Search Results (18)

This study investigates the shopping behavior of Generation Z towards second-hand clothing in Slovakia, focusing on in-store experiences and their relationship with emotions, gender, and environmental awareness. Data were collected from 340 respondents through an online survey conducted between November 2024 and January 2025. The results indicate that feelings such as authenticity, fun, and interest in finding fashionable items are significantly associated with gender. Across all five dimensions, women perceive second-hand clothing shopping more positively than men. The biggest difference between the sexes is that women find this shopping more fun, enjoyable, and authentic. Men tend to be slightly more skeptical in their evaluation, with the lowest average score (2.65) on the question of whether shopping is “fun”. The study also reveals a strong correlation between the shopping experience and consumer attitudes. Individuals with prior experience in buying second-hand clothing exhibit greater environmental awareness, a stronger emotional connection with clothing, and a higher likelihood of participating in clothing swap events. Conversely, those without experience often harbor prejudices related to hygiene and perceive second-hand shopping as time-consuming and inconvenient. These findings highlight the importance of in-store experiences and the role of emotions in shaping consumer behavior towards second-hand clothing. The results have implications for retailers and policymakers seeking to promote sustainable consumption practices and enhance the appeal of the second-hand clothing market. Full article

Customer context analysis (CCA) in brick-and-mortar shopping malls can support decision makers’ marketing decisions by providing them with information about customer interest and purchases from merchants. It makes offline CCA an important topic in marketing. In order to analyze customer context, it is necessary to analyze customer behavior, as well as to obtain the customer’s location, and we propose an analysis system for customer context based on these two aspects. For customer behavior, we use a modeling approach based on the time-frequency domain, while separately identifying movement-related behaviors (MB) and semantic-related behaviors (SB), where MB are used to assist in localization and the positioning result are used to assist semantic-related behavior recognition, further realizing CCA generation. For customer locations, we use a deep-learning-based pedestrian dead reckoning (DPDR) method combined with a node map to achieve store-level pedestrian autonomous positioning, where the DPDR is assisted by simple behaviors. Full article

This study investigated the impact of Octomodal Mental Imagery (OMI) and management dimensions on shoppers’ experiences and mall loyalty. The study was collected through “Questionnaire Star,” and 358 valid data points were obtained. The data were analyzed using SPSS27 and AMOS28. The results showed that sensory attributes such as visual, tactile, gustatory, and olfactory attributes positively influenced shoppers’ experiences in OMI, while the auditory attribute had no significant effect. Spatial, a structural attribute of OMI, positively influenced shoppers’ experiences, whereas autonomy and kinesthetics did not have a considerable effect. Tenant mix and entertainment positively impacted shoppers’ experiences in management, while accessibility had no significant effect. The study also found that shoppers’ experiences positively impacted mall loyalty, while hedonistic motivation had a more substantial effect than utilitarian motivation. This study is the first to examine the impact of OMI on shoppers’ experiences. It fills a gap in the literature on this relationship. It also examines the combined impact of management dimensions (accessibility, tenant mix, and entertainment) on the overall shopper’s experience, filling a gap in the Chinese shopping mall literature and extending the generalizability of the theory. The study further explores the relationship between shoppers’ experiences and mall loyalty and the moderating effect of incentive orientation. The results of this study have critical implications for mall managers. Strengthening the mental image and management dimensions of the shopping mall will enhance shoppers’ experiences and build loyalty, allowing brick-and-mortar malls to remain competitive and sustainable in today’s highly competitive and popular e-commerce environment. Full article

E-commerce has gained increased popularity over the last decade. To date, there is an open debate as to whether e-commerce or brick-and-mortar shopping is environmentally less sustainable, especially due to the growing mobility resources needed for e-commerce distribution. The analysis at hand compares the CO₂-equivalent emissions of e-commerce and brick-and-mortar shopping of pharmaceutical products considering spatial aspects and the typical transport modal mix of consumers when doing online and offline shopping. The object of analysis is a retailer of pharmaceutical products, more precisely, medicines, which offers, both, brick-and-mortar and online shopping possibilities. The results show that spatial aspects concerning the residential location of consumers, the vehicles used for shopping trips, the shopping basked size, and trip-chaining effects have a crucial impact on the mobility demand and CO₂-equivalent emissions of the two commerce forms. In general, for rural and sub-urban areas, e-commerce results in lower CO₂-equivalent emissions, while in urban areas, brick-and-mortar shopping is the favourable solution, if the consumers walk or cycle to the next pharmacy. Full article

