• Journal of Global Scholars of Marketing Science
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.24-31
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• 2009

Firms produce various products that differ by function, design, color, etc. Product proliferation occurs for three different reasons. When there exist economies of scope, the unit cost for a product is lower when it is produced in conjunction with another product than when it is produced separately. Second, consumers are heterogeneous in the sense that they have different tastes, preferences, or price elasticities. A firm can earn more profit by segmenting consumers into different groups with similar characteristics. For example, product proliferation helps a firm increase profits by satisfying various consumer needs more precisely. The third reason for product proliferation is based on strategy. Producing a number of products can not only deter entry by providing few niches, but can also cause a firm to react efficiently to a low-price entry. By producing various products, a firm can reduce niches so that potential entrants have less incentive to enter. Moreover, a firm can produce new products in response to entry, which is called fighting brands. That is, when an entrant tries to attract consumers with a low price, an incumbent introduces a new lower-quality product while maintaining the price of the existing product. The drawback of product proliferation, however, is cannibalization. Some consumers who would have bought a high-price product switch to a low-price product. Moreover, it is possible that proliferation can decrease profits when a new product is less differentiated from a rival’s than is the existing product because of more severe competition. Many studies have analyzed the effect of product line rivalry in the areas of economics and marketing. They show how a monopolist can solve the problem of cannibalization by adjusting quality in a market where consumers differ in their preferences for quality. They find that a consumer who prefers high-quality products will obtain his or her most preferred quality, but a consumer who has not such preference will obtain less than his or her preferred quality to reduce cannibalization. This study analyzed the effects of product line rivalry in a duopoly market with two types of consumers differentiated by quality preference. I assume that the two firms are asymmetric in the sense that an incumbent can produce both high- and low-quality products, while an entrant can produce only a low-quality product. The effects of product proliferation can be explained by comparing the market outcomes when an incumbent produces both products to those when it produces only one product. Compared to the case in which an incumbent produces only a high-quality product, the price of a low-quality product tends to decrease in a consumer segment that prefers low-quality products because of more severe competition. Prices, however, tend to increase in a segment with high preferences because of less severe competition. It is known that when firms compete over prices, it is optimal for a firm to increase its price when its rival increases its price, which is called a strategic complement. Since prices are strategic complements, we have two opposing effects. It turns out that the price of a high-quality product increases because the positive effect of reduced competition outweighs the negative effect of strategic complements. This implies that an incumbent needs to increase the price of a high-quality product when it is also introducing a low-quality product. However, the change in price of the entrant’s low-quality product is ambiguous. Second, compared to the case in which an incumbent produces only a low-quality product, prices tend to increase in a consumer segment with low preferences but decrease in a segment with high preferences. The prices of low-quality products decrease because the negative effect outweighs the positive effect. Moreover, when an incumbent produces both kinds of product, the price of an incumbent‘s low-quality product is higher, even though the quality of both firms’ low-quality products is the same. The reason for this is that the incumbent has less incentive to reduce the price of a low-quality product because of the negative impact on the price of its high-quality product. In fact, the effects of product line rivalry on profits depend not only on changes in price, but also on sales and cannibalization. If the difference in marginal cost is moderate compared to the difference in product quality, the positive effect of product proliferation outweighs the negative effect, thereby increasing the profit. Furthermore, if the cost difference is very large (small), an incumbent is better off producing only a low (high) quality product. Moreover, this study also analyzed the effect of product line rivalry when a firm can determine product characteristics by focusing on the issue of fighting brands. Recently, Korean air and Asiana airlines have established budget airlines called Jin air and Air Busan, respectively, to confront the launching of budget airlines such as Hansung airline and Jeju air, among others. In addition, as more online bookstores have entered the market, a leading off-line bookstore Kyobo began its own online bookstore. Through fighting brands, an incumbent with a high-quality product can increase profits by producing an additional low-quality product when its low-quality product is more differentiated from that of the entrant than is its high-quality product.

