Retailing industry is facing sterner competition in satisfying consumers¡¦ needs due to diversified market demands and shorter product life cycles. Thus, the selling characteristics of retailers have changed significantly into multifunctional retailing. Under the trend of internationalization, multinational retailers gradually entered Taiwan and became the major retailing channel in Taiwan. This thesis aims at analyzing the characteristics of multinational retailers¡¦ managerial control systems, comparing their attributes under different conditions of: level of internationalization, capital structure and styles of managers, and determine whether different retailing chain would yield different managerial control systems. Research objectives are as follows: 1. To analyze the relation between the design, operation and staff styles in managerial control systems of retail stores located in different locations. 2. The relation between the level of internationalization and the level of structuralization of the retail stores¡¦ managerial control systems. 3. Serve retailing industry in Taiwan as an example, whether there are relations between stockholder structures and firms¡¦ managerial control systems. 4. To provide a basic model of improvement on managerial control systems in Taiwan¡¦s retailing firms under different cultural structures. This thesis applied both in-depth interview and questionnaire survey methods to gather practical experiences of the interviewees. Four aspects are used to analyze whether the internal managerial systems of retailers are different. Related studies are also consulted. The research discovered that although retailing is categorized into service industries, the consumers generally possess high price elasticity, thus methods are needed to lower costs. As a consequence, extreme centralization and bureaucratic control systems are necessary to a firm¡¦s success, especially to multinational retailers¡¦ managerial control systems.

After China¡¦s entering WTO structure, there was no boundary in retailing industry from November, 2004. It not only changed operating rules, but also aroused many M&A events. Because we cannot get information about China freely, we have few ideas about this issue. Based on this phenomenon, the focus of the research is to realize the M&A development in China retailing industry with the cautiously growing up in China. This research can be divided into three parts: the structure of the theory, the development of retailing industry and M&A in China, and induce the M&A practical process of the case. Through relevant theories, we can verify whether these theories are suitable for the KSFs and motivations in the retailing industry. Meanwhile, we can present the overview and background of M&A styles and cases in China, and generalize the M&A practical process through formal or informal interviews with related executives. At last, with the viewpoint of M&A practical process, we address practical suggestions to the government, the companies which want to make an M&A move, and the case. The purpose of this research is to picture the environment of China retailing industry and M&A processes from the case ¡§TESCO merged HY-mall¡¨. By generalizing from the total environment to the case, we can understand the details when making an M&A in China retailing industry.

The grocery retailing industry is a key sector of the UK economy, accounting for 16% of consumer expenditure. As such developments in this sector will have an important effect on UK economic and social welfare. Arguably, competition in the sector has intensified in the last two decades. Yet significant consolidation in the sector has put it under the spotlight of the UK competition authorities. Previous research analysing factors affecting the performance and positioning of UK grocery retailers has tended to be restricted to a limited time period and a small sample size. This study extends this research by investigating industry evolution and factors affecting performance and industry structure with longitudinal panel data, covering a two-decade time period. The sample used covers a wide variety of grocery retailers with a range of different attributes over a significant period in the development of the industry, running from 1985 through to 2003. Strategic group theory is employed to study industry evolution and examine the effects of strategic positioning on performance. Specifically, fixed-effect panel econometric models are estimated at different levels of aggregation to analyse firm, industry and strategic group effects on the performance of retailers. Also, stochastic frontier models, in the form of Cobb-Douglas and Transcendental Logarithmic functions, are estimated at different levels of aggregation to analyse the efficiency of retailers in the sector. The results from cluster analysis on strategic groups suggest that industry structure is likely to become more concentrated, and the size of retailers will be a significant mobility barrier in the industry. The profitability analysis finds industry level factors and strategic group composition to be crucial in explaining performance differences. The efficiency analysis finds large retailers exhibiting economies of scale through operating large store formats to be significantly better positioned from smaller-format retailers with fewer outlets. Consistent and significant time dummies demonstrate the favourable macro environment enjoyed by the retailers for much of the 1990s. The analysis reveals potentially useful insights for retail managers, especially concerning the importance of positioning in the industry and the choice of strategic orientation. More generally, the study opens up further possibilities for future studies of performance and efficiency measurement over an even longer time as the sector continues to develop and shape the way consumers shop in the UK.