Online grocery shopping has expanded rapidly in the U.S., yet little is known about the retailer’s perceptions of online grocery services, which can aid in the expansion of services. Furthermore, many barriers to online grocery utilization persist across geographic areas, especially among Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)-authorized retailers. This study captured perceived barriers and facilitators of online grocery shopping for managers of SNAP-authorized retailers. Qualitative semi-structured interviews were conducted with managers (n = 23) of grocery stores/supermarkets in urban and rural areas across four different states: TN, KY, NC, and NY. Grocery store managers offering online ordering (n = 15) and managers from brick-and-mortar stores without online services (n = 8) participated in the interviews. Three primary themes emerged among managers offering online ordering: (1) order fulfillment challenges, (2) perceived customer barriers, and (3) perceived customer benefits. Among managers at brick-and-mortar locations without online services, four major themes emerged: (1) thoughts on implementing online shopping, (2) COVID-19 pandemic impacts, (3) competition with other stores, and (4) benefits of maintaining brick-and-mortar shopping. This study provides a deeper understanding of retailers’ experience and perceptions of online grocery services among stores authorized to accept SNAP benefits. This perspective is necessary to inform policies and enhance the evolving virtual food marketplace for SNAP customers. Full article

Background: Retailer price promotions are an important marketing strategy to attract consumers. However, there is scarce evidence on how retail price promotions are being implemented by e-cigarette online stores, particularly for e-liquid products that are not often found in brick-and-mortar stores and sold in lower prices compared to other types of e-cigarettes. Objectives: We collect data on e-liquid price-promotion activities from online stores using web scraping. From February to May 2021, we scraped the price promotion data of over 14,000 e-liquid products, from five popular online vape shops that sell nationwide in the US. We present descriptive analyses of price promotion on those products, assess price promotion practices in online stores, and discuss components of the final purchase price paid by online customers. Findings: Of the 14,000 e-liquid products and over, 13,326 (92.36%) were on sale, and each online store on average offered discounts from 9.20% to 47.53% for these products. The distribution of the after-discount price was largely similar across the five stores, and there is evidence that each store had adopted different price-promotion strategies. Conclusion: Despite low prices, price promotions are common for e-liquid products, which may undermine the effect of e-cigarette pricing policies such as excise tax that are designed to raise e-cigarette prices. Full article

Online grocery shopping has the potential to improve access to food, particularly among low-income households located in urban food deserts and rural communities. The primary aim of this pilot intervention was to test whether a three-armed online grocery trial improved fruit and vegetable (F&V) purchases. Rural and urban adults across seven counties in Kentucky, Maryland, and North Carolina were recruited to participate in an 8-week intervention in fall 2021. A total of 184 adults were enrolled into the following groups: (1) brick-and-mortar “BM” (control participants only received reminders to submit weekly grocery shopping receipts); (2) online-only with no support “O” (participants received weekly reminders to grocery shop online and to submit itemized receipts); and (3) online shopping with intervention nudges “O+I” (participants received nudges three times per week to grocery shop online, meal ideas, recipes, Facebook group support, and weekly reminders to shop online and to submit itemized receipts). On average, reported food spending on F/V by the O+I participants was USD 6.84 more compared to the BM arm. Online shopping with behavioral nudges and nutrition information shows great promise for helping customers in diverse locations to navigate the increasing presence of online grocery shopping platforms and to improve F&V purchases. Full article

