• Journal of Fashion Business
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• v.19 no.6
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• pp.127-138
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• 2015

Due to the virtual nature of online businesses, online apparel stores need to enhance the consumer experience by utilizing store design attributes to provide their customers relevant and sufficient information. Since online apparel stores mainly communicate with their customers virtually and digitally, it is important to understand how consumers perceive and react to different design attributes commonly found on apparel stores' online websites. The purpose of this paper is to examine the importance of design attributes commonly found on online apparel stores' websites using three different importance measurements. The design attributes examined in this study include enlarged pictures, product detail pictures, product reviews by other buyers, coordinating items, and size measurement charts. The three different measurements used in this study include two direct measures and one indirect measure using conjoint analysis. Across the three different measures, both the men and women indicated that enlarged pictures represent the most important design attribute when they purchase clothes online followed by size measurement charts and they considered the availability of coordinating items the least important design attribute.

• Journal of Technology Innovation
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.143-165
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• 2006

By analyzing five in-depth case studies of suppliers in newly emerging Vietnam's motorcycle industry, this paper explores the differences in patterns and processes of capability improvement of suppliers who participate in different kinds of supplier-assembler network with different structures. The paper finds the correlation between the kinds of suppliers' capabilities improved and the structure of networks they participate in. While suppliers in arm-length networks can improve more upstream capabilities (structure design, process desist), suppliers in embedded networks can improve more downstream capabilities (process design, process setup, process maintenance and delivery control). Two capability improvement patterns of firms in newly emerging economy are indicated. The first pattern is asymmetrical improvement, either upstream or downstream capabilities, by participating in either arm-length or embedded networks. This pattern obstructs the suppliers to meet the requirements of new buyers rho come from different kinds of network. The second pattern is symmetrical improvement by joining both arm-length and embedded networks.

• International Commerce and Information Review
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• v.7 no.4
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• pp.179-196
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• 2005

This research is to study the frequency of internet use in domestic trading companies and to analyze how to appear the effect of internet use in accordance with the frequency of internet use. The results of positive analysis are summarized as follows; First, the higher the frequency of internet use, the more likely buyer intimacy appears to be effective. Second, the higher the frequency of internet use, the more likely related companies or buyers are satisfied. Third, it is proved that an acquisition of marketing information is close relationship with internet use. That is, the higher the frequency of internet use, the more likely an acquisition on of marketing information is high. Ninth, the higher the frequency of internet use, the more likely the competitive predominance of companies is slightly enhanced.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.11 no.11
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• pp.89-99
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• 2013

Purpose - The purpose of this research was to examine the regulation and distribution channel of second-hand goods in cross-border trade in order to propose methods of protecting consumers through the international standardization of the intensifying second-hand trade and resource recycling. Research design, data, methodology - This study first defines several concepts relevant to research in international second-hand goods. Second, a questionnaire and interviews were conducted with manufacturers of second-hand toner cartridges and automobile parts to identify the current status of export and manufacturing. Results - The study proposes the international standardization of second-hand goods and waste to protect consumers and promote efficient resource recycling. Conclusions - The results of the study reveal that second-hand goods (except automobiles) do not have an HSK code to use for import/export data collection. Though used car exports are declining, used cars are increasing. Collecting data on used car parts is impossible because the buyers purchase and ship the second-hand parts.

• Asian Journal of Innovation and Policy
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.534-563
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• 2018

Venture Capital Firms (VCs) encounter severe information asymmetry risks at almost every stage in their investment lifecycle. This paper explores the agency risks arising from information asymmetry during the stage of exits by VCs from the funded companies in their portfolio and how that impacts the incidence of specific types of type of exits (IPOs/M&As). In this empirical study, by using the data on IPO and M&A exits from venture capital-funded companies, we show how the ability of prospective buyers to better resolve agency risks is directly correlated with the incidence of the above exit types. Using the technique of logistic regression, we demonstrate that factors such as syndication, specialization focus of the VC firm (in terms of stage and sector) and the level of its social capital (proxied by its age and experience) drive the success rate of exits. This is one of first studies in context of exits from VC funded companies in the Indian context.