• Journal of Global Scholars of Marketing Science
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.49-58
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• 2010

Corporate social responsibility has become a very important issue for researchers (Greenfield, 2004; Maignan & Ralston, 2002; McWilliams et al., 2006; Pearce & Doh 2005), and many consider it necessary for businesses to define their role in society and apply social and ethical standards to their businesses (Lichtenstein et al., 2004). As a result, a significant number of retailers have adopted CSR as a strategic tool to promote their businesses. To this end, this study sought to discover U.S. consumers' attitudes and behavior in ethical purchasing and consumption based on their subjective perception and evaluation of a retailer. The objectives of this study include: 1) determine the participants awareness of retailers corporate social responsibility; 2) assess how participants evaluate retailers corporate social responsibility; 3) examine whether participants evaluation process of retailers CSR influence their attitude toward the retailer; and 4) assess if participants attitude toward the retailers CSR influence their purchase behavior. This study does not focus on actual retailers' CSR performance because a consumer's decision making process is based on an individual assessment not an actual fact. This study examines US college students' awareness and evaluations of retailers' corporate social responsibility (CSR). Fifty six college students at a major Southeastern university participated in the study. The age of the participants ranged from 18 to 26 years old. Content analysis was conducted with open coding and focused coding. Over 100 single-spaced pages of written responses were collected and analyzed. Two steps of coding (i.e., open coding and focused coding) were conducted (Esterberg, 2002). Coding results and analytic memos were used to understand participants' awareness of CSR and their ethical purchasing behavior supported through the selection and inclusion of direct quotes that were extracted from the written responses. Names used here are pseudonyms to protect confidentiality of participants. Participants were asked to write about retailers, their aware-ness of CSR issues, and to evaluate a retailer's CSR performance. A majority (n = 28) of respondents indicated their awareness of CSR but have not felt the need to act on this issue. Few (n=8) indicated that they are aware of this issue but not greatly concerned. Findings suggest that when college students evaluate retailers' CSR performance, they use three dimensions of CSR: employee support, community support, and environmental support. Employee treatment and support were found as an important criterion in evaluation of retailers' CSR. Respondents indicated that their good experience with a retailer as an employee made them have a positive perception and attitude toward the retailer. Regarding employee support four themes emerged: employee rewards and incentives based on performance, working environment, employee education and training program, and employee and family discounts. Well organized rewards and incentives were mentioned as an important attribute. The factors related to the working environment included: how well retailers follow the rules related to working hours, lunch time and breaks was also one of the most mentioned attributes. Regarding community support, three themes emerged: contributing a percentage of sales to the local community, financial contribution to charity organizations, and events for community support. Regarding environments, two themes emerged: recycling and selling organic or green products. It was mentioned in the responses that retailers are trying to do what they can to be environmentally friendly. One respondent mentioned that the company is creating stores that have an environmentally friendly design. Information about what the company does to help the environment can easily be found on the company’s website as well. Respondents have also noticed that the stores are starting to offer products that are organic and environmentally friendly. A retailer was also mentioned by a respondent in this category in reference to how the company uses eco-friendly cups and how they are helping to rebuild homes in New Orleans. The respondents noticed that a retailer offers reusable bags for their consumers to purchase. One respondent stated that a retailer uses its products to help the environment, through offering organic cotton. After thorough analysis of responses, we found that a participant's evaluation of a retailers' CSR influenced their attitudes towards retailers. However, there was a significant gap between attitudes and purchasing behavior. Although the participants had positive attitudes toward retailers CSR, the lack of funds and time influenced their purchase behavior. Overall, half (n=28) of the respondents mentioned that CSR performance affects their purchasing decisions making when shopping. Findings from this study provide support for retailers to consider their corporate social responsibility when developing their image with the consumer. This study implied that consumers evaluate retailers based on employee, community and environmental support. The evaluation, attitude and purchase behavior of consumers seem to be intertwined. That is, evaluation is based on the knowledge the consumer has of the retailers CSR. That knowledge may influence their attitude toward the retailer and thus influence their purchase behavior. Participants also indicated that having CSR makes them think highly of the retailer, but it does not influence their purchase behavior. Price and convenience seem to surpass the importance of CSR among the participants. Implications, recommendations for future research, and limitations of the study are also discussed.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.492-499
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• 2002

The objective of this study is to identify the attribute factors for fast food selection according to their characteristics of the use behaviors and demographics. The results of these findings suggest the attribute factors for selection were classified into ten : physical service, cleanliness/promptness, human service, convenience/promotion, accessibility, menu variety, food quality, service for child and parking, added service, and comfortness. “Cleanliness” and “good taste” were considered as determining factors in selecting a fast food restaurant. According to the consumer's use behaviors and demographics, attribute factors for fast food selection were significantly different. Therefore, the marketers and managers on the fast food industry should develop their own appropriate marketing strategies and implement effective targeting, positioning, and promotional strategies.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.184-195
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• 2017

