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The purpose of this chapter was to investigate consumer perceptions of retail agglomeration (RA) characteristics in Zagreb region. Perceived RA characteristics were compared between two major types of RA: Planned retail agglomerations (PRA) and Evolved retail agglomerations (ERA).

Data were collected with consumer survey and analyzed using descriptive statistics, exploratory factor analysis and analysis of variance (ANOVA).

Findings indicate that four factors of RA characteristics can be identified: convenience, accessibility, atmosphere, and image. The shoppers’ ratings indicate the strength and weaknesses of RA, and also the dominant position of PRA as compared to evolved RA.

Results show that there were significant differences in shoppers’ perceptions between Planned and evolved RA in Zagreb region. Shoppers evaluated PRA better than ERA on all four factors. Convenience and atmosphere are the best-rated PRA characteristics. Managerial implications are discussed in the study.

The objective of the study is to understand the reasons for the resilience of rural periodic markets. Small retailers patronise these markets, and by identifying the reasons for their continued market participation, an attempt has been made to explain the continued existence of these traditional evolved retail agglomerations.

A qualitative research design was adopted for the study. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 35 small retailers, and responses were used to identify the reasons for their continued market participation. A mix of purposeful and snowball sampling was used to select the respondents.

In a novel endeavour, this study presents rural periodic markets as an evolved retail agglomeration. It identifies six factors responsible for the continued participation of small retailers in these markets. Seven attributes of the rural periodic market, an evolved retail agglomeration, were also identified which contribute to the resilience of these markets.

This study contributes to the literature on retail agglomerations and identifies the reasons for the continued market participation of small retailers, suggesting some trends about their future in emerging economies.

Rural periodic markets have affected the overall well-being of surrounding villages by providing opportunities to participate in many ways. This has been identified as a reason for the economic growth of the area.

To the best of our knowledge, this is one of the first studies to explore the resilience of periodic markets from the perspective of small retailers by identifying the reasons for their continued market participation.

The shopping center (SC) industry in emerging countries has grown fast over the past decade; however, recently, it is showing signs of slowing down. Nevertheless, some SC-companies perform well. As those firms operate in alliance networks, relational opportunities and risks should be considered in their strategic analyses. Although there is a significant amount of research on SC from a marketing perspective, there is a dearth of research on strategic alliances from an SC management perspective. This paper aims at answering the following question: How do characteristics of the alliance networks of leading SC-companies contribute to their success by mitigating the structural threats the SC-industry in Brazil is facing?

The case study method was adopted for analyzing two leading Brazilian SC-companies. Several data sources were used to allow for data triangulation. The lack of literature on strategic alliances and the SC-industry, as well as the research’s exploratory nature, justified this choice.

The research made evident that the SC-companies’ alliance network characteristics not only mitigate some of the structural industry threats but also enhance opportunities. It illustrated how firms can conduct a strategic analysis from a network perspective with the right tools. It also made evident how much more accurate the results of a comprehensive relational analysis are compared with traditional analyses that do not consider the strategic implications of relational factors.

The research contributed to SC management by highlighting the importance of taking into account the network characteristics of their relationships with key partners and of considering these as alliances and not merely contractual arrangements.

There is a dearth of research on the strategic implications of alliances of firms that own and manage a portfolio of SCs, as well as of their relationships with other actors in the industry, such as retailers and real estate owners, from a network perspective.

• Retail agglomerations are predestined to capitalise on the combination of the strengths of traditional retailing and digital service innovations.

• Digital touchpoints can enhance the visitor experience throughout the whole customer journey, that is not only on-site but also before reaching as well as after having left the agglomeration.

• Digital service innovations can provide additional value to visitors of a retail agglomeration through four elements of the digital marketing mix: Information, orientation, communication and atmosphere.

• Technologies like augmented reality (AR) or virtual reality (VR) can create unique and memorable customer experiences, ensuring that retailers and service providers as well as the retail agglomeration as a whole continue to thrive.

• Key success factors for the implementation of digital services in the context of retail agglomerations include participative innovation processes, cooperation and the communication of clear benefits to stakeholders.

Retail agglomerations are predestined to capitalise on the combination of the strengths of traditional retailing and digital service innovations.

Digital touchpoints can enhance the visitor experience throughout the whole customer journey, that is not only on-site but also before reaching as well as after having left the agglomeration.

Digital service innovations can provide additional value to visitors of a retail agglomeration through four elements of the digital marketing mix: Information, orientation, communication and atmosphere.

Technologies like augmented reality (AR) or virtual reality (VR) can create unique and memorable customer experiences, ensuring that retailers and service providers as well as the retail agglomeration as a whole continue to thrive.

Key success factors for the implementation of digital services in the context of retail agglomerations include participative innovation processes, cooperation and the communication of clear benefits to stakeholders.

The purpose of this paper is to identify those attributes of created and evolved retail agglomeration formats that have a substantial impact on overall attractiveness from the consumers' point of view. From an agglomeration management perspective primary areas of concern are identified and suggestions to increase the competitiveness of diverse agglomeration formats are presented.

Through synthesizing pertinent literatures, the paper produces a conceptual framework that proposes significant impacts between ten generic agglomeration attributes and different dimensions of attractiveness. The paper then tests the hypotheses using a survey of more than 1,000 consumers of three competing agglomeration formats (a town center, a strip center, and a regional shopping mall) in a particular locality.

