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The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the influence of culture in terms of individualism and collectivism (I-C), store image and customer satisfaction, on purchase intention at supermarkets.

In order to carry out the descriptive and quantitative research, the authors applied 443 questionnaires to consumers in two Brazilian supermarket chains. The authors used structured equation modeling for data analysis.

Customers’ satisfaction and the evaluation of store image positively affect purchase intention; however, I-C did not show any effect. The cultural dimension slightly influenced the assessment of store image by only 2 percent. Store image positively affects consumer satisfaction.

This study used convenience sampling and omission of vertical and horizontal variations of I-C in data analyses. The authors suggested the use of probabilistic sampling and the inclusion of vertical and horizontal variations of I-C. The relationships investigated herein can still be analyzed in other contexts.

In order to increase satisfaction and purchase intention, it is necessary to prioritize aspects related to layout, service and products’ variety and quality. Still, managers should not worry about I-C, since it does not affect purchase intention.

The authors observed the relevance of the study after carrying out a literature review on the subject. There is a lack of studies that investigate the relationship between I-C, evaluation of store image, consumer satisfaction and purchase intention, either together or in the context of supermarkets.

Food waste is acknowledged as a major environmental issue, but the retail sector has only begun to recognise this in recent years. The purpose of this paper is to answer when, how and why food waste became important for retail in Sweden.

A mixed-methods approach was used that included a literature review, quantitative data from retail, field studies, 11 interviews and a media study consisting of newspaper articles spanning 10 years. The combined methods provided qualitative rigor and saturation.

Results show that the increased interest in the issue stems from several factors working together. These factors include the availability of data, the formation of actor networks working together, increased societal environmental awareness, attitude change amongst consumers and retail, and the role of media as an actor and a method for making the issue visible. In addition, results show how the issue surfaced further, as more data became available. Findings suggest that food waste became an environmental issue, and later, the focus shifted to finding solutions for retail.

The results highlight the importance for policy to implement preventive measures and strengthen incentives for retail to work with reducing food waste. Such incentives should target cheap food, education, routines, legislation and business models throughout the food chain.

Retail organizations that consider a service ecosystems view of sustainability focused on transformation have the potential to contribute to the wellbeing of individuals, business and society. The purpose of this paper is to explore the transformative nature of sustainable retail fashion organizations and their impact on wellbeing within a sustainable retail service ecosystem.

A qualitative in-depth case study research design was implemented using four sustainable fashion brands. Data were collected from multiple sources including secondary data from company websites and publicly available reports and interviews with founders and/or high-ranking managers within the organization.

Three overarching themes critical to transformation in sustainable retail service ecosystems were identified: (1) embedded core purpose or ethos, (2) relevance of fit and (3) breadth and depth of message. Corresponding wellbeing elements were found within the three themes – community and society wellbeing, environmental wellbeing, business strategy wellbeing, consumer wellbeing, leadership wellbeing, employee wellbeing, stakeholder and value chain wellbeing and brand wellbeing.

Future research offers an important opportunity to further explore the relationships between sustainability, TSR and wellbeing in other service contexts.

The paper contributes to transformative service research literature by conceptualizing a sustainable retail service wellbeing ecosystem framework.

This study analyzes the impact of packaging-free practices in food retail stores, particularly supermarkets, on customer loyalty.

Based on the literature on the impacts of sustainable practices and corporate social responsibility (CSR) policies on consumer behavior, this study defined a set of seven hypotheses that were tested using data collected from 447 consumers that regularly buy food products at supermarkets. The data were subjected to structural equation modeling using SmartPLS.

This study confirmed that packaging-free practices positively influence brand image, brand trust, satisfaction and customer loyalty. The expected positive impacts of brand image and satisfaction on customer loyalty were also confirmed. However, the expected impact of brand trust on customer loyalty was not confirmed.

This article demonstrates how a competitive sector can reap benefits from implementing sustainable practices in the operational domain, particularly by offering packaging-free products at the point of purchase. Thus, as recommended, general retail stores (e.g. supermarkets) gradually increase the stores' offering of packaging-free food products, as this practice has been shown to have positive impacts not only on brand image, but also on customer satisfaction and loyalty.

This study extends the literature on the effects of sustainable practices on customer loyalty, by focusing on a specific practice. Furthermore, this study contributes to the advancement of research on packaging-free practices in retail by developing a research framework and providing evidence on the direct and indirect effects of this specific practice on customer loyalty.

This research aims to propose the development of a model that identifies, in essential services, the determining factors affecting the technological advances offered by different smart technologies in supermarket retail channels that influence citizens' quality of life, amidst the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

The data were collected using a cross-sectional questionnaire survey (n = 469). The authors applied the structural equation modeling (SEM) technique to test the hypotheses, along with the partial least squares (PLS) method for estimating latent variables and combining with the necessary condition analysis (NCA) method.

