Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to develop a scale that evaluates the environmental elements in retail supply chains and to examine the environmental supply chain management initiatives of the world's largest 100 retailing companies. Design/methodology/approach -The empirical evaluation has been undertaken through an investigative approach applying a web-scan framework which included the analysis of web sites and publicly published documents such as annual reports and corporate social responsibility reports. Findings -The authors identified 34 environmental sustainability initiatives which were grouped into eight categories; they refer to "fundamental environmental attitude", "use of energy", "use of input material", "product", "packaging", "transport", "consumption" and "waste". The level of environmental supply chain management can be characterised as very operational and very short-term oriented (green operations). Long-term oriented green design initiatives were hardly observed. Furthermore, the specific environmental activities of three retailers from Denmark, France and the UK were compared.Research limitations/implications -The empirical study investigates supply chain operations of retailers and excludes other areas of retail management. The results are based on material that is published by the respective companies and thus do not include internal reports. Originality/value -The main contribution of this paper is to test the proposition that global retailers follow the path of the "Greening Goliaths", where environmental sustainability becomes a quasi industry standard for the ecological sustainability transformation of global retailing.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the preferences of children under the age of 12 regarding sales channels: how young consumers perceive online vs offline shopping in terms of advantages and disadvantages. Within a cross channel perspective, it also analyses the connections they make between brick-and-mortar and online stores. Design/methodology/approach – Results are drawn from an exploratory and qualitative study based on a multi-category approach. In all, 62 children (34 girls and 28 boys) aged six to 12 years were interviewed about the advantages and disadvantages of each channel for shopping; how/where they would prefer to shop and why; and the links they make between a brand’s physical store and an online store. Findings – Traditional sales outlets are more popular with six to 12 year olds than online shopping. Physical stores offer variety and instant gratification. Products can be tried out and tested on-site, making the offline retail experience a fun activity. Conversely, children express a very negative perception of e-retailing, which they often consider to be dishonest, offering limited choice at higher prices. When shopping online, delivery time can be a deterrent. Last but not least, no cross-channel shopping perceptions were found. Practical implications – Several results from this study can inform marketing practices at retailers’ headquarters. Store assortment, product availability and store atmospherics are central to the success of offline shopping among six- to 12-year-old children. Retailers should find ways to transfer this relational approach to their online strategy. In the meantime, they must deliver the same basic promises as in stores: a wide choice and competitive prices, no shortage of products and no late delivery. Originality/value – This study adds to the existing body of knowledge on children’s consumer behaviour in three ways. First, it provides new insight into how children perceive not the internet per se but online shopping. Second, it confirms that stores still play a dominant role in shaping the image of a retail brand, from an early age. Third, it suggests that the cross-channel perspective may not apply to very young consumers.

No abstract

Publication date 2014Publication information Design/methodology/approach: We use a qualitative study that adopts the consumer perspective and employed an investigative channel-scan approach based on two scenarios applied to twelve retailers selling childrenswear. We studied 139 flows between all the channels and explored the retailers' child orientation. Findings:The paper revealed that the channel configuration and integration of retailers showed a diversity of approach leading us to distinguish eight different retail channel strategies. It also appears that there is limited evidence of a specific selling channels designed for children by retailers in selling products aimed at the child market. Research limitations/implications:This study contributes to the retail marking literature by showing evidence of child orientation in channel management. Nevertheless, our results show the need for future research to understand the causes and effects of channel child orientation and the way it contributes to the retail channel strategy Practical implications:The findings have practical implications for retailers by providing a framework to help them in their decision-making regarding retail channel strategy. It also sheds new light on the contribution from young consumers in retail channel strategy.Originality/value: The contribution of this paper is to explore the combined perspective of configuration and integration of the channel-to-market as part of the retail channel strategy. The paper also provides evidence of child orientation in retail channel strategy when retailers selling products for children are concerned.