Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / In recent years, the South African online shopping industry has experienced remarkable growth which has attracted multi-national online stores to operate in the South African market thus creating competitive pressure for domestic online stores. Consequently, this presence of competition from well-resourced and recognisable online store brands it is critical that domestic online stores adopt measures to protect their competitive positions and to pursue competitive advantage. An adoption of a customer-centred approach focused on increasing customer satisfaction is one strategy for online stores to consider. This study had as its primary objective to develop a theoretical model of psychographic influences on customer satisfaction with electronic service quality. The associated objectives were to develop a theoretical model to (i) assess online shopping customers’ perceptions of electronic service quality, (ii) illustrate the effect of electronic service quality on customer satisfaction, (iii) measure the effect of customer satisfaction on customer behavioural intentions, and (iv) determine how customers’ perceptions of electronic service quality differ across different customer psychographic profiles. A quantitative descriptive cross sectional study was conducted to address the research objectives. Data was collected through a questionnaire from a sample of 344 South African online store customers. Statistical descriptive and inferential analyses were performed including mean values, structural equation modelling and analysis of variance. The findings included that, i) customers have negative perceptions of electronic service quality in South African online stores, ii) the constructs of electronic service quality, efficiency and contact, have a significant positive effect on customer satisfaction, iii) customer satisfaction has a significant positive effect on customer behavioural intentions, and iv) a significant difference in the perceptions of electronic service quality was found to exist among customers with different psychological profiles. Based on the study findings it is recommended that South African online stores should improve electronic service quality and apply market segmentation on the basis of customer psychological profiles in order to gain competitive advantage.

Background: Most current research on consumption events like Black Friday has been done in an US context. Black Friday do not have any cultural heritage or any other social connection to Sweden, however, it is already considered as the second most significant sales opportunity annually in the country. Additionally, research has confirmed that online retailing has been faster than offline retailing regarding adoption to consumption events. Therefore, to qualitatively investigate motivation towards Black Friday consumption online, in a Swedish context, would provide new insight in the field. Purpose: This research serves to contribute to the research of motivation towards consumption events online, viewed upon from the consumers perspective. By uncover meanings for utilitarian and hedonic motivation dimensions towards consumption events online, using Black Friday Weekend as an empirical example, this research aims to, besides adding to previous research, clarify ambiguous situations and provide valuable insights for online retailers that may lead to potential business opportunities. Method: In order to achieve in-depth understanding of the topic, a qualitative study with exploratory design was conducted. Data was gathered through focus group interviews with participants chosen through a purposive sampling technique. The data was analyzed through thematic analysis which generated the empirical findings. Conclusion: Throughout this research, sixteen themes related to motivation emerged, eight utilitarian and eight hedonic. The themes offer more accuracy and a deepened understanding of motivation towards consumption events online for the empirical foundation researched by explaining meanings of the motivation dimensions in this particular context, namely Black Friday Weekend in Sweden.

Problem: Even though many types of research were conducted on generic brands, literature about Swedish and Lithuanian students on this perspective is almost nonexistent. Research questions: Which essential factors that shape the intention to purchase or not to purchase generic store brands differ between Lithuanian and Swedish students? What are the differences in the shopping behavior and perceptions of Swedish and Lithuanian students as consumers of generic brands? Does the packaging design highlight any differences between Lithuanian and Swedish students as consumers of generic brands? Methodology: We conducted an anonymous quantitative study. Lithuanian and Swedish students were the only respondents who were applicable for this research. All other respondents were filtered out. Conclusions: Lithuanians and Swedish students are somewhat similar in their intention to purchase generics. We noticed minor differences in their preferences for packaging. Furthermore, students differ in some aspects of shopping behavior and generic products preferences.

This study investigated college student's image of apparel retail stores associated with shopping environment, price, and fashion innovativeness and their self-perception of appearance and fashion innovativeness. These served as the dependent and independent variables, respectively. University of North Texas students residing in on-campus housing completed a self-administered questionnaire measuring each variable. Repeated measure ANOVAs determined differences in self-perceptions and store images across four stores varied by fashion (innovative/mass) and price (high/low). Results indicated that perceptions for shopping environment, price, and fashion innovativeness differed by store. Students' appearance and fashion innovativeness had no significant effect on their perceptions of apparel retail store image. Students perceive stores differently based on shopping environment, price, and fashion innovativeness.

