This study describes the development of operational strategies for an exhaust air heat pump system that supplies space heating and domestic hot water. The system combines photovoltaic power production with two different storage types. These are electrical storage using batteries and thermal storage in using a domestic hot water tank and in form of the thermal capacity of the building. The investigation of the control strategies is carried out for a detailed single family house model in Sweden in the simulation software TRNSYS. The overall aim of the control strategies is to improve the performance of the energy system in terms of self-consumption, self-sufficiency, final energy and seasonal performance factor. Three algorithms are developed and compared to a base case without additional control. The first algorithm only uses the thermal storage in the hot water tank and the building. The second uses only the battery to store the photovoltaic electricity. The third control algorithm combines both storage types, electrical and thermal. The simulation results show that for the studied system the energetic improvement is higher with the use of electrical storage compared to using thermal storage. The biggest improvement however is reached with the third algorithm, using both storage types in combination. For the case of a photovoltaic-system with 9 kW and battery store with 10.8 kWh and a 180 l hot water store the self-consumption reaches up to 51% with a solar fraction of 41 %. The reduction in final energy consumption for this case is 3057 kWh (31 %) with the heat pump having a seasonal performance factor of 2.6. The highest self-consumption is reached with a photovoltaic-system of 3 kW and battery store with 3.6 kWh, which comes to 71 %.

First part of the thesis is focused on definition of marketing and communication mix,follows definition of point of purchase and sale and the situation in Czech republic. Second part describes the Hewlett-Packard company, its communication strategy with the view to point of purchase and Store in Store concept.

The main aims of this diploma thesis were to analyze the biscuits market at in-store area and to give some recommendations to Kraft Foods company, how to communicate in this media type in future. The diploma thesis consists of theoretical and methodological part and practical part. In the theoretical and methodological part, there are described terms related to the market, analysis of the market, customers' behaviour - its types, process and influencing factors. Also in this part the in-store communication, the subject, process and methods of marketing research are explained. The practical part is based on the theoretical and methodological part. It includes information about the biscuits market, Kraft Foods company, their competitors and customers. The Nielsen, Admosphere, MML, U&A data analyzes and author's own research, were realized and their results are summarized in this part. Author's own research was done by monitoring in-store areas in 6 hypermarkets and supermarkets. The results of all analyzes and of author's own research are summarized in the chapter Conclusion. Also the recommendations for Kraft Foods company are to be found there.

The physical store frontline employees are the link between the organization and the customers. During 2020 the COVID-19 pandemic has had different effect on different retail sectors, some have had their worst results while ICA Maxi stores have increased their sales. This dissertation aimed to explore challenges the frontline employees and their store managers perceive they face during the COVID-19 pandemic in the retail store context. In order to explore these challenges semi structured interviews were conducted at an ICA Maxi store in the south of Sweden. The study found that the frontline employees are not involved in the decision-making process, that the leaders support is important for initiatives to be successful, and that there was no additional training for the frontline employees due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We draw the conclusion that while frontline employees are not included in the formal decision-making, they are still able to raise their concerns with their managers. We also draw the conclusion that managerial support is important when implementing initiatives for the frontline employees. Finally, we draw the conclusion that none of the frontline employees felt the need for any additional training. This study contributes to the scarce amount of research from the frontline employee perspective in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Practically, this study could be of value for store managers in order to enhance the customer interaction from a frontline employee point of view.

Abstract Background The food retail business is characterized by fierce competition between a few large actors and low switching costs for consumers due to the similar offerings of the stores. In an oligopolistic market struc- ture like this it is critical for stores to create a loyal customer base in order to gain a competitive advantage. This is achieved through gen- erating customer satisfaction, which is an outcome of a positive evaluation of the store image. In the market of Jönköping there is one hypermarket, Ica Maxi, which enjoys a dominating market position over its two closest competitors, Coop Forum and City Gross, which must mean that more consumers chose to make their grocery shopping at this particular store. Therefore it is interesting to investigate the store image perceptions that the consumers of Jönköping hold of these three hypermarkets, and whether there is large difference be- tween them.  Purpose The main purpose of this thesis is to find out and measure how consumers in Jönköping perceive the store images of the three hyper- markets operating in the city, and what importance the different parts of the retail mix weighs on the consumers choice in what store to frequent. Further it aims to analyze the findings from the study in order to investigate if there are any differences in the store image perceptions, and if they might help explain a part of the dominating position Ica Maxi holds on the market.  Method Since store image is already a well defined concept within the marketing literature, it was most suitable to conduct a quantitative rather than a qualitative study. This was implemented through a questionnaire that was distributed to three separate samples, one per investigated hypermarket. The data collected was then processed mainly through One-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), which allowed for comparisons between the three samples.  Conclusion The consumers of Jönköping ranked the influence of the store image dimensions on their choice of hypermarket as following; (1) mer- chandise, (2) customer service, (3) reputation, (4) location, (5) price, (6) store layout and design, and (7) advertising and promotion. The perceptions held of the stores images were different between the stores. Ica Maxi was shown to have the most positive store image, closely followed by City Gross, and Coop Forum had a significantly less favorable image than both its competitors. The difference between Ica Maxi and Coop Forum does explain why the stores have such different market shares. However, there was not a large enough difference in Ica Maxi’s and City Gross’ scores to justify the market share gap between them solely based on store image.

