The Role of Customer Factors in Multiple Store Patronage: A Cost-Benefit Approach

This paper is concerned with the use of multiple stores by supermarket customers. It relates the number of stores patronized to a set of customer factors under a unifying theoretical framework emphasizing cost-benefit analysis. Respective hypotheses are tested in a large random sample. This study is a first attempt to empirically address the structure of multiple store patronage. It is demonstrated that multiple store patronage is affected by variables such as customer income, satisfaction, and expenditure that are suggestive of heterogeneous cost-benefit tradeoffs and opportunity costs of time. It is shown that customers are intrinsically different in the predisposition to being loyal. In this respect, store patronage is a continuum between single store loyalty and use of several different stores, on which customers vary depending on individual preferences. The empirical analysis also suggests that exclusive patronage of the favorite store arises from two observationally equivalent latent segments that differ in their inclination to remain loyal. The results yield valuable insights into the structure of store patronage and lead to important implications for retail managers. Several extensions are considered. A broad set of research questions surrounding store patronage can be considered from a cost-benefit viewpoint in the sense that consumer decisions in this area involve trading off economic resources against assortment, spatial and temporal benefits.     

Retail relationships and store loyalty: A multi-level perspective

An important factor in retail store loyalty is interpersonal relationships between retail salespeople and customers. However, relationships can also exist at the person-to-store level. This paper examines the linkages between trust in a salesperson, trust in the store, and repeat purchase intention. A model of store loyalty which includes relationships at both the person-to-store as well as person-to-person level is tested. The findings reveal that for those with an interpersonal relationship, trust and commitment to the salesperson are directly linked with purchase intention as well as indirectly through store attitude. For customers without a salesperson relationship, trust in the store leads to loyalty indirectly through store attitude, but does not have a direct impact on purchase intention. The results illustrate the existence of multi-level relationships between customers and stores and how those relationships link to store loyalty. The research adds to our understanding of the complexity of relationship retailing, while providing further evidence of the value of generating and maintaining interpersonal relationships as a retail strategy.     

A COMPARISON OF ACTUAL AND INTENDED CONSUMER BEHAVIOR IN RESPONSE TO RETAIL STOCKOUTS

Studies of consumer response to stockouts typically capture intended behavior. After a stockout experience, consumers are asked what they intend to do. In contrast, this research measured both intended and actual behavior. Consumers were interviewed twice; once immediately following the stockout experience to gauge intended behavior and a second time 30 days later to ask what they had actually done in response to the stockout. Accordingly, the goals of this research are to (1) compare consumer actual and intended behavior in response to stockouts and (2) examine product characteristics, consumer characteristics and situational variables that may explain the consumer's response. Key results suggest that indicated behavior is a good indicator of actual behavior in situations where the consumer intends to quit the search and a rather poor indicator when the consumer intends to delay the search. Finally, of the several product characteristics, consumer characteristics and situational variables examined, store loyalty, pre‐visit agenda and product uniqueness have shown most promise to help managers understand consumer actual and intended response to stockouts.     

Impacts of retail brand personality and self-congruity on store loyalty: The moderating role of gender

The present study was an effort to investigate the impacts of both retail brand personality and self-congruity, using them together in the same study, on store loyalty. Subsequently, this study explored the moderating role of gender in these relationships of retail brand personality and self-congruity with store loyalty. Questionnaire was used to collect data (n=355) using systematic sampling from department store shoppers of age 18 years and above in Kolkata, a metropolitan city of India. Multivariate data analysis techniques like exploratory factor analysis, structural equation modeling were used to analyse the data. Results revealed that both retail brand personality and self-congruity constructs have positive impacts on store loyalty and gender significantly moderates these impacts. Arguably, this paper is the first to examine the three constructs namely, retail brand personality, self-congruity and store loyalty using them together in the same model. Academic and managerial implications are further discussed.     

Main-format dominance in consumers’ FMCG cross-format shopping patterns

Although cross-format patronage has become a common phenomenon in markets for Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG), research on consumers’ specific cross-format combinations is limited. We study such shopping patterns by focusing on retail format utilization. A qualitative pre-study demonstrates consumers’ patronizing combinations of typical retail formats in FMCG with main-format usage and provides underlying differences in consumers’ perceived shopping utility for cross-format selection, which results from their utilized main-format. Our quantitative study reveals three clusters with main-format dominance, that is, mainly supermarket, discount store, and hypermarket shoppers complementarily utilizing fill-in formats to a much lesser extent. Whereas we found high inter-format loyalty in each consumer group, intra-format loyalty significantly varies between clusters. ANOVA and post hoc-tests concerning perceived shopping utility dimensions show that consumers’ perceived acquisition utility rather than perceived transaction costs significantly differs between consumer groups.     