How consumers act during the buyers decision making process can change with age. How older consumers use modern technology in the buyers decision making process has however not been given a clear picture by researchers. Therefore the purpose of this study is to examine how older consumers use technology in the buyers decision making process and create a more nuanced picture of their usage. By using a qualitative method in the form of small-N-study and semi-structured interviews we have been able to answer our research questions. We have found that the technology i mainly used during the information gathering stage and the evaluation stage of the buyers decision making process, according to our respondents. From this we have been able to identify two seperate user types: Searcher-Stig and Evaluation-Ulla (Sökar-Stig och Utvärderar-Ulla). These two user types describe how older consumers mainly use technology in the buyers decision making process. / Hur konsumenter agerar i köpprocessen kan ändras med åldern. Hur äldre konsumenter sedan använder teknologin i köpprocessen är dock något som forskningen inte lyckats ge en fullständig bild kring. Därmed är syftet med denna studie att undersöka hur äldre konsumenter använder modern teknologi i köpprocessen för att skapa en mer nyanserad bild av äldre konsumenters användning av teknologi. Genom att använda oss av en kvalitativ metod i form av en små-N-studie och semi-strukturerade intervjuer har vi kunnat besvara våra frågor. Enligt våra respondenter så används mobilen främst under informationssökningsfasen och utvärderingsfasen av köpprocessen. Detta har lett till at vi kunnat ta fram två användartyper: Sökar-Stig och Utvärderar-Ulla, som skall beskriva äldre konsumenters användning av teknologi i köpprocessen.

Muitas tendências têm caracterizado o varejo moderno, entre elas a competição entre a loja física e a loja online. Cada vez mais se observa a necessidade do varejo com loja física investir em ações que criam valor para o cliente durante a sua compra, tornando esse ato um momento prazeroso. Para se obter um maior êxito no desenvolvimento de estratégias que proporcionam experiências positivas torna-se importante entender os fatores tangíveis e intangíveis que oferecem valor para o cliente. O objetivo deste projeto é compreender o que os shoppers, papel exercido por uma pessoa durante o processo de compra, valorizam na experiência de compra. A pesquisa utilizou o modelo de cadeia meios-fim para identificar os elementos formadores de valor para o shopper em um varejo especializado em brinquedos. O valor para o cliente sob a perspectiva da experiência completa de compras tem sido um aspecto pouco estudado no âmbito do varejo, assim como a influência da loja na criação de valor. A revisão da literatura cobriu os seguintes tópicos: o setor de varejo e o varejo de brinquedos, marketing e varejo, o shopper e seu comportamento de compra, valor sob a perspectiva do cliente e experiência de compra. Foram realizadas 15 entrevistas em profundidade por meio da técnica laddering, com mães responsáveis pela compra de brinquedos onde buscou-se obter como resultado as representações chave do valor para o cliente no contexto da experiência de compra. As principais representações encontradas como fruto da pesquisa foram: (i) a loja de brinquedos é um meio de se obter estímulos que auxiliam na formação das crianças; (ii) os estímulos mágicos e lúdicos despertam lembranças e fantasias; (iii) o tempo e o dinheiro são recursos importantes no momento da compra; (iv) o brinquedo buscado é aquele que desperta o desejo da criança; (v) a variedade ofertada é importante para suportar a escolha; e (vi) o sentimento de se fazer uma boa compra é um fator desejado. Finalmente, foram propostas alternativas para que o varejo possa oferecer, com uma frequência cada vez maior, experiências de compra que gerem valor para seus shoppers. / Many trends have characterized the modern retailing, including the competition between the brick and mortar and online stores. Brick and mortar stores have to find new ways to create shopper value making the act of buying a moment of pleasure. In order to obtain success on shopper experiences strategies it is important to consider tangibles and intangibles aspects that provide customer value. This study aims to understand what shoppers value in their shopping experience in a toy store. The literature review covered the following topics: the retail industry and toy stores, marketing and retail, shopper and their buying behavior, customer value and customer experience in retailing. The present research was based on means-end chain model to identify the elements that generates value. In order to reach the research goal a laddering technique was conducted with 15 in-depth interviews. The research has found six main shopper value representations: (i) toy store it\'s a way to get stimulus to help on child development; (ii) the magical and ludic stimuli evokes memories and fantasies; (iii) time and money are important during the purchase process; (iv) a toy has to trigger child\'s desire, (v) different options is important to support the choice; and (vi) there is a desire to feel a good cost benefit when choosing. Finally there is proposal on how a retail can offer a superior value over the shopper experience.

