Anatomy of shopping experience for malls in Mumbai: A confirmatory factor analysis approach

The city of Mumbai has not yet exhausted its potential in terms of availability of mall space. Yet shoppers of Mumbai seem to prefer high-street locations even if the product or format is operating from inside a shopping mall also. It means that shoppers look beyond the basic chore of shopping and experience plays a vital role. This study was undertaken to understand the composition of shopping experience so that mall developers and managers succeed in generating exciting among shoppers by orchestration of shopping experience using components as identified at the end of this research. It is based on empirical investigation of 400 respondents selected from four shopping malls in Mumbai. The study identifies ambience, convenience, marketing focus, safety & security and physical infrastructure as factors vital in defining shopping experience. Results were confirmed using confirmatory factor analysis.     

Beyond the random location of shopping malls: A GIS perspective in Amman,Jordan

The purpose of this research is to examine shopping mall location selection in the area of West Amman in Jordan. Following the Time-Resistance Approach, ArcGIS's Network Analyst tool was used to calculate the distance in terms of minutes to reach each shopping mall using Geographical Information Systems (GIS) techniques.ResultsThe area under study, which covers multiple sub-districts, suffers from excessive oversupply, due to the lack of established planning criteria and regulations, which in turn has resulted in high population-to-retail-area-ratio. This result was further supported by referring to other evaluation criteria, including the planning criteria used in other countries such as UAE and Saudi Arabia.     

The death and life of shopping malls: an empirical investigation on the dead malls in Greater Lisbon

At a moment when new retail formats are emerging and consumers are changing their preferences, it is vital to reflect on the existing shopping malls, which are being challenged in European cities. With their vitality endangered, many become dead malls, a phenomenon that has increased over recent years. With this in mind, the objective of this study is to explain the factors behind the proliferation of dead malls through an empirical analysis of the evolution of shopping malls in Greater Lisbon, Portugal. We combine three sets of retail change theories (cyclic, conflict and environmental) with current perspectives on the resilience of urban retail. We expect that our study will contribute toward current debates on the resilience of shopping malls. The methodology of our study comprises two stages. First, we updated the Greater Lisbon shopping mall database and analysed the growth and decline of each shopping mall type over the last 44 years. In a second phase, we conducted a fieldwork survey on 150 shopping malls, which allowed us to identify and profile the dead malls of Greater Lisbon. Our results show that dead malls match declining shopping mall types, and we discuss four factors affecting the resilience of shopping malls.     

Marketplace icons: shopping malls

ABSTRACT

This article considers shopping malls as marketplace icons. We suggest that shopping malls can be regarded as a significant symbol of consumption in an age of late modernity, and highlight key aspects of their development. The role of the shopping mall as an agent of creative destruction, influencing the nature of the retail landscape (especially with regard to the implications of – stereotypically suburban – malls for traditional urban retail provision), is discussed. We also consider the implications for notions of “place” (in terms of authenticity and meaning, etc.) arising from the fundamental characteristics of shopping malls, and end by suggesting that the shopping mall, as a marketplace icon, continues to dynamically and iteratively define and refine the ongoing interactions between consumers, the act of consumption, and place and space     

Satisfaction of mall shoppers: A study on perceived utilitarian and hedonic shopping values

Declining consumer footfall and diminishing sales in Indian metro cities have guided the expansion of malls in cities of central India. Shoppers of these cities are unfamiliar with the mall concept and have limited exposure of shopping values in the past. The present research focused on the influence of utilitarian and hedonic shopping values on satisfaction of mall shoppers of central India Bhopal by establishing a proposed research framework based on 288 responses from two shopping malls, using utilitarian and hedonic dimensions of shopping values. Confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling (SEM) are used to analyze and validate the proposed research framework. The result supports the relationship between shopping values and customer satisfaction, where both the shopping values show positive significant influences on customer satisfaction. Therefore this research paper would help mall owners to focus on these shopping values effectively and efficiently while planning malls in central India for gaining competitive advantage, attracting new customer and hold their profitable customers by enhancing customer satisfaction with shopping values in the current retail scenario.     

