail organization

This paper presents a case study on ERP implementation and how organizational culture impact and influences the implementation. The study builds on semi-structured interviews and an interpretive qualitative method. Organizational culture and ERP implementation has been explored previous. However, there are different opinions on the role it plays. The findings from this study is that it is a major factor that heavily influences a set of other critical success factors. This mean that in order to have a successful ERP implementation it is important to have an understanding of existing organizational culture and treat that as an influencing factor on other critical success factors.

Тенденції та моделі розвитку електронної торгівлі в умовах цифрової економіки

At the present stage of the rapid formation of the information space, there is a need to use the instruments of the digital economy. One such instrument is e-commerce. The aim of the article is to identify current trends and models of development of e-commerce in the context of digitalization. To achieve this goal, the methods of analysis and synthesis, comparison, expert surveys, statistical analysis, structural and logical generalization were used. The article examines trends and patterns of development of the world e-commerce market. The dynamics of the main indicators of activity of Ukrainian wholesale and retail trade enterprises, which use information and communication technologies, are analyzed. It is defined that in modern economic conditions it is expedient to develop and implement a digital strategy for managing the commercial activities of trade enterprises on the basis of the conception of interaction marketing, theories of networks and stakeholders, which should contain the following elements: use of information instruments and digital channels; formation of a qualitatively new culture of marketing communications (integration of digital channels of marketing communication into a single system); ways to improve the quality of customer service; creation of an omnichannel environment based on the integration of all digital channels, retail outlets and back-office into a single information space. The key trends that will influence the development of e-commerce in the digital economy include: personalization of products and communication through information technology; adaptive approach to interaction with consumers; building a business strategy for brands, advertising and marketing strategies using digital instruments; application of an integrated approach to the management of commercial activities; creation of a fundamentally new marketing structure (the emergence of specialists in consumer preferences and data processing); acquisition of skills in collecting large databases and using them; ensuring multi-channel practice in marketing communications; implementation of chatbots as one of the most effective ways to provide instant customer support; development of business models for the organization of electronic retail.

Role of E-CRM (Electronic CRM) in Customer Satisfaction and Retention: An Empirical Study of Retail Organisations

Role of E-CRM (Electronic CRM) in Customer Satisfaction and Retention: An Empirical Study of Retail Organisations

RESILIENCE FACTORS IN SALES WORKERS: SOCIAL COMMUNICATIONS, SOCIAL CHANGE, AND SOCIAL ENGAGEMENT

Employee of any organization starts his/her recognitions from the society that ultimately reach the organization, where he/she earns the livelihood. So, the resiliency of an employee (sales-force of any commercial organization in this study) should be understood on the touch-points of salesemployee with society. On this context, the main purpose of this study is to explore the strategic relationships of social communication, social change, and social engagement of the sales-employees to build the concerned employees’ resiliency. With the descriptive research design, this research-work is intended to study the above said relationship by extensive literature review. Major outcomes of this study refer that social communication in varying level makes the employee of an organization engage with the social activities and simultaneously develop the psychological adjustment of the concerned sales-employee towards social change. Finally, the social engagement and self-accommodation to the social change build the resilient sales-force of the concerned retail organization. A conceptual model is developed that justifies the above outcomes, which is the major contribution or novelty of this study. Thus, the industrial implication of the said outcomes is that any commercial organization should develop the social orientation of their sales-force by developing their social communication continuously, which in turn enables the concerned sales-employees for better adoptability to any social changes, for insulate themselves for adverse social (market) conditions, and for productive social engagement in the marketing orientations. The said causal relationship ultimate give the return to the organization in the form of resilient sales-force. And, social implication refers that the society will be aware of the truth regarding the functioning of sales-functions of organization in the context of social contribution of those organizations.

Estimating consumer brand engagement with brand equity via brand trust for organic retail products on social media

Estimating consumer brand engagement with brand equity via brand trust for organic retail products on social media