Perceived risk and mail order shopping for apparel

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between perceived risk regarding apparel selection and mail order shopping. One-hundred and two adult women from a medium-sized midwestern city in the U.S.A. participated in a telephone survey. Factor analysis uncovered four distinct types of risk associated with mail order shopping: economic, performance-related, physical and social/psychological. Multivariate and univariate analyses revealed that economic risk was the only risk that was significantly different from other categories of risk. A Scheffé post hoc comparison indicated that economic risk was higher for respondents who were non- or infrequent mail order shoppers than for frequent mail order shoppers. These results contribute to the literature on mail order shopping by isolating the product category of apparel. The results can aid catalogue and other direct marketing companies by suggesting that they focus on alleviating economic losses of future clients, thereby making it easier for consumers to capitalize on the convenience features of this patronage mode.     

The moderating effects of in-store marketing on the relationships between shopping motivations and loyalty intentions

This study attempts to understand the moderating roles of in-store marketing by incorporating the effects of shopping motivations on repatronage and word-of-mouth intentions in the context of fashion apparel by applying theories related to self-determination and social impact. Structural equation modeling using data collected from young adult fashion apparel shoppers in Thailand reveals positive effects of shopping motivations. The utilitarian shopping motivation shows a greater effect in predicting loyalty intentions than hedonistic shopping motivation. In-store marketing is shown to have a moderating effect on loyalty intentions, although the influence of each moderator on the investigated direct effects varies. The findings can prove helpful to fashion apparel retailers in developing effective advertising and promotional strategies that correspond to the specific needs of the shoppers to promote store loyalty intentions.     

Segmenting the older American market for personal apparel: focus on rural communities

The goal of this research was to determine whether rural elderly consumers' wants and needs for apparel products were met at the local retail level. Consumers (n = 322) ranging in age from 54–94 years were surveyed concerning their attitudes and behaviour regarding shopping for personal apparel. Data analyses revealed five market segments that differed in terms of (i) the level of involvement with shopping; (ii) perceptions of physical constraints to shopping; (iii) perceptions of available merchandise mix and services; and (iv) certain demographic characteristics. Respondents in cluster 1 were active and frequent shoppers, but did not always find what they needed. Those in cluster 2 were demanding consumers who were also satisfied with retail offerings. Cluster 3 compared prices and was highly dissatisfied with the merchandise available. Cluster 4 was satisfied with the merchandise mix, but did not shop often. Cluster 5 was highly dissatisfied with retail offerings.     

Keeping customers shopping in stores: interrelationships among store attributes,shopping enjoyment,and place attachment

Our research purpose was to identify and test variables that contribute to customer's willingness to continue to shop in brick and mortar stores, hereafter referred to as store loyalty. Specifically, we examined interrelationships among store attributes, shopping enjoyment, place attachment, and store loyalty with apparel shoppers. Significant store attributes that predicted shopping enjoyment included atmosphere, price, leisure, design, and service. Shopping enjoyment was a significant predictor of both place attachment and store loyalty. In turn, place attachment was found to be a significant predictor of store loyalty. The implications for store retailing are discussed as well as limitations and areas for future research.     

Looking at Gen Y shopping preferences and intentions: exploring the role of experience and apparel involvement

Apparel retailers need more information to reach and increase patronage from Generation Y with $150 billion purchasing power. Experiential retailing, involving one or more of the five senses, helps create utilitarian and hedonic benefits for brick‐and‐mortar apparel shoppers. However, little is known about how Generation Y responds to experiential strategies. This study of Generation Y brick‐and‐mortar apparel shoppers, using a cohort approach, seeks to determine which dimensions of a shopping experience, as well as shopping involvement level and demographics, are associated with store preference and patronage intent.     

Consumer insights into luxury goods: Why they shop where they do in a jewelry shopping setting

The question that guides this research concerns why consumers prefer to shop where they do for luxury goods. This study applies Tauber's (1972) motives, as representative of Sheth's (1983) nonfunctional shopping motives for luxury goods purchases. The study examines how well Tauber's motives describe consumers’ shopping motivations at each retail outlet in a jewelry shopping setting. These retail outlets consist of store- and non-store formats. The study identifies motives that are considered most important by consumers and that contribute to their shopping preferences. This study also identifies demographic profiles of jewelry shoppers at each retail outlet. Jewelry shoppers are more influenced by functional motives than nonfunctional motives.     