Sources of customer satisfaction with shopping malls: A comparative study of different customer segments

Abstract

In spite of the growing importance of planned, centrally managed and enclosed shopping centres in the retailing sector, the understanding concerning sources and outcomes of customer satisfaction with this kind of shopping malls is limited. This paper develops and validates a conceptualisation of shopping mall satisfaction based on field studies in Sweden. The results show that eight underlying factors of varying character are important to customer satisfaction. These are selection, atmosphere, convenience, sales people, refreshments, location, promotional activities and merchandising policy. Furthermore, this study investigates whether sources of satisfaction differ in importance with respect to gender and age, generally two important variables for retail segmentation.     

Linking atmospherics to shopping outcomes: The role of the desire to stay

This study relies on the Stimulus-Organism-Response (S–O-R) paradigm to explore the mediating role of the desire to stay at the shopping mall in the relationship between shopper positive attitudes towards three atmospheric cues (color schemes, lighting, and music) and the shopping outcomes of shopper satisfaction, positive Word-of-Mouth (WOM) and patronage intentions. Moreover, the study elaborates on the path from the desire to stay to positive WOM and patronage intentions by considering the mediating role of shopper satisfaction. A survey-based study comprising a sample size of 451 mall shoppers has been developed to test the proposed research model. The results indicate that the desire to stay mediates the relationship between shoppers’ positive attitudes towards color schemes and music, on one hand, and shopper satisfaction and positive WOM, on the other hand. Although the desire to stay has a direct effect on positive WOM, it does not directly impact patronage intention. However, the latter path becomes significant when considering the mediating role of shopper satisfaction, indicating that satisfying mall stays enhance desirable outcomes. Based on these findings, implications for theory and retailers are discussed.     

Image transfer from malls to stores and its influence on shopping values and mall patronage: The role of self-congruity

Little research attention has been paid to the image transference from a shopping mall to its stores. The study reported in this article proposes an integrative model dealing with the image transference phenomenon from malls to stores and its implications in terms of creating value for shoppers and enticing mall patronage. Structural equation modeling is applied to data collected from shoppers in two urban North-Amercian shopping malls. The findings are broadly supportive of the proposed model. Mall image spills over the image of the stores located in the mall, and this occurs through a shopper's self-congruity mechanism. Furthermore, the mall's image dimensions influence hedonic shopping value through self-congruity. The stores’ image dimensions differentially influence utilitarian and hedonic shopping values assessments. Both types of shopping values are strong drivers of mall patronage. The study also discusses the implications of the findings as well as its limitations and directions for future research.     

Diversity in deprivation: exploring the grocery shopping behaviour of disadvantaged consumers

Social exclusion has received much attention in recent years among governments and policy makers. While there are many aspects of social exclusion, of particular interest to marketing and consumer behaviour is the issue of the accessibility of consumer goods and services to socially excluded groups. The purpose of the research reported in this paper is to contribute to the understanding of the grocery shopping behaviour of disadvantaged consumers. The research was conducted with a sample of consumers living in a deprived residential area in Scotland. While the participants were mainly characterized as 'economic shoppers', they were heavily dependent on the local convenience stores, due, mainly, to the financial and mobility restrictions they faced. The experience of 'social exclusion' was not homogeneous within the sample, varying with other aspects of disadvantage, including social support networks, illness, age, family situation and mobility. The implications of this research are discussed and potential research directions highlighted.     

The effects of mall renovation on shopping values,satisfaction and spending behaviour

Managers renovate malls to keep up with newer shopping centres and retail formats that erode traffic. This paper investigates shoppers׳ psychological processes that trigger changes in spending behaviour in the renovated mall. Renovation has a direct impact on the perception of the mall atmosphere and an indirect one on shoppers׳ hedonic and utilitarian values, satisfaction, and spending. Renovation affects shoppers׳ spending through the perception of utilitarian shopping benefits.This study is the first of its kind to explore the effects of mall renovation on shoppers׳ spending. It focuses on the effect of renovations on shoppers׳ holistic perception of the mall atmosphere. The hedonic benefit contributes more to shoppers׳ satisfaction than does the utilitarian value. However, the utilitarian value affects shoppers׳ spending while the hedonic value does not.     