This study explores the application of wireless local area network (WLAN) in retailing industy for enhancing experiential marketing. As competition in the retailing industry increases, added with new entrants competing for old customers, department stores nowadays must consider new ways of attracting customers. Against that backdrop , experiential marketing becomes increasing important. Taking Kaohsiung¡¦s six department stores as cases for study, the author conducted a two-wave survey to examine whether and to what extent visitors of deparment stores appreciate the introduction and possible deployment of wireless local area networks as a means for enhancing experiential marketing. Using analytic hierarchy process (AHP) as a research method, this study sorts out not only the key success factors of introducing wireless Internet in the context of department stores but also the priority setting of those key success factors, which includes seventeen elements falling into five categories. Broadly put, marketing and promotion stands out as the first priority setting, followed by business model and infrastructure. The finding of such priority setting has deep implications for experiential marketing which also falls into five modules of analysis: sense, feel, think, act and relate. It shows that visitors are more satisfied with the aspects of sense and feel, whereas the other three leave rooms for improvement. By introducing and deploying information and communications technologies, such as WLAN, that weakness of experiential marketing can be improved.

Problem: Modeindustrin har varit omtalad under senare tid och eftersom konkurrensen på denna marknad är hög har det lett till en ökad medvetenhet bland konsumenter och speciellt bland manliga konsumenterna. En förundersökning utfärdad av författarna visade att skapandet av kundrelationer möjliggör för modeföretag att bibehålla en konkurrenskraftig position på marknaden. Undersökningen visade även att eftersom män har en tendens att förbli lojala kunder och tvivlar oftast på att köpa kläder från nya butiker är det viktigt för modeföretag att utveckla och bibehålla relationer med dessa kunder. Syfte: Syftet med denna uppsats är att avgöra vad en relation mellan konsumenter och återförsäljare är i ett modeföretag för män och när den existerar för att kunna identifiera de viktigaste aspekterna för att utveckla och bibehålla dessa relationer. Metod: En hermeneutik och en abduktiv ansats har använts genom hela uppsatsen medan en fallstudie har tillämpats. För att kunna uppfylla uppsatsens syfte har författarna gjort fem semi-strukturerade intervjuer. Författarna intervjuade olika chefer med olika hierarkiska positioner och butikspersonal från det valda fallföretaget. Teorier: De teoretiska områden som har använts i denna uppsats består av teorier angående Customer Relationship Management, Fashion management, relationer mellan konsumenter och återförsäljare, konsumentbeteende, kundtillfredställelse, kommunikation i mode m.m. Slutsatser: Författarna har fastställt att de befintliga definitionerna på relationer inte definierar vad en relation mellan konsumenter och återförsäljare är, inom det studerade sammanhanget. Därför fann författarna det lämpligt att introducera en ny definition för relationer mellan konsumenter och återförsäljare i modeföretag för män, nämligen semi-intima relationer. Dessa är långvariga relationer som karaktäriseras av ständiga personliga interaktioner, utbyte av personlig information, ett gemensamt tankesätt, tvåsidig åtagande och ömsesidiga värderingar. Författarna drog även slutsatsen att en semi-intim relation existerar när kunden är inkluderad i företaget och interaktioner är på interpersonella nivåer. En semi-intim relation existerar inte genom en handlig utan utvecklas snarare från en rad handlingar. Författarna har även fastställt att en kundfokuserad kultur, förtroende, åtagande och lojalitet, de anställdas tillfredställelse, kund tillfredställelse, värde ökande förmåner och kommunicering av varumärket till de manliga kunderna är de viktigaste aspekterna för att utveckla och bibehålla semi-intima relationer med manliga kunder. Slutligen ansåg författarna att koncepten för relationsskapande verktyg är missledande i modeföretags sammanhang och introducerade därför nya implikationer för dessa verktyg. Butikspersonalen identifierades som det viktigaste relationsskapande verktyget i modeföretag som strävar efter att utveckla och bibehålla kundrelationer. / Problem: The Fashion industry is a highly discussed issue today, and as it is very competitive, the awareness among consumers, especially