International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management最新文献

Purpose

Technologies are dramatically reshaping various aspects of the store space, modifying design, services and usage. Accordingly, several studies tackled technology impact on each of these aspects, investigating design, service and usage singularly, but lacking a holistic viewpoint. Thus, this paper aims to identify the different dimensions of the store space (levels) and assess the impact of technology introduction on store space dimensions (levels).

Design/methodology/approach

The research employs a qualitative approach based on direct observations of apparel brand stores located in London between March and April 2023. Data collection followed a structured observation protocol covering store information, adopted technologies and their effects across various store space levels, i.e. consumption activities, service environment and customer experience.

Findings

Results show that the store space can be defined as the sum of different dimensions consisting of consumption activities, service environment and customer experience. Accordingly, technology introduction holistically influences each of the three store space levels as follows: (1) first, technologies redefine how activities are performed or alters the location where certain activities are consumed; (2) within the service environment, technologies replace traditional elements, fill empty spaces and enhance the atmospherics; finally, (3) customer experience is enhanced in hedonic and/or utilitarian terms due to technology adoption.

Originality/value

This paper defines the space as a dynamic entity, providing a deeper understanding of how the store space is produced, from a holistic point of view and the role of retail technology in this process.

Purpose

This study aims to explore the effects of the omni-channel experience on customer commitment and word-of-mouth (WOM) intention within the context of fashion retailing in an emerging country, Türkiye.

Design/methodology/approach

In the study, data was collected online from 346 consumers. The hypothesised relationships were tested using SEM via AMOS.

Findings

Three sub-dimensions of the omni-channel experience are validated, namely consistency, connectivity, and personalisation, and while consistency and personalisation positively affected customer commitment, they did not indicate any direct influence on WOM intention. On the other hand, connectivity affected WOM intention but not customer commitment. In conclusion, even though consistency, connectivity, and personalisation constitute the omni-channel experience, they have differing behavioural outcomes. Furthermore, fashion retail customers’ commitment positively influenced WOM intentions.

Research limitations/implications

This study contributes to the literature in four main areas: First, this study validates the omni-channel experience scale. Secondly, it extends social exchange theory in omni-channel retailing research. Thirdly, it develops a micro-perspective on the omni-channel experience. Lastly, it puts forth that the effects of consistency, connectivity, and personalisation on customer commitment and WOM intention differ.

Practical implications

The omni-channel experience is a multi-dimensional concept. Retail managers should invest in consistency, connectivity, and personalisation to amplify customer commitment and WOM intention.

Originality/value

This study explores how customer commitment and WOM intention are enhanced through an omni-channel experience.

Purpose

Heightened public concerns for the global environment due to human overexploitation have given rise to many green product initiatives by businesses. Green cosmetics (GC) are products developed and marketed based on ecological sustainability and have shown increasing consumer appeal worldwide. The current research investigates the antecedents of green cosmetics consumption among Indian GC users, hitherto un-investigated comprehensively.

Design/methodology/approach

The study is a cross-sectional pairwise comparison of green evaluation criteria for cosmetics using an expert panel of thirty Indian cosmetic users using a fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (F-AHP) and investigate the impact of a comprehensive list of antecedents on the multi-criteria category consumption decision.

Findings

The study results indicate that perceived consumer effectiveness is the most critical factor for green cosmetics consumption in India, followed by brand trust, behavioural control, and environmental effectiveness. The least important factors are price and social norms.

Research limitations/implications

As the GC category is at nascent stage in India the investigation is limited to the GC category innovators – a set of people high in intellectual and financial resources. The study is also limited to women users as the male cosmetic market in the country is still very small.

Practical implications

The study results can help marketers in designing and implementing GC related marketing strategies to deliver higher customer value to the target segment. Academicians can use the study results for better prediction of category related behaviour of consumers.

Social implications

The study results will help promote GC category adoption and usage which can benefit the environment and consumer health.

