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This paper examines the effect of shopping value (utilitarian, hedonic and social) on shopping satisfaction and store revisit intention in the post-pandemic phase. Additionally, the authors investigate how shoppers’ COVID-responsible behaviour and visit frequency are contingent on their shopping value evaluations.

Data were collected (n = 527) using the store intercept method during March 2022 (a recovery phase from the third wave of COVID-19 in India). The authors adopted structural equation modelling to test the proposed model.

Shopping values significantly impacted shopping satisfaction and store revisit intentions. The effects of utilitarian and hedonic value on satisfaction were stronger for frequent shoppers than infrequent shoppers. While utilitarian value contributes to stronger satisfaction of COVID-responsible shoppers, COVID-non-responsible shoppers are better satisfied with social value. The impact of hedonic and social value on satisfaction has reduced significantly from the pre- to post-pandemic phase.

Practising managers should recognise that positive shopping value evaluations are important for generating satisfaction. Notably, the utilitarian value becomes more important in times of environmental exigencies. The study provides insights to devise strategies to attract and retain frequent shoppers who are major contributors to the store’s profit.

This study is one of the few studies which focuses on in-store shopping and consumers’ shopping value evaluations in a COVID-19 recovery phase. This study is one of the first that compares the post-pandemic shopping value judgement to a pre-pandemic phase. The authors provide valuable insights into store revisit intentions of shoppers who behave responsibly in a challenging environment.

Fast-growing online retail market provides convenience for customers. But it makes competition among online retailers fiercer as well. Online retailers need to improve online shoppers’ satisfaction level for the purpose of keeping their loyalty. As an important component in online retail market, logistics service affects online shoppers’ satisfaction level. By applying expectation confirmation theory, the purpose of this paper is to explore how customized logistics services (CLS) influences online shoppers’ satisfaction level and whether the relationship between them is moderated by product type.

Data were collected from Tmall.com, the biggest online retail market in China. Exploratory factor analysis and two-way ANOVA were conducted to analyze the data.

The results indicate that CLS positively impacts online shoppers’ satisfaction level. But product type does not have moderate effect on the relationship between CLS and online shoppers’ satisfaction level.

Online retail market grows fast. As the number of retailers keeps increasing, competition in this market becomes fiercer. In order to attract new shoppers and increase shoppers’ loyalty, online retailers must make shopper satisfied with their purchase. CLS positively impacts online shoppers’ satisfaction level, online retailers should offer shoppers CLS.

This study examines how customized logistics influences customer satisfaction, and extends literatures related to online customer satisfaction by integrating the factor CLS and opens the way for other studies related to logistics service customization. Furthermore, this study discusses how IoT will improve online retailers’ abilities in providing CLS.

A common assumption holds that retailers generally contribute to customer life satisfaction – retailers offer products and services that solve consumer problems – large and small. However, some retail experiences have been found to generate dissatisfaction, stress and unhappiness for some customers but not for others. Research is needed to not only demonstrate how retail experiences impact customer life satisfaction. The purpose of this paper is to address the question: why does satisfaction with various store types impact customer life satisfaction differently?

The research context of this study is grocery retailers (neighbourhood convenience stores, super markets, and grocery discounters) in Austria. Using stratified random sampling across store types, a total of 379 personal interviews with grocery store customers were conducted. OLS regression analysis was conducted to test the research model.

The study results suggest that satisfaction with a store type impacts customer life satisfaction depending on store-type congruity with shoppers’ identity. That is, satisfaction with a store type (e.g. neighbourhood convenience stores, super markets, and grocery discounters) is found to influence life satisfaction if the store type is congruent with the shoppers’ self-image and lifestyle.

An emphasis on store-type congruity with shopper’s identity allows retailers to shift their attention towards creating more meaningful shopping experiences. Such a shift in focus may not only benefit retailers due to increase in customer loyalty for that store format. It also benefits shoppers themselves – the shopping experience contributes to shoppers’ life satisfaction.

This research introduces store-type congruity with shopper’s identity as a key concept that connects shopping experiences to customer life satisfaction. This contributes towards building the hierarchical theory of shopping motivation. It demonstrates under what conditions shopping experiences impact consumer life satisfaction – a research topic that has received little attention in the retailing literature to date.

The purpose of this paper is to present findings from an experiment designed to test the impact of crowding perceptions (both human and spatial), emotions (positive and negative) and shopping values (utilitarian and hedonic) on shopper satisfaction. Culture is explored as a moderating variable with the expectation that it systematically affects perceptions and values, which, in turn, influence the shopper's experience with the store.

