Influence of Grocery Store Image on Customer Preference

Jayanthi and Vennila (2018) conducted a research study on 'Customers’ Preference towards Departmental Stores'. Data for the study have been collected through issuing well-structured questionnaire to 218 customers in Pollachi Taluk by adopting convenience sampling technique. The data is analysed by using Simple Percentage, Weighted Average and Garrett Ranking.

According to the study, majority of the customers visit department store with their family members to purchase and also compares price with other stores before making purchase. The study reveals that Shri Kannan Departmental Store is most preferred store in Pollachi Taluk. The result indicates that convenient store location has the highest weighted mean score followed by good quality, accurate quantity, adequate number of sales people, availability of trolley/basket, free home delivery, credit card facility, wider choice of products, availability of seasonal goods, attractive product display, reasonable price, convenient opening hours, store cleanliness, opening on holidays, branded products, good customer care service, latest products, prestige, sufficient information boards, all products under one roof, availability of gifts / vouchers, discount/coupon facility, adequate number of sales counters, air conditioned and parking facility. Ghafoor, Ahmed, Naeem and Huang (2018) examined “Analysis of Brand Perception Effect on Store Image & Purchase Intention of Customers (A Study on Apparel Clothing)”. The competition among apparel stores has raised over the past few years. Customers switched towards competitors due to their better offerings. In this research project, we have been identified the effect of brand perceptions on store image and purchase intention of Customers. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of price Consciousness, brand image and perceived risk on store image and purchase intention of customers in apparel sector.

Quantitative approach is used to quantify the relationship between dependent, independent and mediating variables based on the proposed theoretical model that delineates the relationship between dependent variable purchase intention and the independent variable Brand Image, Perceived risk, Price Consciousness and mediating variable Store image. In this quantitative study the experiential data has been acquired from Apparel Stores through questionnaire. Samples are taken from five apparel stores Khadi, Nishat, Gul Ahmed, Junaid Jamshed and Ittihad in Faisalabad. The total numbers of questionnaires were 250 where 225 were received from the respondents. The actual numbers of respondents were 200. There has been also empirical evidence regarding mediating effect of store image on the relationship between price consciousness and perceived risk and purchase intention.

Sipahi and Enginoglu (2015) examined “Retail Planning Studies: An Application Oriented at Consumers’ Perceptıon of the Quality of Retail Environment”. The retail sector has a continuously developing and changing structure. This change affects the economic, social, cultural and geographical structure and at the same time it is affected from all of them. Questionnaires were completed by a convenience sample of 106 consumers from Kuşadas, Turkey.

One of the main targets of retail planning politics is creating an environment which will increase quality of the shopping environment for consumers and will let every class of people to reach retail possibilities easily with equal conditions. The aim of the study is determining the factors that is affecting Kuşadas’s shopping environment in terms of consumer and consumers’ perception of the quality of retail environment. Consumers’ perception of the quality of retail environment in centre of Kuşadas have been evaluated by four characteristic (characteristics of store, physical environment, security and cleaning, pedestrian access). The findings of the study is providing information to consumers, retailers and local goverments which regulate the retail environment.

Hosseini, Jayashree and Malarvizhi (2014) conducted a research study on “Store Image and Its Effect on Customer Perception of Retail Stores”. This research investigates the various aspects of store image, which affect the impression and preferences of shoppers. It argues that the levels of customer preferences determine the influence of the setting of the store on its image. Studying customer perceptions on store image further enhances the knowledge of marketers; marketers can use this knowledge in acquiring more loyal customers and meeting their requirements in terms of store image. This study identifies the factors that are deemed to be the most important by customers and provides marketers with awareness regarding the psychological elements of customers that influence their perception of store image. A survey was conducted on customers in shopping malls to identify the effects of the principal factors of store image on customer perception. This study used path analysis as the principal analytical tool for conducting causal evaluations and investigated the significant effects of store image attributes (i.e., store atmosphere, music, merchandise quality, service, price, and convenience) on customer perceptions. Results indicated that the perceptions of customers integrate all of the cues and messages they have received and experienced in the store, in addition to their own perceptions of the importance of store image dimensions. This study investigates the effect of the significant factors of store image on customer perception in the Malaysian context.

