Impact of movie-watching on cross-selling revenue in shopping malls: Implications for post-pandemic recovery

The COVID-19 pandemic has prompted consumers to postpone in-store purchases and shift to online shopping, decreasing overall retail spending. As the global lockdown eases and shoppers return to offline stores and malls, shopping malls seek to facilitate in-store consumer experiences at entertainment facilities. Given the importance of entertainment facilities to the cross-selling revenue of shopping malls, we investigate the relationship between consumers' movie-watching and subsequent (hedonistic) grocery purchases. Our analysis of a panel database that includes transaction details at the consumer level shows that movie-watching is negatively correlated with consumer spending. Furthermore, consumers’ psychological states induced by content and contextual factors moderate the negative effect of movie-watching; after watching a fantasy (as compared to thriller) genre or watching a movie in a less crowded theater, consumers are more likely to make hedonic purchases at the supermarket. These findings provide theoretical and managerial implications for retail operators exploring cross-selling opportunities post-pandemic.     

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.     

Sound-symbolic signaling of online retailer sizes: The moderating effect of shopping goals

Sound symbolism – the ability of certain phonemes to evoke automatic, implicit associations or meanings – has been documented for a variety of consonants and vowels. However, to date, the literature has not documented shopping-related moderators of sound symbolism, and the role of sound symbolism in online retailing remains understudied. Thus, the present investigation extends the sound symbolism literature into the online retailing domain by investigating size-sound symbolism of online retailers' names and introduces a consumer's given shopping goal (searching versus browsing) as a key moderator of size-sound symbolic effects. The findings of four studies indicate that for names of online retailers, back vowels and voiced consonants lead to greater size perceptions of those retailers than front vowels and voiceless consonants. Further, the findings reveal that, compared to browsers, searchers utilize size-sound symbolism as a filtering heuristic, but the effect does not hold for browsers. Additionally, the findings show that size-sound symbolic effects can influence downstream consumer responses by linking size perceptions as a mediator to patronage intentions. Several implications for theory and practice emerge from the findings.     

Exploring consumers’ subjective shopping experiences in directly operated luxury brand stores

Customers’ in-store shopping experiences are critical for luxury brand success. Research on the creation of experiential value in retailing finds clear differences in the cues contributing to delightful consumer experiences depending on the retailing sector. A management perspective dominates research in luxury retailing, while research on consumers’ subjective luxury shopping experiences is scarce. This study contributes to filling the gap regarding consumers’ subjective experiences through a qualitative inquiry into shoppers’ accounts of experiences in luxury brand stores. The study finds that the major determinants of a delightful shopping experience in luxury stores are extraordinary service excellence, unique multi-sensory emotional stimulation conforming to the brand, and a feeling of personal importance and assurance. The study demonstrates the importance of a holistic individual experience in helping shoppers become immersed in the brand universe through all their senses.     

I need to touch it to buy it! How haptic information influences consumer shopping behavior across channels

Increasingly interactive touch-enabling technologies are mitigating the lack of haptic information for products online. This paper explores how consumers’ haptic traits – instrumental and autotelic – indirectly influence their impulse buying and channel stickiness intentions by the means of utilitarian and hedonic shopping motivations. A structural equation model investigating three shopping channels (i.e., physical, web, and mobile) reveals that haptic traits act differently across channels. Consumers with strong haptic traits prefer physical and mobile channels. The autotelic dimension is key in online channels. Findings support the implementation of effective multichannel strategies among retailers of high-haptic products, showing the mobile to be a valuable alternative to in-store shopping.     

Searching online and buying offline: Understanding the role of channel-, consumer-, and product-related factors in determining webrooming intention

In recent times, the increasing accessibility of mobile technology has led to changes in consumers’ purchasing behavior. Despite the gloom and doom hearsay about how electronic commerce is threatening the existence of brick-and-mortar stores, by some indications, however, webrooming (i.e., the practice of researching items online, and then buying them offline) may be an even more common practice among shoppers. Against this background, this study proposes and empirically validates a comprehensive research model which incorporates consumer traits (i.e., need for touch, need for interaction, and price-comparison orientation), channel-related factors (i.e., online search convenience, perceived usefulness of online reviews, perceived helpfulness of in-store salespeople, and perceived risk of buying online), and smart shopping perception as antecedents of webrooming intention. Moreover, this study examines the moderating role of product category in predicting webrooming intention. A questionnaire-based survey was conducted. A total of 280 useable responses was collected and data was analyzed using partial least square structural equation modeling. The findings revealed significant direct and/or indirect effects (through smart shopping perception) of consumer traits and channel-related factors on webrooming intention. In addition, product category was found to moderate the relationship between price-comparison orientation, online search convenience, perceived risk, and webrooming intention. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

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.     

Shopping orientation segments: exploring differences in store patronage and attitudes toward retail store environments among female apparel consumers

The purpose of this study was to identify shopping orientation segments for US female consumers. The sample included 151 women, aged 18 years and over. This research examined differences in the segments relative to store patronage preferences (i.e. department, discount, specialty), attitude toward the environment of the store selected as first choice when shopping for a specific apparel item (i.e. a dress), and demographic characteristics. Cluster analysis revealed that four shopping segments described the female consumers. The segments were named Decisive Apparel Shopper, Confident Apparel Shopper, Highly Involved Apparel Shopper, and Extremely Involved Apparel Shopper, based on several shopping factors. Differences were found among the shopping orientation segments for store of first choice, attitude and household income. Implications and future research directions are discussed.     

The effects of mall personality and fashion orientation on shopping value and mall patronage intension

It is imperative for mall operators in China to gain insights into consumer shopping behaviours that will allow them to further develop their mall personalities, in order to better differentiate themselves from the competition. The overarching objective of the present study was two-fold: to increase our understanding about contemporary Chinese shoppers; and to examine the relationships among mall personality, fashion orientation, shopping value and mall patronage intention. This study presents the results of a research survey conducted in Wuhan, China. Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modeling (PLS SEM) was used to analyze the survey responses from 324 shopping mall patrons. The findings indicate that consumers' fashion orientation has a significant influence based on their perception of the shopping mall personality. The path model analysis revealed that consumers' perception of shopping value had the strongest effect on their shopping intentions at the mall.