Originality/value

The study contributes to literature and practice by assessing a comprehensive set of critical antecedents to GC adoption using a novel approach of F-AHP and an expert user panel. The study results offer insights to marketers that can be used to develop suitable strategies to convert non-GC users into GCs in India and similar markets, improving category penetration and benefitting marketers, retailers, users, and the environment.

Purpose

Product-as-a-Service (PaaS) has the potential to enable closed-loop supply chains (CLSC) and decrease environmental impact, but it is only applied on a small scale. The purpose of this paper is to explore and develop a framework of challenges and corresponding mitigations encountered by Business-to-Consumer (B2C) retailers when transitioning to PaaS.

Design/methodology/approach

Data collection drew on a qualitative interview study with two industry experts and four PaaS B2C retailers from different Dutch industries.

Findings

A framework was developed linking 26 challenges in eight clusters—financial, product-related, supply chain-related, consumer-related, human resources, research and development/technology, regulatory and industry-related—to 24 mitigations. The mitigations were elaborated, and theoretical insights for matching challenges with mitigations were provided.

Research limitations/implications

This study expands PaaS literature to the generally under-researched retail context. It contributes to CLSC literature by applying it to a less-studied context, thereby revealing many supply chain-related challenges and mitigations encountered by B2C retailers.

Practical implications

The framework offers practical guidance to retail managers for overcoming or preventing challenges in PaaS, in their endeavours toward adopting environmentally sustainable practices.

Social implications

The study creates awareness about environmental sustainability and the potential to reduce societal impact, in which a PaaS-enabled CLSC is one step.

Originality/value

Studying PaaS and CLSC in a retail context is timely and novel.

Purpose

This study investigates how global retailers develop sustainability through network interactions that influence institutionalized sustainability perceptions. The findings enable retailers to drive sustainability systematically and understand the critical internal and external issues.

Design/methodology/approach

The study investigates how retailers can work to increase support for sustainability through the normative, cognitive, and regulative institutional pillars. The network perspective suggests the need to offer relevant resources, involve influential actors and perform supporting activities to mobilise stakeholders. Empirically, qualitative case studies of IKEA and Hennes & Mauritz were conducted.

Findings

Based on the network and institutional perspectives, the study identified nine fields that retailers can use to develop sustainability internally and in their networks. The study shows that they can mobilise actors, resources, and activities to change institutionalised values and practices.

Originality/value

The developed model provides guidelines on how to systematically work with sustainability. The broad view developed is particularly relevant considering that most of the existing research on global firms and sustainability focuses on a narrow research problem without relating it to sustainability as a complex and overarching phenomenon.

Purpose

The study applied the information system success model (ISSM) to investigate the influence of information system qualities (ISQs) on consumer responses related to sustainable fashion consumption in the context of comparing 3D VR store and 2D website.

Design/methodology/approach

This study designed a questionnaire to measure five ISQs (usefulness, diversity, functionality, reliability and tangibility), immersion in messages and purchase intention. 270 data from women consumers of online fashion stores were collected using Macromill Embrain. Structural equation modeling with Amos 21 and process macro model 7 with SPSS 26 were used for analysis.

Findings

This study suggested the relevance of usefulness, diversity, reliability and tangibility among ISQs in evoking immersion in sustainable fashion messages and stimulating the purchase intention. In the moderation of website technology types, the effects of usefulness and tangibility on the immersion in sustainable fashion messages were stronger in 3D VR than 2D condition.

Originality/value

The study is meaningful as an initial study that identified the ISQs of online fashion stores by dividing the type of technology into 3D VR and 2D. We offer insights about the relevance and applicability of immersive VR technology in promoting sustainable fashion consumption and show the potential of online VR store as a new kind of sustainable fashion retail space.

Purpose

This study aims to embark on a bibliometric journey through the International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management (IJR&DM) to delve into its rich repository of applied retailing research.

Design/methodology/approach

626 publications in IJR&DM between 2015 and 2023 have been retrieved from Scopus for performance analysis of the journal’s publication (productivity) and citation (impact) trends as well as a science mapping of the journal’s collaborators (contributors) and major themes (contributions).