male consumers, has increased. Through a preliminary research conducted by the authors, it was evident that creating customer relationships enables Fashion companies to maintain a competitive position in the market. Also, it was believed that since men tend to stay loyal and are hesitant to purchase apparel from new stores, developing and maintaining relationships with them is crucial. Purpose: The aim of this thesis is to determine what a customer-supplier relationship in Fashion companies for men’s wear is and when it exists, in order to identify the most important aspects when developing and maintaining this relationship. Method: A hermeneutic and an abductive approach have been used throughout this thesis, while a case study was performed. In order to fulfill the purpose of this thesis, five semistructured interviews were conducted with managers, at different hierarchical levels, and salesclerks of the chosen case company. Theories: The theoretical areas that were used in this thesis consisted of theories regarding Customer Relationship Management, Fashion management, Customer-supplier relationships, Consumer behavior, Customer satisfaction, Communication in Fashion etc. Conclusions: The authors came to the conclusion that the existing definitions of relationships do not identify a customer-supplier relationship in Fashion retailing. Therefore, the authors found it necessary to introduce a new definition for a customer-supplier relationship in Fashion companies for men’s wear, namely semi- intimate relationships. These relationships are long-term relationships that are characterized by frequent personal interactions, personal information exchange, a shared mode of thinking, two-way commitment and mutual values beyond monetary terms. Moreover, the authors concluded that a semiintimate relationship exists when the customers are included in the company and interactions are on interpersonal levels. Furthermore, a semi-intimate relationship does not exist through one action; it is rather developed through a series of actions. The authors also determined that a customer focused culture, trust, commitment and loyalty, employee satisfaction, customer satisfaction, adding value through benefits and communicating the brand to the male customer are the most important aspects when developing and maintaining semi-intimate relationships. Finally, the authors found the concept of relational tools misleading in the context of this thesis and therefore, new implications for relational tools were introduced, with the sales force being the most important one, when developing and maintaining semi-intimate relationships.

<p>Problem: Modeindustrin har varit omtalad under senare tid och eftersom konkurrensen på denna marknad är hög har det lett till en ökad medvetenhet bland konsumenter och speciellt bland manliga konsumenterna. En förundersökning utfärdad av författarna visade att skapandet av kundrelationer möjliggör för modeföretag att bibehålla en konkurrenskraftig position på marknaden. Undersökningen visade även att eftersom män har en tendens att förbli lojala kunder och tvivlar oftast på att köpa kläder från nya butiker är det viktigt för modeföretag att utveckla och bibehålla relationer med dessa kunder.</p><p>Syfte: Syftet med denna uppsats är att avgöra vad en relation mellan konsumenter och återförsäljare är i ett modeföretag för män och när den existerar för att kunna identifiera de viktigaste aspekterna för att utveckla och bibehålla dessa relationer.</p><p>Metod: En hermeneutik och en abduktiv ansats har använts genom hela uppsatsen medan en fallstudie har tillämpats. För att kunna uppfylla uppsatsens syfte har författarna gjort fem semi-strukturerade intervjuer. Författarna intervjuade olika chefer med olika hierarkiska positioner och butikspersonal från det valda fallföretaget.</p><p>Teorier: De teoretiska områden som har använts i denna uppsats består av teorier angående Customer Relationship Management, Fashion management, relationer mellan konsumenter och återförsäljare, konsumentbeteende, kundtillfredställelse, kommunikation i mode m.m.