Thesis (M.S.)--Boston University / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / 2031-01-01

In Hong Kong, the popularity of supermarkets and a globalized lifestyle have led to the declined of the traditional rice trade and rice shops. This issue is illustrated by the case of Shing Fat Rice Shop (thereafter referred to as ‟Shing Fat’’), the last tradition rice shop in Yuen Long, a highly urbanized district in the New Territories that was Hong Kong’s centre of rice production from the 19th century to the mid-20th century. Facing stiff competition from modern supermarkets, Shing Fat closed in December 2013. The significance of this research is that it is the last chance to document the last traditional rice shop business in Yuen Long. While the rice shop is no longer in business, the people involved – the operator, his family and its former customers – can still be reached for their stories. If this research is not carried out soon, the first-hand knowledge of a traditional rice shop business will be lost as memories of people connected with Shing Fat fade away in time. The focus of the research is to document the tangible and intangible aspects of a vanishing trade, using Shing Fat as a case study. By mapping the shop’s (1) operational history, (2) interior layout and its relationship to the daily business operation, and (3) relationship with the community through its customers, the tangible and intangible aspects of a traditional rice shop in Hong Kong can be documented and analyze in order to give a better understanding to this vanishing traditional retailing trade. / published_or_final_version / Conservation / Master / Master of Science in Conservation

The perspective that asymmetrical power relationship on vertical channel would lead to dominating partner exploitation with the use of coercive power is examined within the context of horizontal channel exchange relationship between department stores and tenant retailers. A power structure-action-outcome framework is offered to study casual links between dependence (structural aspects of power), use of coercive and noncoercive power (action), and three aspects of outcome - economic and social satisfaction, commitment and strategic performance. Data was collected through personal interview with 302 small, medium size retail tenants of department stores in PR China. Analysis of findings provided support to the model and the hypotheses. Results confirmed that dependence and use of power were only weakly related. The findings demonstrate the contextual influence of Chinese collectivistic culture on coercive power which involves the use of punishment or penalty. To further explore the relationship between dependence and power, investigation was carried out to examine if dependence moderates the effect of coercive power on economic satisfaction, with a positive result. On the other hand, use of non-coercive power showed positive results for economic and social satisfaction, which are positively related to commitment and strategic performance. It can be concluded that use of non-coercive power is strongly recommended for store-tenant relationship in the retail sector of China. Once again, the importance of channel context must not be ignored in the study of distribution channel issues. / This research project contributes to the channel literature by adding to the contemporary state of knowledge on the use of power in horizontal channel relationships with power asymmetry, and constructs were brought together that have not been empirically investigated within a single study. It is unique in that the model was tested in non-American setting, namely PR China.

Microorganisms found in the indoor environment of retail stores are not well studied, despite potentially serious human exposure implications. In this study, filters from central heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) units were used to collect a time-integrated sample of the airborne indoor microbiome in 14 U.S. retail stores. The microbial communities recovered from the filter dust samples were analyzed with pyrosequencing to characterize the fungal and bacterial microbiome present. The objectives of this work were to: (1) characterize the microbial communities present in retail stores, (2) delineate relationships between the indoor microbiome and building or environmental parameters, and (3) evaluate the use of HVAC filter dust as a sample location for indoor microbial investigations. The microbiome in retail stores was observed to be diverse with 4,771 and 1,577 unique operational taxonomic units for bacteria and fungi, respectively. The diverse microbial community detected over time in the same store could not be fully explained by seasonal trends. That indicates that even when utilizing a long-term sampling approach like HVAC filter samples, the indoor microbiome cannot be completely characterized by a single sampling event. The bacterial community in retail stores was influenced by the outdoor microbiome and microbiota commonly associated with human skin. Physical location of the retail stores had some influence on the bacterial microbial community present and strongly impacted the fungal community recovered. Air exchange rate did not influence the observed bacterial or fungal communities. In a comparison to five other indoor air samplers, passive samplers including HVAC filter dust and settled dust captured a higher diversity of the microbial community. The collection of a more diverse sample may allow detection of potentially pathogenic microorganisms. However, there was significant difference in the microbial community structures recovered between samplers in the same sampling event which suggests sampling methodology has an impact on the inferred microbiome recovered. The overall results from this study indicate that retail stores harbor a diverse microbial community that varies over time. / text

