• Journal of Distribution Research
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.91-105
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• 2001

Wholesale club is one of the fastest expanding retailer formats. Given its key features such as limited assortment and no promotion policy, the current paper provides a theory on why the wholesale clubs charge their members fixed annual fees. In a competitive setting with supermarkets, the proposed model demonstrates that the membership fee is the optimal reaction of wholesale clubs to supermarkets" sales promotion. More specifically, the positive amount of annual fee is only justified under the condition that there exists consumer heterogeneity in consumption rate and when the supermarket exercises price promotion on the product that the wholesale club carries. This paper describes the competition in a stylized fashion and derives the optimal membership fee under a scenario where retail promotion is present. This study is valuable in that it offers a different explanation on wholesale club membership fee than conventional wisdoms such as cost sharing and that it provides insights to the managers who consider no-fee format.

• Fashion, Industry and Education
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.12-28
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• 2017

In the era of social media, marketers have struggled to understand and serve participants' diverse and multifaceted needs in a novel form of online brand community in the social-networking sites such as Facebook. Thus, this study identifies different groups of participants affiliated with Facebook brand pages based on their needs for brand connection. The need-based segments are validated by comparing results across foodservice and consumer goods. Results of cluster analysis reveal three distinct segments (i.e., residents, lurkers, and peepers) based on participants' functional, experiential, and incentive needs. Results of multivariate analysis of variance illustrate significant differences in relational tendencies for a brand of interest among these three groups. The three groups are profiled based on participants' engagement level. Findings of this study are expected to help marketers better understand the needs of diverse participants in their SNS-embedded brand community so they can develop tailored communication strategies for targeted groups.

• International Journal of Advanced Culture Technology
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.281-291
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• 2022

Recenlty, the category of luxury wearbles has expanded and the relevant reseach has been scarce. The study tests whether the emotional mechanism regarding luxury wearables within e-tail affects luxury brand perceptions. Furthermore, it tests the moderation effect of gender in the mechanism. A total of 393 responses from U.S. populations were collected through an international research company with using online survey methods. In the results, the positive and direct effect of dominance on positive emotion was significant, and the positive emotion significantly increases perceived brand luxury. However, no direct effect of dominance was found on perceived brand luxury. The moderation effect of gender in the relationship between positive emotion and perceived brand luxury was found positive and significant, but the hypothesized moderation effect of gender was insignificant in the relationship between dominance and perceived brand luxury. Implications and study limitations are discussed.

• Journal of Global Scholars of Marketing Science
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.4-14
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• 2010

Collaboration strategies entail information sharing and other varied forms of cooperation that are mutually beneficial to the company and stakeholder groups. This study addresses the specific types of collaboration used in the fashion industry while also examining strategies that have been most successful for fashion companies and perceived benefits of collaboration from the customer perspective. In the present study we define fashion companies and brands as collaborators and their partners or stakeholders as collaboratees. We define collaboration as a cooperative relationship where more than two companies, brands or individuals provide customers with beneficial outcomes utilizing their own competitive advantages on an equal basis. Collaboration strategies entail information sharing and other varied forms of cooperation that are mutually beneficial to the company and stakeholder groups. Through collaboration, fashion companies have pursued both tangible differentiation, such as design and technology applications, and intangible differentiation such as emotional and psychological benefits to customers. As a result, collaboration within the fashion industry has become an important, value creating concept. This qualitative study utilized case studies and in-depth interview methodologies to examine customers' attitudes concerning collaboration in the fashion industry. A total of 173 collaboration cases were identified in Korean and international markets from 1998 through December 2008, focusing on fashion companies. Cases were collected from documented data including websites and industry data bases and top ranked portal search sites such as: Rankey.com; Naver, Daum, and Nate; and representative fashion information websites, Samsungdesignnet and Firstviewkorea. Cases were collected between November 2008 and February 2009. Cases were selected for the analysis where one or more partners were associated with the production of fashion products (excluding textile production), retail fashion products, or designer services. Additional collaboration case information was obtained from news articles, periodicals, internet portal sites and fashion information sites as conducted in prior studies (Jeong and Kim 2008; Park and Park 2004; Yoon 2005). In total, 173 cases were selected for analysis that clearly exhibited the benefits and outcomes of collaboration efforts and strategies between fashion companies and stakeholders. Findings show that the overall results show that for both partners (collaborator and collaboratee) participating in collaboration, that the major benefits are reduction of costs and risks by sharing resource such as design power, image, costs, technology and targets, and creation of synergy. Regarding types of collaboration outcomes, product/design was most important (55%), followed by promotion (21%), price (20%), and place (4%). This result shows that collaboration plays an important role in giving life to products and designs, particularly in the fashion industry which seeks for creative and newness. To be successful in collaboration efforts, results of the depth interviews in this study confirm that fashion companies should have a clear objective on why they are doing the collaboration. After setting the objective, they should select collaboratees that match their brand image and target market, make quality co-products that have definite concepts and differentiating factors, and also pay attention to increasing brand awareness. Based on depth interviews with customers, customer benefits were categorized into six factors: pursuit for individual character; pursuit for brand; pursuit for scarcity; pursuit for fashion; pursuit for economic efficiency; and pursuit for sociality. Customers also placed more importance on image, reputation, and trust of brands regarding the cases shown in the interviews. They also commented that strong branding should come first before other marketing strategies. However, success factors recognized by experts and customers in this study showed different results by subcategories. Thus, target customers and target market should be studied from various dimensions to develop appropriate strategies for successful collaboration.