According to the results of the NCA method, the results were adequate, and more attention should be paid to the quality of life construct after finding the bottleneck point of 50%. In this sense, adaptive resilience was characterized as the main necessary predictor construct for quality of life. In addition, Generation Z and Millennials have the highest frequency of use in all smart technologies, with “assisted purchase” being the most widely used.

Finally, the effect of the pandemic changed the consumption routine with supermarkets, not being a mere option but a necessity in the context of a smart city.

As a result, the proposed model was consistent, showing that all direct and indirect SEM paths were validated, highlighting data security and privacy and resilience issues. In addition, the NCA method complemented the procedures performed in the SEM phase.

This study aims to find evidence of a possible relationship between three constructs that are generally investigated separately: entrepreneurial orientation, understood as entrepreneurship on the organizational level; marketing capability, seen as a highly competitive factor for the organization; and business performance, highlighted as a focus of the entire organization.

A survey-based quantitative approach was adopted with a cross-sectional temporal perspective. To arrive at results that can be compared, the study uses factor analysis and structural equations modeling techniques, with estimations of maximum likelihood for testing the quality of fit of the measures to the structural models, using SPSS 21 and AMOS 16 software. Data were collected at the 27th EXPOSUPER, which is a trade fair at which 35,000 visitors were present. The data collection instrument used is a questionnaire previously validated by Reis Neto et al. (2013a). The first section covers control variables chosen to profile the firms, the second contains entrepreneurial orientation variables, the third comprises marketing capability variables and the fourth section contains business performance variables, all using seven-point Likert response scales.

Tests of the entrepreneurial orientation measurement scale produced interesting results in this application within the retail supermarket industry. The results of exploratory factor analysis indicated that a scale with three dimensions was significant. The relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and marketing capability (H1) is positive, through the intermediate dimensions of innovation, proactiveness and risk-taking, used by firms’ management, contributing to their efforts to research and manage the market, to develop products and services and to offer better prices. Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis showed that four of the scale’s dimensions of the marketing capability were significant: market research, market management, new product development and pricing. Comparison of these results with those of Reis Neto et al. (2013a) reveals a difference, as although their result, achieved using structural equations modeling, also had four factors; the promotion dimension was the most significant and absorbed the other variables. Despite these differences, confirmatory factor analysis and structural equations modeling demonstrated that this construct met the minimum conditions for adequacy, where (H2), formulated to test the relationship between the marketing capability construct, was confirmed. The final construct analyzed in this study was business performance, initially suggested by González-Benito et al. (2009), and also used by Reis Neto et al. (2013a). They used the dimensions profitability, market value and market response, and in the present study, after exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis and structural equations modeling, the results were identical to those authors results, in that (H3), formulated with the objective of testing the relationship between the entrepreneurial orientation construct and business performance, was confirmed, and although this was not the most robust of the relationships postulated in the three hypotheses, but was of lower significance.

Although this study has achieved its objective, one of the study’s limitations relates to the data collection instrument, which was subject to failures in terms of the number of variables to be analyzed in each dimension. This led to elimination of certain dimensions during the analyses. Another limitation is related to the method used in the study. When questionnaires are used as data collection instruments, respondents often may not understand the true meaning of questions, which could lead them to choose any option, thereby stripping the results of credibility. In view of this limitation, it is suggested that future researchers conduct qualitative studies, using the case study method, which could offer greater clarity and increase understanding of the results related to these subjects. Even considering that this study has certain limitations and restrictions affecting generalization, it is hoped that it raises new questions, interests and inspirations, improving and complementing understanding of this strong social and economic sector.

It is identify the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and marketing capability, since to date there is no evidence from studies confirming the existence of such a relationship. This statement was based on the results of a bibliographic survey conducted using the ProKnow-C, knowledge development process-constructivist methodology, in which, this originality was positive and significant, offering new studies from this point of view.

Changes in food retailing (globalization, concentration) have negative impacts on smaller, “traditional” food retail businesses. Their market share decreasing year by year. The purpose of this study is to examine and compare the financial performances of these businesses under the given circumstances and current economic environment in a Hungarian and a Romanian county.

The study is based on two complete databases, including all companies that behoove retail food activity (considering the NACE cod) in the counties of Hajdu-Bihar (Hungary) and Cluj (Romania). The database analyzed contains the financial statements for five consecutive years for 212 and 690 businesses. Databases were examined by the most typical financial indicators using the multivariate and univariate analysis of variance and the k-medoid cluster analysis methods.

