This thesis is concerned with analysing the retail buying process in Japan. It adopts a comparative approach using previous work in the UK and in Australia as the basis for comparison. A number of factors are discussed that would lead the researcher to expect a different buying process in Japanese retailing. These include the unusual multi level structure of the industry and the low level of concentration and therefore retail buying power. The importance of legislation is emphasised in a study of the change in legislation and its impact on retail structure. The main empirical approach adopted is based on that used in two earlier studies in the UK and Australia. It focuses on the delisting or 'unbuying' of products, that is when the buyer decides not to continue to sell a product that is still available on the market and sold by competitors. The approach was piloted among buyers working in the UK for Japanese retailers. Further preliminary work took the form of a series of interviews about the buying process in a number of Japanese retailers. The main empirical work was conducted in face-to-face interviews with buyers in Japan. Buyers were asked to identify a product they had delisted and then questioned about the reasons for their decision and about their relationships with the supplier. Data about the buyer was also obtained. Whether the decision resulted in the ending of the relationship was also determined. The data was combined with that from the two earlier studies and explored using Structural Equation Modelling. Somewhat surprisingly the combined data set produced a single model of the buying process. The model represents the main contribution of the thesis. Models for individual countries showed some differences but these suggested that Japanese buying is not as different as had been expected from the different nature of Japanese retailing and Japanese cuiture. Specifically, decision making was similar to that in the UK. A strong, affective attitude to the relationship with the supplier did not emerge as expected. The practical and theoretical consequences of the work are discussed in the context of changes in Japanese retailing expected from recent changes in the legislation governing the sector.

No description available.

This dissertation accomplishes several tasks. First it surveys the literature in the resource-base theory of a firm and retailing for establishing the vital links necessary for firm heterogeneity in the retail channel for white goods. The review depicts not only the various dimensions of the concepts of resources, capabilities and competitive behaviour on competitive advantage but also the specific organisational/inter-organisational and strategic adaptation capabilities that direct some firms to outperform other firms in this retail channel. The empirical analysis for testing competitive advantages included a main survey analysis that consisted of all retailers and another for the small retailers. A model was constructed to diffuse simultaneously the critical resources, capabilities and competitive behaviour to competitive advantages pertaining to this retail channel in the UK. Furthermore, this method of linking and ranking of key resources and capabilities to competitive advantages is expected to encourage managers to leverage existing resource positions into superior future positions. Additionally it is also expected to help regulators address competitive issues accordingly. The results indicate that in this retail channel competitive advantages were associated to key resources and key capabilities. In this study the linking of strategic adaptive capabilities to key resources highlight retailer branding enhancements from non product activities. These non-product activities were a basis for setting ex ante limits to future competition in this retail channel. The outcome of the analysis illustrates that efficiency and/or effectiveness of outlets (key resources) were subject to delivery of customer values from product portfolios that increased market shares (proxy for competitive advantage) for the retailer organisations. This study also demonstrates how retailer outlets became a source of competitive advantage by fulfilling the conditions of value, rarity, inimitability and insubstitutability. Finally, this study also reviews the current retail structure of this retail channel to understand why it could be efficient and effective than its counterparts in Europe. The result of the two surveys suggests some evidence of imperfect competition and directs attention not to the concentration of firms but to the imbalances of outlet classes prevailing in this retail channel. Moreover this study also reveals that the number of small retailer outlets prevalent in this retail channel may indirectly control to a certain degree the extent of the advantages of economies of scale/scope that is available to the larger retailers.

The aim of this research is to explore the role of distribution centres (DCs) in agile supply chains, together with how they should be designed, operated and their performances measured within this context. The research is based, first of all, on a survey to ascertain the current situation, and then a series of case studies of international supply chains, DC designs, DC operations, and warehouse automation projects. The techniques used include questionnaires, semi-structured interviews, quantitative measures where appropriate and qualitative measures based on 5-point Likert scales. A number of constructs are used, particularly from supply chain agility and manufacturing agility literature, and these are refined and extended to form the basis for the research. The findings indicate that a prime role of distribution centres, particularly in terms of inventory-holding, is consistent with the decoupling point concept. Further roles for distribution centres in agile supply chains include cross-docking, postponement activities, and returns. The research identifies five types of agility, namely volume, time, unit quantity, presentation and information. The responses to these different types can then be categorised according to the combination of levels (i.e. supply chain, business unit, distribution network, and distribution centre), by the type of resource used (i.e. land / building, equipment, staff, and process / systems), and by how these are deployed (i.e. extra capacity, additional resources when needed, and flexible resources). Agility measurement can be undertaken using the categories of range, mobility and uniformity. With markets becoming more volatile, agility can offer a key source of competitive advantage. However, warehouses are by their nature long-term fixed assets and therefore difficult to incorporate into an agile strategy. The series of frameworks developed during this research begins to address this important area and thus forms a basis for further research as well as providing some initial frameworks to assist practitioners.

No description available.

