In recent years, small towns have experienced declining levels of retail activity attributable to a variety of factors. Previously conducted research identifies a number of these factors such as changing population dynamics, continuously evolving retail practices, locational factors, and an assortment of other macroeconomic factors. Although retail decline is common for many small towns, there are some small towns that have been able to maintain their viability in an ever-changing economic climate. The primary purpose of this research is to better understand what spatial and socio-economic characteristics contribute to retail growth and decline in a series of small towns. This research highlights a selection of small towns across a 14 county area within east Texas. The selection of small towns includes a number of towns with an increasing number of retail establishments as well as a number of towns with decreasing retail establishments over the 14 year study timeframe. Contained within this research is a discussion of small town economic and retail development, as well as findings regarding spatial and socio-economic characteristics as they relate to retail growth and decline in small towns. This research finds that locational characteristics do have an effect on retail growth and decline. The research also supports the literature, which states retail growth and decline is more pronounced within certain retail categories.

published_or_final_version / Housing Management / Master / Master of Housing Management

No abstract available. / Thesis (M.Com.)-University of Durban-Westville, 1984.

Bibliography: leaves 347-353. / vii, 353 leaves : ill. (some col.) ; 30 cm. / Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of History, 1989

No description available.

No description available.

Thesis (M.A.)--State University of New York at Binghamton, Department of Geography, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2000. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: European cities offer a variety of attractions, activities and facilities to tourists. One component of tourism in this urban context is cultural tourism which is a high potential growth sector within the tourism industry. Cultural tourists travel to cities mainly to see the most important and well known cultural attractions, to take part in cultural festivities, to view the cultural treasures of the cities and to attend performances and exhibitions. Other functions and activities such as retail functions and types also occur in the vicinity of the important cultural attractions of a city. Amongst these activities and functions are shops, cafés and restaurants. In an area of a city where cultural attractions and retail types coexist, the possibility exits that a spatial relationship between cultural tourism and retailing may occur in the sense that the tourists who visit these attractions may support the retail establishments in the vicinity of cultural attractions. The city of Leuven in Belgium is a typical West European city with a variety of cultural tourist attractions as well as functions which can be supportive of cultural tourism. These functions include shops, cafés and restaurants. An investigation was conducted to establish whether a spatial relationship exists between cultural tourism and retail activities in the part of Leuven known as the Ring. The geographical information systems TransCad, Arc/Info en ArcView were used for the processing and analysis of retail and cultural tourism data gathered in the Ring of Leuven. Three analytical procedures were performed separately for shops, cafés and restaurants. These procedures comprised (a) the determination of the numbers and types of supportive functions around the most important cultural-historical tourist attractions, (b) the determination of the numbers and types of supportive functions along the routes to cultural-historical