Baseball is a life sport that gives vitality to people. However, currently available leg guards do not have a variety of sizes and it is very difficult to purchase a leg guard that is suitable for the size of a specific consumer. Therefore, this study investigated the size system of a leg guard sold in the market and suggested a grading deviation suitable for the legs of Korean males. The results of the study were as follows. First, most brands were sold only in three size systems as children's, teenagers, and adults. Adult size systems were not subdivided. Second, Korean male legs were classified into Group 1 (large girth and height and lower body muscle) and Group 2 (small girth and height and low underbody muscle). Third, the size system is based on vertical items such as height and mid-thigh circumference. Each group produced 10 sizes. The smallest height or the largest height was also found to be about 4.5 to 5.0cm smaller or larger than the sample size for each group. The total length of the leg guard was about 2.5cm when the height was increased or decreased by one size. It was confirmed that the deviation of the circumference of the mid-thigh should be about 2.0cm larger or smaller than the sample size even if the height is the same. The deviation of the knee circumference and ankle circumference was smaller than the other circumference. In conclusion, the dimension combinations of the leg guard must be set differently to provide a leg guard with high size suitability according to leg type.

• Journal of Fashion Business
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.134-147
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• 2017

The purpose of this study is to analyze fashion brands' contents and characteristics of the participation platform of users, to assess the types and strategies of mass customization(MC). Most fashion brands sell one professional content: Shoes brands were the most common, followed by bags, unisex wear, and menswear. In consumer's design selection elements, changes in color and materials were the most common. For the personalization service elements, monogram service was the most common. The results of MC types analysis were as follows, Customized Standardization was the most common, followed by Tailored Customization, Pure Customization, and Segmented Standardization. For the types according to changes in products and expression methods, Cosmetic was the most common. And the classification according to modulation, Modularizers were the most common. For Creativity, brands in the making stage were the most common. For Flexibility, although brands different methods, high flexibility by modularizing design elements of products and accomplishing various design through participation. The Ease of use for various expression was generally high, parallel to Flexibility. For Durability, because consumers could receive end products only when they participated in the assembly stage in the on-line purchase, their continuous participation was not possible, so they participated only once. The typical types and strategy of MC were analyzed. The Customized Standardization type was the most common in shoes, bag, and womenswear brands. It was the Cosmetic type which could change colors and materials, the Modularizers, and had high Flexibility and Ease of use and low Durability.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.28 no.7
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• pp.1028-1037
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• 2015

Unique organoleptic characteristics such as rich flavors and chewy texture contribute to the higher popularity of native chicken in many Asian areas, while the commercial broilers are well-accepted due to their fast-growing and higher yields of meat. Sensory attributes of foods are often used to evaluate food eating quality and serve as references during the selection of foods. In this study, a three-phase descriptive sensory study was conducted to evaluate the sensory attributes of commercial broiler (BR) and Taiwan native chicken (TNC) breast meat, and investigate correlations between these sensory attributes and instrumental measurements. The results showed that for the first bite (phase 1), TNC meat had significantly higher moisture release, hardness, springiness, and cohesiveness than BR meat. After chewing for 10 to 12 bites (phase 2), TNC meat presented significantly higher chewdown hardness and meat particle size, whereas BR meat had significantly higher cohesiveness of mass. After swallowing (phase 3), TNC meat had higher chewiness and oily mouthcoat and lower residual loose particles than BR meat. TNC meat also provided more intense chicken flavors. This study clearly demonstrates that descriptive sensory analysis provides more detailed and more objectively information about the sensory attributes of meats from various chicken breeds. Additionally, sensory textural attributes vary between BR and TNC meat, and are highly correlated to the shear force value and collagen content which influence meat eating qualities greatly. The poultry industry and scientists should be able to recognize the sensory characteristics of different chicken meats more clearly. Accordingly, based on the meat's unique sensory and physicochemical characteristics, future work might address how meat from various breeds could best satisfy consumer needs using various cooking methods.