The aim of this work is to analyze the current state of tourism development for the target group family with children. The analysis was first made on the basis of Mystery shopping, controlled interviews, and a proposal of a suitable solution for the target group of families with children was made based on the data.

This thesis deals with the increasing competitiveness of consumer cooperative stores with growing Vietnamese convenience stores. The theoretical part focuses on cooperatives, competitiveness, shopping atmosphere and consumer behavior. The practical part is based on my own observation and a questionnaire survey. For this part of the thesis, I chose four specific business units, of which two are consumer cooperative stores and two are convenience stores. One of the consumer cooperative stores and one of the convenience stores are located close to each other in České Budějovice. The second consumer cooperative store and the nearby standing second convenience store are located in Chvalšiny. In the first part I compared prices, assortment, shopping atmosphere and additional services of all four selected stores. The second part is based on a questionnaire survey. I distributed the questionnaire to 200 respondents in České Budějovice and Chvalšiny. The questionnaire concerns shopping and satisfaction with selected factors in the relevant consumer cooperative store and the competing convenience store. It also concerns the ranking of these stores based on their importance to the consumers. The aim of the thesis is to assess the potential of the increasing competitiveness of consumer cooperatives in the context of the growing number of so called "Vietnamese conveniences".

This thesis concern how retailers reasons regarding where to locate their store. Previous research stipulates that retailers consider several factors that builds Retail Attractiveness when they decide their store location. The purpose of this thesis is to explore how retailers reason when it comes to where to locate their store. The study is conducted in Kristianstad, Sweden, with retailers located either in the city center, at the out-of-town shopping mall, or both. To fulfill the purpose, semi-structured interviews were held with four retailers that made different decision when C4 Shopping was established. Five interviews were conducted, lasting between 25 and 40 minutes. All interviews were held with store owners and decision-makers. A conceptual model was created from existing literature in order to analyze the results. The original model includes the factors Cluster effects, Accessibility, Atmosphere, and Place Attachment. Under the factors there are sub-factors to nuance the factors. The model ultimately leads to Retail Attractiveness. In the revised model three new factors were added: Rent, Safety, and Proximity to Workplaces. One sub-factor was also removed. It is concluded that retailers consider the factors in the revised model, rate the factors, and thereafter decide where to locate. This thesis adds insights on how retailers reason when they decide where to locate their store, and what factors they consider the as the most important. There is also a discussion on how the conceptual model can be used to measure Retail Attractiveness and explain retailers locational decisions in similar cases elsewhere.

Much previous research concerning the effects of the in-store experience on customers’ decision-making has been laboratory-based. There is a need for empirical research in a real store context to determine the impact of product, service and in-store environment perceptions on customer satisfaction and behaviour. This study is based on a literature review (Project 1) and a large scale empirical study (Projects 2/3) combining two sources of secondary data from the largest retailer in the UK, Tesco, and their loyalty ‘Clubcard’ provider, Dunnhumby. Data includes customer responses to an online self-completion survey of the customers’ shopping experience combined with customer demographic and behavioural data from a loyalty card programme for the same individual. The total sample comprised n=30,696 Tesco shoppers. The online survey measured aspects of the in-store experience. These items were subjected to factor analysis to identify the influences on the in-store experience with four factors emerging: assortment, retail atmosphere, personalised customer service and checkout customer service. These factors were then matched for each individual with behavioural and demographic data collected via the Tesco Clubcard loyalty program. Regression and sensitivity analyses were then conducted to determine the relative impact of the in-store customer experience dimensions on customer behaviour. Findings include that perceptions of customer service have a strong positive impact on customers’ overall shopping satisfaction and spending behaviour. Perceptions of the in-store environment and product quality/ availability positively influence customer satisfaction but negatively influence the amount of money spent during their shopping trip. Furthermore, personalised customer service has a strong positive impact on spend and overall shopping satisfaction, which also positively influences the number of store visits the week after. However, an increase in shopping satisfaction coming from positive perceptions of the in-store environment and product quality/ availability factors helps to reduce their negative impact on spend week after. A key contribution of this study is to suggest a priority order for investment; retailers should prioritise personalised customer service and checkout customer service, followed by the in-store environment together with product quality and availability. These findings are very important in the context of the many initiatives the majority of retail operators undertake. Many retailers focus on cost-optimisation plans like implementing self-service check outs or easy to operate and clinical in-store environment. This research clearly and solidly shows which approach should be followed and what really matters for customers. That is why the findings are important for both retailers and academics, contributing to and expanding knowledge and practice on the impact of the in-store environment on the customer experience.