sites from tourist points of origin, and (c) the determination of the numbers and types of supportive functions along guided-walk routes in the city. The analysis results show that a (spatial) relationship does exist between retail and cultural tourism in the Ring of Leuven. On average 44% of the retail functions (shops, cafés and restaurants) are located within a distance of up to saam from the six most important cultural building attractions in Leuven (procedure 1). Retail functions on guided-walk routes totalled 48% with cafés and restaurants being the most abundant (procedure 3). Only 19% of retail functions are located between points of origin and cultural building attractions (procedure 2). A more detailed study should be conducted to establish the exact nature of the spatial relationship which exists between retail and cultural tourism in the Ring of Leuven. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Europese stede bied 'n reeks attraksies, aktiwiteite en fasiliteite vir toeriste. Een komponent van die breër term toerisme in hierdie stedelike konteks is kulturele toerisme wat 'n baie sterk groeisektor binne die toerismemark is. Kulturele toeriste besoek stede hoofsaaklik met die doelom die belangrikste en bekendste kulturele attraksies te besigtig, om aan kulturele feeste deel te neem, die kunsskatte van stede te betrag en om teateropvoerings en tentoonstellings by te woon. In die nabyheid van die belangrikste kulturele attraksies van 'n stad kom ook ander funksies en aktiwiteite soos kleinhandelsfunksies en -tipes voor. Hieronder ressorteer onder andere winkels, cafés en restaurante. In die gedeelte van 'n stad waar kulturele attraksies en kleinhandelstipes naby mekaar voorkom, kan die moontlikheid bestaan van 'n ruimtelike verwantskap tussen kulturele toerisme en kleinhandel, in dié sin dat toeriste wat die attraksies besoek, moontlik ook die kleinhandelstipes wat in die nabyheid van die kulturele attraksies voorkom, salondersteun. Die stad Leuven in België is 'n tipiese voorbeeld van 'n Wes-Europese stad met 'n verskeidenheid kulturele toeriste-attraksies asook funksies wat kulturele toerisme ondersteun. Hierdie ondersteunende funksies sluit winkels, cafés en restaurante in. In die deel van Leuven wat as die Ring bekend staan, is ondersoek ingestel na die voorkoms, al dan nie, van 'n ruimtelike verwantskap tussen kulturele toerisme en kleinhandel. Die geografiese inligtingstelsels TransCad, Arc/Info en ArcView is ingespan vir die verwerking en analise van data oor kleinhandel en kulturele toerisme in die Ring van Leuven. Drie ontledingsprosedures is afsonderlk uitgevoer vir winkels, cafés en restaurante. Hierdie prosedures behels (a) die bepaling van die aantal en tipes ondersteunende funksies rondom die belangrikste kultuurhistoriese toeristeattraksies; (b) die bepaling van die aantal en tipe ondersteunende funksies langs die roetes tussen die toeriste-oorsprongpunte en die belangrikste kultuurhistoriese toeriste-attraksies; en (c) die bepaling van die aantal en tipe ondersteunende funksies langs begeleide stadswandelroetes. Die analiseresultate wys dat 'n verwantskap tussen kleinhandel en kulturele toerisme, ruimtelik-gesproke, wel in die Ring van Leuven bestaan. Só is gemiddeld 44% van die kleinhandelsfunksies (winkels, cafés en restaurante) tot op In afstand van SOOmvanaf die ses belangrikste kulturele gebou-attraksies in Leuven geleë (prosedure 1). Ook kom 48% van die kleinhandelsfunksies langs die roetes van begeleide stadswandelinge voor. Hier is dit egter die cafés en restaurante wat die grootste proporsies uitmaak (prosedure 3). 'n Gemiddelde proporsie van slegs 19% van die kleinhandelsfunksies kom tussen oorsprongpunte en die belangrikste kulturele gebou-attraksies voor. 'n Meer omvattende studie moet onderneem word om vas te stel watter tipe ruimtelike verwantskap tussen kleinhandel en kulturele toerisme binne Leuven se Ring voorkom.

