The development of food retail formats – evidence from Poland

2018 ◽  
Vol 120 (2) ◽  
pp. 309-324 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edyta Dorota Rudawska ◽  
Katarzyna Bilinska-Reformat

Purpose The purpose of this paper is twofold: to identify and assess the direction of development of food retail formats in Poland under the influence of a changing business environment; and to identify the key challenges that food retail companies in Poland face nowadays. Design/methodology/approach The approach in this paper is a systematic literature review of publications in the Web of Science, Ebsco and Pro-Quest electronic databases from 1990 (from the emergence of large-scale foreign chains in the Polish market) to 2016, as well as the results of research carried out by Polish and international research centers, food retailer groups and institutes. The paper is based on the analysis of secondary data that present the results of research carried out on the Polish food retailing market. These analyses included the development of food retailing formats operating in Poland. Findings According to the research results analyzed, the evolution of retail formats is an embodiment of innovations introduced by retail companies and is based on the mutual permeation of elements previously associated with a specific retail format. Currently, the blurring of differences between individual retail formats can be observed in respect of two formats in particular, i.e. discount and delicatessen. The discount format occupies a special position on the Polish market, though it differs significantly from a “classical” discount. In discount stores so-called premium group products can be purchased, with stores more and more frequently being located in expensive places, e.g. in shopping centers or in their vicinity. At the same time, the popularity of convenience stores is increasing with a simultaneous decrease in the significance of large-format stores. Originality/value This paper provides interesting insights into the development of food retailing formats in Poland and the influence of changes in the business environment in that process. In addition, the paper describes the specifics of the Polish market, detailing literature-based theories pertaining to the development of retailing forms. It also focuses on the perspectives and directions in the future development of retail formats.

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 105-118
Author(s):  
Abhinav Kumar Shandilya ◽  
Praveen Srivastava

Organised retail sector is booming in metros, cities and now even in small towns; and organised food retailing is one of the fastest growing sector among them.  The different types of food retail formats have its own characteristics, focus and target market.  The customer or consumer has their own criteria to select a particular food retail format.  The selection is based on the attitude of the customer or consumer towards the attribute of the retail format. There are many model to find the attitude of customer or consumer towards any product, service and brands.  This study is an attempt to find out the customer's or consumer's attitude towards three major food retailing formats i.e Big Bazaar, a hypermarket; Reliance Fresh, a convenience store and Suvidha, a supermarket.


2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (6) ◽  
pp. 671-690
Author(s):  
Arunima Rana ◽  
Ravi Shankar

Research methodology The case is written using secondary data sources (namely, research documents, press information, journal articles and published interviews). Publicly declared company information has further been leveraged to augment case facts. All information sources have been duly acknowledged in the reference section. Case overview/synopsis The case is written in the backdrop of COVID-19 pandemic and its effect on the Indian retail industry, revolving around scenarios in which a multinational retailer has to decide on its long- and short-term strategy in such an economic crisis. The case story has been developed around Marks and Spencer’s retail venture in the Indian market. With the COVID-19 pandemic impacting business at various levels, with countries moving to lock down and economies shrinking to recessionary levels, one of the worst affected sectors is retail. The teaching case builds upon Mark and Spencer’s initial decision of not entering and extending its food/grocery business in India. While it remained a dominant player in Indian fashion retail for almost two decades, it needs to re-think its decision of entering food retail owing to a pandemic situation affecting its offline sales/store footfall and increasing competition from global fashion brands such as Zara and H&M that had flooded the Indian fashion retail sector. The case provides a context for students to perform environmental factor and competitor analysis for a sector, with special focus on decision making in a changing crisis scenario. Complexity academic level This case could be used in undergraduate and MBA classroom programme, across subjects such as retail management, marketing management, international business, international business environment and strategic business management. This case fits while discussing topics such as business environmental factors, competitor analysis, decision-making under crisis, market entry decision, omnichannel retail strategy, consumer behaviour and brand management.


