• Journal of Fashion Business
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.45-58
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• 2014

The purpose of this study is to identify how to improve the quality of department store's sales associates for customer loyalty. This study examines the importance of sales associates' education, skills, and customer service towards customer loyalty. The questionnaire survey was conducted to collect data from 220 clothing sales associates working in department stores. This survey was paper-based. The participants were asked about the questionnaires; sales associates' education, sales associates' ability, customer service, and customer loyalty. General demographic characteristic of participants in the study are as follows; females (72.27%) participated the survey more than males (27.73%). With the age ranging from early 20s to over 40s, most people who took the survey ranged from early 30's to mid 30's with 33.64%. The result indicated that sales associates' education, and customer service skills were significantly corelated to each other. Sales associates' education had no co relation to customer loyalty. In applying the research findings, department stores can design their training contents to offer better training quality. Education of sales associates can be focused by providing various training contents, exercise, effective options, along with the opportunity to improve the qualities of training.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.234-243
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• 1994

This research has studied situational effects on the perceived risk and store choice behavior. Data were obtained from 388 females with full-time jobs living in Pusan. The results analyzed by Spearman's rank correlation analysis, analysis of variance(ANOVA), 1-test and discriminant analysis. The results of this study were as follows; 1. There were significant differences in percieved risk according to the clothing purchasing situations. Performance risk was perceived high in gift-shopping situation and time-pressured situation, and financial risk was perceived high in self-shoving situation. 2. There were particularly significant differences in store attributes evaluation according to the clothing purchasing situations. In self-shopping situation, price, quality and reliability, store loyalty were evaluated as important store attributes. In gift-shopping situation, quality and reliability, product iuomation and in time-pressured situation, store loyalty and product information were evaluated as important store attributes. 3. Consumers preferred national brand franchise stores in self-shopping situation. They preferred department stores in gift-shopping situation and time-pressured situation. The types of selected store were mainly affetted by shopping convenience and location convenience.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.202-212
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• 2013

Outstanding service quality is a crucial factor to increase customer revisits, to increase customer revisits, to create new customers through positive word-of-mouth marketing and increase profits; in conjunction, the physical environment of department stores have a firsthand impact on customer purchasing behavior. This study examines the physical environment dimensions of department stores in China and the causal relationship with the physical environment, service environment, internal responses and store loyalty. The subjects in this study were male and female adults who finished the shopping the Lotte and Wangfujing Department Store located in Beijing. All participants were over the age of 20 and a one-on-one survey was conducted to gather data from October to November 2011. Data from 424 respondents were analyzed: in addition, AMOS factor analysis and path analysis were used. The results were as follows. First, physical environment factors consist of exterior aesthetic attraction, convenience, cleanliness and an interior aesthetic attraction. Second, exterior aesthetic attraction, convenience and cleanliness affect the overall service environment perception. Third, the service environment exercised an influence on internal responses, and internal responses impacted store loyalty. Fourth, a comparative analysis was made over Korean and Chinese department stores in China to check the research model. In Wangfujing Department Store, exterior aesthetic attraction, cleanliness and convenience had a statistically significant impact on service environment perceptions. In Lotte Department Store, the perception of service environment was under the statistically significant influence of all physical factors (exterior aesthetic attraction, interior aesthetic attraction, convenience and cleanliness). The findings of this study are helpful for Korean Department stores that plan to make inroads into China to formulate efficient service environment strategies tailored to local consumer characteristics.