Online shopping is growing fast due to the increasingly widespread use of digital services. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the desire for contactless shopping has further changed consumer behavior and accelerated the acceptance of online grocery purchases. Consequently, traditional brick-and-mortar retailers are developing omnichannel solutions such as click-and-collect services to fulfill the increasing demand. In this work, we consider the Buy-Online-Pick-up-in-Store concept, in which online orders are collected by employees of the conventional stores. As labor is a major cost driver, we apply and discuss different optimizing strategies in the picking and packing process based on real-world data from a German retailer. With comparison of different methods, we estimate the improvements in efficiency in terms of time spent during the picking process. Additionally, the time spent on the packing process can be further decreased by applying a mathematical model that guides the employees on how to organize the articles in different shopping bags during the picking process. In general, we put forward effective strategies for the Buy-Online-Pick-up-in-Store paradigm that can be easily implemented by stores with different topologies. Full article

In this volatile post-COVID environment where customers look for ways to order products online using personal computers and mobile devices, a traditional sale/delivery of products via single distribution channel needs to be reassessed. As a revolutionary alternative to a conventional distribution channel, this paper proposes an omni-channel strategy. The omni-channel aims to maximize the customer shopping experience by diversifying and integrating the product purchase and delivery media through customer engagement. The omni-channel also facilitates the sales of products by allowing customers to seamlessly interact with retailers across the multiple channels such as websites, social media, brick-and-mortar stores, kiosks, call centers, and the like. Since the transformation of product sale, purchase, and delivery processes requires a new business mindset and innovative strategic initiatives, this paper sheds light on potential challenges and opportunities of implementing the omni-channel strategy, while identifying key success factors for the application of the omni-channel concept to e-tailing. Full article

There have been significant changes evident across the retail sector over the last 20 years, which have been primarily influenced by technological advancements. These changes have forced many retailers to rethink their business models and utilise a combination of both brick and mortar stores and online domains to present an integrated shopping experience. In order to gain an understanding of how customer satisfaction is increased through omni-channel retailing, we collected data through survey research, specifically through semi-structured interviews and questionnaires. In order to generate concise and accurate findings, the data were analysed using thematic analysis. From this analysis, three themes were generated. The first theme explores the reasoning behind preferred shopping methods and what influences these customers’ purchase methods. The second theme explores customers’ personal preference and investigates the potential of using virtual reality as a method for increasing customer satisfaction. Finally, the third theme looks into utilising interactive technology to create a diversified user experience. This theme explores the potential of utilising a communication platform for customers and also designing a tangible interface for disabled customers. This study has opened up an opportunity for future research and has outlined potential design insights in how to improve customer experience and customer purchase intentions. Full article

This paper examines adoption of online grocery shopping, and potential cost and time savings compared to brick and mortar food retailers, by New York City public housing residents using Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. A mixed methods action research project involving the co-creation of an online shopping club, the Farragut Food Club (FFC), recruited 300 members who registered to shop online using SNAP, and received waivers on delivery minimums and provided technical assistance and centralized food delivery. We conducted a survey (n = 206) and focus groups to understand shopping practices; FFC members collected receipts of groceries over two weeks before and after the pilot to measure foods purchased, stores patronized, and prices. We interviewed FFC members to elicit experiences with the pilot, and estimated cost differences between products purchased in brick and mortar stores and equivalent products online, and transportation time and cost differences. Online shopping represented a small (2.4%) percentage of grocery spending. Unit prices for products purchased on Amazon ($0.28) were significantly higher than for equivalent products purchased in brick and mortar stores ($0.23) (p < 0.001.) Compatibility with existing routines, low relative advantage, and cost of online products limited the adoption of online shopping among SNAP users. Full article