The results of the analysis have shown that there are differences in the number of retail food companies in the case of two counties, both in number and in financial performance. Companies in Hajdú-Bihar county perform better in terms of financial ratios than those in Cluj county. The groups created by k-medoids cluster analysis are relatively well distinguished in the case of Hajdú-Bihar county, while the picture is much more mixed in the case of Kolozs county. However, it is also important to note that the companies analyzed should generally perform better to survive.

Among the limitations of the study, it is important to note that the findings are relevant only to the two counties examined. Another limiting factor is that quite several companies had to be excluded from the analysis due to missing data or outliers.

The study presents for the corporate decision-makers the current performance of the companies of the sector examined in the two counties. The results of the study highlight the business areas of concern in management. The findings show that they need to change this performance to strengthen their market position. We believe that it is not enough to complain about the expansion of the supermarket chains, but they should take appropriate actions to improve their situation. Based on the results of the study, it can be concluded that there is a need to improve the financial efficiency of retail food companies in both counties to survive in the long run. This improvement is essential because retailers can play an important role in smaller settlements and narrower residential environments.

Comparative analysis of retail food companies in similar counties in these two neighboring countries has not been conducted using complex financial analysis. The study revealed the common and/or individual characteristics of these companies.

Taking into account retailers' critical position in the value chain, their sector's economic significance and environmental externalities, in addition to the institutional agenda, this paper aims to explore the drivers influencing retailers to shift to more sustainable business models.

The paper utilises the institutional competing logic, including in-depth interviews with major supermarket retail chains and one expert group discussion. The data gathered in Germany and Lithuania were complemented by desk research analysis, including corporate social responsibility (CSR) reports and management reports.

The paper provides empirical insights into how multiple drivers through institutional competing logic are brought about influencing the shift to more sustainable business models. The results show that retail chains in both countries implement their sustainability based on triple environmental-legal-financial drivers. However, different types of retail chains–namely premium retailers, typical retailers and discounters–implement their sustainability discourse differently.

Because of the chosen research approach, the results may lack generalisability. Therefore, researchers are encouraged to test the proposed propositions further.

Interestingly, retailers “shift” their responsibility to the consumers rather than encourage themselves to make more sustainable choices. The authors observe a more passive and responsive role of retailing chains because of the inherent trade-off between revenue growth and sustainable consumption.

The original contribution lies in exploring how retail chains adapt institutional competing logic and are influenced by multiple drivers when implementing their sustainability activities. In addition, the authors propose a conceptual model for retailers' sustainability management, as well as formulate three research propositions.

In today’s multi-channel distribution environment, it is crucial for the competitiveness of retail stores and companies to improve efficiency of dedicated logistics centers (DLCs) servicing types of retail outlets such as large retail-stores, super supermarkets, and convenient stores. This paper derives efficiency improvement strategies for DLCs through efficiency analyses. To this end, this paper empirically analyzes the efficiency of DLCs by applying DEA (data envelopment analysis) approaches using real data from a Korean distribution company. In detail, this paper analyzes operations, finance, and service efficiencies of DLCs and performs a comparison analysis on the efficiency between DLCs. Finally, this paper discusses the analysis results considering the DLCs’ characteristics and derives managerial and operational implications.

This article draws upon our perspective as academic-practitioners working in the fields of food insecurity, food systems, and inequality to comment, in the early stages of the pandemic and associated lockdown, on the empirical and ethical implications of COVID-19 for socio-economic inequalities in access to food in the UK. The COVID-19 pandemic has sharpened the profound insecurity of large segments of the UK population, an insecurity itself the product of a decade of “austerity” policies. Increased unemployment, reduced hours, and enforced self-isolation for multiple vulnerable groups is likely to lead to an increase in UK food insecurity, exacerbating diet-related health inequalities. The social and economic crisis associated with the pandemic has exposed the fragility of the system of food charity which, at present, is a key response to growing poverty. A vulnerable food system, with just-in-time supply chains, has been challenged by stockpiling. Resultant food supply issues at food banks, alongside rapidly increasing demand and reduced volunteer numbers, has undermined many food charities, especially independent food banks. In the light of this analysis, we make a series of recommendations. We call for an immediate end to the five week wait for Universal Credit and cash grants for low income households. We ask central and local government to recognise that many food aid providers are already at capacity and unable to adopt additional responsibilities. The government's – significant – response to the economic crisis associated with COVID-19 has underscored a key principle: it is the government's responsibility to protect population health, to guarantee household incomes, and to safeguard the economy. Millions of households were in poverty before the pandemic, and millions more will be so unless the government continues to protect household incomes through policy change.