Buying the same product at the neighborhood store or at a shopping mall implies different carbon emissions. This paper quantifies carbon impacts of consumer choices of retail channel and shop location (where to buy), extending footprint assessments of product choices (what to buy). Carbon emissions of shopping situations are shown in the current situation, in a business-as-usual projection in 2020, and in policy scenarios with changed market shares of shopping situations. The analysis covers the product categories: groceries, clothing, and electronics & computers, from the shopping situations: neighborhood store, town center, discount store, shopping mall, and mail order/online selling. Stages of the product life cycle which differ between shopping situations are examined: freight transport, warehousing, store operation, and the last mile of the consumers' trip to the store. Carbon emissions of shopping situations amount to 2.7% of overall Austrian emissions in the base year. Dominant car use on the last mile substantially contributes to the overall footprint. In the business-as-usual scenario, carbon emissions from shopping situations increase by +33% until 2020, corresponding to 4.2% of the overall Austrian emissions target for 2020. Restricting shopping malls or supporting neighborhood stores could limit this increase to +25% and +20%, respectively. Facilitating online selling achieves no notable effects. The study underlines that an absolute reduction in private demand for household goods is necessary, as available policy instruments aiming at shopping situations fail to compensate the steady growth in private consumption.

This submission for PhD by publication consists of a portfolio of nine peer reviewed and published papers. The research presented in the portfolio contributes to theory, knowledge and discussion in the area of retail marketing. The common theme of the papers is competition in grocery retailing, and specifically the way that retail marketing strategy and supply chain relations affects retail competition and outcomes for consumers. While the nine papers share a common approach in how grocery retailers compete through pricing and product choices along with their trading terms with suppliers, each individual paper addresses a distinctive central question: How does pricing competition change in the wake of a major merger in the retail grocery sector? How do grocery retailers respond in their pricing, promotion and advertising to the onset of a macro-economic crisis? Do grocery retailers encourage excessive consumption of alcohol by under-shifting excise duty increases on cheap alcohol? Why do retailers use value size pricing and offer bargain prices on jumbo-sized sugary drinks that encourages harmful excessive consumption? Is retail buyer power over suppliers detrimental to competition? In what circumstances might the development and promotion of brands and private labels be deleterious to consumers interests? How should competition authorities and practitioners assess the extent of competition between brands and private labels? How can the development of copycat private labels directly mimicking leading brands result in higher overall prices for consumers? Do retailers manipulate grocery prices to favour private labels over brands? Beyond their academic research contribution, the findings and insights provided in the papers both individually and collectively have relevance to retailers, suppliers, consumers, regulators and policymakers in desiring to see an efficient, well-functioning and dynamic grocery retail sector.

Purpose - The purpose of this study was to deepen the understanding of how showrooming affect the exploited brick-and-mortar businesses. This was done by investigating an industry characterized by high levels of employee knowledge where the expertise of the personnel create showrooming incentives. Methodology - The study applied a qualitative case study where semi-structured interviews was held with employees of a firm representing the case of an exploited firm. Findings - The empirical findings suggest that showrooming may affect the exploited firm in the areas; profits, offerings, channels, and personnel. Profit-losses due to showrooming may force the exploited firm to reduce number of personnel and working hours, decrease store areas and close of unprofitable stores, change the product and services offered, change how products are displayed, and in what channels the products are available. Further it may give rise to internal channel conflicts, and affect personnel motivation and sales performance. Practical Implications - A perceived showroomer should be treated as a paying customer to avoid misjudgment of character and a loss in service level. Private labels and exclusive selling rights allow for higher profits while reducing showrooming opportunities. In addition to this, rewards for cross-channel retention, synchronized channel information, and price consistency across channels may reduce internal conflicts. Contribution - This study contributes to the young research area of showrooming by assessing the effects an exploited firm may encounter when faced with showroomers.

This thesis deals with the position of regional foods in a selected sample of retail chains operating in the Brno- city and Brno- rural areas. The theoretical part is devoted to selected circuits that relate to the issue of agrarian sector and its formation in the conditions of contemporary agribusiness . Part of this section is to introduce the basic characteristics and concepts related to the functioning of the retail market in the Czech Republic. Is a crucial element in defining the concept of regional food and a brief statement of marketing techniques necessary to prepare the practical part. Its content is the realization of primary research, according to the chosen methodology and reporting of results , based on which it will be possible to evaluate the status of regional food store chains.