Effects of shopping centre re-investments and improvements on sales and visit growth

PurposeEstablished shopping centres have in recent years experienced increasing competition due to a steady increase in newer and bigger centres as well as online shopping. How could existing centres compete on such terms?Design/methodology/approachThis analysis is based on interviews with 96 shopping centre managers in charge of malls that existed in 2008 and 2014, about their improvements during a three-year period and the effects on sales and number of visitors from one year before and one year after that period. The investments and improvements are structured and analysed mainly along seven common categories of shopping centre attributes recognised as determinants of customer satisfaction and/or patronage behaviour in existing research.FindingsThe results show significant positive relationships between shopping centres' improvements and the growth in sales as well as visit rates. The effects are, however, more significant for sales than visit growth. The forms of investment that yielded the greatest positive effect are improvements in physical dimensions such as access, atmosphere the retail mix. Increased investments in less physical dimensions such as promotions, entertainment, refreshments and service had little or no effect.Originality/valuePresent studies on centre renovations and improvements are merely case studies or studies of single cases, but this study deals with larger number of cases and long-term effects. In contrast to previous research on shopping centres and the role of satisfaction and patronage, with recommend balance between physical and non-physical aspects, this study highlights the importance of physical capital dimensions.     

Comfort in brick and mortar shopping experiences: Examining antecedents and consequences of comfortable retail experiences

This paper explores the comfort construct in brick and mortar retail settings. As a psychological construct, consumer comfort reflects a sense of ease and peace of mind during a shopping experience. Previous research suggests comfort carries a number of positive consequences for managers, such as strengthening customer relationships and increasing customer satisfaction (Gaur and Xu, 2009). However, these studies take a more interpersonal relationship theory approach and have not considered the impact of non-social aspects of retail environments on consumers' comfort. Moreover, these extant studies have not considered how comfortable environments create value for consumers. Consequently, this study examines how atmospheric elements contribute to creating consumer comfort, and how comfort impacts consumers' perceptions of shopping value. Findings from survey data demonstrate that not all atmospheric elements influence consumers' comfort levels. Moreover, comfortable environments were found to increase both utilitarian value and hedonic value. The implications of the findings for academics and managers are discussed.     

The shopping list in goal-directed shopping: scale development and validation

This paper aims to develop and validate a shopping list scale in a goal-directed shopping context based on three complementary study phases (and literature review): shopper interviews (exploratory stage to identify the items and dimensions), a pilot study with 162 respondents for scale purification, and a refined questionnaire administered to 213 respondents (to establish reliability, convergent, discriminant and nomological validity). An exploratory factor analysis shows that the items load onto four factors: memory aid, money controller, shopping controller, and deviation controller. We performed confirmatory factor analysis to test the model and check for reliability and validity of the anticipated scale. The model fit and reliability levels are acceptable, as are the convergent and discriminant validities of the scale. The scale is a second-order factor, thus satisfying nomological validity. The shopping list scale should be of interest to researchers and retail managers in exploring factors and outcomes of goal-directed shopper behaviour.     

The effect of assortment and fulfillment on shopping assistance and efficiency: An e-tail servicescape perspective

The study focuses on comparative effectiveness of two e-tail servicescape dimensions, e.g., product assortment and order fulfillment on consumers’ online purchase intentions for fashion apparel shopping. The mediating effect of shopping assistance and efficiency between e-tail servicescape dimensions and purchase intentions is examined. Additionally, the moderating influence of fulfillment reliability between e-tail servicescape dimensions and shopping assistance is also examined. The survey instrument was used to execute the study and data were gathered from 442 participants from the national capital of India. The hypothesized relationships were verified using covariance-based structural equation modelling (CB-SEM), hierarchical regression analytics (HRA), and bootstrap procedure. The findings reveal that there are certain e-tail value disposition oriented benefits in investing order fulfillment landscape over product assortment. The mediating role of shopping assistance and shopping efficiency is empirically verified and the moderating influence of fulfillment reliability is also confirmed.     

