Wheel Of Retailing Research Articles

Strategizing Retailing in the New Technology Era

The world of retailing is being reimagined and transformed at breakneck speeds due to new technologies, as well as due to changes in consumer purchasing behavior resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. This dynamic retail marketplace is forcing retailers to strategize how to best position themselves to survive and flourish in this environment. Recognizing that we are at a critical inflection point in the world of retailing, we conceptualize a Strategic Wheel of Retailing in the new technology era that emphasizes technology as the core enabler of the strategies related to the 6Ps of retailing (retail place and supply chain management, product, pricing, promotion, personnel, and presentation). In particular, the articles calls for retailers to carefully their review their competitive ecosystem as they adapt to the new technologies, raises some issues, and offers new directions for further research on how technology can be leveraged to design profitable retail strategies.

As the wheel turns toward the future of retailing

ABSTRACT What does the future hold for retailers? Certainly, many eras previous to the big-data and pandemic eras have come and gone and that same question could raise anxiety among those invested in retailing. Few metaphors in marketing have proved as enduring as the wheel of retailing. The contribution here is to discuss retail practice and research trends framed by the realization that, in some ways, nothing is new. Clearly, from a technology standpoint, we see changes in the tools of retailing at an ever-more rapid rate. But, the hub of the retail wheel is the customer and the value creation needed to promote retail success proves enduring. We conclude the discussion with an inventory of research items to keep academicians busy for the foreseeable future and by putting forth a definition of retailing that spans generations past and to come.

The Study on the New Retail’s Emergence and Development in China

The appearance of Internet Finance not only provides great convenience for people’s production and living, but also prompts retailing industry in China into a whole new look. Following, the emergence of the “New Retail” has drawn considerable attention from all over the country. This article regards the relationship between Internet Finance and the “New Retail” as a breakthrough point and bases on the “Wheel of New Retailing” theory to analyze the driving force of production and development history of the “New Retail” deeply. Investigation attributes the “New Retail” emergence and growth to the cyclical theory, which belongs to the “Wheel of New Retailing” theory. It means that the “New Retail” will innovate continuously in China and offer reference significance for retailing practitioners.

“The Only Way Is Up”: Overoptimism and the Demise of the American Five-and-Dime Store, 1914–1941

We examine a classic “wheel of retailing” episode: the abandonment of the five-and-dime pricing formula by American variety chains. The variety chains switched from a conventional product lifecycle, focusing on cost reduction through standardization, to a reverse path up the “service cost–unit value” continuum. We show that, rather than reflecting deteriorating managerial acumen, this shift was a response to the continued imperative for growth following retail format saturation. Firm-specific (rather than format-specific) competitive advantages were too weak for any chain to be confident it could win a within-format price war, making interformat competition through raising price points more attractive.

小売の輪はどのように回転したのか？―小売業態イノベーションのマルチレベル分析―

「小売の輪」に代表される小売業態イノベーション研究では，歴史的な小売業態の変遷についての計量的研究がほとんど行われてこなかった。したがって，新規小売業態の参入ポジションやその後の発展経路に関する理論仮説は，エビデンスを欠いたままの状況にある。本論では，破壊的イノベーションの概念枠組に基づいて，我が国における50年間にわたる複数の小売業態をとる小売企業のパネルデータを構築し，新規小売業態の参入ポジションと発展経路に関する実証分析を行った。分析の結果，新規小売業態は既存小売業態に比べて明らかに優位なポジションからは参入しないこと，発展経路は従来から知られてきた格上げに加えて持続的イノベーションがあること，格下げによる発展は観察されなかったことが見出された。

Retailing in perspective: the past is a prologue to the future

Retailing institutions and practices are evolutionary in nature, and much can be learned by studying the history of retailing. Events are not as discontinuous or unique as they sometimes seem, as noted in the title of the article: ‘The past is a prologue to the future’. Building on the February 2010 special issue of the International Review of Retail, Distribution and Consumer Research, the present article takes a longer time frame and a more global (rather than regional) perspective. Modern retailing is the accumulation of incremental steps over time. The state of retailing at any given point is not only dependent on the cyclical nature of the overall economy in a country or region, but also on specific factors endemic to retailing. The theories of the retail life cycle, the wheel of retailing, and scrambled merchandising/retail accordion remain as valid and useful today as in the past, even though not always fully appreciated by retailers. As modern retailing institutions and practices move toward greater acceptance globally, opportunities in developing countries are especially promising; yet, small retailers are still dominant in many such countries. As always, retailing performance continues to vary significantly by retail category. Although Wal-Mart is the world's leading retailer, and will be for years to come, there are substantial opportunities for other firms that properly plan and execute distinctive strategies. To succeed in the future, retailers must study, learn, and adapt in a way that both appeals to consumers and is cost efficient – a difficult balance. The article concludes with eight key principles for effective retailing – applicable to past, present, and future practices.

