Editorial

Citation

Towers, N. (2014), "Editorial", International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, Vol. 42 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJRDM.08942baa.001

Editorial

Article Type: Editorial From: International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, Volume 42, Issue 2

This issue includes a variety of topics including retail stores hours, cultural influences that country image has on consumers' hypermarket patronage intentions in China and Spain, consumer perception of community and employee oriented Corporate Social Responsibility programs in the USA and the influences on the prevalence of rural retailing in periodic markets in India.

The first contribution by Miller, Yan and Calamari investigates the new retail phenomenon of limited store hours. Specifically, the study explores the viability of the retail operation and how the owners of those businesses strategically compensate for fewer hours of operation (e.g. four days a month). A qualitative, multiple-case study was conducted via interviews with six female owners of women's apparel/accessory or home furnishings shops, both independent and franchised operations. Ten major themes emerged from the interview data. Data supported the three propositions involving connections between lower pricing strategy and limited store hours, consumers' shopping flexibility and limited store hours, and relationship marketing practices and limited store hours. The findings suggest that retail operations with limited hours were deemed cost effective and thus provide entrepreneurial opportunities that allow balance between work and home life.

The second paper by Kan, Cliquet and Gallo examines the cultural influences that country image has on consumers' hypermarket patronage intentions in China and Spain. A structural equation modelling is utilized to examine the competency of the model in explaining both Spanish and Chinese consumers' intentions to patronize major hypermarket brands in their own countries. In Spain, country image has a direct effect on consumers' hypermarket patronage intention whilst in China this effect is indirect. In deciding on their patronage behaviours, Spanish consumers tend to rely more on the experience attributes of a hypermarket store and are less likely to be affected by subjective norms. In contrast, Chinese consumers have stronger ethnocentric tendencies in hypermarket shopping behaviour than do Spanish consumers. Foreign hypermarket managers in China and Spain should attach special importance to enhancing the experience attributes of their stores and realize the important role of subjective norm in affecting consumers' store patronage behaviour in collectivist cultures. In addition, multinational retailers in China need to forge a sound image of "corporate citizen" in order to diminish the negative impact of consumer ethnocentrism on their operations.

The third contribution by Kim, Ha and Fong aims to investigate consumer perception of community and employee oriented Corporate Social Responsibility programs and examines how retailers' CSR activities lead to social (i.e. legitimization) and financial support. Further, by taking the social context into account, this research examines the moderating effect of consumer engagement in community social capital on the relationship between perceived retailers' CSR action and retailer legitimization. A pre-test was conducted with 144 students to validate the measurement model. A total of 220 responses from US consumers were used for the main-test, and multiple group analysis in structural equation modeling (SEM) was employed in order to test the structural model. The results indicate that when retailers are perceived as adhering to social norms through their CSR actions, they gain legitimacy and support from the consumers within the community. Further, consumer social capital moderates the relationship between perceived CSR and retailer legitimacy. The findings of this research can provide retail marketers with practical implication in developing their CSR strategy catering to the community members. Understanding consumers with higher level of social capital investment will increase the capability and effectiveness of the retailers' CSR activities.

The final contribution by Velayudhan seeks to understand the influences on the prevalence of rural retailing in periodic markets. It examines the influence of access and location on the performance of periodic markets and their effect on the competition between periodic markets and local rural retail stores. A simultaneous cross-sectional study on census data was used to understand changes in performance of periodic markets in the context of growth in retail stores. The findings suggest that there is a superior performance of local retail stores compared to outshopping in periodic markets which is contrary to urban outshopping literature. The suggestion is that retail chains need to develop a separate program for the location of outlets that serve rural areas as access influences retail performance. In rural areas marketers can use traditional periodic markets in addition to conventional retail store given the limited inter-format retail competition.

Neil Towers
Heriot Watt University, Business Management, Edinburgh, UK