• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.30 no.12 s.159
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• pp.1697-1707
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• 2006

Relentless advances in information technology are constantly transforming market dynamics of the retail industry. RFID is an emerging innovative technology that can reduce labor costs, improve inventory control and increase sales by effective business processes. Apparel retailers need to recognize the benefits of RFID and identify critical success factors. By focusing on apparel retailers, this study attempts (1) to identify the reality of RFID associated with benefits; and (2) to prospect the implementation of RFID in apparel retailing. We conducted a focus group interview with selected six panels who were experts of retail industry in the United States to obtain data regarding RFID attributes. Content analysis was used to generate related excerpts and classify 31 attributes of RFID benefits from the meaningful 173 responses. For experience of RFID, retailers were familiar with RFID technology and expressed the belief that RFID basically would support an existing retail system for speed to markets. However, retailers addressed the level of experience with RFID technology that they were still in the early adoption stage among few innovative companies. The content analysis identified five dimensions of RFID benefits for apparel retailing: Visibility and Velocity, Revenue Enhancement, Customer Service, Security, and Employee Productivity. This result lends support to the belief that RFID has a significant potential to streamline supply chain management, store operation and customer service for apparel retailing. This study provides intellectual and managerial implications far practitioners and researchers by postulating the effective use of RFID in the apparel retail industry.

• 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.