Determinant Attributes of Store Choice in Organized Retail

Abstract

Intense competition and price wars in the retail sector provide the impetus to examine consumer behavior in the retail industry. It has become increasingly important to scrutinize what drives consumer choice of retail stores. This chapter addresses this need and aims to establish the factors that drive consumer retail choice behavior. The empirical setting for the study was five organized Indian retail stores: Easy Day, Big Bazaar, More, Reliance Fresh, and Freshmart. Data were collected with the help of a questionnaire (n=700) in a store-intercept survey. Data were analyzed using multivariate data analysis techniques. A model identifying the variables that predicts retail store choice probabilities was developed and tested. Results establish that atmospherics, merchandise assortment, and customer satisfaction have a significant positive impact on retail store choice. On the other hand, price has a significant negative impact on retail store choice. Implications are discussed.