Thesis (MComm)--University of Stellenbosch, 2007. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Understanding and measuring job performance constructs enables organisations to utilise their human resources more effectively. The job performance of workers can be conceptualised on two levels, namely on a job result or outcome level (e.g. sales figures, units produced) and on a behavioural level (e.g. planning a budget, attentiveness to customers). To the extent that the former is within the control of the worker responsible, its success is a function of the worker’s behaviour on the job. Successful performance on the job outcome level for which the job exists thus requires specific levels of performance (i.e., competence) on the behavioural competencies in that the latter complexly determines the former. The level of performance achieved on the outcome level could, however, also recursively feed back onto the level of performance reached on the behavioural competencies. A complex network of causal influences thus exist between the job outcomes for which the job exists and the latent behavioural competency variables. Although this multi-dimensional structural model between job behaviour and job outcomes are widely recognised in theory, it is not often developed or tested in practice. Such models will give credence to performance criteria used as part of performance management and will also assist organisations in selecting and evaluating job success predictors. In addition, these models can serve as diagnostic tools for organisational development. This research study develops and evaluates a performance or competency structural model for branch managers in the clothing retail industry. The results seem to suggest a reasonable good fit for the exogenous model (i.e. competency measurement model), but a poor fit for the endogenous model (i.e. job outcomes measurement model). Due to estimation problems with the endogenous model, multiple regression analysis is used instead of the more appropriate analysis in this case, structural equation modelling, for evaluating the structural model. The regression results confirm the importance of certain competencies in terms of unit performance and provide understanding of the rather complex performance domain. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die verstaan en meet van posprestasie stel organisasies in staat om hul menslike hulpbronne meer effektief te bestuur. Die posprestasie van werkers kan op twee vlakke gekonseptualiseer word, naamlik op ‘n posuitkomsvlak (bv. verkoopssyfers, eenhede geproduseer) en op ‘n gedragsvlak (bv. beplanning van ‘n begroting, oplettendheid teenoor klante). Sukses op die eersgenoemde vlak, in die mate waartoe dit binne die beheer van die verantwoordelike werker is, is ‘n funksie van die werker se gedrag in die werk. Suksesvolle prestasie op die posuitkomsvlak, waarvoor die pos bestaan, vereis dus spesifieke vlakke van prestasie (dws. bevoegdheid) op die gedragsvlak deurdat die laasgenoemde die eersgenoemde op ‘n komplekse wyse bepaal. Die vlak van prestasie behaal op die uitkomsvlak sou egter ook ’n terugvoereffek kon hê op die vlak van prestasie op die gedragsbevoegdhede. ‘n Komplekse netwerk van kousale invloede bestaan dus tussen die posuitkomse waarvoor die pos bestaan en die latente gedragsbevoegdhede veranderlikes. Alhoewel hierdie multi-dimensionele strukturele model tussen werksgedrag en posuitkomste wyd erken word in die teorie, word dit nie algemeen ontwikkel of getoets in die praktyk nie. Sulke modelle sal geloofwaardigheid bied aan prestasiekriteria wat aangewend word as deel van prestasiebestuur en sal ook bydra tot organisasies se seleksie en evaluasie van voorspellers vir possukses. Hierdie modelle kan verder as diagnostiese instrumentasie dien vir organisasieontwikkeling. Hierdie navorsingstudie behels die ontwikkeling en evaluering van ‘n strukturele prestasie- of bevoegdheidsmodel vir takbestuurders in die klere-kleinhandelindustrie. Die resultate blyk ‘n redelike goeie passing aan te dui vir die eksogene (bevoegdheids-) model, maar ‘n swak passing vir die endogene (posuitkoms-) model. As gevolg van beramingsprobleme met die endogene model word meervoudige regressieontleding gebruik in plaas van strukturele vergelykingsmodellering wat ‘n meer toepaslike analise in hierdie geval sou wees. Die regressieresultate bevestig die belangrikheid van sekere bevoegdhede in terme van eenheidsprestasie en werk mee om ‘n redelike komplekse prestasiedomein meer verstaanbaar te maak.

Entrepreneurship is generally defined as the creation of new businesses - yet, nowhere is it more important than in large, established organisations. Product life cycles are contracting and businesses need to stay ahead of competition. Organisations need innovative and creative employees to respond to the changing needs of the market. Corporate entrepreneurship can be defined as entrepreneurial activities within an organisation, using the resources of the organisation to achieve innovative results. Corporate entrepreneurship (also referred to as intrapreneurship) is not confined to a particular size or stage of an organisation. This study focuses on the corporate entrepreneurial behaviour of middle managers inside a large retail organisation. The uniqueness of this study is the focus on the middle managers instead of senior management. The study aims to make management aware of the concept of corporate entrepreneurship and to identify the factors which influence entrepreneurial behaviour in an established organisation. / Business Management / M. Com (Business Management)