This study investigates the emergence of a shopping mall based urban life in Ankara. As the city is under the siege with the mushrooming growth of shopping malls, the urban life gains a new attribute. The economical, social, and cultural institutions and activities of the city are collected under the roof of the mall, and distinctions out of the shopping mall are formed and reproduced around the consumption activities of the mall. Based on a qualitative research which was conducted in ANKAmall, this study investigates the shopping mall experience of the different segments of population in terms of income group, age, and gender. Shopping malls present an idealized urban life in Turkey by providing individuals to articulate with Westernization, modernization, and globalization processes in their everyday lives. While the everyday life goes under transformation in the shopping malls through the juxtaposition of irrelevant spheres, they also become the center of attraction for different segments of population despite their restrictive dynamics such as socio-technological control. The subject of the mallified urban life is the consumer, while its culture rests on the intersection of modernization and globalization.

This study concentrates on the fragmentation process of the city centers. The study suggests that it is not necessarily the planning decisions or the lack of a rigorous planning framework that brings about the fragmentation process. Local and global economic and social circumstances may also give way to fragmentation of the city center. These processes take place through the countenance of developers, city authorities and central government. In this context, the study focuses on the fragmentation process of the city center functions with specific attention to the retail decentralization. The issue is considered within the dilemma between the investor and urban development. The main concern of the study is to put forward the fragmentation process of the city center of Ankara, as a consequence of the changing economic structure and the decision making processes under certain economic conditions, concentrated on decentralization of organized retail. Within this framework three different methods are used to display the fragmentation process. The first one consider the changes in the urban space / the second one focus on the processes of location and relocation of public buildings / and the third one consider the impacts of the organized retailing on the fragmentation of the center through Armada Shopping Center. The first two methods, which are historical and geographical, demonstrate how this process was formed and the final empirical method quantitatively illustrates the fragmentation process. Doing this, the fragmentation process and the changes in the city center analyzed through the entrepreneurs and the major representatives of the central government and local administrations under the given economic and social structure.

With the repaid growth of Internet users, the economy of the virtual cybermarket becomes worthless. Among all kinds of business activities on the web, on-line shopping is the most directly contact between buyer and seller. Competition no longer takes place in the physical marketplace but in the marketspace (Rayport and Sviokla,1994). This implication indicates the breaking of traditional restrictions of the time and place. Businesses can contact a large number of consumers in a faster and cheaper (low entrance obstacle) way. For the marketers, the key point to succeed in the cybermarket is to understand and analsize the consumer behavior. Internet marketers should revisit traditional models of consumer behavior, examine their underlying assumptions, and explore their validity in the new Internet context.¡]Butler and Peppard, 1998¡^ Therefore, this study seeks to further our understanding of consumer buying decision process on the web according to the EKB model which includes five stages: need identification, information search, evaluation and choice, purchase decision, and post-purchase behaviors.¡]Engel, Blackwell, and Kollat, 1984¡^ This research is concentrated on the first three stages. A web survey was conducted on one entrance web site (Openfind), three purchasing web sites (Cybercity, Aago, and Citymart) and two virtual community web sites (CityFamily and OHOT) from March 6 2000 to March 20 2000. The total valid sample is 3986 consisting of 1364 (34.2%) web patrons and 2622 (65.8%) web non-patrons. And the main findings of this research are as following¡G 1. The characteristics of the majority respondents are male, high educated and students or employees from information industries. 2. The main purpose of web use is sending or receiving e-mail (according to 47% of the respondents¡¦ answers). 3. The top three products in the web transaction are book and magazine (27.9%), computer hardware (12.4%) and communication products (11.7%). 4. For the web patrons, five factors were extracted from the questions on behavior in the information search stage. They are named "related information obtained from the media", "troubles in web transaction and information", "confidence in web transaction and information", "information from the comparison of visiting numerous web sites" and "word-of-mouth reference". And six factors were extracted from the questions on the behavior in the evaluation and choice stage. They are named "requirement of post-purchase warranty", "perceived risk of the product", "influence of direct sales experience and other media", "confidence in web transaction", "confidence in his/her buying decision", and "influence of the reference group". As for the web non-patrons, four factors were extracted from the questions on behavior in the information search stage. They are named " related information obtained from the media", "taking on-line shopping as a waste of time and money", "troubles in web information", "confidence in web information". And three factors were extracted from the questions on the behavior in the evaluation and choice stage. They are named "warranty given by seller", "perceived risk of the product", "confidence in web transaction". 5. The web patrons¡¦ behaviors of "word-of-mouth reference" in the information search stage and "confidence in web transaction and information" in the evaluation and choice stage are influenced by their different gender, age, occupation, and education. The web non-patrons¡¦ behaviors of " related information obtained from the media" and "confidence in web information" in the information search stage and "confidence in web transaction" in the evaluation and choice stage are influenced by their different gender, age, occupation, education, and income. 6. Three clusters are formed according to the above eleven factor scores. Cluster 1 persons are named as "highly confident persons". Cluster 2 persons are named as "risk-avoidance persons". Cluster 3 persons are named as "self-confident persons". 7. The first three stages of consumer buying decision processes on the web are proved to be¡Gneed identification, information search and evaluation and choice. The relationships between these three stages are need identification will positively affect information search and information search will negatively affect evaluation and choice.

