Stability and Segregation in Group Formation

This paper presents a model of group formation based on the assumption that individuals prefer to associate with people similar to them. It is shown that, in general, if the number of groups that can be formed is bounded, then a stable partition of the society into groups may not exist. (A partition is defined as stable if none of the individuals would prefer be in a different group than the one he is in.) However, if individuals' characteristics are one-dimensional, then a stable partition always exists. We give sufficient conditions for stable partitions to be segregating (in the sense that, for example, low-characteristic individuals are in one group and high-characteristic ones are in another) and Pareto efficient. In addition, we propose a dynamic model of individual myopic behavior describing the evolution of group formation to an eventual stable, segregating, and Pareto efficient partition. Journal of Economic Literature Classification Numbers: C72, H41.     

Do leveraged warrants prompt individuals to speculate on stock price reversals?

Using proprietary data on bank-issued knock-out warrants written on a stock index, we find that individual investors’ aggregate warrant portfolio speculates against the short-term trend of the index. We argue that contrarian trading is driven by the interaction of product design and investors’ preference for large leveraged positions. Investors tend to open larger positions whenever warrants offer higher leverage. As a result, investors open an aggregate long position when calls offer higher leverage than puts. Since knock-out leverages move systematically with the underlying, aggregate warrant positions become contrarian even if investors do not intend to speculate on reversals.     

An explanation of share tenancy in terms of unemployment,social norms and power

Due to persistent unemployment, peasant families in developing countries tend to employ more labour on the leased in land plots than a capitalist would. In labour surplus societies, therefore, landlords may earn higher surplus from leasing out land than from self-cultivation. By endogenising disguised unemployment this paper shows that greater power and unity of landlords and conservative social norms may explain the persistence of share tenancy in developing economies.     

浅谈网络环境下服装零售新模式及策略

作为代表未来贸易方式发展方向的一种新型商业模式,电子商务是在计算机技术、网络技术以及以数据库的基础上发展起来的。传统零售商开展电子商务面对的最重要问题往往是如何将线下的资产与电子商务进行整合,本文就传统服装零售业发展电子商务的新策略进行了探讨,分别对产品、价格、渠道及促销新策略进行分析总结。     

中国内外资零售企业竞争态势比较分析

本文以限额以上零售企业为样本，采用静态比较分析的方法，从基本情况、财务结构、盈利能力和工资福利等方面进行比较和分析。以探求当前我国内、外资零售企业的真实竞争状况和动向，并对我国内资零售企业如何把握和参与竞争提出相关建议。最后指出零售业自由化和全球化的最终赢家是PK台下的观众：中国的消费者和老百姓。     

我国报业市场与经济增长的实证分析

改革开放以后的20几年里,我国报业市场与宏观经济都经历了一段长时间的高速增长.我国报业市场所经历的高速增长与我国这20年中经济的高速发展是相辅相成的,两者存在很强的相关性.从因果关系上看,报业市场的发展对我国经济增长的促进作用,要大于经济增长对报业市场发展的促进作用.     

Understanding on-the-go consumption: A retail mix perspective

On-the-go (OTG) consumption is a growing phenomenon in the food and beverage industry. Drawing on the theory of consumption values, this study is conducted to acquire a better understanding of the influence that retail-mix elements have on OTG consumption outcomes. Specifically, this study examines the role of value for money, customer service, general assortments and healthy assortments in driving intention and satisfaction related to OTG consumption. The study also assesses the conditional value generated by the consumer's health orientation, impulsiveness and perceived time pressure. Based on a sample of 433 OTG consumers, and applying multi-group structural equation modelling (SEM) and fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA), value for money was identified as the key driver of OTG consumption outcomes. Impulsiveness and time pressure are shown to increase the effects of value for money perceptions on OTG consumption intention, while health orientation enhances the relationship between customer service and satisfaction. This study contributes to the literature on OTG consumption, explains the managerial implications for retailers, and offers recommendations to target OTG consumers better.     

SKU performance and distribution: A large-scale analysis of the role of product characteristics with store scanner data

This study investigates the relationship between distribution and market share across various consumer packaged goods (CPG) categories and specific stock keeping units (SKUs). The study identifies product-related characteristics that result in substantive deviations above or below market shares predicted by the distribution – market share relationship. The association of product price, brand (private label [PL] v. national brand [NB]) and pack size with above (or below) expected market share for a given distribution level is analysed. Results indicate larger pack sizes, PL and medium price levels result in market share above what would be predicted by an SKU’s distribution. This presents a source for competitive advantage in markets driven by push–pull dynamics.     

COVID-19 and retail: The catalyst for e-commerce in Belgium?

Since the turn of the century especially small, local retailers struggle with the advent of e-commerce. It is hence no surprise that the retail sector is one of the hardest-hit sectors in the current pandemic. To understand the short- and longer-term impacts of COVID-19 on retail, we conducted two surveys to understand ongoing changes in the sector. By contrasting changing consumer behavior with the actions taken by local retailers, we assess whether the current pandemic is potentially a catalyst for e-commerce in Belgium. We do this based on a newly constructed framework of e-retail accessibility, as the differences between online and physical retail require a revision of the traditional economic geographical perspective on retail performance as introduced by Christaller (1933). We conclude that the COVID-19 pandemic holds ample opportunities for an increase in the three components of e-retail accessibility, but that a lack of professionalism might prevent traditional local retailers to retain a share of the expanded online market. This could well mean the final blow for local brick and mortar shops if, as is predicted, the share of online shopping in total retail expenditure remains high after the pandemic.     

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.