从购物动机到商店选择:中国西北消费者的购物行为探索(英文)

虽然中国已经成为世界上最大的消费者市场,但是有关中国消费者的购物行为研究还没有广泛开展,特别是针对中国内地的购物人群而言。本研究探索的是中国西北消费者的购物经历。深度采访显示,那些被访者更多地展现出一种消费者角色,这种角色能够同时满足个人和社会地位需求的购物特征。除此之外,在选择零售商店(购物)时,商品、商店和服务标准也是重要的影响因素。本文为研究中国消费者的商店购买行为提供了参考文献资料,同时也为零售商拓展中国西北市场提供了非常有价值的观点。     

Online grocery shopping: the impact of shopping frequency on perceived risk

Online grocery shopping has enjoyed strong growth and it is predicted this channel will continue to grow exponentially in the coming years. While online shopping has attracted an abundance of research interest, examinations of online grocery shopping behaviour are only now emerging. Shopping online for groceries differs considerably from general online shopping due to the perishability and variability of the product, and frequency of the shopping activity. Two salient gaps underpin this research into online grocery shopping. This study responds to calls to investigate the online shoppers’ experience in the context of online purchasing frequency. Second, this study examines the mediating effect of perceived risk between trust and online repurchase intention of groceries. An online survey was employed to collect data from shoppers who were recruited from a multi-channel grocery e-retailer’s database. The online survey, comprising 16 reflective validated scale items, was sent to 555 frequent and infrequent online grocery shoppers. Results find that while customer satisfaction predicts trust for both infrequent and frequent online grocery shoppers, perceived risk fully mediates the effect of trust on repurchase intentions for infrequent online grocery shoppers. Furthermore, path analysis reveals that the developed behavioural model is variant across both groups of shoppers. Theoretically, we provide a deeper understanding of the online customer experience, while gaining insight into two shopper segments identified as being important to grocery e-retailers. For managers, this study tests an online customer behavioural model with actual purchasing behaviour and identifies the continued presence of perceived risk in grocery e-retailing, regardless of purchase frequency or experience.     

Online service personalization for apparel shopping

This study explores the dynamics of online service personalization in the online apparel retailing context, with regard to customers’ actual online shopping activities. From an empirical study of American Internet shoppers (n=204), three types of widely-used online service personalization, that is (i) offer, (ii) recognition, and (iii) personal advice, were identified. Moreover, grounded by the Theory of Reasoned Action [Fishbein, M., Ajzen, I., 1975. Belief, Attitudes, Intention, Behavior: An Introduction to Theory and Research. Addison-Wesley, Reading, MA], relationships between customers’ online service personalization attitudes and their online shopping activities—regarding apparel items—have been investigated. Findings of this study empirically present the dynamics of online service personalization in the context of online apparel retailing. Also, the results show that customer online shopping experiences may impact on their online service personalization attitudes. Theoretical and managerial implications are also discussed regarding online service management. Based on the results, Internet-based apparel retailers may benefit from developing various types of personalization services by enhancing shopping intentions of their customers, in particular, of those who are loyal to the retailers.     

The moderating role of shopping trip type in store satisfaction formation

Consumers may weigh store attributes differently depending on the type of shopping trip. For example, fill-in shoppers likely value convenience, due to the ad-hoc nature and urgency of such trips. However, no study has yet explored the effects of shopping trip types on satisfaction formation. This study investigates how three types of shopping trips — major, regular fill-in, and special fill-in — affect satisfaction formation. Using data for all Dutch grocery chains from 2009–2014, we show that service, price, and convenience are important drivers of satisfaction. We also find that the effects of these drivers on store satisfaction depend on the shopping trip type. Major shoppers, for instance, treat service factors as less important to their satisfaction than other shoppers do. Convenience is a more important driver of satisfaction for regular fill-in shoppers. Price is a more important determinant of satisfaction on fill-in trips related to special occasions like birthdays and family dinners.     

The effects of shopping value on retail outcomes: a comparison between department stores and hypermarkets

Shopping in various retail formats involves both utilitarian and hedonic value. Taiwan residents shop at department stores and hypermarkets frequently, compared to other retailers. This study contrasts the differential effects of shopping value on retail outcomes in department stores and hypermarkets. The results support predicted relationships: (1) in the department store context, (a) hedonic shopping value perceived by shoppers is higher than utilitarian shopping value; (b) hedonic shopping value has a greater effect on satisfaction and word-of-mouth than utilitarian shopping value; and (2) in the hypermarket context, (a) utilitarian shopping value perceived by shoppers is higher than hedonic shopping value; (b) utilitarian shopping value has a greater effect on satisfaction and repatronage intentions than hedonic shopping value.     

