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1 – 10 of 70Tinashe Musasa and Tshepo Tlapana
This study aims to ascertain the significance of retail service quality dimensions on shopping frequency at supermarkets in Durban. This study also adopts the Retail Service…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to ascertain the significance of retail service quality dimensions on shopping frequency at supermarkets in Durban. This study also adopts the Retail Service Quality Scale (RSQS) to South African supermarket consumers.
Design/methodology/approach
Primary data were collected from 399 consumers through mall intercepts using an adapted RSQS. Non-probability convenience sampling was utilised in selecting participants from different malls in Durban. To analyse data the SPSS software was utilised with multiple regression analysis to confirm relationships between variables of the study.
Findings
Results indicate a significant linear relationship between retail service quality and shopping frequency. Two of the three dimensions of retail service quality (atmospherics and reliability) have a positive and significant influence on the shopping frequency of consumers whereas one dimension (policy) showed no significant influence on the dependent variable.
Research limitations/implications
Further studies are recommended in ascertaining the reasons behind an insignificant relationship between policy items of service quality and the shopping frequency of consumers.
Practical implications
This study highlights the managerial implications of retail service quality on improved shopping frequency of consumers.
Originality/value
This study suggests a lesser emphasis on policy items specifically personal interaction amongst Durban consumers on their shopping frequency. This might be due to cultural differences as well as the importance of self-service and privacy in supermarkets. Furthermore, this study demonstrates the role of context in providing deviations in retail service quality measurement and conceptualisation.
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Nicolai Jørgensgaard Graakjær and Anders Bonde
The purpose of this paper is to advance the understanding of sound branding by developing a new conceptual framework and providing an overview of the research literature on…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to advance the understanding of sound branding by developing a new conceptual framework and providing an overview of the research literature on non-musical sound.
Design/methodology/approach
Using four mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive types of non-musical sound, the paper assesses and synthesizes 99 significant studies across various scholarly fields.
Findings
The overview reveals two areas in which more research may be warranted, that is, non-musical atmospherics and non-musical sonic logos. Moreover, future sound-branding research should examine in further detail the potentials of developed versus annexed object sounds, and mediated versus unmediated brand sounds.
Research limitations/implications
The paper provides important insights into critical issues that suggest directions for further research on non-musical sound branding.
Practical implications
The paper identifies an unexploited terrain of possibilities for the use of sound in marketing and branding.
Originality/value
The paper identifies a subfield within sound-branding research that has received little attention despite its inevitability and potential significance.
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Sascha Kraus, Sandipan Sen, Katrina Savitskie, Sampath K. Kumar and John Brooks
The purpose of this paper is to examine millennial customer perceptions of food trucks and to identify factors that can foster their behavioral intentions pertaining to food…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine millennial customer perceptions of food trucks and to identify factors that can foster their behavioral intentions pertaining to food trucks.
Design/methodology/approach
The study is based on a sample of 247 millennial customers of various food truck vendors in the United States and was assessed using ordinary least squares regression analysis.
Findings
Food truck image and employee friendliness were found to impact both customer satisfaction and word of mouth behavior; however, the other hypotheses were not supported.
Research limitations/implications
There were two limitations. The first was that one of the constructs did not achieve the minimum average variance extracted. The second was that data collection was done in a single city in the United States; therefore, future research could overcome these limitations through a refinement of the construct’s items and targeting more cities.
Originality/value
There has been limited academic research on the millennial customer perceptions of the food truck phenomenon. This research addresses that gap through a field study that examines factors that contributed to the growth and popularity of food trucks among millennials
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Michael C. Ottenbacher, Graciela Kuechle, Robert James Harrington and Woo-Hyuk Kim
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of consumer sustainability attitudes and quick service restaurants (QSRs) practices along with the willingness of consumers…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of consumer sustainability attitudes and quick service restaurants (QSRs) practices along with the willingness of consumers to pay a premium for sustainability efforts.
Design/methodology/approach
A random sample of QSR customers in Germany resulted in 428 completed surveys. First, common factor analysis was conducted to assess the summated scales related to the sustainable behavior of customers, the importance attached by them to the different dimensions of sustainability and the extent to which customers perceive that QSR implement such practices. Second, the effect of these summated scales on the willingness to pay a premium (WTPP) for sustainability practices were assessed by means of a logistic regression.
Findings
The findings indicated that WTPP for sustainability efforts is primarily driven by internal beliefs and behaviors of consumers themselves rather than actions by QSR firms. Furthermore, when comparing five major QSRs, QSR brands did not appear to create a strong point of differentiation in their sustainability practices in the minds of frequent QSR consumers in the context of this study.