Data were collected via a 2×2×2 full factorial between subjects design with two variables, one manipulated and one measured. The two manipulated variables were spatial density (high versus low) and human density (high versus low). The measured variable was country of origin, where subjects were coded as either American or Australian.

Culture moderates the effects of perceived spatial crowding as well as both hedonic and utilitarian shopping values on shopper satisfaction. Specifically, the adverse effect of perceived spatial crowding on shopper satisfaction is less pronounced for Australians than is the case for Americans. With respect to both utilitarian and hedonic shopping values, the positive relationship between shopping values and shopper satisfaction is greater for Australians than for Americans.

Shopping has been generally described by Rintamaki et al. as “relativistic, because it involves preferences among objects, it varies among people, and it is specific to the context”. This paper demonstrates that culture clearly affects shopper's perceptions and shopping values, which in turn affect shopper satisfaction. It is reasonable to speculate that these effects would be even more pronounced had countries with greater cultural distance been examined.

Building on stimulus organism response theory, the current study examines the influence of channel integration quality dimensions (channel service configuration and integrated interactions) on the omnichannel retail store's shoppers' satisfaction, trust and commitment, subsequently leading to customer citizenship behavior (CCB). It examines the relationships proposed against boundary conditions, the number of channels used during the purchase and gender.

The research is descriptive, quantitative and cross-sectional investigation. It was conducted using data from 451 Indian omnichannel shoppers using a validated self-administered questionnaire. The proposed conceptual model was tested using PLS-SEM and PLS-MGA.

The results indicate that channel service configuration positively impact the dimensions of relationship quality of the omnichannel shoppers. However, integrated interactions influence trust and commitment directly but affect satisfaction indirectly through trust. Subsequently, relationship quality significantly explains CCB. The model results show r2 = 0.402 for CCB; that is, 40.2% of CCB is explained by channel integration and relationship quality. The moderating effect of the number of purchase channels used and gender on all proposed relationships were tested. PLS-MGA results revealed channel service configuration led to shopper commitment, subsequently impacting CCB. The effect was more among shoppers who used more than 2 channels. The impact of channel service configuration on commitment was seen more among female shoppers. Male and female shoppers exhibited satisfaction-driven and trust-driven citizenship behavior, respectively.

The study is carried out in the Indian population, where omnichannel retailing is still in the nascent stage.

This is the first study to demonstrate channel integration quality may influence customer citizenship behavior through relationship quality dimensions, tested against boundary conditions, the number of channels used during the purchase and gender. The findings from this research would help retail store managers design their omnichannel operations to encourage firm-beneficial value co-creation behaviors among omnichannel shoppers.

This paper aims to demonstrate that stress is a relevant feeling to take into account in mall experience and customer satisfaction management. Furthermore, it is proposed that its effects on mall experience and satisfaction differ depending on shopping motivation and frequency.

The method is based on seemingly unrelated regressions models and data were obtained through a survey of 1,088 mall clients. Mall experience is addressed through customer cognitive and affective responses. Both terms together with stress and customer satisfaction with the mall are constructs measured by seven-point Likert scales. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to validate these measures.

The results show that stress reduces customers’ affective response and satisfaction. The effect of low levels of stress on customer affective response is less negative for frequent shoppers, and the influence of high levels on satisfaction is less negative for them. Furthermore, stress has a U-shaped effect on customers’ cognitive response, an effect that is reduced for frequent shoppers.

Mall managers should try to reduce stress in the management of their customers’ experience. Moreover, they should increase the shopping frequency of their clients by implementing marketing strategies, such as frequency programs and serial concerts, and assist shoppers in reorganizing their shopping goals by implementing organizing tools and new recommendations and suggestions.

Given that previous work on shopping stress is scarce, this paper expands the extant literature by analyzing its effects on mall experience and customer satisfaction. Furthermore, it shows that these effects may vary depending on shopping frequency and motivation.

The purpose of this paper is to compare two competing models denoting two dimensions (hedonic and utilitarian) and three dimensions (hedonic, utilitarian and social) of the construct “value” and investigates their relative influence on satisfaction, future patronage intention (FPI) and word-of-mouth (WoM) in a hypermarket context. Additionally, the study examines if these relationships are contingent upon gender and shoppers’ perception of retail crowding.

The proposed models and the hypotheses were tested using structural equation modelling, across two cross-sectional studies (n1=268, n2=259). The multi-group analysis was used to test moderated relationships.

The study demonstrates that satisfaction mediates the impact of shopping value on FPI and WoM. The model that includes utilitarian, hedonic and social value explains higher variance in satisfaction and WoM than that is evidenced in the alternate model comprising utilitarian and hedonic values. Shoppers’ gender and perceived retail crowding moderate the influence of shopping value on satisfaction.