• Journal of the Korea Computer Industry Society
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• v.2 no.9
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• pp.1175-1182
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• 2001

One to one Marketing (a.k.a. database marketing or relationship marketing) is one of the many fields that will benefit from the electronic revolution and shifts in consumer sales and advertising. As a component of intelligent customer services on Internet storefront, this paper describes technology of providing personalized advertisement using the market basket analysis, a well-Known data mining technique. The underlining theories of recommendation techniques are statistics, data mining, artificial intelligence, and/or rule-based matching. In the rule-based approach for personalized recommendation, marketing rules for personalization are usually collected from marketing experts and are used to inference with customer's data. However, it is difficult to extract marketing rules from marketing experts, and also difficult to validate and to maintain the constructed Knowledge base. In this paper, using marketing basket analysis technique, marketing rules for cross sales are extracted, and are used to provide personalized advertisement selection when a customer visits in an Internet store.

• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.719-727
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• 2009

The ultimate success of commercial applications of body scan data in the apparel industry will be consumers' substantial applications such as automated custom fit, size prediction, virtual try-on, personal shopper services (Loker, S. et al., 2004). In this study, we surveyed fifty consumers and forty-seven apparel industry workers about their recognition and interest in 3D body scanning and virtual try-on. The results are as follows: 55% of the apparel industry workers has recognized 3D body scanning as a convenient technology, but do not know how to use it. To the questions regarding virtual try-on, 53% of the workers give positive answers. The consumers have a more positive view on virtual try-on than the workers do. The workers predict that the application of 3D body scan technology to the apparel industry could offer customers helpful information in their clothing selection by using virtual images of various size and style, and increase mass production of MTM(Made-To-Measure). The answers from the male consumers in their twenties indicate that virtual try-on is useful by 88% on offline shopping and by 100% on online shopping. 53% of the workers and 68% of the consumers gave answers that just by virtual try-on they could judge the quality of the apparel products and purchase them. Absolutely 3D virtual try-on is an effective tool for online shoppers. 85% of the workers anticipate applications of the 3D body scanning also in 'body measurement', 'custom pattern development' as well as 'virtual try-on' in the near future. With the positive reactions and the stimulating interests in virtual try-on, the conditions of contemporary world encourage more active researches and wide usages of the technology in apparel industry.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.127-132
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• 2015

Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) are persistent environmental pollutants, extremely stable, and possibly adversely affect human health. They are widely used in many industries and consumer goods, including sunscreen products. These substances are stable chemicals made of long carbon chains, having both lipid- and water-repellent qualities. The research objectives are (1) to find the most effective method for the preparation of semi-liquid samples by comparing solid phase extraction (SPE) and centrifugation after Pressurized liquid extraction (PLE), and (2) to determine the contamination levels of PFOS and PFOA in waterproof sunscreen samples. All sunscreen samples were analyzed by liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Sunscreen samples were purchased from domestic and international brands sold in Thailand. Special chemical properties were considered for the selection of samples, e.g., those found in waterproof, sweat resistant, water resistant, and non-stick products. Considering the factors of physical properties, e.g., operation time, chemical consumption, and recovery percentage for selecting methods to develop, the centrifugation method using 2 mL of extracted sample with the conditions of 12,000 rpm and $5^{\circ}C$ for 1 hour after PLE was chosen. The highest concentrations of PFOS and PFOA were detected at 0.0671 ng/g and 21.0644 ng/g, respectively. Even though present concentrations are found at ng/g levels, the daily use of sunscreen products is normally several grams. Therefore, a risk assessment of PFOS and PFOA contamination in sunscreen products is an important concern, and more attention needs to be paid to the long-term effects on human health.

• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.76-86
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• 2020

The study surveyed patients undergoing a mastectomy to understand their experience and requirements on artificial breasts and sales status. We retrieved 149 of the 150 surveyed questionnaires; subsequently, 144 questionnaires, excluding missing values, were used in the analysis. According to the results of the study, about 67% of respondents said that artificial breasts were not used after undergoing a mastectomy, and more than half of the breast cancer patients were not aware of the importance of artificial breasts. Breast cancer patients wearing artificial breast felt uncomfortable and hot during daily activities as well as experienced difficulty in size selection and purchase price burdens. The three most responded brands were selected based on the results of the survey that also investigated the sales status of the commercial artificial breast. Company A was selling artificial breast to reflect the consumer's functional requirements, and Company C was selling artificial breast with various kinds of reduced weight. However, it is thought that consumers will have less choice since artificial breasts have more limited forms than various types. Therefore, it is believed that the patient needs artificial breasts that satisfy the shape of various types of mastectomy. This study can be used as basic data for artificial breast development studies.