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The purpose of this paper is to address how wine businesses build sustainability – the ability to survive and be successful over the long-term – in a complex market environment.

To understand how managers in a wine supply chain (i.e. from grower to consumer) are trying to sustain business within a hyper-competitive industry, the authors used a standard grounded theory, constant comparative research method using formal depth interviews along with additional data sources from wine businesses in nine global wine regions in the USA, Australia, Italy and New Zealand.

A framework emerged from the data to improve business sustainability and counteract the complexity in the wine market by developing resilience through innovating and experimenting, obtaining resources/developing capabilities and relying on supply chain connections.

This conceptual framework contributes to the existing theory on institutional transitions and resilience in business, and extends and broadens it by proposing that resilience is needed to combat entropy in the wine industry for businesses in this industry to survive and thrive.

Managers can learn from and apply the examples mentioned in this study and follow the framework presented to implement the strategies to build resilience to increase their chances of sustainability.

This study is one of the first empirical studies to the authors’ knowledge that identifies the impact of entropy in the wine industry and examines resilience as a means to combat an entropic market and obtain business sustainability.

The purpose of this research is to explore the experiences of women who participated in a competitive retail shopping event.

The grounded theory approach was used.

Interpretations of the data suggest that female consumers use competitive shopping events to facilitate interpersonal bonding and create meaningful memories. Findings also reveal that female consumers value memorable retail experiences, particularly when they are contextualized by important cultural conditions.

The study focused on one competitive shopping event and informants were exclusively women in the USA. The results imply that competitive retail shopping experiences can be important events in the lives of those involved, especially if they have cultural importance.

It is important for retail managers to understand the impact shopping experiences may have on customers. This paper’s findings suggest that retailers may be able to help facilitate memorable experiences by creating an environment for shoppers to bond with their shopping companions. Creating a competitive atmosphere that is enjoyable and special is one such environment. The findings are based on a focal product (wedding gown) that has symbolic importance in the lives of the women involved.

This study highlights the social value of shopping for women, particularly as it relates to a ritualistic event (marriage and weddings).

This research is one of the first to specifically analyze the competitive nuances of special retail events. It uncovers a critical benefit to the people who participate in consumer competition.

A growing number of consumers expect brands to take a stand on social issues. When Gillette launched its video with a social message in 2019, the popular press described it as divisive and controversial. This study aims to examine themes behind the polarized consumer response, aiding brands in the development of social narrative videos.

The authors use an existential-phenomenological approach to investigate the meaning behind consumers’ reactions to the Gillette video. Empirical data collection consisted of 24 semi-structured, in-depth interviews. Data were analyzed using the hermeneutic method.

By viewing the Gillette video through the lens of a story, this research uncovers how marketing stories can lead to different interpretations. Specifically, the roots of polarization lie in perceived realism activation and character activation. Additionally, product placement may activate persuasive intent, interrupting immersion into the story.

Brand managers should consider the potential for alternative interpretations when using storytelling. By measuring a viewer’s narrative transportation, it is possible to identify different interpretations. From a tactical standpoint, brand managers should be cautious about using celebrity endorsers and prominent product placement in social narrative videos. These cues activate persuasive intent, leading to alternative interpretations.

While marketing research has tended to focus on storytelling’s positive outcomes, this research considers how stories can result in polarizing outcomes for brands. The concept of social narrative videos is introduced and a framework is presented that outlines facilitators and inhibitors for this type of brand communication.

A recent development in customer value research is building theory that can help the field go beyond understanding what customers currently value to exploring how customers' perceptions of value change. This paper seeks to extend this emerging theory of customer value change to a global context by conceptually exploring the role of national culture as a key moderator of this phenomenon.

The literature examining the role of national culture in business is reviewed for insights pertaining to buyers' tendencies for change in general and for clues suggesting how customers' embedded values in various cultural contexts might undergo value change in systematically different ways. Specifically, this paper employs Hofstede's cultural framework to explore how the lens of national culture might influence the value change process.

Based on this integrative review, several links between the cultural dimensions in Hofstede's framework and value change theory are found to be supported by the literature. These connections suggest a moderating role for national culture, given the tendency for cultural factors to shape buyers' interpretation of environmental change drivers and their resulting feelings of tension which research shows are closely associated with customers' desired value changes from suppliers.

This paper offers several theoretical propositions and conceptual models for future empirical validation. These new insights into an emerging theory of customer value change can provide the building‐blocks for a number of future research directions designed to help managers exercise strategic foresight for changing global markets.

The purpose of this paper is to better understand the experiences of women who were engaged in a competitive retail shopping event.

This study employed the discovery‐oriented grounded theory approach, in order to interpret field data from observations and interviews from 30 women who participated in a bridal gown sale event.

This paper exposes the manner in which the women shoppers shifted from competitive mindsets and behaviors, to cooperative ones, with other women shoppers. Four complimentary “trajectories” help explain how this takes place by demonstrating that the women progressed through mindsets of competition, co‐opetition, cooperation, and charity. The course of this process occurs within the realm of highly dynamic environments, which help foster the women's changing behaviors. The experiences of our participants converged such that this process of competition‐cooperation contributed to positive experiential value of the shopping trip.