Managing Dissatisfied Customers in Retailing Businesses in Nigeria

This study is a theoretical overview of retailing type of business in Nigeria and it encompasses characteristics and types of retail outlets, product-price decision variables, factors that favour their growth, legislative influences and the wheel of retailing. The other aspect is on how retailers or retail stores handle problems of customers’ compliant about dissatisfy products. Basically most retailers use explanations, in the form of excuses, apologies, justification, coupon or compensation and speed (urgency) in attending to such complaint to exonerate them. What is most pertinent is for the retailers to accept responsibility for the poor quality or handling of their products or the injury product must have caused to customers, despite the method use to suppress the dissatisfaction, in order to maintain a cordial relationship between the customers and the retail stores. This will enhance continuous purchases, and generate revenue for the retailers.

The Unfailing Certainty Of Textbooks

A learning objective should describe what students should know or be able to do at the end of the course that they could do before.1 The focus of this paper is to look at just three widely utilized models: The Boston Consulting Group Matrix, Break-even Analysis, and McNair’s Wheel of Retailing.

The Applicability of Cyclical and Conflict Models of Retail Change to Taiwan–A Preliminary Exploration

ABSTRACT Cyclical and conflict models of retail institutional development, originating in western societies, were tested in an oriental setting, Taiwan. The concepts of wheel of retailing and retail life cycle are not good descriptors of change in Taiwan. The retail accordion and the polarization principle provide models more in accord with developments in Taiwan. The two main models of the conflict theory, the recursive model and the dialectical model, also seem to have relevance for understanding institutional change in Taiwan. The implications of using these western models in non-western settings are discussed.

Impact of Internet on financial services industry: a case study of on‐line investing

Outlines the internet’s contribution to the US economy with particular reference to the growth of online investing since 1994. Presents a study of the factors leading to this growth and its impact on the industry. Tabulates the market shares and stock commissions of the top ten online brokers, discusses their competitive strategies and identifies their key growth drivers. Suggests that they examplify McNair’s (1978) “wheel of retailing” by moving from a new, discounted service to a range of services like those of traditional brokers. Considers the online industry’s current problems (technical, legal, regulatory etc.), gives some advice on choosing an online broker and ranks the top ten by various criteria. Predicts that customers will benefit from increasing competition in the future and that the most successful firms will be middle‐tier ones offering a good combination of cost and service.

The strategic response of Dublin's traditional department stores to intensifying competition

In Dublin city competition within the retail sector is intensifying and city-centre department stores, in common with other traders, face many challenges. Indigenous retailers must contend not only with each other, but also with an on-going invasion of international retailers who have been attracted by Ireland's booming economy. UK multiples have made major in-roads into Dublin's retail scene and the city centre's latest shopping mall, The Jervis Centre, is so dominated by UK retailers that it has been christened ` Little Britain' In the past 50 years, many of Dublin's once dominant department stores have succumbed to the vagaries of retailing. Now, only three traditional Irish department stores continue to trade. These stores, sometimes referred to as dinosaurs, have managed to survive as the wheel of retailing continues its relentless revolutions. In every direction, new or expanded or refurbished shopping centres and shops are in the process of completion in the city centre, in satellite towns and outer suburbs. By the close of 1997 nearly two million sq. ft. of shopping space will have been built in the capital — the biggest investment in retailing for over 10 years. Dublin's unique 18th century streetscape now provides a backdrop for what has become a recognised cosmopolitan shopping city. The concentrated arrival of British multiples has brought tangible benefits to consumers via greater choice. However, the internationalisation of Dublin's retail scene has led to fears that indigenous Irish companies will be washed away by major UK multiples with greater financial power. While rumours of the demise of Dublin's remaining stand-alone Department stores are constant and obviously exaggerated, undoubtedly these stores have faced difficult times. This paper considers the strategic response of Dublin's traditional department stores to intensifying competition and provides an insight into the strategic thinking of Irish department store managers.

From crinkly sheds to fashion parks: the role of financial investment in the transformation of retail parks

The retail park is one of the most ubiquitous and significant forms of off-centre retailing in the UK. Originally designed as low-cost accommodation for 'bulky goods', retail parks now include high-rent 'fashion parks' which are eagerly sought by institutional investors for long-term ownership. This paper explains why retail-park ownership, originating in the early 1980s in one-off schemes by locally based property developers, has become the province of major property companies, financial institutions, and asset managers. Growth in rents and capital values has been fuelled by increasing institutional investment, and by fears of a growing scarcity of high-quality developments because of town-planning restrictions. This pressure is now leading to attempts to realize the full capital value of older developments, through processes of 'active management' by the new breed of retail-park owners. In turn, this is leading to increasingly rapid changes of retail occupiers, involving in some cases the expulsion of the original 'bulky goods' retailers for whom retail parks were created. A parallel with the 'Wheel of Retailing' model of institutional change is suggested.