An investigation into the link between consumer's product involvement and store loyalty: The roles of shopping value goals and information search as the mediating factors

This research proposes a theoretical model explaining the roles of multiple mediating factors – product quality, service quality, and information search –in the association between product involvement and store loyalty. The extant literature has examined different determinants of store loyalty but paid less attention to understand the link between product involvement and store loyalty and the underlying mechanisms. This study contributes to the literature by a) providing a comprehensive framework of involvement – loyalty link and b) investigating complex mediation effects. In this study, survey data were subjected to regression analysis to test parallel mediation and serial mediation effects of product quality, service quality, and information search in the link between consumer's product involvement and store loyalty. The results indicate that both product quality and information search mediate the association between product involvement and store loyalty. In addition, both product quality and service quality mediate the association between product involvement and information search. Results also indicate that product quality and information search work as serial mediators in the association between product involvement and store loyalty. For additional level of analyses, data were also subjected to Importance-Performance Map Analysis (IPMA). Theoretical and managerial implications are also provided.     

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.     

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.     

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 impact of weather on consumer behavior and retail performance: Evidence from a convenience store chain in China

Despite extensive use of weather data to adjust replenishment and inventory strategies in the retail industry, these companies do clearly know the effect of weather on consumer behavior and retail performance. How does weather affect consumers' purchasing behavior and thus retail performance? We study empirically these questions by analyzing more than 6 million transactions made by more than 1.62 million unique consumers at 146 convenience stores in a convenience store chain in China. We choose sun, rain, temperature, and air quality index as the main weather variables. We use the average number of items per order and the average price of each item in each order as indicators of consumer behavior, and use store daily sales as an indicator of retail performance. We found that under rainy weather, people will buy more products with higher item prices in one order. When temperature rises, people will buy fewer products with a lower item price in one order. In addition, sunny weather and rainy weather have a positive impact on daily sales than cloudy weather. Air quality has a negative impact on daily sales, while temperature has a positive impact on sales. Finally, we study the impact of weather on different product categories. We find that the results depend on the product category characteristics.     

The impact of private labels on consumer store loyalty: An integrative perspective

This research studies the role of private labels (PLs) on consumers’ store loyalty. It offers an integrative approach that comprises several store loyalty drivers (in-store and economic factors), analyzing the role that PLs play among different types of retailers. Data were collected through an online survey. Using structural equation modeling, we run our analysis across different retail formats, assessing which factors lead to store loyalty and to what extent PLs contribute to it. Findings suggest that depending on retailers‘ market positioning, different factors contribute to loyalty and that the impact of PLs is mostly significant for medium-cost and premium supermarkets.     

The impact of customer awareness of manufacturer name disclosure on retail brand attitudes and loyalty in Korea

This paper explores the impact of exposing the name of the manufacturer on a retail brand product upon national brand loyalty, retail brand loyalty and store loyalty, It does so by exploring customer attitudes towards retail brands in South Korea, where there is a legal requirement for retail brands to portray the manufacturer׳s name. For international retailers entering markets where such disclosure is a legal requirement an understanding of the implications of this for retail brand management is essential. The findings suggest that in the Korean case revealing the name of the manufacturer who supplies the retail brand on the product packaging has a positive influence on attitudes towards retail brands, although it did not mitigate the perceived risks held by customers towards retail brand products in general.     

The Impact of Brand Delisting on Store Switching and Brand Switching Intentions

A tool retailers often use to improve their negotiating position with brand manufacturers is to delist - or threaten to delist - the manufacturers’ brand. Because brand manufacturers rely mainly on retailers to sell their products to consumers, a brand delisting will cause a sales loss for the brand manufacturer. Therefore, many brand manufacturers feel enormous pressure to give in and improve buying conditions to favor the retailer. The question thus emerges: Can a brand manufacturer resist a retailer's threat to delist its brand(s)? If a brand delisting severely hurts retail sales, it is easier for a brand manufacturer to resist. The authors study the impact of brand delistings on store switching and brand switching using a controlled online experiment and in-store shopper survey. They develop and test a conceptual model with several antecedents of consumers’ reactions to a brand delisting and conclude that brand equity, market share, and the products’ hedonic level drive store and brand switching.     

Understanding retail branding: conceptual insights and research priorities

With the growing realization that brands are one of a firm's most valuable intangible assets, branding has emerged as a top management priority in the last decade. Given its highly competitive nature, branding can be especially important in the retailing industry to influence customer perceptions and drive store choice and loyalty. We integrate lessons from branding and retail image research to provide a better understanding of how retailers create their brand images, paying special attention to the role of the manufacturer and private label brand assortment. We also highlight some important areas that deserve further research in the form of three sets of research priorities.     