Abstract The purposes of the study were to improve the understanding of the Internet shoppers¡¦ motives and their influences on other stages at the EKB Model. According to an on-lined survey at 2001 with 6069 valid samples, 5 factors of motives were extracted. They were the needs of ¡§achievement, approval and happiness¡¨, ¡§self-recognition and show off¡¨, ¡§economical benefits¡¨, ¡§convenience¡¨, and ¡§ no disturbance¡¨. The factors in the information search stage were ¡§references to outside information¡¨, ¡§basis of own experiences¡¨, ¡§searching sequence with web information¡¨, ¡§promotion messages on web media¡¨ and ¡§information quality on current web shopping¡¨. The factors in the evaluation and choice stage were ¡§opinions from reference groups¡¨, ¡§contents in the web site¡¨, ¡§subsidiary service with the product¡¨, ¡§previous experiences of direct sales¡¨ and ¡§personal economical needs¡¨. Three clusters were formed according to the 28 motive variables. All respondents attached importance to the needs of ¡§no disturbance¡¨ and ¡§convenience¡¨. These needs were the main reasons why they shop on line. They differed from the needs of ¡§achievement, approval and happiness¡¨ and ¡§self-recognition and show off¡¨. Therefore we named the 3 clusters as ¡§ high-achievement motivated persons¡¨, ¡§mid-achievement motivated persons¡¨, and ¡§low-achievement motivated persons¡¨. The 3 clusters had different buying behaviors on information search, evaluation and choice, purchase and post-purchase. They also differed from the web usages and shopping patterns. Additionally, the results showed that women and young generation might play as crucial roles on Internet shopping in the future.

The business model of on-line group buying has been introduced and thrived since 1998 in America. Unfortuately, this internet-based purchase merchanism did not make its growing progress which should be presumed to be an effective and attractive system as an efficient transaction spot on line. Our research specifically focused on the physical consumers' view, including the practical participants in the on-line group buying and the general consumers who never have such experiences on it, to establish a statistical analysis on the effects to consumers' join intention and purchase decision of on-line group buying. We intend to explore the most direct recognition and requirements of the consumers in this commercial mechanism. Also would like to contribute some effective and valuable advices to the future business running under the on-line group buying model for reaching a successful development on it. Over the thorough approach on the collection of related research essays and from the close observation and investigation on the domestic on-line group buying activities, we therefore designed a questionnaire composed with the possible items which might effect the consumers' intention to decide if they would like to join the group buying. By applying the exploratory factor analysis, in this essay, we conclude the 8 major dimensions to our research topic: (1) Familiarity with the group-buying platform and initiators, (2) Recognition to essentials of products, (3) Fulfillment of the cumulative volume of orders, (4) Delivery and payment terms, (5) Convenience to consumers' decision process, (6) Gap between reference prices, (7) Stimulative function, (8) Brand recognition. Furthermore, we can obtain the following inductive reasoning comments from our descriptions and definitions on the 8 major dimensions of our survey. A. Maturity of the internet use can effectively increase consumers' intention to join the on-line group buying. B. Mutation of the modren lifestyle can just meet and satisfy the requirements from consumers. C. Model of group buying can easily and promptly raise the consumers' involvement and understanding on target products.

Clothing purchases represent the largest selling category on the internet at $13.6 billion (US Census, 2008), however return rates are extremely high at 14-50%, almost twice as high as return rates for most other categories (Barbaro, 2007). This has negative implications for consumers and retailers as the cost of returns and lost consumers is extremely high. High return rates force retailers to take on the cost of restocking and reselling merchandise, with an estimated $100 billion lost annually (Blanchard 2005). This research focuses on online product representation with the goal of identifying the method of product representation that most effectively improves a consumers' ability to make accurate size decisions without negatively impacting brand and product quality perceptions. This research uses interviews to assess retailer beliefs about how best to deploy online clothing visualizations. Next an experiment was conducted to compare alternative clothing model visualizations to assess effects on fit satisfaction, return likelihood, brand and quality perceptions. Finally, to understand current use of visualizations by clothing retailers and their effects on consumer satisfaction and sales, a content analysis was conducted. This study can provide a solution that can improve consumers' abilities to make accurate fit decisions, thus reducing return rates and improving consumer satisfaction, at a minimal cost to retailers.

<p>Since the introduction of shopping centers, it has become more and more common that the retail trade is taken over by the shopping centers. The shopping centers can offer the customers indoor shopping with stores, cafés and restaurants under the same roof. This comfortability is a competitive advantage for the shopping centers in comparison with other purchasing areas, such as the city core.</p><p>In Jönköping on the 2nd of April 1987 A6, a large shopping centre at this time the largest in the region, had it opening with great festivities. The merchants located in the city core feared that the large shopping centre would drive them out of business. After negotiations the merchants of the city core of Jönköping, the municipality and A6 made peace.</p><p>Today the two shopping areas are competing for the same customers, but are they competing on the same grounds? The city core of Jönköping is facing problems with customers leaving, but where are they going? What can be done to attract new customers and gain their old ones?</p><p>In this report we will try to find out how the city cores can do to gain, maintain and satisfy the customers. This will be done by a quantitative study of the Jönköping city core and the shopping centre A6. Interviews will be done with respondents at both A6 Centre and in the City core of Jönköping. The material we will gather, will be handed over to the organization ‘På Stan’, who is an association working with issues regarding the merchants in the city.</p><p>Through the interviews with the 200 respondents we accessed three main issues that have an impact on the customer’s choice of shopping location. These three are accessibility, range of stores and environment.</p>

Thesis (M.B.A.)--University of Hong Kong, 1985.

Thesis (M.B.A.)--University of Hong Kong, 1982.

Thesis (M.B.A.)--University of Hong Kong, 1981.