</p><p>Slutsatser: Författarna har fastställt att de befintliga definitionerna på relationer inte definierar vad en relation mellan konsumenter och återförsäljare är, inom det studerade sammanhanget. Därför fann författarna det lämpligt att introducera en ny definition för relationer mellan konsumenter och återförsäljare i modeföretag för män, nämligen semi-intima relationer. Dessa är långvariga relationer som karaktäriseras av ständiga personliga interaktioner, utbyte av personlig information, ett gemensamt tankesätt, tvåsidig åtagande och ömsesidiga värderingar. Författarna drog även slutsatsen att en semi-intim relation existerar när kunden är inkluderad i företaget och interaktioner är på interpersonella nivåer. En semi-intim relation existerar inte genom en handlig utan utvecklas snarare från en rad handlingar. Författarna har även fastställt att en kundfokuserad kultur, förtroende, åtagande och lojalitet, de anställdas tillfredställelse, kund tillfredställelse, värde ökande förmåner och kommunicering av varumärket till de manliga kunderna är de viktigaste aspekterna för att utveckla och bibehålla semi-intima relationer med manliga kunder. Slutligen ansåg författarna att koncepten för relationsskapande verktyg är missledande i modeföretags sammanhang och introducerade därför nya implikationer för dessa verktyg. Butikspersonalen identifierades som det viktigaste relationsskapande verktyget i modeföretag som strävar efter att utveckla och bibehålla kundrelationer.</p> / <p>Problem: The Fashion industry is a highly discussed issue today, and as it is very competitive, the awareness among consumers, especially male consumers, has increased. Through a preliminary research conducted by the authors, it was evident that creating customer relationships enables Fashion companies to maintain a competitive position in the market. Also, it was believed that since men tend to stay loyal and are hesitant to purchase apparel from new stores, developing and maintaining relationships with them is crucial. Purpose: The aim of this thesis is to determine what a customer-supplier relationship in Fashion companies for men’s wear is and when it exists, in order to identify the most important aspects when developing and maintaining this relationship.</p><p>Method: A hermeneutic and an abductive approach have been used throughout this thesis, while a case study was performed. In order to fulfill the purpose of this thesis, five semistructured interviews were conducted with managers, at different hierarchical levels, and salesclerks of the chosen case company.</p><p>Theories: The theoretical areas that were used in this thesis consisted of theories regarding Customer Relationship Management, Fashion management, Customer-supplier relationships, Consumer behavior, Customer satisfaction, Communication in Fashion etc.</p><p>Conclusions: The authors came to the conclusion that the existing definitions of relationships do not identify a customer-supplier relationship in Fashion retailing. Therefore, the authors found it necessary to introduce a new definition for a customer-supplier relationship in Fashion companies for men’s wear, namely semi- intimate relationships. These relationships are long-term relationships that are characterized by frequent personal interactions, personal information exchange, a shared mode of thinking, two-way commitment and mutual values beyond monetary terms. Moreover, the authors concluded that a semiintimate relationship exists when the customers are included in the company and interactions are on interpersonal levels. Furthermore, a semi-intimate relationship does not exist through one action; it is rather developed through a series of actions. The authors also determined that a customer focused culture, trust, commitment and loyalty, employee satisfaction, customer satisfaction, adding value through benefits and communicating the brand to the male customer are the most important aspects when developing and maintaining semi-intimate relationships. Finally, the authors found the concept of relational tools misleading in the context of this thesis and therefore, new implications for relational tools were introduced, with the sales force being the most important one, when developing and maintaining semi-intimate relationships.</p>

South Korea is a country that is poor in natural resources and capital and remains behind many other nations in technological development; however, South Korea's unique development strategy has led its economy to high growth over the last three decades. During 1997, South Korea began to experience a serious financial crisis, including bankruptcies of many of its conglomerates, a drastic depreciation in the international exchange rate of the South Korean currency, and an increasing foreign debt. Currently South Korea is struggling to compete with products from both industrialized nations and newly industrializing nations. The current crisis has occurred as South Korea has been engaged in extensive market-opening. Knowledge is lacking about South Korea's intricate and rapidly changing political and economic climate. The