Comparing the True Cost of Living Indices of Demographically Different Households

The comparison of true cost of living indices between demographically different households (relative equivalence scale) is argued to be sensitive to the way demographic characteristics enter demand analysis. In particular, parameters reflecting the cost of demographic characteristics at base prices, though themselves do not have welfare (equivalence scale) interpretation, can alter the benchmark from which demographically varying inflation effects are measured. The empirical analysis, based on a rank‐3 demand system applied to UK individual household data, shows that the inflation adjustment of child benefits can vary with the way demographic costs at base period prices are specified.     

广东本地服装品牌的市场培育

本地原创品牌的发展塑造需要坚持,也需要本地市场的支持。品牌经营者必须充分了解市场需求,有针对性地进行市场培育,同时结合自身条件进行品牌营销,才能在市场上取胜。文章基于服装品牌消费者层次分析,提出以差异性的品牌推广方式来培育忠诚顾客的若干策略,从而提升原创品牌的市场竞争力。     

THE LAST MILE: AN EXAMINATION OF EFFECTS OF ONLINE RETAIL DELIVERY STRATEGIES ON CONSUMERS

The Internet has increased the level of importance of the end‐consumer market to transportation carriers. In two between subject experiments, carrier disclosure on retail merchant websites is examined as a strategic differentiation strategy. Predictions are offered concerning effects of carrier disclosure strategies on product delivery‐related expectations, consumer attitudes, and intentions to purchase a product online. Results from Study 1 reveal significant differences between disclosure and nondisclosure of the carrier for numerous product delivery‐related variables, as well as many differences between the six carriers examined in this first study. Study 2 extends these findings by showing that providing consumers with a choice of carrier leads to increased levels of satisfaction with the online experience and greater willingness to buy, relative to nondisclosure and disclosure strategies.     

Acquisitions and firm growth: Creating Unilever's ice cream and tea business

The role of acquisitions has been widely discussed in management literature. There is considerable evidence that many acquisitions fail, often because of post-acquisition problems. More recently business historians have examined their role in the restructuring of the British, American and other economies after World War Two. Yet the historical and management literatures have been poorly integrated. This article seeks to address some of the issues raised in the management literature by contributing a longitudinal case study of the use of acquisitions by Unilever to build the world's largest ice cream and tea businesses. The study supports recent resource-based theory which argues that complementary rather than related acquisitions add value. It identifies the importance of local knowledge as a key complementary asset. It also identifies reasons why Unilever was able to integrate acquisitions quite successfully, including clear strategic intent and the fact that employee resistance was reduced because most acquisitions were agreed. Finally Unilever could take a long-term view because of its size, and relative unconcern for shareholder interests before the 1980s.     

电子商务中消费者心理与行为分析

对电子商务中影响我国消费者网上消费的心理因素进行分析的基础上,描述了消费者网上消费行为的具体表现,并提出了我国企业在电子商务环境背景下应采取的相应对策。     

Early warning indicators? The effect of consumer and investor sentiments on the restaurant industry

This study looks at the influence of cyclical fluctuations of the consumer confidence index (CCI) and the volatility index (VIX) as early-warning indicators of the variations in restaurant performance. The industry has traditionally focused on past data and on microeconomic influences to anticipate its future performance, a procedure that does not consider possible cyclical fluctuations in restaurant performance metrics. These fluctuations are driven by sentiments of consumers and investors. The study uses the cyclical component of the applied data, followed by unit root and cointegration testing, with subsequent application of the Limited Information Maximum Likelihood technique. The results show both indicators have an effect on restaurant performance, where VIX has an impact on the current, expected, and overall restaurant performance, while the CCI’s influence is only partial (current performance). Policy-makers and planners could benefit from anticipating features of indicators to assess and steer the future performance of the restaurant industry.     

The organic industry in Australia: Current and future trends

Accurate information is critical for investment, policy alignment and to support agricultural development. In Australia information relating to the size, growth, current and future value of the organic sector has been incoherent and, in some cases, contradictory. This study seeks to address this gap by synthesising industry and government data with the results of an online quantitative survey as well as a series of in-depth interviews to capture the value added component of the organic industry in Australia. By sub-dividing the total organic industry into thirteen categories which makes for meaningful analysis and interpretation, we aimed to estimate the compound average growth rate, the current value added and future trends in the Australian organic industry. This has resulted in some interesting findings, hence the methodology could potentially serve as a benchmark for the reporting of organic food growth globally. The findings also have important implications for various stakeholders including, growers of organic products, investors, land use policy makers and industry operators.     

Other consumers in service encounters: A script theoretical perspective

Hospitality service consumptions often involve sharing the service environment with other consumers. Drawing upon the Script Theory, this research provides a theoretical perspective of consumer responses to behaviors of other consumers in service encounters. The results from an experimental study provide strong support for the dual-mode consumer responses (felt emotions and displayed emotions) and for the moderating effect of psychological closeness on consumer responses. Managerial implications for training, service management and service design in hospitality businesses are also discussed.     

‘Up in the air’: A conceptual critique of flying addiction

The ‘flyers’ dilemma’, where an individual’s self-identity as an environmentally-responsible consumer conflicts with the environmental impacts of frequent air travel, has been shown to produce a range of negative psychological effects. Some have argued that frequent flying may represent a site of behavioural addiction, characterized by guilt, suppression and denial. While this sort of pathologisation finds parallels in other forms of excessive consumption, its application in a tourist context is problematic in terms of classification validity, attribution of negative consequences, transfer of responsibility, and tendency towards social control and domination. We argue for an alternative conceptual approach to frequent flying which elaborates the structural reproduction of the ‘flyers’ dilemma’, rather than its individual, psychological effects.     

Hospitality aesthetic labor management: Consumers’ and prospective employees’ perspectives of hospitality brands

This research addresses a critical phenomenon in the global hospitality industry: aesthetic labor management. The study examines how frontline service employees’ managed display of aesthetics influences consumers’ (Study 1) and prospective employees’ (Study 2) brand evaluations along with other behavioral responses. Study 1 revealed that consumers’ perceived aesthetic labor fit regarding employees’ static appearance and performative mannerisms can lead to positive brand evaluations and customer-based brand equity via the mechanism of conceptual fluency. Study 2 found, via the same mechanism, that prospective employees’ perceived aesthetic labor fit of performative mannerisms—but not static appearance—can lead to positive brand evaluations, perceived value fit with the organization, and intentions to join the organization. Theoretical implications, practical recommendations, study limitations, and suggestions for future research are provided on the basis of these findings.