Findings

The performance analysis highlights the growth in the productivity and impact of IJR&DM alongside its most cited publications, most prolific contributors, most relied-on journals, as well as the authors, institutions, countries, and journals that the journal has impacted the most. The co-authorship analysis reveals the collaboration (i.e., international with a high concentration in Europe and North America along with an emerging presence in Asia) of IJR&DM. Keyword co-occurrence analysis and bibliographic coupling reveal eight themes. Our exploration revealed close interconnections among various domains including retailing and adaptive strategies, channel strategies, customer experience, market innovations, operations management, relationship marketing, shopping motivation, and sustainability.

Research limitations/implications

Although this study delivers a state-of-the-art overview of the retail industry through the scientific contributions from IJR&DM, it remains limited to the insights from a single authoritative source of knowledge on retailing.

Originality/value

No review, to date, has been conducted for IJR&DM. This study provides the inaugural retrospective of the scientific contributions of IJR&DM, outlining publication and citation trends alongside the intellectual structure of its body of knowledge on retailing. Theoretically, this retrospective is pivotal in charting the intellectual growth and thematic nuances inherent in retail research. Practically, this study serves as a guide for practitioners, enabling them to make strategically informed decisions and craft forward-looking strategies in sync with current realities.

Purpose

This study examines consumers’ usage intention towards retail metaverse banking. This research also investigated the mediating impact of trust and distrust. This research also examined the moderating impact of perceived security concerns.

Design/methodology/approach

Firstly, a qualitative study is performed to explore the benefits and sacrifices that may influence usage intention. Further, the quantitative study gathered a total of 308 responses to investigate the proposed hypotheses.

Findings

The findings suggest that perceived anthropomorphism and perceived immersion positively impact the usage intention towards retail metaverse banking. Further, lack of social interaction and perceived vulnerability had a negative influence towards retail metaverse banking. Further, trust and distrust were found to be significant mediators. Also, perceived security concern was shown to be a significant moderator.

Originality/value

The study contributes to the metaverse literature and suggests to banks how to enhance usage intention towards retail metaverse banking. The study also enriches the literature on dual-factor theory.

Purpose

This study aims to examine the impact of logistics and merchant certification information on consumer behaviour in hybrid retail platforms. Furthermore, it explores the moderating role of online shopping experience on the certification effect.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors utilize transaction-level data from over 2.5 million consumers involving 30,000 stock keeping units (SKUs) on JD.com in March 2018. They analyse the impact of different types of certification information on consumer behaviour using ordinary linear regression and linear probability models.

Findings

The findings reveal that, compared with information without certification, (1) single logistics certification information can enhance consumers' search depth and purchase intention; (2) dual logistics and merchant certification information also has a positive impact on consumer behaviour; and (3) single certification information is more effective for inexperienced consumers, while dual certification is more effective for experienced consumers.

Originality/value

Theoretically, this study contributes to the literature on certification information in hybrid retail platforms and broadens information communication methods for online shopping. Our discovery is meaningful for managers in locating customers and allocating resources. In addition, we encourage online retailers to utilize certification information to engage consumer.

Purpose

The present paper explores the concept of a cashier-free checkout system from customers' perspective. Thus, the study attempts to find out the overall sentiment of people towards cashier-free checkout retail stores.

Design/methodology/approach

The study culled 7,348 comments from 10 videos about the Amazon Go store available on YouTube. The paper extracted positive and negative sentiments as well as their affective scores from the comments using Python 3.10.

Findings

The results revealed that all key service attributes of Amazon Go stores have a positive impact on customers' overall in-store shopping experience except pay. Similarly, the viewpoints expressed about these stores positively influence their overall in-store shopping experiences except for job. The job has an adverse effect on the outcome variable compared to like and support.

Originality/value

This paper states how a cashier-free checkout system is a better and more innovative retailing solution than in-store cash counter practices. Additionally, the paper provides guidance on how to deal with textual data and quantitative ratings separately when establishing empirical relationships.