Background and Problem DiscussionA paradigm shift in retail is evident due to the increase of customers purchasing productsonline, where digitalization has created a concern regarding the existence of the physical storein today’s digitalized society. On the other hand, e-commerce has been seen as an opportunityfor retail stores to use as a strategy where physical and digital work together in a symbiosisfor creating unified messages and experiences for the consumers across channels. However,this creates a challenge for finding the right combination, where physical stores require otherdemands today because of e-commerce.Purpose and Research QuestionsThe purpose of this study is to investigate the value of the physical store in today’s digitalizedsociety from a company perspective. In order to answer the purpose, the following researchquestions have been formulated focusing on the Swedish fashion industry:• What role does the physical store have in today’s digitalized society?• How do fashion brands value the physical store?Research MethodologyIn this study, a qualitative method was conducted with a hermeneutic approach, utilizingsemi-structured interviews with key people at three traditional and three online-based fashionbrands, which are MarQet, H&M, Gina Tricot, Ellos, Jollyroom and Nelly.com.ConclusionThe physical store increases in value when working in a symbiosis with the online store. If thephysical and digital commerce are coordinated and run parallel with each other, together theycan produce greater value than individually. Traditional and online-based fashion companiesfind value in the physical store in attracting more customers, strengthening the brand,providing a holistic experience with personal service, events and added services. The storecan provide that little extra to the customer also by integrating with the online store in order tomove seamlessly across channels. The physical store is required in today’s digitalized societyin a symbiosis with the online store to create value for both customers and brands. This studycan in the long-term contribute to knowledge for fashion brands to understand and use thephysical store in the best way possible to create customer value.

Background The online second-hand fashion market is a growing market that can be promoted with the help of social media and influencers. Influencers can help with store promotion as well as to promote sustainability and, therefore, promote this alternative fashion consumption style. Furthermore, in social media marketing videos, the aspects of education, entertainment, and esthetics have been noted to be important dimensions to consider.  Purpose This study aims to describe what aspects of influencer marketing videos appeal to consumers in the second hand fashion online store market. Methodology The study took the form of a descriptive and qualitative study in order to describe what aspects of the dimensions of education, entertainment and esthetics appeal to consumers in the second hand fashion online stores. A pilot study with two participants was conducted in order to ensure that the interview guide was understandable for the main study. Six participants took part in the main study with online interviews. Findings The empirical data contributed to the consideration of the most relevant aspects within each dimension. In education, these were the type of information, the message delivery and the deliverer. For entertainment, this was the influencer’s personality and engagement. For esthetics, the visuality of the video was evidently to be considered.  Conclusion The findings contribute to describing an appealing influencer marketing video from all of the three dimensions. For education, the importance lies in the delivering verbal information about sustainability and about the online store, as well as the influencer’s trustworthiness and persuasiveness. The findings of education are highly context specific for the second hand fashion market. Similarly, the persona was important regarding the perceived entertainment, as energetic and engaging persona successfully engaged, together with the aspect of suitable and interesting plot. For esthetics, the visuality, such as basic colors and short text were perceived appealing, as well as the style of the influencer.  The dimensions of entertainment and esthetics, however, act more as enhancing dimensions for the appeal, and education can be seen as an important appealing factor on its own. Moreover, for all dimensions the influencer has a central role for how the content and the marketing video is perceived by the audience.