purpose of this research was to explore and clarify the interrelated factors that have contributed to South Korea's present economic problems, especially those facing South Korea's retailing industry. The qualitative methodology of "grounded theory" was used in this study. Grounded theory is a general methodology for developing theory that is grounded in data which are systematically gathered and analyzed. Theory evolves during the research process through a continuous interplay between analysis and data collection. This research attempted to discover the factors, or themes, that have affected the South Korean economy and retailing industry. The following factors were identified: (1) foreign direct investment; (2) the price-gap between imported goods and domestic products; (3) South Korea's trade deficit; (4) perceived over-consumption of luxury items by South Korean consumers; and (5) the chaebol, or South Korean large conglomerates. The economic factors that have led to the current difficulties facing the South Korean retailing market are complicated and interwoven. South Korean retailers will have to address these factors in the future, and attempt to find solutions. It is hoped that the knowledge resulting from this will be of benefit to South Korea's attempt to compete in a global marketplace. / Master of Science

台灣加入WTO後，各產業面臨全球化之激烈競爭，而國內流通業者如何在連鎖化、大型化、多樣化、差異化的趨勢中，善用高科技，創新經營模式，提升競爭力，已是刻不容緩的課題。台灣流通業者，規模小，數量多，e化人才不足，因此政府在這方面之協助，更顯重要性。 商業司自民國90年起推動「商業e化輔導推動計畫」至民國93年止已輔導了127個體系，共由127家受輔導廠商及其帶動上線企業26,641家接受政府補助進行各項B2B需求鏈的e化應用，如電子採購(e-Procurement)、電子帳務處理(e-Payment)、企業資源規劃(Enterprise Resource Planning)、協同規劃/預測/補貨系統(Collaborative Planning， Forecasting & Replenishment)等。 為了暸解其效益，本研究就民國93年年度接受政府輔導的11個行業別，42個體系，42家受輔導廠商及5,697家帶動上線企業進行問卷普查，及個案訪談加上專家意見，進行方式與步驟如下： 1. 針對帶動上線企業之問卷調查與分析，暸解其持續上線狀況，e化效益，e化交易金額比重，e化困難點，e化滿意度並給予企業提出相關建議等。 2. 依據帶動上線企業各項問卷普查及意見彙整後，再提供受輔導廠商予以回覆，並了解關鍵性績效指標之改善或提升程度。 3. 針對回卷率特別偏低或高，或無持續上線率偏高，或持續上線率高，之受輔導廠商進行深度個案訪談。 4. 佐以商業司主辦的各項會議之專家意見 本研究綜合上述各項調查、個案訪談、意見彙總，除瞭解政府商業e化推動措施對流通業及物流業之效益外，亦針對政府、流通業及資服業提出建議，希望能在產官學研的共同努力下，利用e化提升我國流通業之競爭力。 / Industries in Taiwan have been facing severe competition in the global marketplace since Taiwan joined the World Trade Organization (WTO). E-Commerce is touted as the necessary technology and management innovation for the retailing industry in Taiwan to improve its productivity and competitiveness. Since most retailers in Taiwan are small and medium firms, they frequently lack sufficient resource to implement E-Commerce. Consequently, government must provide the retailers with necessary support and guidance to upgrade their E-Commerce practices. The Department of Commerce (DOC) in Taiwan has been actively assisting the retailers with their e-commerce implementation. Between 2001 and 2004, DOC embarked on the “E-Commerce Promotion and Assistance Plan” and successfully established 127 E-Commerce systems, sponsored 127 firms who subsequently involved 26,641 affiliated firms downstream to implement various B2B programs, including e-Procurement, e-Payment, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), and Collaborative Planning, Forecasting & Replenishment (CPFR). The purpose of this study is to assess the effectiveness of DOC’s current E-Commerce policy for supporting the retailers in Taiwan. To collect necessary information, this study surveyed 42 systems, 42 sponsored firms and 5,697 affiliated firms, visited several individual retailers, and interviewed a few industry experts. The following is the research procedure followed by this study. 1. Based on the completed questionnaires from the affiliated firms, this study analyzed and studied the progress, effectiveness, sales contribution, difficulties, and satisfaction of their E-Commerce implementation. Accordingly, several suggestions for improvement were proposed. 2. The feedback from the affiliated firms was provided to those sponsored firms for adjusting their future E-Commerce strategies. 3. Identified several sponsored firms who had either low or high usage of the established E-Commerce programs and conducted in-depth interviews to understand the success and failure of the implementation. 4. Solicited expert opinions from a few DOC-sponsored meetings. With valuable information collected from the above sources, this study intends to shed light in the effectiveness of the government’s current E-Commerce policy. Additionally, this study hopes to provide suggestions to the government, the retailing industry, and the IT industry for improving the practice of E-Commerce and ultimately the global competitiveness of the retailing industry in Taiwan.