Buyers-to-shoppers ratio of shopping malls: A probit study in Hong Kong

Buyers-to-shoppers ratio (i.e. conversion rate) has long been one of the commonly adopted metrics in assessing retail performance of shopping malls, but it is almost always relied on interviews, consumer surveys, and questionnaires. These methods are intrinsically problematic in ascertaining the trustworthiness of the responses. This paper is probably the first objective study on the buyers-to-shoppers ratio based on actual observations in shopping malls in Hong Kong. A probit model is used to study factors affecting the ratio. The results show that consumer-surveys seriously over-estimate the ratio.     

Crowding in the time of COVID: Effects on rapport and shopping satisfaction

Decades of research in marketing has established that crowding (human and spatial) in retail contexts significantly affects shopping satisfaction. Prompted by the profound changes in retail supply and demand due to the Covid-19 pandemic, this study expands knowledge in two ways: uncovering new relationships and replicating some of the critical findings previously demonstrated in the pre-pandemic context. Two studies (Study 1 scenario and Study 2 actual shopping trip) show that higher levels of human crowding results in lower levels of shopping satisfaction, and this effect is mediated by a new construct introduced into the crowding literature, namely, customer rapport with employees, emerging as a significant factor in the pandemic era. Importantly, the results show that these relationships differ according to customers’: a) perceptions about the appropriateness of retailer precautions, b) beliefs about the severity of threat that the pandemic presents, and c) perceived vulnerability to Covid-19, all of them new to crowding dynamics during the time of Covid. Finally, with Study 2, we replicate and extend selected findings from prior research on crowding. Overall, the results expand our understanding of crowding effects and provide novel insights in the “new normal” retail context.     

Managing transformations in retail agglomerations:Case Itis shopping center

Shopping centers have received much interest in recent years. This interest comes as many centers have struggled with declining footfall and the demise of many large anchor tenants. The bankruptcy of one anchor tenant has often led shopping centers into a downward spiral from which there is no return. In this paper, we provide an example of how a shopping center can develop sustainably in the transforming retailscape. Our findings highlight the role of the shopping center management in the success of contemporary shopping centers, particularly in crafting a tenant mix in which each tenant has a role to play.     

The role of gender and work status in shopping center patronage

Substantial research in marketing has examined the impact of store atmospherics on retail store patronage [Baker Julie. Parasuraman A. Grewal Dhruv. Voss Glenn B. The Influence of Multiple Store Environment Cues on Perceived Merchandise Value and Patronage Intentions. Journal of Marketing. 2002; 66 (April):120-41]. In addition, research has examined the effect of gender and work status on social influence and role expectations within the context of shopping center patronage [Evans Kenneth R. Christiansen Tim. Gill James D. The Impact of Social Influence and Role Expectations on Shopping Center Patronage Intentions. Academy of Marketing Science Journal. 1996; 24 (Summer): 208-18]. This research extends previous research and examines the differential effects of gender and work status characteristics on the relationship between shopping mall characteristics (including atmospherics) and consumer shopping center patronage. The results of a study of 1015 shoppers demonstrate that there are few significant differences between models for men and women, and even between women who work outside the home and those who do not. Implications and directions for future research are derived.     

Teenagers’ use of alternative shopping channels: A consumer socialization perspective

The consumer socialization (CS) perspective is applied to explore factors that influence a developing consumers’ use of different shopping channels—mall and Internet. The effects of channel involvement, access to funds, access to the channel, and socialization agent communication on adolescent shopping and intentions are examined using a high school student sample. Results indicate that involvement with a channel has a major influence on agent communication, time and money spent, and future intentions to shop in that channel. Agent communication was also found to influence shopping behaviors and intentions. Differences between channels are noted. Additional findings, implications, limitations, and future research directions are also presented.