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Aims to determine how robotics is used in white goods manufacture.

Assesses robot applications at several white goods manufacturers, examining the challenges posed and the achievements made.

The white goods sector offers diverse opportunities for robotisation, but the number of units installed is low.

Reveals how the white goods industry views robotics and its value to production.

Industry 4.0 (I40) is an open window of opportunity for Turkey, a developed country, to eliminate technological dependence and produce with maximum productivity. However, I40, which corresponds to the fourth wave of industrial revolutions, brings both opportunities and challenges. In this context, this study aims to reveal the foresight of managers in the Turkish white goods industry (TWGI) regarding the advantages and challenges of I40 and compare them with the literature.

The Delphi method was used for the study. Data were collected from managers of companies that are members of the White Goods Suppliers Association (BEYSAD). Seventy managers from 55 companies participated in the first round, and 19 managers participated in the second round of Delphi.

The results show that the most frequently cited advantages are productivity/resource efficiency, data and information-enabled effectiveness/productivity, quality 4.0 and competitiveness/strategy. The most frequently mentioned challenges are financial resources/investment, employee qualification/training, technical/processual challenges and organizational transformation/leadership.

The sample was limited to the managers of the TWGI.

Players in similar ecosystems and policymakers should consider the advantages and respond to potential challenges when creating roadmaps, taking the necessary steps and positioning themselves in the marketplace. In particular, the TWGI – Turkey’s showcase in international markets – should consider the undeniable benefits of the I40 transition to increase innovation.

The findings for the first time highlight the advantages and challenges of I40 in an industry in Turkey, and they will benefit the TWGI, which is among the leaders in Turkey in terms of digital maturity and innovation in its journey to I40.

Reflects on developments in the mid to late 1980s, which saw booming trading conditions for the retailing sector, and none more so than electrical goods retailing which underwent many changes both to the structure of the industry and the way it went about its business. Describes the circumstances that led to these developments and the results that were achieved. Sets out to consider what might be learnt from the experience of electrical goods retailing in the 1980s that might be of value in the 1990s.

This paper seeks to establish that the instability of niche markets, and their predisposition to catastrophic collapse, makes market flexibility a prerequisite for long‐term survival among niche marketers. It describes the two ways by which a niche marketer can acquire this market flexibility and demonstrates the advantages of the second of these two approaches, i.e. the development of a portfolio of separated niches.

An in‐depth discussion of niche instability/implosion, and how niche market flexibility can be acquired to increase the survivability of such events, provides the context for a single in‐depth case study of a company employing a systematic niche market flexibility approach. A multi‐method approach was adopted drawing on both interviews and documentary evidence.

Planning for flexibility is essential for long‐term survival as a niche marketer. Two broad approaches to achieve this exist – i.e. contingency and portfolio planning – which are not mutually exclusive. The portfolio approach offers specific advantages and examples of its successful applications exist.

This is a single case study.

The article has significant implications for practice, as fragmentation of markets and globalisation of production makes niche marketing desirable/essential for many players.

The area of planning for flexibility using a niche portfolio marketing strategy is under‐researched at present.

For some time there have been models for considering manufacturing strategy which focus on the product but which essentially ignore dimensions of aftersales support. This article presents a framework for formulating and reviewing an after‐sales support strategy and links it to a manufacturing strategy model to produce a comprehensive strategy for customer satisfaction over the lifetime of a manufactured product.

In this paper, the two main approaches employed up to now in quality‐related surveys, namely the technique‐oriented and the activity‐oriented ones, are discussed, showing their relative advantages and weaknesses. Then, a new method of surveying quality management, based on the analysis of quality‐related information flows, is presented and discussed. In order to illustrate the comparative advantages of this new measure‐oriented approach, some results from a field survey on Italian white goods manufacturers are discussed. Results provide evidence on the power of the new approach here presented to disclose new aspects of quality management that could have been overlooked by other approaches. Moreover, it is shown that the new approach is considerably more efficient than others in terms of time consumption for the data collection phase with respect to the depth of information collected.

The purpose of this paper is to integrate the “triple bottom line (3BL)” approach in the supplier selection decision. It also aims to consider the feedback effect of the decision on strategic factors that determine the future viability of the firm in the market.

A multi-criteria decision model is developed that considers simultaneously the impact of three dimensions of 3BL approach and their sub-dimensions on the supplier selection decision. The proposed model is evaluated for a large white goods manufacturer using the analytic network process (ANP) approach.

The ANP considers the impact of variables, sub-variables, and their interdependencies simultaneously. The outcome of the model is the relative priorities for the firms considered as potential suppliers.

This research was conducted in one of the largest developing economies. The impact of integrating sustainability would be widespread due to the huge market in which the company operates. The results of this research can provide support to the decision makers in arriving at an optimal decision considering all sustainability dimensions.

The novelty of the approach lies in the application of multi-criteria model integrating sustainability dimensions with a feedback effect for supplier selection. The case company would benefit by showing its commitment toward environment and social responsibility leading to improved brand image and sustainable business.

To examine the state of health of branding in China, focusing on the performance of major Chinese enterprises in creating brands (as distinct from brand names), sustaining them in the huge domestic market and expand them into global markets.

The study begins with a historical review of the development of marketing in China, discusses the transition from price competition to branding in the domestic market, and explains the role of government in the process. Thereafter, case histories describe, analyse and discuss the routes to internationalisation followed by taken by six of China's biggest brands.

Modern Chinese companies are large and successful as manufacturers, but uncertain about the relative merits of branding and global marketing versus continuation as OEMs for established global brands. If they do have international ambitions, they seem unsure about strategy, or even about where to look for precedents and advice. Many initiatives have met with comparative failure; only one, the Lemovo‐IBM merger, seems to offer a blueprint for success, but has been in operation only since 2005. Many lessons remain to be learnt, applied and tested.

Six case histories, however well chosen, cannot be considered a definitive picture of the Chinese approach to international brand marketing. The findings are nevertheless highly indicative.

International marketing strategists are obliged to have an interest in China, by virtue of the simple fact of its size and dynamism. Several of the companies discussed are the largest of their kind in the world. Despite the limitations noted, the actual and potential conclusions to be drawn from the findings reported here are therefore a significant contribution to the body of applicable knowledge.

Whereas many authors have studied Western brands in China, little has been known about the potential of Chinese brands in the West.

An analysis of the strategies and structures of original equipment manufacturer (OEM) firms, consisting mainly of automobile firms but also including manufacturers of white goods and grey goods. The study has been going on for the last ten years and included perceived strategies on the management of technology. Concludes that networks are developed as a major operating unit and are taking over as the managed unit from the firms themselves. Globalization is a major trend where all kinds of activities are allocated due to competences, prices, etc. on each location. The firms and the networks which they are operating in are building hierarchies of technology for best use of technical competence globally. Other such hierarchical levels of technical competences are being built between competitors in what are called “strategic alliances, strategic bridging” and other concepts. The OEM firm itself is concentrating on developing its competence in system integration technology concerning the final product in question. Competences in developing and building such optimally integrated final products are focused while special technologies going into this system are procured from different outside sources.

This special “Anbar Abstracts” issue of the Marketing Intelligence & Planning is split into nine sections covering abstracts under the following headings: Business Strategy; Marketing Strategy; Customer Service; Sales Management; Promotion; Marketing Research/Customer Behaviour; Product Management; Logistics and Distribution; Sundry.