• Journal of Global Scholars of Marketing Science
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.51-75
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• 2007

Dongdaemun fashion market has been successfully positioned as a main hub for non-brand fashion product distribution in Korea. One of important competitive advantages of Dongdaemun market often quoted by retail researchers is an efficiently managed network system among supply chain members. This study aimed to examine the importance of buyer-supplier relationship elements and supplier properties from buyers' perspectives (small & very small-sized fashion stores in Dongdaemun market), and to identify the determinants of the relationship length between suppliers and buyers. Survey responses of 233 stores were analyzed using EQS 6.1 for Window and SPSSWIN 10.0. The findings could be summarized as follows: First, fashion stores perceived that right delivery as the most important factor, and geographically closeness, design capability, quality, and lower price followed in order. Second, the characteristics of stores such as location, wholesaling versus retailing focusing, monthly sales, and total business length all affected the perceived importance of buyer-supplier relationship. Third, design capacity, communication, power was identified as determinants of actual relationship length with a supplier, while communication and trust were found to be determinants of future expected relationship length.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.28 no.12 s.138
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• pp.1617-1624
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• 2004

The visual environment of the retail store is an important factor to attract consumers to the store, to satisfy consumers, and finally to increase retailers' profits. This study focused on store visual environment influencing consumer behavior. First, how store environment influenced time that consumers spent in a retail store was examined. Next, visual environment elements of the store that consumers perceived important were identified and the elements of store visual environment preferred by consumers characteristics were examined. Through the result of this study, retailers can realize importance of store visual environment and can also use the findings to establish a new visual merchandising policy of the store or to improve the store environment newly.

• Journal of Digital Convergence
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.115-125
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• 2013

Unexpected consumer dissatisfaction emerges through rapid growth and expansion of on-line shopping channel. This research focused on the fashion online retail channels' negative aspect caused by service failure which possibly disappointed consumers. We also tried to seek for appropriate service recovery types based on frequently offered recovery types on-line. Data from college students were analyzed. Results indicate that fitting problem, insufficient information, product defect, inventory problem and slow delivery were the main service failure types in apparel e-shopping. Regression analysis identified that among these types, insufficient information, product defect, and slow delivery had significant influence on channel satisfaction after post recovery effort. Results also confirmed significant relationships between channel satisfaction and channel switching. Consumers perceived benefit level causes overall channel satisfaction level to rise while perceived risk leads to lower level of channel satisfaction. Choosing desirable service recovery activities in each service failure situations is necessary in order to raise consumer's channel satisfaction in online apparel shopping.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.16 no.4 s.44
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• pp.471-484
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• 1992

The purpose of this study was 1) to find out Market segmentation possibilities according to consumer's store selection factors by analysis of Consumer's attitude and oriteria of apparel store selection, 2) to provide marketing strategies of segment marker for apparel stores Research problems were as follows. 1) To find out the important factors of consumer's store selection and to segment markets according to their factors. 2) To find out consumer characteristics (demographic variables, clothing life factors, cloth-ing purchase behaviors) according to segment markets. 3) To find out preference store types and preference factors according to segment markets. 4) To provide marketing mix strategy for retail apparel store sales. The subjects selected for the final analysis were 586 female college students, housewives, and workers living in Seoul. A questionnaire was developed in order to measure consumer's selection criteria of apparel store, consumer characteristics and preferred store types and preferential factors. The results of this study were as follows: 1. There were 8 factors of consumer's store selection such that: the high quality, convenience, store atmosphere, economy, dependency commercials, store patronage, the conformity, product assortment. the result of cluster analysis based on these 8 factors of store selection verified that market was able to be segmented as four different market, which were the store loyalty group, the aligned economical group, the assortment pursuing group, the store fame dependent group. 2. There were significant differences among four groups, for 4 variables related to consumer's characteristics such as demographic characteristics (sex, age, job, level of education, the living quarters, marrige or unmarrige), clothing life factors, clothing evaluating criteria, and favorite fashion information sources. 3. There were significant differences among four groups for 2 variable related to store preference such as preference types of store and preference factors of store.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.31 no.4 s.163
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• pp.604-614
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• 2007