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)-authorized store environments could be improved to favor consumer purchase of healthy products. Engaging with the key intermediaries who can use marketing-mix and choice-architecture (MMCA) strategies to encourage low-income consumers to purchase healthy products aligned with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA), 2015-2020 is essential. This PhD research describes five investigations that explored the perspectives of food store owners, managers, and corporate or independent businesses (e.g., retailers) to inform healthy food retail approaches: (1) a systematic review of the literature (1980-2017) identified social-ecological influencers of food store retailers' decision-making and ability to use MMCA strategies to encourage healthy dietary purchases in the United States (US); (2) SNAP-authorized retailers' perceived feasibility and costs to implement healthy MMCA strategies in rural stores were assessed (n=29); (3) SNAP-authorized retailers' healthy food and beverage perceptions and DGA-aligned product offerings were documented; (4) prevalent SNAP-authorized food store retailers in the US and between two states were identified to inform settings where healthy food retail approaches could reach numerous SNAP consumers; (5) and the availability of corporate social responsibility commitments to use MMCA strategies to improve consumers' diet quality among prevalent SNAP-authorized food store chains was explored. The collective findings from the review and four studies were that multiple social-ecological factors (e.g., skills/knowledge, consumers, suppliers) influenced US retailers' decision-making and ability to use MMCA strategies that favor healthy products. Rural retailers perceived prompting and proximity (e.g., labeling and location) strategies as feasible and less costly compared to other MMCA strategies. Some misalignments of healthy food perceptions and food store availability were identified and indicated a need for trainings to enhance the success of healthy food retail programs. To reach numerous SNAP consumers, healthy food retail programs should target nontraditional (e.g., non-grocery) food stores with varied approaches by state. However, few prevalent SNAP-authorized retailers have made public, voluntary commitments to reduce obesity and may reflect a low readiness to engage in partnerships to establish healthy food retail environments. Future research should document approach to and the impact of using MMCA strategies to encourage healthier consumer purchases on business outcomes among diverse store contexts. / Doctor of Philosophy / Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) consumers are low-income Americans who could benefit from exposure to store cues or marketing-mix and choice-architecture (MMCA) strategies that ‘make the healthy choice the easy choice’. However, food store owners, managers, and businesses (e.g. retailers) ultimately decide if they will initiate and continue MMCA changes. This research prioritized the retailer perspective to inform healthy food retail approaches. A systematic review of literature (1980-2017) explored multifaceted influencers of food store retailers’ decision-making and ability or willingness to use MMCA strategies to encourage healthier dietary purchases in the United States (US). Additionally, four original research investigations were conducted: (1) a mixed-methods and cross-sectional investigation in rural, central Virginia assessed SNAP-authorized retailers’ perceived feasibility and costs to implement MMCA strategies that encourage healthy consumer purchases in stores; (2) an investigation of SNAP-authorized retailers’ healthy food and beverage perceptions and healthy food store offerings informed healthy food retail approaches in this setting; (3) an examination of prevalent SNAP-authorized food store retailers in the US and between two US states informed targeted healthy food retail approaches that could benefit numerous SNAP consumers; and (4) the availability of corporate social responsibility commitments to use MMCA strategies to promote consumer health among prevalent SNAP-authorized food store chains was explored. Main findings of these investigations indicated that there are multiple factors (e.g., skills/knowledge, consumers, suppliers) that influence US retailers’ decision-making. Also, rural retailers perceived prompting and proximity (e.g., healthy food labeling and moving healthy foods to an ideal location) strategies as feasible and low cost. There were some misalignments of healthy food perceptions and food store availability, indicating a need for trainings to enhance the likelihood for healthy food retail programs to succeed. In approaching SNAP-authorized retailers for partnership opportunities, targeting nontraditional (e.g., non-grocery) settings may reach more consumers and varied approaches by state are warranted. However, many of these prevalent SNAP retailers lack publicly available commitments to reduce obesity which may hinder partnership approaches. Future work should document approach to and the impact of using MMCA strategies to encourage healthier consumer purchases on diet quality and business outcomes among diverse store contexts.

Since 1997, the retail industry of South Korea has suffered a decline in sales due to the nation's financial crisis. Because of the increase of price consciousness, discount stores have become the stores most attractive to South Korean consumers. The purpose of this study was to (a) compare the differences between South Korean and the U.S. consumers in demographics, shopping orientation, perception of the importance of store and product attributes, and store evaluation, satisfaction and patronage in discount stores and (b) examine the relationships among the six variables. In addition, South Korean consumers' preferences toward the strategies used in the U.S. discount stores were examined to determine whether these strategies could be adapted to South Korean discount stores. The proposed model suggests that consumers' shopping orientation affects their perception of the importance of store and product attributes. Consumers' perception of the importance of attributes affects how they evaluate a store. Consumers' evaluation of the store then influences their satisfaction with the store. If consumers are satisfied with the store, they choose to patronize the store. A total of 234 participants recruited at Wal-Mart were included in this study, 117 from South Korea and 117 from the U.S. Results showed that there were significant differences between the two countries in participants' occupation, marital status, age, education, the perception of the importance of attributes in discount stores, and store evaluation and satisfaction. When the relationships between variables were examined, results showed that the proposed model is partially supported. When South Korean participants' preferences toward the strategies used in the U.S. were examined, they showed high preferences toward some strategies. The implication of the results were discussed. / Master of Science

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