Gender-related wayfinding time of mall shoppers

The relative superiority of males over females with respect to wayfinding performance in real life is not clearly established in the literature. The present study aims at clarifying the issue in the specific case of wayfinding in shopping malls environment. An experimental study using actual shoppers in a mall showed that the relationship between gender and time necessary to find a store within a mall is mediated by both shopping values and the use of information sources. Compared to male shoppers, female shoppers were found to be more hedonist and use people as a source of information, which in turn was instrumental in reducing wayfinding time.     

The effects of in-store themed events on consumer store choice decisions

Retailers are increasingly using in-store events to provide shoppers with unique experiences that will enhance shopping value and help differentiate their stores from competitors. However, relatively little is known about how consumers respond to experiential retail events in terms of their store choice decisions. The purpose of this research was to find out how in-store retail events affect consumers in terms of their store choice decisions. The paper presents findings from a discrete choice experiment that manipulated the presence of different types of in-store themed events in a do-it-yourself (DIY) category. Participants were 312 randomly recruited residents of Melbourne, Australia, who had recently shopped at a hardware store. The experiment was implemented as a mail-back survey. Using logit models the authors assess the effects of the in-store events along with those of various traditional store attributes, including store appearance, price image and distance, on consumer store choice decisions.     

The impact of hard discounter presence on store satisfaction and store loyalty

Hard discounters, such as Aldi and Lidl, have become more important in the last decade. Recent research suggests that the presence of a hard discounter (HD) decreases customers’ share of wallet. In this study, we aim to understand why this occurs, by considering how HD presence affects store attributes and store satisfaction. In particular, we investigate whether HD presence affects store satisfaction formation as well as the effect of store satisfaction on share of wallet. We analyze Dutch data on store attribute evaluations, store satisfaction and share of wallet. Our results show that HD presence decreases convenience evaluations of a store, satisfaction and share of wallet. Moreover, we show that the relationship between convenience and store satisfaction becomes more important when a HD is present, while we then also find a stronger positive relationship between satisfaction and share of wallet. Simulations based on our model estimations show that especially price-oriented retailers should fear decreases in share of wallet when a HD is present.     

Shopping trip value: Do stores and products matter?

Previous research indicates the importance of shopping trip value but recognises that consumers do not shop independent of the environment; both products and stores contribute to overall shopping trip value. This study identifies the impact of product and store value on overall shopping trip value and investigates the interrelationship among their utilitarian and hedonic components. In addition, it proposes a store value scale. The authors find empirically that utilitarian store value and performance-related product value have significant effects on utilitarian shopping trip value, whereas hedonic shopping trip value is influenced most by hedonic store value and emotional product value. In addition, women appear more prone to hedonic shopping trip value yet also utilitarian store value, while men were more attentive to utilitarian product value.     

Store and store format loyalty measures based on budget allocation

In highly competitive environments, such as retail markets, characterized by a growing heterogeneity of demand and the proliferation of new retail formats, cross-shopping behavior between stores and formats is becoming increasingly common. This process makes customer loyalty a key strategic challenge for retailers that want to consolidate their position within the market. To contribute to the analysis and comprehension of this reality, the authors propose and assess different objective indicators of store loyalty, store format loyalty, and intra-format store loyalty based on budget allocation. Specifically, they analyze the role of retail format in observable loyalty patterns in a market. Through an empirical analysis of grocery purchase patterns of a sample of 580 Spanish households, the authors find that diverse objective loyalty indicators based on budget allocations provide very similar information from a practical point of view. They also find that consumers' regular use of various formats (specifically, supermarkets, hypermarkets, and discount stores) for their purchases explain observed disloyalty better than does purchasing in several stores within these formats. The observed patterns reveal that retail formats define differentiated store profiles that relate to the benefits sought in different purchase situations.     

Coping strategies and intended change of shopping habits after the Corona pandemic – Insights from two countries in Western and Eastern Europe

The Corona pandemic forced customers to develop strategies to cope with the situation and switch to alternative channels during lockdowns. This raises the question if such behavioral changes are only short-term or if consumers’ shopping habits change in the long run and thus cause or accelerate structural change in retailing. We analyze such immediate reactions and intended changes in habits using qualitative interviews conducted in Germany and Poland. Results show that German respondents had stronger intentions to support physical stores after the pandemic, while Polish respondents had stronger intentions to continue increased online shopping. Different retail structures explain these findings.