This thesis focuses on a progressive packaging technique in retailing which is called Shelf Ready Packaging (SRP). It is concerned with a discussion of characteristics and potential of this method and brings views of key interested parties. Several types of Shelf Ready Packaging are described and their main advantages and disadvantages are analysed. In the thesis there is briefly explained the implementation process of the technology in a supplying firm. Attention is also paid to the role of logistics in retailing and its current trends.

The main goal of my diploma thesis is to analyze the offers of organic food in chosen retail chains operating in the Czech market. At the beginning there are defined retail and retailing and there is briefly outlined the development of retail in the Czech Republic. In the second chapter there is introduced organic farming, its definition, goals and its current position in the world and in the Czech Republic. In this chapter is defined what is organic food, how is organic food labeled and which organizations do this business in the Czech Republic. The third chapter analyses the situation in the organic food market in the Czech Republic and there are introduced certain marketing activities and projects to promote organic food. The next chapter analyses the current retail net in the Czech Republic and in the following chapter there are introduced the retail chains chosen for the analysis of their assortment of organic food. The last chapter deals with analysis of assortment of organic food in chosen retail chains.

The rapidly intensifying adoption of the Internet channel for marketing and sales by incumbent bricks-and-mortar retailers underscores the importance of assessing the impact of the online channel strategies on firm performance in the dynamic competitive environment. At the time when store-based retailers increasingly dominate online sales the questions of when and how an incumbent retailer should adopt an online channel to achieve and sustain a competitive advantage are of utmost interest for both marketing scholars and practitioners. This dissertation investigates the role of two strategic decisions in affecting firm performance: (a) the order of adopting an online channel by incumbent retailers and (b) the degree of coordination between store and online sales channels. The resource-based view and the dynamic capabilities approach are used as theoretical foundations for the study. Following resource-based logic and applying a contingency perspective, this research proposes that firm-specific resource endowments determine the success of the order of online entry strategy for incumbent retailers. This dissertation utilizes the dynamic capabilities approach to propose that the strategy of inter-channel channel coordination leads to higher performance when core, unique dynamic capabilities pertaining to e-commerce are developed in-house, as opposed to being outsourced. By posing and answering the research questions regarding the role of strategic decisions of order of online entry and channel coordination in enhancing long-term financial and operational performance, this dissertation contributes to the development of strategic theory in the nascent areas of electronic commerce and multi-channel retailing, provides further empirical support to resource-based theory of competitive advantage, and assists managers in formulating more informed strategic objectives for achieving multi-channel competitive advantage.

The brand behind the garment is what gives the product popularity, relevance to the consumer, and overall profitability. As time passes, markets are becoming flooded with more brands that inherently provide the commodities. As a result, fashion marketers must put more time and investment into stipulating ways for which their brand can reach a select target consumer and enhance repeat purchase intentions with their competitive differentiations. As their efforts engage, an experiential perspective emerges in the fashion industry. By comparing fashion brands and their different distribution channels, the objectives of this study are to identify consumers’ perceptions of fashion brand experience dimensions and experience types, and to investigate the effect of brand experience dimensions and types on brand resonance. Upon extending Schmitt and Brakus, Schmitt, and Zarantonello’s experience dimensions and types, in conjunction with Keller’s brand resonance model, 12 out of 20 hypotheses confirm the significant impact of consumers experiences on brand resonance by analyzing the data (n = 374) from a university in the United States. Sensory and affective experiences are primary factors for establishing fashion brand association, while cognitive and relational driven experiences lead to establishing fashion brand loyalty. Sensory, affective, and relational experiences affect both product and store type experiences, while only product experience affects brand resonance. With the depiction of different brand effects, this study concludes that while Forever 21 may focus on relational experiences with the consumer, Gap utilizes positive cognitive experiences to develop a link to brand loyalty and fashion product reliability.

To turn today’s challenges and threats into fruitful opportunities, marketing organizations must move away from their traditional modus operandi of closed system approach to an open system where employees, customers, procedures, processes, vendors, and strategies are viewed interdependently. This article presents a systematic and synergistic practical framework grounded in an open system. A case study is employed to illustrate the application of the framework and to demonstrate how it can benefit organizations in attaining desirable outcomes.

Submitted in accordance with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Communication Science at the University of Zululand, 2011. / This study explores how new technologies are being adapted to advance and retain their market segment.