Dhurup, Mafini and Mathaba (2013) examined “Store Image Factors Influencing Store Choice among Sportswear Consumers: Baseline Findings from South Africa”. The aim of this study was to examine store image factors influencing store selection choice among consumers of sports apparel in South Africa. The study used a two section questionnaire to elicit responses from a total of 489 conveniently selected sportswear consumers based in three shopping malls in the Gauteng Province of South Africa. The respondents’ demographic data were analysed using descriptive statistics. Exploratory factor analysis was used to identify store image factors influencing store choice. The mean score ranking technique was employed to compare the importance of the extracted factors.

The Mann-Whitney U test was used to test for the influence of gender differences in store choice. Six factors influencing the store choice of sportswear consumers were identified. These were sales assistance, store atmospherics, store appeal, in-store induced appeals, promotion/brand availability and store accessibility. Among these factors, sales assistance emerged as the most important factor influencing store choice of sportswear consumers. The study also revealed that gender differences do not significantly influence store selection choice. Using the findings of the study, marketers of sports apparel may be able to increase the patronage levels in their stores by expediting the six factors identified in this study. The sample was only recruited from three shopping malls located in one geo-spatial context; namely Gauteng Province. As such, it is important to note that this study is not entirely representative of all ethnic groups and regions or provinces.

Imran, Ghani and Rehman (2013) examined “Consumer Perception of Store Image and Store Loyalty”. Retail image and store positioning are the factors that influence consumer loyalty and retail success. This study examined the relationship between measures of store image and store loyalty through a sample of 150 shoppers taken from three retail outlets of Peshawar. The result of the study shows that there exists a positive relationship between store image and store loyalty. Regarding the store loyalty, it was found that the shoppers are satisfied and they intend to buy the next time at the same store.

Regarding the mean store loyalty among the male and female shoppers, it was found that there are significant differences among the male and female shoppers concerning the loyalty status of the store. It can be concluded that almost all the people agreed with the store image items. However, it was found that there exist differences among the male and female shoppers about store image which means that what the store image means for male shoppers does not mean the same for the female shoppers.

Jaravaza and Chitando (2013) conducted research on “The Role of Store Location in Influencing Customers’ Store Choice”. The study investigated the role of store location in influencing customers’ store choice. Two outlets that belong to the same supermarket chain were studied. These outlets shared similar management and marketing strategies. A descriptive survey of customers and management was done through the use of questionnaires, interviews and observations as research instruments. It was noted that outlets with better parking space attracted high income earners, whilst proximity to other complimentary outlets increased pedestrian store traffic. Out of ten factors that may influence store choice, seven factors were considered by customers to be pertinent. Of the seven factors, four were store location features, namely travelling time, location convenience, proximity to complimentary outlets and store visibility. This study is very critical to retailing strategists and marketers since location require consideration prior to trading, any error in this regard will now be cast in concrete and it will be expensive to alleviate.

Prasad and Aryasri (2011) conducted a research study on “Effect of shopper attributes on retail format choice behaviour for food and grocery retailing in India. The purpose of this paper is to make a detailed study on the effect of shoppers' demographic, geographic and psychographic dimensions in terms of format choice behaviour in the fast growing Indian food and grocery retailing. Both descriptive (mean and standard deviation) and inferential statistical tools like factor analysis and multivariate analysis are used to analyse the data collected from 1,040 food and grocery retail customers from upgraded neighbourhood kirana stores, convenience stores, supermarkets and hypermarkets in conjoint cities of Secunderabad and Hyderabad in Andhra Pradesh in India. The choice decisions are also varied among shoppers' demographic attributes.