• Management & Information Systems Review
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.65-88
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• 2012

The reason customer satisfaction has been considered importantly in previous researches is that customer satisfaction can lead repurchase and loyalty. For a department store which tries to differentiate from other retailing stores by providing prestige services with customers, customer satisfaction is an essential element for keeping customer loyalty. Previous researches had mentioned only marketing mix to explain the customer satisfaction of department store. However, this paper would like to examine that differential services of department store can have an effect on the customer satisfaction, as well as marketing mix. As results, place(location) variable and promotion variable of four marketing mix influenced on the customer satisfaction significantly. The rest of marketing mix, product and price, were not confirmed statistically. Most of all, as an additional variable, service can have an strong effect on the customer satisfaction positively. Therefore, department store need to consider not only marketing mix but also service variable when building marketing strategies.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.19-28
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• 2012

Rapidly growing sales amount and the number of discount stores caused many side effects and sensitive issues in Korea. Because these severe competition due to more expensive cost just like excessive increase in advertising and location selection, and these caused completely ruined small merchants as well as passed on to the consumer. This Study focused on competitiveness of discount store in Korea to the perspective of college students, as explored the relationships between marketing communication and store loyalty. And, examined for two moderating effect, 1) consumers' value separated by hedonic value and utilitarian value between marketing communication and store loyalty, and 2) consumers' value separated by hedonic value and utilitarian value between marketing communication and consumption emotion. Finally, this study examined for mediating effect of consumption emotion between marketing communication and store loyalty. In order to verify the relationship, moderating and mediating effects, data were collected from 130 college students in Whasung, Gyeonggi Province to test theoretical model and its hypotheses. Findings are as followed : First, analysis showed that factors such as advertisement(β =.221, p<.05), publicity(β =.513, p<.01), sales promotion(β =.234, p<.01), word of mouth(β =.627, p<.01) and physical environment(β =.339, p<.01) for marketing communication in the discount store have statistically significant positive effect on store loyalty. But the result of regression analysis for which factors are more impact in marketing communication between store loyalty showed that word of mouth(β =.53, p<.01) is only statistically significant. Second, publicity(β =-.895, p<.05), the sub-dimension of marketing communication shows only statistically significant negative moderating effect on store loyalty. But, the results of the moderating effect of value between marketing communication and consumption emotion verified that utilitarian value show statistically significant, specifically advertisement(β =.294, p<.01), physical environment(β =.418, p<.01), sales promotion(β =.245, p<.01), word of mouth(β =.414, p<.01) and publicity(β =1.137, p<.05), respectively. And hedonic value show statistically significant, specifically advertisement(β =.286, p<.01), physical environment (β =.418, p<.01), sales promotion(β =.236, p<.01) and word of mouth(β =.420, p<.01), respectively. But publicity(β =.145, p=.119) is not statistically significant. Finally, the results verified mediating effect for consumption emotion between all factors for marketing communication and store loyalty showed that factors such as advertisement, publicity, word of mouth and physical environment for marketing communication except sales promotion were statistically significant fully mediated in advertisement, and partially mediated in publicity, word of mouth and physical environment. This testified that the consumption emotion had the most important factor to enhance store loyalty to the perspective of College students. These results can provide important implications and invaluable tips for planning marketing strategies and gaining access to new potential customers. Implications and future research directions are also discussed.

• Asia Marketing Journal
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.137-164
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• 2011