Retail managers should understand that enjoyable and social shopping experience of the consumers lead to satisfaction, which in turn plays a pivotal role in the formation of FPI and WoM. Managers discern that a moderate level of crowding is better than the extremely low or high level of density.

Amidst a lack of unanimity on the dimensionality of shopping value, this is one of the first studies to evaluate the two theoretical models of shopping value having two dimensions and three dimensions, respectively. An understanding of gender and retail crowding perceptions is crucial in shopping value judgments.

The purpose of this paper is to provide a broader typology and inventory of recreational facilities and activities in shopping malls. The paper then investigates the relation between the proposed entertainment types and shopper behavior both directly and indirectly by considering the mediation of shopper emotional states.

A survey-based study with a sample size of 484 mall shoppers is used to test the proposed model.

The results indicate that permanent entertainment predicts shopper satisfaction directly and indirectly when considering the emotional state of pleasure as a mediator. Moreover, findings indicate that permanent entertainment indirectly influences the desire to stay at the mall through pleasure and arousal. In addition, pleasure mediates the relation of temporary and special event entertainment with satisfaction and the desire to stay at the mall.

This study adds to a better understanding of the role of entertainment types in shopping malls. The study also reveals how each type of entertainment can enhance different emotions and behaviors. Practical suggestions to this end are offered.

There is a lack of studies taking into consideration the different types of entertainment in shopping malls. This study is among the first to examine the effects of each entertainment type on specific behavioral responses. Moreover, the study addresses the mediating role played by shoppers’ emotional states on the impact of entertainment types in satisfaction and desire to stay at the mall.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the dimensions of online customer experience (OCE) and their impact on satisfaction and loyalty in the clothing e-retail context. Furthermore, it explores the influence of gender on the OCE-satisfaction-loyalty chain.

OCE dimensions were drawn from the literature and then adapted and validated using two samples (217 – exploratory factor analysis, 651 – confirmatory factor analysis) of experienced online clothing shoppers in India. An analysis was done using structured equation modelling.

Six OCE psychological factors and four OCE functionality factors were revealed. Both OCE dimensions impact loyalty either directly or indirectly through satisfaction. Gender is observed to moderate the relationship among three OCE factors (e-distrust, e-negative beliefs and website interactivity) and satisfaction.

The research results are limited to the factors related to each of the two OCE dimensions explored within the clothing e-retail context in India.

Clothing e-retailers need to focus on both the OCE dimensions to drive business sustenance. Furthermore, their OCE strategies should be in line with the gender-based differences highlighted by the study.

The study facilitates in the adaptation and validation of the OCE dimensions in the clothing e-retail category in an emerging market. While all factors associated with both OCE dimensions are important for driving satisfaction and loyalty, the study underscores the need for a higher focus on visual engagement by e-retailers in the given context. Gender moderates the OCE-satisfaction paths, but does not moderate the OCE-loyalty paths.

The purpose of this paper is to understand the role of post-purchase logistic services on customer satisfaction and future purchase decision, to reveal any differences across China and Taiwan, to fill in a gap in the literature focused on post-purchase logistic activities related to shipping, return, and tracking, to provide managerial guidance in logistics for e-commerce, and to develop insights on logistic services for future research.

Using a validated survey instrument, 384 respondents in China and 145 respondents in Taiwan are collected. The research model is analyzed using component-based estimation approach to structural equation modeling.

The structural equation analysis of the study found that post-purchase shipping and tracking have an impact on customer satisfaction in both China and Taiwan. It also found that customer service is the most significant factor among the examined antecedents for online shoppers in China. While, return service is more important for shoppers in Taiwan. Finally, customer satisfaction played a stronger positive role for online shoppers in Taiwan as compared to their counterparts in China.

This research extended the current literature about post-purchase logistic services in an online shopping environment with a literature-based research model and good empirical data support. However, one limitation of the study is that the data collected represents a cross-sectional sample; future research should examine longitudinal sample to study customers’ purchase intentions over time.

This study can help both scholars and practitioners understand the importance of tracking, return, shipping, and customer service in an online shopping environment and across countries. It provides insights on designing e-commerce relevant shipping services to satisfy and attract customers across countries.

The study investigated how post-purchase activities contributed to customer satisfaction in online shopping and explored the influence of customer satisfaction on future purchase intention in China and Taiwan. This is one of the first studies available in the literature to provide empirical support and managerial insights about post-purchase activities related to shipping, tracking, and returns for e-commerce with cross-regional comparison.