There are a number of FM service delivery models ranging from in-house provision to total outsourcing, operating in the UK market. The portfolio of FM services and the range of options relating to the various combinations of service delivery have sparked many discussions and debates over the merits of certain modes of service delivery. Underpinning this circumstance, this research attempted to understand and explore how facilities management services in UK shopping centres have been managed and services delivered. This includes looking at how shopping centre managers determined the best options of FM service delivery in the shopping centres. As the research identified the dilemma of shopping centre managers, it aimed to develop an effective decision-making framework for assisting the shopping centre managers to select the best options of FM service delivery prior to the tendering process. This research adopted a quantitative approach to investigating facilities management services in UK shopping centres as well as determining the best options of FM service delivery. A questionnaire survey was used to investigate the current practiced of FM service delivery in UK shopping centres. Apart from that, it will also investigate shopping centres managers' perceptions towards the factors and criteria in assessing the best options of FM service delivery. Meanwhile, in developing the decision-making framework, this research introduced the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) as an alternative decision-making model as providing a basis of methodological framework for the selection of the best options of FM service delivery in UK shopping centres which is known as Facilities Management Outsourcing Selection System (FMOSS). The implementation and validation of this decision-making framework has been carried through the series of evaluation by using the pair wise comparison in the Expert Choice system and evaluation form. Those evaluations have been carried out by the selected shopping centres managers. The main findings of this research have identified that in UK shopping centres the current provisions of FM services in the majority are practicing outsourcing. In the meantime, the current options available of FM service delivery being practiced are single service contracts and bundled service contract. Based on FMOSS decision-making framework the results indicated that bundled service contract is the best option of FM service delivery in UK shopping centres. This is because bundled service contracts have resulted more in potential benefits and less in potential risks when compared to single service contracts. The factors that influenced the decision-making are favourable on cost and financial factors. Finally, this research has achieved the aim and the objectives of the study. This research has significance in helping the facilities management industry to understand more about the perceptions of shopping centres industry and theirs requirements towards FM services in shopping centres in order to deliver quality, innovative, cost effective and best in value services. A side of that, the FMOSS decision-making framework has significance in assisting the shopping centres managers in making the best selection of FM service delivery in shopping centres prior to tendering process; it is also provides the basis for a methodological framework for selecting the best options of FM service delivery in UK shopping centres and gives management of shopping centres an alternative approach to determine the best options of FM service delivery as well as improving their existing decision making process. This framework is identified as an original contribution of this research and would be beneficial to the shopping centres managers in making better decisions.

La présente recherche propose un cadre intégrateur de la gouvernance des réseaux de franchise, mobilisant à la fois l'approche contractuelle et relationnelle. Elle cherche à examiner le degré de dépendance entre les mécanismes de gouvernance émanant de ces deux approches. L'étude empirique est mise en œuvre à travers une méthodologie de recherche à la fois qualitative et quantitative. L'étude qualitative nous a permis de développer des connaissances plus détaillées sur le fonctionnement des réseaux de franchise, de vérifier la véracité empirique de notre modèle conceptuel et de mettre au point notre questionnaire définitif. Les données recueillies auprès de 90 franchisés français, à l'aide d'une enquête électronique, ont fait l'objet d'une étude quantitative. Cette dernière nous a permis, dans un premier temps, de valider les échelles de mesures des variables latentes intégrées dans le modèle conceptuel, à travers une analyse exploratoire suivie d'une autre confirmatoire appliquant la Modélisation en Equations Structurelles (MES). La MES a été également mobilisée afin de confirmer, dans un second temps, la structure causale du modèle empirique. En termes de résultats, nous avons mis en évidence, du moins partiellement, l'existence de relations de dépendance entre les trois composantes de la gouvernance contractuelle à savoir : le système d'allocation des droits décisionnels, le système d'évaluation des performances et le système d'incitation. Plus particulièrement, les résultats statistiques confirment que le système d'incitation dépend significativement de l'allocation des droits décisionnels et du système d'évaluation des performances. S'agissant des relations de complémentarité entre la gouvernance contractuelle et la gouvernance relationnelle, les résultats statistiques semblent plus concluants en montrant que les normes relationnelles de la dyade franchiseur-franchisé, fondées sur la confiance, la coopération et l'harmonisation des conflits, dépendent significativement des trois mécanismes de la gouvernance contractuelle cités ci-dessus. Voulant affiner davantage notre analyse, cette recherche met également en évidence l'influence de cinq variables de contrôle sur la portée de certains mécanismes de gouvernance plus que d'autres. Pour conclure, cette recherche contribue, sur le plan théorique, à enrichir les travaux émergents sur le contrôle et la gouvernance des réseaux de franchise et, sur le plan professionnel, à fournir aux acteurs du commerce des éléments d'appréciation sur la capacité de la franchise à concilier contrôle, autonomie et normes relationnelle, ainsi que des recommandations aux franchiseurs afin de bien gérer leurs relations avec leurs franchisés et emporter leur adhésion. / This research provides an integrating framework for the governance of franchising networks involving both contractual and relational approach. It seeks to examine the degree of dependence between the governance mechanisms from these two approaches. The empirical study is implemented through both qualitative and quantitative methodology. The qualitative study, allowed us to develop more detailed operational knowledge of franchising networks, to check the empirical veracity of our conceptual model and to finalize our questionnaire for the quantitative study. The electronic survey data collected from 90 French franchisees have been the subject of the quantitative study. This later allowed us, firstly, to validate the measurement scales of latent variables included in the conceptual model, through an exploratory analysis followed by a confirmatory one applying the Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The SEM was also leveraged to confirm, in a second step, the causal structure of the empirical model. In terms of results, we have highlighted, at least partially, the dependency between all three components of the contractual governance, namely: the allocation of decision rights system, performance measurement system and incentive system. In particular, statistical results confirm that the incentive system depends significantly on the allocation of decision rights and performance measurement system. Regarding complementarities between contractual and relational governance, statistical results seem to be more conclusive by showing that the relational norms of the franchisor-franchisee dyad, based on trust, cooperation and harmonization of conflict, depend significantly on the three contractual governance mechanisms cited above. Wishing to further refine our analysis, this research also highlights the influence of five control variables on the scope of certain governance mechanisms more than others. In conclusion, the contributions of this research are related, on the theoretical level, to the enrichment of the emerging work on control and governance of franchising networks, and on the professional level, to providing trade players with evidence on the ability of franchising to reconcile control, autonomy and relational norms, as well as recommendations to franchisors in order to manage effectively their relationships with their franchisees and gain their support.