2014 ◽  
Vol 42 (10) ◽  
pp. 902-928 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ronald L. Hess Jr ◽  
Lawrence Ring

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to better understand the unique competitive positioning characteristics of off-price retailers and how they compare to other types of retailers. The authors compare off-price and upscale off-price retailers with four major formats of retailers: first, discount department store/warehouse club retailers; second, moderate department store retailers; third, department store retailers; and finally, specialty department store retailers. Design/methodology/approach – The paper employs a representative sample that was randomly drawn from four primary metropolitan cities in the USA. The data were collected using telephone interviews by a prominent, marketing research firm. A series of discriminant analyses were conducted to examine the data. Findings – The findings of the paper indicate that the off-price formats were consistently positioned at extreme points along the price/value continuum, signifying the strongest value-orientation among the other retail formats. The authors also found that while the upscale off-price format followed the specialty department stores in terms of fashion. The results point to an important disadvantage of the off-price format – although strong on price/value, they often fall short on fashion and many other store attributes that may be important to luxury-oriented customers. Research limitations/implications – The paper employed a sample from several cities collected using a telephone interview methodology within the US. Due to these limitations, the findings of this paper may be hampered by this methodology and not generalize to regions outside of the US. Future research should examine how the demise of most of the upscale off-price retailers and growth of flash web sites have changed the competitive structure of retailing. Practical implications – The results demonstrate that the positioning of the off-price retail format is unique from other formats. The retail formats occupy distinct positions. The off-price retail format is strongly associated with the price/value position but only moderately fashionable to customers, especially when compared with the department and specialty department store formats. In contrast, the upscale off-price format, while also strongly positioned along the price/value continuum, is considered much more fashionable than the off-price retail format. In fact, the upscale off-price retail format only trails the specialty department store format in terms of fashion. Originality/value – The unique characteristics of the off-price retail format and growing interest from upscale department stores underscores the need for a comprehensive understanding of the motives of the off-price shopper. This paper provides retailers with a more complete understanding of the store attributes that differentiate the off-price retail format from other major retail store formats. The overall objective of this study is to offer a comprehensive view of the positioning of off-price retailers compared with many alternative retail formats.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Ritu Srivastava ◽  
Yogesh Yadav

Learning outcomes To enable the students to appreciate the importance of the retail business environment and identification of opportunities set in the context of an emerging market. To make students understand how a value proposition (product) is crafted in a retail organisation. To introduce the technique of developing a service blueprint for designing the retail consumption experience. To induce students to analyse on what criteria should retail business models be evaluated. To introduce the students to the concept of omnichannel retail strategy. Case overview/synopsis The case is about a value-retail chain We Mart India facing the sudden lockdown situation in April 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic hitting India. Shailesh Mehta, the Chief Operating Officer of We Mart is wondering what he should do post the lockdown to bring back the retail chain to its pre-Covid fast-paced growth of 25% YOY in June 2019. We Mart focussed on physical stores as a part of its strategy with an emphasis on the in-store experience. The company catered to the aspirations in fashion for the youth through a series of fashion apparel and accessories in Tiers 2 and 3 cities. The company had grown successfully in two decades and had expansion plans for 2020, which now seemed hazy because of this unpredicted biological disruption impacting businesses. Mehta’s worries were intensified by the change in the consumer trend that was witnessing a shift from offline to online. He wondered about how to incorporate this change and also realign the corporate growth plans in amidst of a challenging situation. To add to his woes were thoughts about established competitors online already apart from the existing offline ones. Research methods: This case is based on primary and secondary data gathered through interviews and publicly available secondary sources. The name of the company and protagonist have been disguised. Complexity academic level The case is suitable for post-graduate (masters in buisness administration) level courses on retail management. The length of the case enables the participants to even read in the class. Supplementary materials Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Subject code CSS 8: Marketing


2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 290-310
Author(s):  
Swagatika Nanda ◽  
Ajaya Kumar Panda