Retail‐related factors and the atmosphere influence attractiveness most significantly in each of the three settings. All other factors – in particular convenience related ones – show only format specific relevance or are of no direct importance on the consumers' evaluation of attractiveness.

The findings can only be transferred to similar retail settings and do not consider supra‐regional agglomerations.

The results suggest that management of all three agglomerations is quite limited in directly influencing attractiveness. They should instead focus on the optimum selection of retail tenants and support or compliment the marketing endeavors of their tenants.

The focus is on regional retail agglomerations and considers the interdependencies between different formats in one geographical area. The in vivo survey approach takes into account the moderating effect of the shopping situation when consumers' evaluate the attractiveness of competing shopping venues.

The purpose of this paper is to identify the attributes of shopping streets and shopping malls that influence the satisfaction and patronage intention of low-income consumers in order to understand the consumers’ preferences when it comes to shopping in these retail agglomerations.

The study is based on quantitative and qualitative research, including in-depth interviews and focus groups with low-income consumers. The research collected data from 396 consumers at 3 retail agglomerations in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and used a structured questionnaire to identify 12 attributes as the factors of the agglomerations’ attractiveness.

The results show that the items “selection” and “value” affect satisfaction and patronage intention at the same intensity in both shopping streets and shopping malls. However, the item “access” proved to be important for shopping malls, and the item “security” proved to be important for shopping streets. The results indicate that shopping streets have a preference for patronage intentions, despite the greater satisfaction generated by shopping malls. In addition, the study looked at consumers’ opinions on these retail agglomerations.

The research findings help to build a conceptual framework on evolved retail agglomerations in comparison to created retail agglomeration, represented by shopping streets and shopping malls, respectively. The findings allow a broader view of low-income consumption, offering insights so entrepreneurs and companies can direct their efforts to better capture value and improve the supply of products and services. Likewise, these findings will help public policy decision-makers to build and provide infrastructure for the preservation of shopping streets, maintaining this option for the consumer.

Although the issue of retail location has attracted a great deal of academic attention, the bulk of this literature pertains to the national, regional and urban scales of analysis. An equally important, but comparatively neglected, consideration is micro‐scale retail location; that is, location within planned shopping centres and unplanned shopping districts. Summarizes the existing literature on retail location at the micro‐scale and asks whether it is in fact a “cinderella” subject – unappreciated but with much to offer – or an “ugly sister”, unworthy of serious attention.

The purpose of this paper is to establish the index system of leading industries in Kashgar urban agglomeration, and use the multi-attribute weighted intelligent grey target decision-making evaluation model to measure the comprehensive effect, so as to select the leading industries of Kashgar urban agglomeration.

First, 18 industries in Kashgar urban agglomerations are taken as objectives, and four indexes, namely, demand income elasticity index, growth rate index, labor productivity growth rate index and contribution rate of output value, are selected to construct an evaluation system for leading industry selection in Kashgar urban agglomerations. Then, grey incidence degree method is used to determine the decision-making power of each decision-making objective. Finally, multi-attribute weighted intelligent grey target decision-making evaluation model is used to measure the comprehensive effect of the objective system of leading industries in Kashgar urban agglomerations.

It can be seen that the multi-attribute weighted intelligent grey target decision-making evaluation model is more convenient to be used in selecting regional leading industries, and the results are accurate and feasible. Based on the calculation results and the actual economic development requirements of Kashgar urban agglomeration, the leading industries of Kashgar urban agglomeration can be determined as: wood processing, furniture, paper making and printing; wholesale and retail; construction; equipment manufacturing; transportation, storage and postal services.

First, it is a new method in selecting regional leading industry by using the multi-attribute weighted intelligent grey target decision-making evaluation model. Second, since there is relatively little research on Kashgar urban agglomeration, especially on leading industries in Kashgar urban agglomeration. The research in this paper can not only enrich the research on selecting leading industries in urban agglomeration but also provide scientific reference for relevant government agencies to formulate economic development plans.

Inner city centers not only provide opportunities for shopping, dining, and entertainment, but with their lively atmosphere and other vital attributes, also create attractive destinations for residents and tourists alike. However, inner city retailing, potentially the most important reason to visit an inner city, is facing serious competition from e-commerce and out-of-town shopping malls. Dying inner city centers have become a severe issue in recent years, worldwide. To counteract this devastating trend and ensure the vitality and viability of inner city centers, stakeholders from the public and private sectors regularly join their forces in initiatives to strengthen urban structures. However, academic insights into the contribution of retailing on perceived city attractiveness remain sparse. Relying on an extensive data set that combines survey and observational data, the authors are able to quantify a variety of inner city characteristics, ranging from its store and service provider portfolio to its ambience and accessibility, and measure their association with its perceived attractiveness. They show that a city's portfolio of retail stores is not only related to people's perceptions of the city's overall attractiveness but also perceptions of its ambience. However, not all retail categories contribute the same way; while the presence of clothing stores or booksellers is strongly associated with cities' ambience as well as attractiveness, other retail categories such as optometrists or electronics stores are negatively associated with consumers' inner city perceptions. Importantly, these relationships also depend on the size of the focal city. Based on their results, the authors provide important managerial and societal implications on how to leverage the local retailing environment to improve inner city attractiveness. For example, the results may inform (local) governments on which sectors to subsidize in order to attract those store and service provider categories that benefit inner city attractiveness.