In the past, retailers secured customer loyalty by offering convenient locations, unique assortments of goods, better services than competitors, and good credit policy. All this has changed. Goods assortments among stores have become more alike as national-brand manufacturers place their goods in more and more retail stores. Service differentiation also has eroded. Many department stores have trimmed services, and many discount stores have increased theirs. Customers have become smarter shoppers. They don't pay more for identical brands, especially when service differences have diminished. In the face of increased competition from discount storess and specialty stores, department stores are waging a comeback war. Growth of intertype competition, competition between store-based and non-store-based retailing and growing investment in technology are changing the way consumers shop and retailers sell. Different types of stores-discount stores, catalog showrooms, department stores-all compete for the same consumers by carrying the same type of merchandise. The biggest winners are retailers that have helped shoppers to be economically cautious, simplified their increasingly busy and complicated lives, and provided an emotional connection. The growth of e-retailers has forced traditional brick-and-mortar retailers to respond. Basically brick-and-mortar retailers utilize their natural advantages, such as products that shoppers can actually see, touch, and test, real-life customer service, and no delivery lag time for small-sized purchases. They also provide a shopping experience as a strong differentiator. They are adopting practices as calling each shopper a "guest". The store atmosphere should match the basic motivations of the shopper. If target consumers are more likely to be in a task-oriented and functional mindset, then a simpler, more restrained in-store environment may be better. Consistent with this reasoning, some retailers of experiential products are creating in-store entertainment to attract customers who want fun and excitement. The retail experience must deliver value to turn a one-time visitor into a loyal customer. Retailers need a tool that measures the full range of components that define experience-based value. This study uses an experiential value scale(EVS) developed by Mathwick, Malhotra and Rigdon(2001) which reflects the benefits derived from perceptions of playfulness, aesthetics, customer "return on investment" and service excellence. EVS is useful to predict differences in shopping preferences and patronage behavior of customers. EVS consists of items measuring efficiency, economic value, visual appeal, entertainment value, service excellence, escapism, and intrinsic enjoyment, which are subscales of experiencial value. Efficiency, economic value, service excellence are linked to the utilitarian shopping value. And visual appeal, entertainment value, escapism and intrinsic enjoyment are linked to hedonic shopping value. It has been found that consumers value hedonic experiences activated from escapism and attractiveness of shopping environment as much as the product quality, price, and the convenient location. As a result, many department stores, discount stores, and other retailers are introducing differential marketing strategy based on emotional/hedonic values. Many researches suggest that consumers go shopping not only for buying products but also for various shopping experiences. In other words, they seek the practical, rational value as well as social, recreational values in the shopping process(Babin et al, 1994; Bloch et al, 1994). Retailers may enhance buyer's loyalty to store by providing excellent emotional/hedonic value such as the excitement from shopping, not just the practical value of buying good products efficiently. We investigate the effect of perceived shopping values on the emotional experience and store loyalty based on the EVS(Experiential Value Scales) developed by Holbrook(1994), Mathwick, Malhotra and Rigdon(2001). This study assumes that the relative effect of shopping value dimensions on the responses of shoppers will differ according to types of stores and analyzes the moderating effect of store type(department store VS. discount store) on the causal relationship between shopping value dimensions and store loyalty. Emprical results show that utilitarian values of shopping experience and hedonic value of shipping experience give the positive effect on the emotional response of consumers and store loyalty. We also found the moderating effect of store types. The effect of utilitarian shopping values on the attitude toward discount store is higher than the effect of utilitarian shopping values on the attitude toword department store. And the effect of hedonic shopping value on the emotional response to discount store is higher than on the emotional response to department store. The empirical results reflect on the recent trend that discount stores try to fulfill the hedonic needs of consumers as well as utilitarian needs(i.e, low price) that discount stores traditionally have focused on

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.6 no.3
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• pp.147-175
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• 2011

The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of store choice criteria on customer satisfaction and store loyalty, and the moderating effects of customer emotions on the causal relationship between store choice criteria and customer satisfaction. In this regard, this study tries to identify the effects of store choice criteria on customer satisfaction and store loyalty in case of mass merchandisers, and to analyze the moderating effects of customer emotions on the causal relationship between store choice criteria and customer satisfaction. For this purpose, 300 customers, who have ever shopped at mass merchandisers, were surveyed and 246 valid responses were finally used for the data analysis. The results of this study are as follows. First, out of six store choice criteria, product factors, store reputation and physical environment turn out to have statistically significant effects on customer satisfaction. This result confirms those of the previous studies. On the other hand, store accessibility, subsidiary facilities and store atmosphere are not found to have statistically significant effects on customer satisfaction. This result is somewhat different from those of previous studies, and so further research on the subject needs to be carried out. Secondly, it turns out that customer satisfaction has a statistically significant effect on store loyalty, which is in line with the results of previous studies that perceived emotions affect customers' store attitudes which in turn influence their revisit intentions. Thirdly, as for the moderating effects of customer emotions on the relationship between store choice criteria and customer satisfaction, pleasure moderates the effects of store accessibility, subsidiary facilities and store atmosphere on customer satisfaction, arousal moderates the effects of product factors, subsidiary facilities and store reputation on customer satisfaction, and finally dominance moderates the effects of product factors and subsidiary facilities on customer satisfaction. These findings partially support the results of previous studies that customers' in-store emotional experiences such as feeling good or bad enhance their store loyalty.