• The Research Journal of the Costume Culture
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.57-63
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• 2019

Due principally to the desire to seek lower production costs, the bulk of the world's textile and clothing manufacture migrated to low-cost zones, mainly outside Europe, over the course of the late-twentieth century. In the early-twenty-first century, fast fashion became a dominant force worldwide, with 'Western' retail buyers hunting cheaper deals from clothing manufacturers (mainly in Asia), and with occasional disasters not changing matters beyond the duration of a fashion season. Progressively, seams became narrower, cheaper raw materials were used and durability was no longer an aim. Why bother to do otherwise? This was what the 'Western' consumer wanted: fashion to be worn only a few times and then discarded, despite the fact that vast amounts of human, technological and financial resources were wasted in such a quest. By the end of the second decade of the twenty-first century, the production of textile and clothing products continued to contribute substantially to global warming. This paper reviews briefly the current conditions of manufacture, and argues that the research agenda should be focused on addressing the implications of a progressively changed focus, not on fast-fashion products, but instead on the production of products with greater durability. Meanwhile 'Western' consumers need to turn away from fast fashion and realise that waste is bad for their economy and their society. It is argued further, that after a period of re-adjustment, substantial financial rewards await the national textile and clothing industries that undergo such a turn around.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.14 no.8
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• pp.113-121
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• 2016

Purpose - This paper aims to examine the impact of buyer-supplier cooperation on suppliers' trust on buyers and the moderating role of buyers' governance mechanism between the sharing activities and trust. Research design, data, and methodology - An integrated research model is designed to materialize the research hypotheses. First, the impact of buyer-supplier cooperation is empirically analyzed by looking into how the sharing activities, in the field of information, resource, and knowledge, of buyer with supplier will affect the trust of supplier on buyer. Second, the moderating effect of contract-based governance mechanism of buyer is empirically analyzed. Third, the influence of trust on innovation performance of suppler is empirically analyzed. Results - Our findings provide supporting evidence for some of our hypotheses. First, all of the sharing activities are significantly influential, but in different degree, to trust of supplier. Second, contract-based governance mechanism of buyer have a moderating effect on the relationship between sharing activities and trust, positively in resource-sharing activities, negatively in information-sharing activities, not significant in knowledge-sharing activities. Third, supplier's trust on buyer positively affects supplier's own innovation performance. Conclusions - The strategies applied in supply chain management have become important as the competition among firms has shifted from competition between individual firms to competition between supply chains. A customer's sharing activities with its supplier may contribute to an increase in innovation performance. The supplier's information-sharing activity with its customer could affect its information-sharing activities with its main supplier. Cooperative activity with a partner in the supply chain is cultivated and amassed into relationship knowledge, and this study shows that the cooperative relational knowledge related to information-sharing activities enables firms to participate in sharing activities with their main suppliers. Increasing evidence shows that sharing various activities between buyer and supplier improves trust and performance outcomes, and enables firms to maintain competitive advantage. From the perspective of knowledge theory, external knowledge is becoming more important in firms' innovation activities, because innovative knowledge is acquired primarily through interaction with another organization. In addition, relationship learning could be an important tool in absorbing the supplier's core technology, information, expertise, and core competencies, increasing relational value.

• Asia pacific journal of information systems
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.83-111
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• 2009

Despite the growing emphasis on the importance of knowledge exchange among supply chain participants, few companies have fully exploited the knowledge resources held by their supply chain partners. Among many reasons for this phenomenon, recent literature on inter-firm knowledge exchange identifies knowledge complementarities between the supply channel partners as an important determinant of knowledge exchange. Firms participating in a supply chain are likely to exchange partners' complementary knowledge. In order to extract value from them, it is important to recognize the difference between the potential value and the implementation of this potential value. However, the literature fails to distinguish between potential knowledge complementarities and implemented knowledge complementarities. In order to realize the value of potential knowledge complementarities, knowledge should be exchanged and effectively integrated in the supply channel. Further, investigating inter-firm knowledge exchange from both partners' perspectives is important especially when there are interdependencies between the channel partners. The purpose of this research is to investigate the impact of potential knowledge complementarities on knowledge exchange in buyer-supplier relationships by looking at both partners' perspectives. This research also includes trust in partner's competence and inter-organizational information systems (IOIS) as they are relevant when the complementary knowledge flows between organizations. The data required for this field study was collected from 70 buyers and their suppliers in three multinational enterprises in two different industries (Automobile manufacturing and Telecommunication services) headquartered in Korea. The results indicate that potential knowledge complementarities between buyer and supplier do not directly influence knowledge exchange, but indirectly through trust in partner's competence. And the results indicate that competence-based trust and IOIS have direct effects on knowledge exchange. Empirical results also show that IOIS moderates the relationship between potential knowledge complementarities and knowledge exchange. This study is a first attempt to empirically verify the theoretical model about potential knowledge complementarities and to investigate the impact of potential knowledge complementarities on interfirm knowledge exchange. From a theoretical perspective, this study not only clarifies the distinction between potential knowledge complementarities and implemented knowledge complementarities, but also develops an instrument to measure the concept of potential knowledge complementarities in the context of operational and planning knowledge in a supply chain. Further, we develop a theoretical framework suggesting that potential knowledge complementarities of partners in a supply chain affect knowledge exchange directly and indirectly through competence-based trust. The findings from this study have some managerial implications for practicing managers as well. First, buyers should search for suppliers that have potential complementary knowledge, which can be integrated to create synergy through interfirm knowledge exchange. Furthermore, firms must develop mechanisms to identify potential complementary knowledge of partners. Second, firms should continue their endeavor to develop their own unique knowledge so that their knowledge can benefit the entire supply channel. Finally, trust among supply chain partners turns out to be an important factor for interfirm knowledge exchange. Therefore, effective management for engendering trustworthy buyer-supplier relationships should receive appropriate attention from managers.