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to track the financial performance of manufacturing firms at different levels of their conditional quantiles. It also analyzes the relevance of revenue and cost channels along with key firm-specific parameters that influence firm’s profitability. Design/methodology/approach The study analyses a sample of 1,000 manufacturing firms over a study period spanning from 2000 to 2016. It uses both quantile regression and panel ordinary linear square (OLS) models to analyze the financial performance of the firms. Findings The study finds large scale of heterogeneity among the firms under different quantiles of profitability. Export earnings, firm size, asset turnover and volatility of exchange rate are the decisive determinants of financial performance across all quantiles. Financing assets by current debt is negatively impacting return on assets and return on capital employed of firms from lower quantile whereas profitability is positively impacted if they are financed by long term debt. Debt financing of assets does not make any sense for firms with high quantile of profitability. The study also finds that quantile regression approach is a better method than panel OLS models in the presence of highly heterogeneous and non-normal distributions. Research limitations/implications This study is limited to the financial performance of manufacturing firms and does not consider service sector which is also equally competitive. However, a sector wise analysis of firm’s profitability could be more meaningful than comparing all the firms in one basket of manufacturing domain. Practical implications The research findings have both practical as well as policy implications. Practically, the study helps the firm managers to identify critical success factors that significantly influence firm’s financial performance at different levels of profitability. It also helps the policy makers to align policy focus to stabilize firms at lower level of profitability and also to manage conducive business environment for all firms at different levels of their profitability. Originality/value The study provides a deep theoretical underpinning of literatures on firm’s financial performance and empirically investigates it using advanced methodology. The robust estimates of the study ensure to analyze financial performance under revenue and cost channels at diverse level of their profitability.


2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 291-301 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yajian Zhang ◽  
Willie Tan

Purpose It is widely recognized that large-scale public–private partnership (PPP) projects require an effective coordination mechanism among various stakeholders throughout the project life cycle. The purpose of this paper is to provide an insight into how this may be achieved through the leading small group (LSG), which is a distinctive informal Chinese institution for coordination among various public agencies. Design/methodology/approach An in-depth case study using secondary data and five in-depth interviews with two staff members from the developer and three government officials involved is used to probe into how the LSG functions during the various development phases of the Yangzhou Teda Waste-to-Energy project. Findings The main finding is that, conditional on its capacity, the LSG coordinated various public agencies to promote fast project implementation and ensure its smooth operation by making high-level decisions, facilitating quick permits and approvals, and mitigating the risks. However, formalization and participation from other stakeholders are needed to ensure good governance. Research limitations/implications Because it is an exploratory case study, the findings cannot be readily generalized. Further research can be done to compare the performance of LSGs in different Chinese cities and PPP projects. Practical implications It is supposed that this paper can provide implications of designing effective coordination mechanisms for managing large-scale PPP projects. Originality/value This paper provides an account of the LSG as a distinctive Chinese coordination mechanism that has been rarely studied.


2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 416-431 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sonia Bharwani ◽  
David Mathews

Purpose The hospitality industry the world over is transforming from a product-focused, physical-asset-intensive business to a customer-focused, experience-centric one. This research aims at evolving a typology of customer-centric hospitality innovations. It attempts to explicitly capture the intrinsic DNA of hospitality innovations in the Indian context by exemplifying the typology posited with customer service innovations adopted by contemporary hoteliers that provide new ways of managing and enhancing customer experience. Design/methodology/approach This study is based on primary research through qualitative interviews conducted with select hospitality professionals, supplemented by secondary research in the form of a review of academic literature, as well as other secondary data sources such as company websites and travel websites which shed light on customer service innovations in the Indian context. Findings To develop and sustain competitive advantage, hospitality businesses are increasingly channelizing their efforts to provide innovative and holistic experiential service offerings. Service innovations are being tailored to cater to the unique personal tastes and requirements of hotel guests to connect with individual guests on a personal and emotional level to create memorable hospitality experiences. Research limitations/implications Practitioners, researchers and educationists in the hospitality industry would find the implications of this study useful in the context of the present customer-centric business environment where hotels are constantly striving to meet the exponentially rising bar of guest expectations. Originality/value The research highlights that it is critical to keep the customers’ perspectives central while designing innovative hospitality products. Further, it is important to create a cadre of innovation champions and service enthusiasts who can engender a culture of service innovation within the organisation.