From brick-and-mortar stores to omnichannel retail, the efficient selection of products to be displayed on store tables, advertising brochures, or online front pages has become a critical issue. One possible goal is to maximize the overall ‘attractiveness’ level of the displayed items, i.e., to enhance the shopping experience of our potential customers as a way to increase sales and revenue. With the goal of maximizing the total attractiveness value for the visiting customers over a multi-period time horizon, this paper studies how to configure an assortment of products to be included in limited display spaces, either physical or online. In order to define a realistic scenario, several constraints are considered for each period and display table: (i) the inclusion of both expensive and non-expensive products on the display tables; (ii) the diversification of product collections; and (iii) the achievement of a minimum profit margin. Moreover, the attractiveness level of each product is assumed to be dynamic, i.e., it is reduced if the product has been displayed in a previous period (loss of novelty) and vice versa. This generates dependencies across periods. Likewise, correlations across items are also considered to account for complementary or substitute products. In the case of brick-and-mortar stores, for instance, solving this rich multi-period product display problem enables them to provide an exciting experience to their customers. As a consequence, an increase in sales revenue should be expected. In order to deal with the underlying optimization problem, which contains a quadratic objective function in its simplest version and a non-smooth one in its complete version, two biased-randomized metaheuristic algorithms are proposed. A set of new instances has been generated to test our approach and compare its performance with that of non-linear solvers. Full article

The online shopping market is developing rapidly, meaning that it is important for retailers and manufacturers to understand how consumers behave online compared to when in brick-and-mortar stores. Retailers want consumers to spend time shopping, browsing, and searching for products in the hope a purchase is made. On the other hand, consumers may want to restrict their duration of stay on websites due to perceived risk of loss of time or convenience. This phenomenon underlies the need to reduce the duration of consumer stay (namely, time pressure) on websites. In this paper, the browsing behavior and attention span of shoppers engaging in online shopping under time pressure were investigated. The attention and meditation level are measured by an electroencephalogram (EEG) biosensor cap. The results indicated that when under time pressure shoppers engaging in online shopping are less attentive. Thus, marketers may need to find strategies to increase a shopper’s attention. Shoppers unfamiliar with product catalogs on shopping websites are less attentive, therefore marketers should adopt an interesting style for product catalogs to hold a shopper’s attention. We discuss our findings and outline their business implications. Full article

The rapid expansion of online retailing has long raised the concern that shops and shopping centers (evolved or planned agglomerations of shops) may be abandoned and thus lead to a depletion of urbanity. Contesting this scenario, I employ the concept of ‘retail resilience’ to explore the ways in which different material forms of shopping may persist as online retailing proliferates. Through interviews with planning and development professionals in Edmonton (Canada), Melbourne (Australia), Portland (Oregon), and Wuhan (China); field/virtual observations in a wider range of cities; and a morphological analysis of key shopping centers, I find that brick-and-mortar retail space is not going away; rather, it is being increasingly developed into various shopping spaces geared toward the urban experience (a combination of density, mixed uses, and walkability) and may thus be adapted to online retailing. While not all emerging forms of shopping may persist, these diverse changes, experiments, and adaptations of shops and shopping centers can be considered a form of resilience. However, many emerging shopping centers pose a threat to urban public life. Full article

Background: E-cigarette use is rising with the majority of vapers purchasing their e-cigarettes in vape shops. We investigated the smoking/vaping trajectories and quit-smoking success rates of smokers deciding to start vaping for the first time and buying their e-cigarette in brick-and-mortar vape shops in Flanders. Methods: Participants filled out questionnaires assessing smoking/vaping behaviour at three moments (intake, after three and six months) and smoking status was biochemically verified using eCO measurements. Results: Participants (n = 71) were regular smokers (M_eCO-intake = 22 ppm), half of whom reported a motivation to quit smoking in the near future. Participants bought 3rd/4th generation e-cigarettes and e-liquid with a nicotine concentration averaging 7 mg/mL. A smoking reduction of 53% (17 cigarettes per day (CPD) at intake to 8 CPD after six months) was observed, whereas eCO decreased to 15 ppm. Eighteen percent of participants had quit smoking completely (eCO = 2 ppm), another 25% had at least halved CPD, whereas 57% had failed to reduce CPD by at least 50% (including 13% lost to follow-up). Quitters consumed more e-liquid than reducers and those who continued to smoke. Conclusions: Around one in five smoking customers buying their first e-cigarette in a brick-and-mortar vape shop had quit smoking completely after six months. Full article