Online Shopper Motivations, and e-Store Attributes: An Examination of Online Patronage Behavior and Shopper Typologies

e-Stores and online shopping have become important aspects of a retailer's strategy. Previous research suggests that online shoppers are fundamentally different from traditional offline shoppers. However, based on the Big Middle Theory (Levy et al. 2005), the authors believe that there are segments of online shoppers that are very similar to regular shopper groups. To determine this, online shopping motivations and e-store attribute importance measures are separately used as the basis to develop online shopper typologies. Results reveal that there are more similarities than differences among traditional and online store shoppers. However, there are a few unique shopper types present at online stores, attracted by the distinctive characteristics and attributes of the online retail environment. The findings offer interesting implications for online retail strategy.     

Exploring the choice between in-store versus online grocery shopping through an application of Semi-Compensatory Independent Availability Logit (SCIAL) model with latent variables

This paper examines individuals' choice of in-store and online grocery shopping channels using stated preference (SP) choice experiments. The study uses 1,391 records from a stated preference choice experiment in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), Canada. It applies a Semi-Compensatory Independent Availability Logit (SCIAL) Model with latent variables. The methodology accounts for semi-compensatory choice behaviour through probabilistic choice set formation considering effects from socioeconomic and psychological variables. This study demonstrates the advantage of considering probabilistic choice set formation and semi-compensatory behaviour in modelling the adoption of innovative products. Empirical results reveal that shoppers demonstrated similar myopic behaviours once they firmly considered in-store grocery and subscribed free delivery services in their choice sets. They are equally likely to choose both channels without careful comparison to alternative channels once they firmly consider both channels in the choice set. However, considering the latter in choice sets is much costlier than in-store shopping. Therefore, in-store grocery shopping will still dominate the grocery shopping channel unless all home delivery services become free. Moreover, grocery shoppers value same-day delivery service. For typical delivery services charged between $4 and $20 in the GTA, Canada, grocery shoppers are willing to pay between $3.91 and $8.44 for same-day delivery. The latent variable describing shoppers’ perceived pandemic fear significantly contributes to the choice set inclusion probability of in-store grocery pick-up services, but the effect is not significant for other home delivery channels. This highlights heterogeneity in grocery shoppers' choice behaviour within the online channel.     

Increasing online sales by facilitating spillover shopping

The Internet can serve dual roles as a source of information and a shopping channel for consumers. As a source of information, it competes with traditional sources such as print and direct mail. As a shopping channel, it competes with traditional shopping formats such as brick-and-mortar retailing and catalogs. There is little research as yet, however, regarding how the use of the online channel for information can affect its use for purchasing products. Our research is aimed at filling this gap in the literature, i.e., of examining if and how the use of the Internet as a source of information can affect consumers’ willingness to shop online. We use an integrated modeling framework that simultaneously models consumers’ choice of a shopping channel from three options – brick and mortar, catalog and online – and a source of information from three options as well: newspapers and magazines, direct mail, and online.     

Consumer Shopping Styles and Online Shopping: An Empirical Study of Indian Consumers

ABSTRACT

The generalizability and applicability of the Consumer Shopping Inventory (CSI) scale on Indian sample in predicting online shopping behavior was examined. CSI scale has been adapted by researchers to validate its applicability in different countries. Results revealed new factors and different segments of consumers were identified by factor analysis. The findings posit that the original U.S. eight-factor model could not be confirmed completely on Indian sample. However, the study found support for five factors: quality-conscious shopper, fashion-conscious shopper, uninterested shopper, impulsive shopper, and brand-conscious shopper. Online shopping behavior was categorized under convenience, information availability, and cost factors. Demographic factors do not influence consumers' decision to shop online. Consumers shopping online frequently and Impulsive shoppers are likely to look at convenience factor of online shopping. Information availability was important for fashion-conscious shoppers, consumers frequently shopping online, and impulsive shoppers. Brand-conscious shoppers and quality-conscious shoppers were not likely to purchase online.     