Practical implications
Implications of these results suggest that a growing number of consumers place high importance on sustainability and engage in personal sustainability practices that impact behaviors such as QSR selection and a WTPP for QSR brands and products that are perceived as implementing sustainable practices.
Originality/value
This paper addresses a gap by assessing drivers of willingness of QSR customers to pay a premium for sustainable practices and if QSR brands sustainability practices differ in the minds of consumers.
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Leonardo Ortegón-Cortázar and Marcelo Royo-Vela
People visit malls not only to buy a product they need but also to enjoy the atmosphere or environment of the shopping center. Based on design and eco-natural environment, the…
Abstract
Purpose
People visit malls not only to buy a product they need but also to enjoy the atmosphere or environment of the shopping center. Based on design and eco-natural environment, the purpose of this paper is to analyze the attraction factors of shopping centers.
Design/methodology/approach
The sample comprised 449 consumers from 25 different shopping centers in Bogota. The structural equation model (AMOS) enables the authors to discuss the influence of the design of green and natural spaces in the commercial management of shopping centers, given its positive and significant effect on the intention to visit.
Findings
Shopping centers are, by definition, spaces with a high level of design of the commercial environment. In this case, as evidenced in the results of this research, the design of ecological spaces and environments has the potential of becoming a field of interest for the commercial management of shopping centers, given its potential effect on visiting and shopping intentions.
Originality/value
The main originality of this study was to empirically include and demonstrate the influence of design and natural eco-environment on the intention to visit, along with other elements considered in previous investigations. Therefore, identification of specific empirical findings related to the way attraction factors work allows marketing directors and managers to improve their management decisions concerning design and implementation of marketing strategies, tactical decision guidance, decision-making assessment or control, and the proposal of alternative positioning attributes, such as the design, management, and arrangement of eco-natural environments that allow to increase the number of visits and purchases within these establishments.
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Cathy Parker, Nikos Ntounis, Steve Millington, Simon Quin and Fernando Rey Castillo-Villar
The purpose of this paper is to document the results and the impact of the ESRC-funded High Street UK 2020 (HSUK2020), a project designed to take the existing academic knowledge…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to document the results and the impact of the ESRC-funded High Street UK 2020 (HSUK2020), a project designed to take the existing academic knowledge relating to retail and high street change directly to UK High Streets, to improve local decision-making and, ultimately, their vitality and viability.
Design/methodology/approach
Through a systematic literature review, and by following the tenets of engaged scholarship, the authors identified 201 factors that influence the vitality and viability of town centres. Through the consensus-building Delphi technique, a panel of 20 retail experts identified the top 25 priorities for action.
Findings
Taking a place management approach led to the development of a more strategic framework for regeneration, which consisted of repositioning, reinventing, rebranding and restructuring strategies (4R’s of regeneration). Collaboration with the project towns resulted in identification of the strategy area that would add the most value, and the impact of the 4R’s and the top 25 priorities is demonstrated via numerous town examples.
Originality/value
Knowledge exchange projects, such as High Street UK2020, have an important contribution to make, not by developing even more theory that is unlikely to get utilised, instead their contribution is to bring existing theory into practical use.
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Peter Björk, Hannele Kauppinen-Räisänen and Erose Sthapit
This study aims to examine how cruise ship dinescapes, as a specific type of organized and staged service environment, influence customers’ attitudes, on-board behaviour…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine how cruise ship dinescapes, as a specific type of organized and staged service environment, influence customers’ attitudes, on-board behaviour, satisfaction and behavioural intentions.
Design/methodology/approach
Data was collected using a cross-sectional survey from 552 passengers on-board one of the big cruise ships with a Caribbean itinerary.
Findings
Cruise ship dinescape, as an on-board food experience platform, is built on three dimensions: restaurant atmospherics, interactions with other guests and restaurant staff. The findings show how these dimensions influence passengers’ emotional experiences and quality perceptions. The results also show how travellers’ cruise ship dinescape satisfaction affect their overall vacation satisfaction and future travel behaviour.
Practical implications
The findings imply that cruise companies should pay extra attention to organised food service environments like dinescapes staged for passengers. Through these scapes cruise companies may provide favourable platforms enabling dining satisfaction, but also social interaction and co-creation of memorable experiences.
Originality/value
This study builds a comprehensive model in cruise ship context, which links dinescape experiences to overall cruise ship dining experiences and dining behaviour mediated by emotional and perceived quality outcomes with further consequences.
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