This study focused only on women shoppers in the USA and concentrated only on one retail sale event. Future studies should expand the cultural diversity of the participants and increase the contextual boundaries of the phenomenon to include other instances of competitive shopping.

Understanding how women consumers engage in competition, and consequently cooperation, should be of considerable interest to retailers wishing to execute competitively natured events and promotions. The paper's findings suggest that women value competitive shopping events because of the social experience they provide, not solely for the product that might be acquired. The study contributes to our understanding of how women interpret social interaction, manage relationships with one another in retail settings, and are co‐creators of intrinsic shopping value. It also offers a more favorable viewpoint of competition in the retail domain than what is often construed in mainstream media.

This research is one of the first to focus on women shoppers who are engaged in a competitive shopping event. For consumer theorists, this study offers insights into social behavioral processes. It provides a platform for continuing research in the area of consumer competition.

Sustainability is becoming increasingly important in supply chains, particularly in those that function in highly competitive industries. The purpose of this paper is to understand more deeply the role sustainability plays within supply chains based on a qualitative study conducted in the New Zealand wine industry.

This research followed a grounded theory methodology which used in‐depth interviews with managers from wineries, retailers, and restaurants; observations of operations; and interpretation of field documents/artifacts.

The findings show that managers within the New Zealand wine supply chains are trying to find ways to leverage sustainability‐related competencies for competitive advantage in what is now a highly competitive industry. Within this context, the emergent theme of searching for advantage through sustainability involves: pursuing and leveraging sustainability; telling a story that involves sustainability; managing supply chain relationships around sustainability; and experimenting with sustainability initiatives.

The research is limited to the context and participants of the study. As a qualitative inquiry, findings are exploratory. The research implications, however, involve deeper studies into how wine industry firms in other nations and regions of the world are treating sustainability and searching for competitive advantages. Further validation of the models that emerge can be accomplished through future research, which would draw on aggregate data.

The approach and context within which sustainability is explored is unique. By seeking deep insights from managers on the cutting edge of sustainability initiatives, we are able to get close to strategic thinking and explore the impact on distribution relationships.

This study empirically explores one of the important channel issues – the relationship between various channel support given to channel partners and the perceived (by managers) goal‐orientation of a firm. Results from an emerging market, India, indicate that perceived orientation towards both profitability and market share is not associated with any of the channel support considered. Growth orientation however is strongly associated with most of the channel support activities – both business (e.g., business advice, pricing and ordering assistance, and personnel training) as well as marketing (advertising support, sales promotional material, and inventory management assistance) oriented activities. In contrast, perceived sales volume orientation is only associated with advertising support and business advice, however, the relationship is negative. These findings have interesting implications for channel management and channel motivation.

Purchasing practices of 11 Saudi Arabian corporations were analyzed and compared to a similar study of US‐based purchasing managers. Major findings revealed that training is not highly formalized, provided mainly by outside experts and relies on US‐based professional associations such as NAPM and APICS. In terms of coursework, respondents were most likely to take courses in the Basics of Purchasing and Negotiations. Additionally, professional certification through attaining "Certified Purchasing Manager" status was viewed as very desirable. Currently the majority of these purchasing managers were technically educated but expected that a business degree would become more important in the future. Knowledge about quality practices and price/cost issues were more important than electronic commerce. As a group the top trends they forecasted for their profession were comparable to those forecasted by US‐based purchasing managers.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of managerial change in the English football industry. The authors’ theoretical discussion covers three contrasting concepts that attempt to explain the association between manager change and organizational performance (scapegoating theory, vicious circle theory and tenure and life-cycle theory).

Data were collected for the four main English Football Leagues (EFLs) between 2000/2001 and 2015/2016. A total of 2,816 football matches were included in the study and during this time 525 instances of managerial change were observed. Analysis was conducted using relevant statistical techniques to examine the impact of managerial change on performance.

The results show significant differences in all four EFLs when considering teams who make a managerial change and those who do not. Further analysis revealed that a managerial change is more beneficial for clubs in the bottom half of the league, particularly for the English Premier League.

The implications for clubs competing in English football are clear when considering the strategic direction of the club in respect of managerial change and its impact on team performance. Yet, our findings come with a warning. The findings do not infer direct cause and effect here, and any board decision should consider additional factors other than sporting performance before deciding to sack their manager.

This paper analyzes the impact of economic downturns on the revenue and expense sides of city financing for the period 2003 to 2009 using a convenience sample of the audited end of year financial reports for thirty midsized US cities. The analysis focuses on whether and how quickly and how extensively revenue and spending directions from past years are altered by recessions. A seven year series of Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) data serves to explore whether citiesʼ revenues and spending, especially the traditional property tax and core functions such as public safety and infrastructure withstood the brief 2001 and the persistent 2007 recessions? The findings point to consumption (spending) over stability (revenue minus expense) for the recession of 2007, particularly in 2008 and 2009.