The findings from shoppers' psychographic dimensions like values, lifestyle factors and shopping orientations resulted in segmentation of food and grocery retail consumers into hedonic, utilitarian, autonomous, conventional and socialization type. Given the absence of published academic literature and empirical findings relating to store format choice behaviour in food and grocery retailing in India, this study may serve as a departure point for future studies in this area of concern. The research is also relevant to retail marketers in terms of format development and reorientation of marketing strategies in the fastest growing Indian retail market. Yusof and Rahman (2012) examined “The Effects of Green Image of Retailers on Shopping Value and Store Loyalty”. This study aims at examining the influence of green image on shopping value and store loyalty. Convenience sampling using quota sampling was used to collect data of a sample of 565 consumers. Using structural equation modelling, it was found that green image of retailers has no significant relationship with store loyalty but has a significant influence on shopping value. Shopping value appears to mediate the relationship between green image of retailers and store loyalty.

The findings of this study provide several managerial implications for green image strategy in retailing industry. Firstly, despite the emphasis by many retailers on the green image initiatives, the shopping value of customers or shoppers cannot be undervalued. Whilst, green image of retailers has no influential effect on store loyalty, shopping value has a significant influence on store loyalty. Because of the dynamism of retailing industry, retailers should take a dynamic view of consumer behaviour. However, there is a possibility of a cultural bias playing a role in the outcome of the study because this study was conducted on the basis of Malaysian’ perception and behaviour with different cultural background, lifestyles and socio-economics. In addition, this study only focused on specific apparel item and as a result, green image of a retail store has no influence on store loyalty, but the shopping value.

Naderian (2012) examined “Study of Store Image Attributes Effect on Customer”.In todays’ retailing industry, two factors play the most important role, naming store-image and customer satisfaction. Overwhelming vast majority of changes in consumption patterns, lifestyle and economic as a whole, make retailers to consider these two factors and their correlation to obtain more profit and market share. This study tries to find an association between store image attributes and customer satisfaction towards retail stores.

In this regards, 7-Eleven Stores of Malaysia have been selected to examine this relationship and to determine which store image attributes have the most significant effect on customer satisfaction as well. In order to do that study examine the influence of six variables of store image that have been driven by Lindquistic(1974) on customer satisfaction. In this work, data is collected from various resources. The primary data collection was based on a paper questionnaire and our target customers, consisting of 100 Malaysian respondents, who had at least once shopping experience with one of the branches of 7-Eleven in Malaysia. To analyze the data, SPSS and multiple regressions were used. The result of this study could be used by both designers and retail store managers to make a better decision about their store image and this could finally lead them to increase their customer satisfaction.

Hassan, Muhammad and Abu Bakar (2010) examined “Influence of Shopping Orientation and Store Image on Patronage of Furniture Store”. This research was proposed to develop a general model of retail patronage and to empirically test the relationships proposed in the model in the context of furniture market. 115 data were collected through survey questionnaires and the underlying relationship among the variables that characterize consumers’ patronage behaviour towards furniture was studied. Store image on the other hand was found to enhance the impact on consumer patronage of the furniture store and moreover acted as both the predictor and the moderator. Furthermore, the impact of store image has given a significant contribution towards patronage of furniture store as this research found that the better the perception of consumers towards price, product and atmosphere of the store, the greater their patronage towards the store. Personalize shopping orientation on the other hand is only significant when interacted with the perception of consumer towards price. Therefore it can be concluded that information about price contribute to the patronage regardless of consumers’ life style.

Huddleston, Whipple and Mattick (2009) conducted a research study on “Customer satisfaction in food retailing: Comparing specialty and conventional grocery stores.” The purpose of this study is to compare and contrast customer perceptions related to satisfaction with conventional grocery stores as compared to specialty grocery stores. The ten state sample was drawn from US households located in postal (ZIP) codes in areas where national specialty stores (e.g. whole foods) were located. For both store formats, store price, product assortment, service and quality positively influenced satisfaction. Stepwise regression indicated that each store attribute contributed differently to store satisfaction for conventional and specialty store formats.

The results demonstrate that price, product assortment, quality, and employee service influence store satisfaction regardless of store type (conventional stores or specialty stores). However, the degree of influence of these attributes varied by store type. The results imply that while specialty store shopper satisfaction characteristics are clearly delineated, conventional store shopper characteristics are more difficult to pinpoint. Research limitations include a sample that is more highly educated and has higher incomes than the average American household.