2013 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 271-302 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Wilson ◽  
Anthony Webster ◽  
Rachael Vorberg-Rugh

Between 1950 and 2010, the British co-operative movement faced a series of commercial, structural, and corporate governance crises. Having pioneered many of the features of modern large-scale retailing since its origins in the mid-nineteenth century, from the 1950s the Co-operative Wholesale Society (CWS) and the retail cooperative societies it served experienced plummeting market share, continued internecine rivalries, and increasing marginalization. In the early twenty-first century, however, co-operatives improved their market share and experienced a “Renaissance” in commercial fortunes despite continued fierce competition in food retailing. As yet there has been little exploration of the nature of this turnaround and the ways in which the once-foundering co-operative business model was re-engineered.Drawing on new research into the CWS (renamed The Co-operative Group in 2001), this article provides a historical analysis of the movement’s decline and revival. As the article details, from the 1950s significant efforts were made to reform CWS and the movement as a whole. However, co-operatives were slow to adapt to the changing business environment, hampered by dysfunctional organizational dynamics that constrained structural change and limited efforts to compete with private retail multiples. Following an unsuccessful takeover bid for CWS in 1997, co-operative opinion coalesced around the need for change. In the final section, the authors analyze the factors underpinning the “Renaissance,” focusing on both organizational innovations and the reassertion of core values and principles on which co-operation had been built. This provides a fascinating illustration of how a business can respond effectively to internal and external challenges, yet retain its fundamental character.


2017 ◽  
Vol 28 (6) ◽  
pp. 772-793 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sajan M.P. ◽  
Shalij P.R. ◽  
Ramesh A. ◽  
Biju Augustine P.

Purpose The relevance of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in contributing to the economy and social development is increasingly felt in the current business environment. Focusing on sustainable development, SMEs have also implemented many acting strategies of large-scale enterprises such as lean and green practices. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the linkage between lean manufacturing practices (LMPs) in SMEs and their sustainability performances. Further, this study explores the relationship between the triple bottom line sustainability performances. Design/methodology/approach The study is based on a survey conducted and data collected from 252 manufacturing SMEs in India. The hypothesized relationships are then analyzed with structural equation modeling. Findings The outcome of the analysis shows that LMPs are positively associated with various sustainability performances categorized as economic, environmental, and social performances. Further, this study shows that environmental sustainability is correlated with economic and social sustainability performances. Research limitations/implications The study conducted was limited to a particular state in India. Moreover, the study uses the data from a cross-sectional survey from single respondents. Practical implications The findings of the study become an added advantage for the managers to convince their various stakeholders for implementing LMPs in SMEs. Originality/value The research findings provide theoretical and practical insights to derive the importance of LMPs in maximizing sustainability performances. It gives an enhanced perspective of the importance of LMPs on the sustainability performance of SMEs.


2019 ◽  
Vol 47 (6) ◽  
pp. 590-604
Author(s):  
David Marshall

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to look at perceptions of young Japanese consumers towards the convenience store, or konbini, with a view to understanding what attracts them to this retail format and exploring well-being in a new way that is more relevant the retail experience. Design/methodology/approach The study looks at the emergence of the konbini as part of the Japanese food retail environment and reports on an online survey (n=453) of young Japanese consumer’s (>18 years old) attitudes towards this retail format. Findings The preliminary analysis of the data finds the konbini is a popular choice for young consumers for specific types of everyday goods. The main appeal lies in the ease of access, location of the stores and the ambience of the space that appeal to young consumer’s sense of well-being. Research limitations/implications This is a purposeful sample of young Japanese consumers surveyed across several academic institutions. Practical implications Konbini must continue to innovate to attract young consumer while acknowledging the implications of their stocking policy on consumer well-being. Originality/value This offers a unique insight into the ways in which young Japanese consumers avail themselves of the food retail provision and provides a broader perspective on well-being in a retail environment that resonates with consumer practice.


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