• Science of Emotion and Sensibility
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.209-222
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• 2012

This study tests a model that physical environment for shopping experience consist of the emotional responses of consumers and the effect of it's behavioral reactions. Specifically, this study have discussed how to perceive the attractive environment for customers, how to induce positive feelings or negative, how to form a switching barriers, how to lead loyalty. This findings can be summarized as follows. The results show that the models fit the data well and that nearly all of the hypothesized relationship construct are supported. First, attractive physical environment of the store had an significant effect on positive emotions to customers. Second, positive emotions that customers response about physical environment of store have an significant effect on switching barriers and loyalty. Third, the switching barriers formed in the consumer's mind to store have a significant effect a positive loyalty. The results present that attractive physical environment of stores have been thought to be key to switching barriers and customer loyalty.

• Journal of Distribution Research
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.105-123
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• 2007

Recently, the beauty service industry in Korea is growing rapidly as women have increased role in society and consumers have more diversified desire for beauty. In that sense, studies on the environment of transaction is necessary to maintain the customers who use beauty service which Is one of the most prominent services in Korea. However, there is a lack of systematic investigation on that. Under those circumstances, this study tries to propose strategies by shedding light on the reasons of store loyalty based on empirical study. Furthermore, securing regular customers is deemed to be the most important thing as the competition among stores are getting fiercer in the wake of increase in the number of beauty salons. In that light, this study tries to shed light on the transaction cost clearly which affects the store loyalty, and focuses on the development of integrated research model for the transaction cost related to the environmental characteristics of beauty service industry and for the store loyalty.

• The Korean Journal of Franchise Management
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.13-22
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• 2022

Purpose: Brand hearsay refers to information that can be acquired from advertisement, media publicity, and word-of-mouth prior to experiencing products or services of brands. Previous information about brands obtained through brand hearsay affects consumer behavior in choosing brands. Moreover, brand hearsay is an effective communication method in promoting brands to consumers. Thus, bakery franchises need to improve strengths and differentiate characteristics of their brand, thereby attracting more consumers. Therefore, this study investigates relationships the effect of brand hearsay on consumers' brand attitude and brand loyalty in the context of franchised bakery brands. Research design, data, and methodology: A research model was proposed to examine structural relationships between brand hearsay (advertising, publicity, word-of-mouth), brand attitude, and brand loyalty. An online survey was conducted to consumers who had an experience of visiting a franchise bakery. A total of 513 responses were used for data analysis. SPSS 22.0 was used for analyzing general demographics, and SmartPLS 4.0 was used to test validity and reliability of the proposed model. Result: Among attributes of brand hearsay, advertisement and word-of-mouth had positively significant effects on brand attitude, but no significant effect was found between publicity and attitude. Advertisement had a positively significant impact on brand loyalty, while publicity had a negative effect on brand loyalty opposite to hypothesis. Moreover, brand attitude had a statistically significant effect on brand loyalty. Conclusions: In the context of franchise bakeries, brand hearsay contents may change consumers' attitude toward brands but does not increase brand loyalty. Though media publicity does not affect consumers' attitude toward brands, it may decrease brand loyalty when consumers are too exposed to it. In addition, it is necessary to enhance brand attitude to increase brand loyalty of customers. This study provides bakery franchisors and franchisees information about which type of brand hearsay (e.g., advertisement, word-of-mouth, media, publicity) is effective in enhancing brand attitudes and loyalty of consumers. Further studies may include other variables (e.g., trust) in addition to attitude and loyalty, or compare findings based on brand characteristics (e.g., low-to-medium/high prices, store size).