As the role of retail stores in distribution channels becomes more significant and competition among them becomes more fierce, retail stores are making efforts to gain a dominant position in market share. And as such, consumer store choice behaviour is becoming more diverse and complex. The purpose of this study was to analysis the store choice process and to aid in understanding the types of store choice behaviors. 30 subjects were sampled by focus sampling and investigated by in-depth interview. Some consumers went through all stages of store choice process and others skipped some. The consumers who usually had no plan to visit stores and who purchase without problem recognition process were categorized as opportunity-taking type, and the consumers who visited just one store without external search of other store information were categorized as store-loyal type. Finally, the consumers who searched store information externally were divided into brand-oriented type and value-seeking type. The brand-oriented type represented the consumers who did not evaluate stores in detail because which store to visit was decided on brand; and the value-seeking type represented the consumers who did in fact evaluate stores in more detail according to the items and trends in fashion. This study is meaningful in that it provides a dynamic store choice process and examines related variables thereto.

• The Journal of Industrial Distribution & Business
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.5-12
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• 2010

The retail business of drugstore was introduced to Korea for the first time 10 years ago. Since Olive Young introduced a retail store in the name of drugstore in 1999 for the first time in Korea, new distribution channel combining drugstore, cosmetic products and dairy products, etc has been made. At initial stage, the new distribution channel grew up slowly because of low specialty and economic stagnation. However, the three big distribution channels, that is to say, Olive Young (CJ), Watsons (GS) and W Store (Kolon Well Care), etc, were established to produce new distribution system following large-scaled discount stores as well as convenience stores. The purpose of the study is to investigate ways making Korean style drugstore be new retail business in addition to traditional markets, department stores, E-Mart and other general super markets and to examine problems preventing the drugstore from being promoted and to find out solutions. The speciality retailers that is called a category killer attacking department stores as well as marts is expanding market quickly. New consumption trend that gives priority to wellbeing is being expanded in accordance with high level of standards of living life: The drugstore is thought to be new alternative of distribution because it keeps special products. Young ladies who are main customers of drugstores respond to the trend sensitively to have more buying power that is thought to be promising. And, consumers' desire has become concrete and special. This is because consumers want not only convenient shopping but also special shopping system that is current trend. These days, so called Multi-shop and Total shop and other special shops have been recently opened. Special multi-shop has been concentrated on fashion product and miscellaneous goods so far: Health total wellbeing shop shall be popular in accordance with wellbeing trends. Drugstores can play an important role. Drugstores were opened for the first time ten years ago. In particular, Olive Young succeeded in going into the black after making efforts for a long time by many persons. Drugstores could succeed in the business owing to many persons in the past as well as customers who liked drugstores. However, drugstores once lost ways and recorded poor business results. The three drugstores, that is to say, Olive Young, Watsons making efforts to go into the black and W-Store pursuing traditional drugstore shall compete each other and make effort to satisfy customers' desire. In that way, the three drugstores can be assured of present business as well as future business. The consumers' demand trend has become special at sub-division so that drugstores that can satisfy the demand can succeed in the business. Large businesses may be more interested in the 4th generation retail business to produce good income and to have bright future. Drugstore business and market are likely to expand and develop owing to large business' participation in drugstore business. Drugstores expanded shop at Seoul and Gyeonggi-do until middle of 2000. Drugstore business at station sphere in Seoul and Gyeonggi-do that have high ratio of temporary population has low customer loyalty to have limitation on continuous growth. Since 2009, drugstores have opened new shops at local towns: From the year of 2010, drugstores need to establish multiple shop strategy by accelerating business speed and to allow customers to drop in the shop anywhere in the nation and to enter consumers' life deeply, so that they can strengthen business base definitely. Drugstores need to have price competitiveness to have multiple shop opening strategy and to satisfy consumers and to supply high quality services that is future subject to solve. And, Olive Young and Watsons that are Korean style drugstore need to keep system in order and to strengthen substance as Korean style drugstore and to expand marketing, so that they can get business outcome within 5 years that was done 10 years before and they become the 4th generation retail business. The study had difficulties at collecting material from the three drugstore because of poor cooperation. And, the author had great difficulty at collecting statistical material that was made in disorder. Further effort is needed considering such problems.