The Evolution of Marks and Spencer

Financial data drawn from Marks and Spencer's archives and annual reports is used to identify five phases in the Company' sales growth. Early, rather erratic, growth, often through acquisition, gave way to a second phase of store development funded by the Company's floatation in the 1920s. Sales growth in the third phase came substanriveljl through an increase in store size. A fourth phase involved irnprovernerzts in labour and space productivity. The final and current phase of evolution emphasises divers(fication. The pattern of evolution is compared with two theories of retail change, the Wheel of Retailing and the Retail Accordion. Neither is compatible with the sustained growth exhibited, indeed both theories could be said to predict the failure of the Company's overall strategy.

Employment Theory and the Wheel of Retailing: Segmenting the Circle

This article attempts to highlight the transitory nature of the retail labour market and provide a theoretical framework that accounts for the employment changes that have occurred in retailing since the Second World War. Using the concept of cyclicality embodied within the Wheel of Retailing, it identifies how at each stage of the cycle there develops a new dominant form of employment relation. The British grocery sector is taken as an example to illustrate this relationship.

Assessing the vulnerability of private label brands

Private label brands may be in danger as a result of recent changes in the marketing strategies used by private label firms. The primary competitive advantage of private label brands, good quality at low prices, may be lost if private label firms continue to modify and expand how their brands are marketed. Specifically, changes in private label brands′ advertising, packaging, sales promotion, and product improvement strategies indicate that private label brands are moving closer than ever to manufacturer brand status. To the extent that these changes result in higher average retail prices and/or lower gross margins for retailers, the advantages of private brands to both consumers and distributors will diminish, illustrating that the historical “wheel of retailing” hypothesis may be applicable to private label brands. Investigates the aforementioned trends and provides suggestions for manufacturers and retailers for future brand management strategies.

Postmodernism, the wheel of retailing and will to power

Postmodernism has been described as something everyone has heard of, but no-one can quite explain what it is. This paper explores the nature of the postmodern condition and examines its epistemological implications for one of retailing's longest established, most cited and vigorously debated concepts, Malcolm P. McNair's wheel of retailing theory. The analysis reveals that, although the concept is premised on assumptions that are anathema to many postmodern thinkers, the wheel is not entirely out of place in a postmodern world of fragmentation, difference and plurality. Indeed, Like postmodernism itself, the wheel of retailing theory owes an enormous debt to the philosophical principles of Friedrich Nietzsche. McNair's original exposition, in particular, represents a paradigmatic example of Nietzsche's principal constructs: Ubermensch, eternal recurrence and will to power

The impact of warehouse membership clubs: the wheel of retailing turns one more time

The Warehouse Membership Club (WMC) industry in North America is now seventeen years old and has reached an annual sales level of approximately $34 billion. The WMC format is clearly the new price leader at the retail level. This paper addresses a number of key issues about WMCs. First, are WMCs retailers or wholesalers and who is at risk? Second, how have other retailers responded to the risk and what is the likely success of the response strategies? Third, to what extent does the evolution of WMCs support the three competing theories of institutional change: a) environmental; b) cyclical; and c) conflicrual and what can we learn from these theories? Finally, what is the prognosis for the future of the WMC format, both in North America and globally?

WHEEL MEAT AGAIN: A COMMENT ON ″SPOKES IN THE WHEEL OF RETAILING″

Comments on the article “Spokes in the Wheel of Retailing” Congratulates the authors on the issues raised therein, but maintains that “Spokes in the Wheel of Retailing” represents a missed opportunity. More detailed research is needed on the processes of retail change in the inter‐war years.

Variations on a marketing enigma: The wheel of retailing theory

Recently described as “the most popular topic area in the entire marketing literature”, the wheel of retailing remains a marketing enigma, revered and reviled in almost equal measure. This paper summarizes the substantial body of literature on the wheel theory and attempts to account for its remarkable pervasiveness. The current state of knowledge on retail change is synthesized, a simple model of institutional evolution is presented and future avenues of research activity are also pointed out.

The “Wheel of Retailing” and Retail Product Management

Extends the “wheel of retailing” hypothesis by developing hypotheses dealing with product behaviour. Evaluates these hypotheses with historical data which have begun to change according to the “wheel of retailing”. Reveals that these hypotheses suggest that retail change is closely linked to environmental factors, including innovation diffusion and product life cycles. Concludes that retail change is therefore also an historical problem and that it is wise to investigate the specific history of retail firms in order for its implementation to be effective.