This research investigated the service offering in appliance sales departments of prominent retail stores in an emerging economy to ultimately indicate whether stores‟ customer service, i.e. their presentation of the marketing mix is conducive for informed, responsible buying decisions. The study was prompted by significant changes in the profile of South African consumers since 1994 when a new socio-political dispensation was introduced. A sharp increase in the middle-income group since has resulted in an increased demand for housing, electricity and consequently also major household appliances. Retail responded more than willingly. Unfortunately the consequences of limited product related consumer socialization for millions of previously disadvantaged consumers and subsequent lack of structural and transactional knowledge in terms of their ability to cope in the market place was given little attention. The research involved four phases of data collection and the participation of five prominent department stores in Tshwane, RSA that was arranged through liaison with industry. Phase 1 involved an in store survey: store managers assessed the customer service in the stores in the presence of the researcher, according to indicators that were based on the marketing mix. In phase 2, respondents (n=296) were recruited in the stores immediately after closure of a sales deal: questionnaires were completed on the spot. It involved (1) an investigation of their satisfaction with the customer service; (2) an investigation of their perception of the service quality through a SERVQUAL scale and (3) a product knowledge test that pertained to the functional and performance attributes of the appliances that they purchased. During phase 3, experienced salespeople (n=18) were involved in a projective technique that expected of them to act as the managers of their respective stores and to propose recommendations to augment their stores’ service offering to be more conducive for informed, responsible buying decisions. Finally, in phase 4, representatives from industry explained their potential contribution to augment customer service in retail stores. Findings revealed shortcomings in the customer service in retail that should be addressed to enhance informed, responsible buying decisions. In phase 1, store managers candidly admitted that in general, price was attended to more attentively than elements such as processes that could enhance informed buying decisions. In the customer survey, exploratory factor analysis revealed a collapse of the original customer service scale from six elements to three, which suggests a more integrated judgement of customer service in the context of this research. Emphasis on price and product was diminished and directed towards value for money and personnel orientations. Similarly the five dimensional SERVQUAL scale was reduced to two dimensions (Supportiveness and Impressiveness). The product knowledge test was used to indicate whether consumers’ judgement of the service offering was supported by evidence of informed, buying decisions. Consumers’ scores contradicted their apparent satisfaction with customer service and their positive perception of service quality. Sales personnel unequivocally accentuated their potential to augment customer service but revealed conditions that limit optimal performance. Representatives of industry acknowledged areas of concern and recommended concerted effort by retailers due to their direct interaction with consumers as well as personnel. The findings of this study provide invaluable evidence that consumers “not necessarily know what they do not know”. Shortcomings in the customer service in retail are revealed and guidelines are provided to augment the service offering to the benefit of the parties involved. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Consumer Science / unrestricted

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No description available.

M.Tech. / The study explores the role of interior designers in the design and implementation of retail stores. Through application of case study methodology, the process of retail design within the Group Property Development Department of Edgars Consolidated Stores (Edcon) was established and the role of interior designers within this process determined. The context of the case is the clothing and footwear retail market in South Africa. Presently, this market is dominated by several large holding companies that constitute the greater part of the leading retail brands in the country. The foremost South African clothing and footwear retailer is Edcon. The case study for this research study is the Group Property Development Department of Edcon that manages the leasing, conceptualisation, design development and construction of all new and refurbished retail stores for all of Edcon’s retail chains. Literature describes retail design as a complex activity that involves many role players who make use of expert knowledge and a variety of skills that contribute to the successful implementation of a retail brand identity through the design of retail stores. The literature review further indicates that most of the published research on retail design is in retail management, marketing and psychology. However, the consideration of the contribution of interior designers, as role players in retail design, is not documented or described in existing literature. Retail design is a field of practice that is well established in the interior design profession. Interior designers are able to support retailers by increasing the benefits of retail design in the course of retail differentiation and strategic leadership. The importance of retail design in the interior design profession is confirmed through this research study as it reveals that nine higher education institutions, affiliated with the South African Institute of the Interior Design Professions (IID), include retail design projects in the interior design curricula.

Please read the abstract in the dissertation. / Dissertation (MConsumer Science)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Consumer Science / unrestricted

M.A. / Shopping centres in South Africa, regional ones in particular, find themselves existing in an increasingly competitive marketplace, where despite a move towards creating better marketing communications around centres, consumers are overwhelmed by such communications messages and by the abundance of centres from which to choose. This has created a problem of brand parity, where there is very little differentiation between centres, yet development shows no signs of slowing down. This causes further confusion by giving the consumer more choice, leading to brand switching. The problem is exacerbated by consumers who have become much more knowledgeable and far more demanding in terms of what they expect from products and services (Evers, 2005; trendwatching.com, 2007), including shopping centres. Additionally, shopping centre marketers have to deal with developers, owners, management companies and leasing agents, as well as tenants, who neither understand the process of branding nor believe in it, while also having to deal with their own lack of skills in the area of branding regional shopping centres. In light of this, there is a need to strategically conduct trend analysis, to see where the shopping centre industry is headed, so as to help centres create a sustainable competitive advantage in terms of branding (Gossen & Gresham, 2002) by being aware of trends, so that they can better meet the needs of the potential markets that they serve. Specifically, this requires a look at future mega trends that are affecting regional shopping centres based on what is termed the 3Es of branding, which are experiential branding, emotional branding and electronic branding. To this end, an ethnography was conducted, based on the trend analysis technique known as Trend Unit (Evers, 2005: trendwatching.com), which comprised a 14-year immersion study and encompassed the collection of data using participant observation, informal unstructured personal interviews and the review of media artefacts. The trend analysis revealed three new trends that are coined based on the 3Es of branding.