Determinants of online shopping: Examination of an early-stage online market

A conceptual framework intended to predict the number of online purchases made by Internet users in an early stage market is presented and examined using data collected in Israel. Those more likely to report buying online saw low costs and substantial benefits associated with e-shopping. They were experienced Internet users who valued online information searching. They were also more likely to shop over the phone, but did not especially like to go shopping. Finally, they tended to be the primary purchaser in the household. Our framework enhances understanding of the factors affecting consumers' online shopping behaviour, aides in profiling typical electronic shoppers, and may help practitioners develop more personalized marketing programs to increase e-commerce sales. Copyright © 2009 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The role of the brand in driving online loyalty for multichannel retailers

Multichannel retailers offer shoppers the possibility to cross channels to complete their shopping process. Multichannel retailers, unlike pure online sellers, offer shoppers multiple contact points to experience the brand. Also, multichannel retailers can leverage the trust and attachment to their brands that has been built with their offline presence to drive customers to buy online. Our paper explores the role of the customer relationship with the brand, with variables such as brand trust, brand attachment and length of brand relationship, as drivers of loyal behaviours towards the online channel. We compare the impact of these variables with those of the technology acceptance model. Multiple linear regression analysis is applied to data collected through a survey answered by 1533 multichannel retail shoppers in two product categories (apparel and consumer electronics) in two countries (UK and Spain). Our findings show that both brand trust and brand attachment have a positive impact on loyal behaviours towards the online channel, and that different loyalty behaviours, i.e. purchase intentions, word of mouth and electronic word of mouth are explained by different variables.     

Values,personality traits,and packaging-free shopping: A mixed-method approach

This research examines packaging-free shopping, which contributes to reducing the negative impact of plastic packaging on the environment, and its’ relationship with green consumption values, value consciousness, and psychological traits. A mixed-methods approach is adopted with quantitative followed by qualitative research. Study 1 recruits 240 respondents from social media and the lead author's university website to examine different factors that increase consumers’ likelihood of packaging-free shopping. Study 2 recruits packaging-free shoppers from Facebook Pages, explores these findings and provides further insights. Study 1 finds that consumers are driven more by green consumer values than by value consciousness, and consumers who are more conscientious are more likely to do packaging-free shopping. Study 2 supports this by finding that green consumer values drive packaging-free shopping, but this in only one part of their green efforts. The research contributes by illustrating the importance of conscientiousness specifically in the domain of packaging-free shopping and that these packaging-free shoppers are not driven in terms of value for money but by addressing their green consumer values. We recommend that packaging-free retailers and policy makers utilize promotional efforts to communicate how packaging-free shopping provides a balance with consumers’ green values for these shoppers, how it fits in with their other green efforts, and how these shopping efforts are making a difference in helping the environment.     

What does it mean to “shop local”? Examining the experiences of shoppers and store owners within the framework of downtown revitalization

The purpose of this study was to explore what it means to “shop local” and to investigate the extent to which store owners and their customers support the broader community by participating in the revitalization of a downtown area through their efforts. An interpretive design was used for this study, more precisely ethnographic methods. Specifically, participant observation, field notes, in-depth and field interviews, photography and online data collection were employed. 30 in-depth interviews and 49 field interviews were conducted with shoppers, store owners, and downtown development representatives. Findings highlight the complex nature of local shopping through the functional, social, economic, aesthetic and communal factors involved with the practice. Local shopping and local retail business ownership create positive changes within the community that contribute to downtown revitalization. Considered via practice theory, these factors provide a measure of activism and empowerment in the ways that they contribute to economic and social support for the area. This study is limited to a single city which has been in the process of revitalization for more than a decade, therefore findings may not be generalizable to cities at different stages in the revitalization process. This study provides valuable contributions concerning local retail businesses who operate within revitalizing downtown areas. For example, locallyowned retailers should consider the practical needs of the community while providing the more unique products typically offered in such stores. Further, shoppers are willing to support locally-owned businesses because they view them as integral to the community. Existing research has not addressed the reasons shoppers support locally-owned retail businesses and why store owners choose to operate in a revitalizing downtown. This paper attempts to fill that research gap.     

Which little piggy goes to market? Characteristics of US farmers' market shoppers

The growth in farmers' markets in the US has raised questions about whether they are a niche market or appeal to a broader population. Using a simple, random sample of US food shoppers, this study uses a test of means to examine whether there are differences in characteristics between those who shop at farmers' markets and those who do not. A key finding was that there was no significant difference in the level of food expenditures between shoppers and non‐shoppers. In addition, a probit model was used to examine the marginal effects of attitudinal, behavioural and demographic variables on the probability of shopping at a farmers' market. The probability was significantly increased by the following: enjoyment and frequency of cooking, being female and the presence of another adult in the household. Income did not significantly influence the probability of shopping at a farmers' market. However, the probability of shopping at a farmers' market was significantly reduced if respondents perceived that cost was the most important characteristic of food. These characteristics imply limited appeal of farmers' markets currently to convenience‐oriented, single‐person, and single‐parent households.