Retail history in the management context: prototype, prologue or prequel?
Journal of Historical Research in Marketing
ISSN: 1755-750X
Article publication date: 10 August 2010
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to consider the value of history within a contemporary retail management and marketing context.
Design/methodology/approach
The progress that has been made in incorporating historical methods and history into the retail management and marketing literature was considered.
Findings
The paper explains how history is able to develop understanding in research areas that are by their nature oriented toward contemporary concerns.
Research limitations/implications
The importance of maintaining an historical perspective and not allowing the present to determine an understanding of the past are emphasised. That is, for research to understand the past on its own terms and for the past to help determine an understanding of the present.
Practical implications
The paper explores practical implications for the study of history in the retail management and marketing context.
Originality/value
The paper addresses the dilemma researchers facing in subject areas where it is much easier to see history as a precursor to current activities, rather than as an opportunity to explore questions in different contexts and within longer time frames.
Keywords
Citation
Alexander, N. (2010), "Retail history in the management context: prototype, prologue or prequel?", Journal of Historical Research in Marketing, Vol. 2 No. 3, pp. 350-355. https://doi.org/10.1108/17557501011067879
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2010, Emerald Group Publishing Limited