• Knowledge Management Research
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.287-308
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• 2021

This study aims to explore how the effects of the perceived social presence on trust and live chat adoption intention vary with the types of live chats in e-commerce context. As technology develops, live chat with the seller in e-commerce is rapidly replaced by AI-assisted live chat called chat-bot. However, it is not well known how the buyers perceive the difference between the chat with seller and the chat-bot. This study therefore proposes first, the perceived social presence toward the seller will influence trust and the live chat adoption. Second, the effects of social presence will be stronger when using live chat with seller than using chat-bot. To validate, we collect data from 232 e-commerce users and confirm the first proposition. However, the higher level of the social presence effect of live chat with seller is not clearly revealed. This study is expected to provide researchers and managers who are interested in AI-based chatbots with useful theoretical and practical implications.

• Korean small business review
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• v.43 no.2
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• pp.59-86
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• 2021

The platform concept has been used for business operations in various forms: product platforms, transaction platforms and industry platforms. All these platforms have common characteristics of having 'core' that is reused frequently and 'peripherals' that are less reusable and changed often. Companies use platforms to enable efficient development and creation of product family, transactions and innovation. These platforms provide new opportunities for many small and medium-sized companies (SMEs) by bringing changes to traditional industrial structures focused on the products rather than platforms. The service robotics industry in South Korea is mainly composed of technology-intensive SMEs due to its small market size. Although these SMEs succeed in developing technologies, they have difficulties creating and expanding markets to sell products. Thus, this study addresses the characteristics and problems of the South Korean service robotics industry and analyses how ROBOPRINT, one of the SMEs in the service robotics industry, successfully creates and continuously expands the service robot market by adopting platform concept. The results indicate that ROBOPRINT has been applying two types of platforms: product and transaction platforms. First, ROBOPRINT created art robots that were apartment mural service robots. Rather than selling art robots, the company developed various robots such as painting robots, building exterior wall-cleaning robots by reusing the core technology of the robots. The company also developed various robots according to the buyers request. In addition, the company used the robots to directly provide apartment mural services for customers. This mural service has been extended into various areas, not only in apartments but also in soundproof walls, underground passages, and retaining walls. Besides, ROBOPRINT added new services continuously by developing technologies such as virtual reality. Second, ROBOPRINT mediated mural service buyers and mural designers. This platform reduced buyers' workload, which necessitates requesting mural services to ROBOPRINT and searching for mural designers. For designers, this opened up new opportunities to participate in the mural business. The platform attracted both mural buyers and designers who were scattered before. Finally, ROBOPRINT seeks to expand the platform's scope to outside company. To share internally reused ROBOPRINT's technology with other companies, the company participated in Daegu city's 'New Technology Platform Industry'. Furthermore, ROBOPRINT is trying to share the service platform by leasing robots to other companies. This allows external agents to develop technologies and provide services by reusing resources from ROBOPRINT. This study contributes to existing theories by showing that SMEs continuously create and expand markets by building various platforms. Moreover, it provides useful implications for practitioners by describing the firm's specific platform-building strategy.