Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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v.28
no.2
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pp.312-319
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2004
The purpose of this study is to provide information for the manufacturer of shoes. The data was collected through a questionnaire on purchasing practices, wearing state and overall satisfaction with shoes for high school students. The questionnaire survey was conducted on 598 high school students(49.2% male students, 50.8% female students) in the Cheongju area. Statistical tests such as frequencies, percentages, and crosstabs were conducted to analyze the data. The results were as follows: 1) The main reasons for buying new shoes were replacing worn out shoes or color and design coordination with other apparel. 2) Male students bought shoes generally from shoe stores and sports brand retailers, but female students bought mainly from shoe stores. The order of criteria considered for purchasing was design, size, price, color, style coordination and comfort. 3) While attending school, male students geneially wore sports shoes, but female students wore sports shoes and dress shoes by similar ratio. 4) The male students used primarily ordinary sports shoes and casual shoes secondarily, and for female students, primarily ordinary sports shoes and sneakers secondarily. 5) They were satisfied with shoe design and color but quality of the material and durability were unsatisfactory. 6) When they wore shoes for long hours, they experienced fatigue of the whole leg and general discomfort, blisters on the feet, and red skin.
Journal of Korean Society of Industrial and Systems Engineering
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v.42
no.3
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pp.15-24
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2019
Fair Allocation of profits or costs arising from joint participation by multiple individuals or entities with different purposes is essential for their continuing involvement and for their dissatisfaction reduction. In this research, fair allocation of the profits of forming a grand coalition in Three-Echelon Supply Chain (TESC) game that is composed of manufacturer, distributor and retailer, is studied. In particular, the solutions of the proportional method of profit, the proportional method of marginal profit, and Shapley value based on cooperative game theory are proved to be in the desirable characteristics of the core. The proportional method of profit and the proportional method of marginal profit are often used because of their ease of application. These methods distribute total profit in proportion to profits or marginal profits of each game participant. In addition, Shapley value can be defined as the average marginal profit when one game player is added at a time. Even though the calculation of the average of all possible marginal profits is not simple, Shapley value are often used as a useful method. Experiments have shown that the solution of the incremental method, which calculates the marginal cost of adding game players in the order of manufacturers, distributors and retailers, does not exist in the core.
Despite the growing importance of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the apparel industry, most existing research focuses on the CSR activities of well-known apparel brands and retailers, not manufacturers. The purpose of this study was to examine the CSR activities of global apparel manufacturers using the two most widely accepted global CSR frameworks: the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) standards. A comparison was employed based on the legitimacy theory. For this purpose, a content analysis was conducted on five apparel manufacturers' CSR activities disclosed in their annual sustainability reports published on the firms' official websites. The analysis was both quantitative (frequency) and qualitative (intensity). The results revealed that all firms conducted CSR activities related to environmental and social activities more actively than they conducted economic activities, with higher frequency and intensity scores for both the GRI and SDGs. However, based on each firm's economic development level, size, and years of experience, their applications of resources/technology to CSR and approaches to certain issues (e.g., gender and diversity issues) differed, supporting the legitimacy theory. The results provide academic implications by providing empirical information on apparel manufacturers' CSR activities as well as practical implications for other manufacturers seeking to develop CSR programs that meet the global standards.
The purpose of this study is to empirically examine the transference of trust process, an important factor to consumer's purchase decision-making. Even though several researchers have discussed the trust transference process, there is no research related to this concept. Specifically we have focused on the transference of trust from the retailer to low involvement private label (PL) products. PL products were chosen as transference of trust occurs under ambiguity due to lack of information about the product and their manufacturer. PL products provide relatively less information than national brand (NB) products. In addition, retailers have been rapidly expanding their PL product categories. To identify the theoretical and empirical limitations of prior studies, we discuss several theories explaining the transference of trust: 'Balance theory' and 'availability heuristic' in transference of cognitive trust; 'affective transference' and 'affect as information' in transference of affective trust. An empirical test was performed. A self completion questionnaire was developed and administered to a convenience sample of PL users. 206 usable questionnaire were received. The results show that the transference of trust plays a mediating role linking the retailer to the manufacturer and to the product. Although our model, which included the transference process of trust as a mediating effect, did not improve the competitive model, the coefficients of the respective paths were found to be better. This study confirms the transference of cognitive trust from the retailer to both the manufacturer and the product, but not for affective trust. We offer the explanation that PL products may tend to have affective trust resulting from brand familiarity but not to their PL manufacturers.
Purpose - This study analyzes loading efficiency by loading pattern for package standardization and reduction of logistics costs, along with the creation of revenue for the revenue review panel (RRP) of Membership Wholesale Clubs (MWC). The study aims to identify standard dimensions that can help improve the compatibility of the pallets related to display patterns preferred by the MWC and thereby explore ways to enhance logistics efficiency between manufacturers and retailers through standardization. Research design, data, and methodology - The study investigates and analyzes the current status based on actual case examples, i.e., manufacturer A and Korea's MWC (A company, B company, and C company), and thus devises improvement measures. To achieve this, the case of manufacturer A delivering to MWC was examined, and the actual pallet display patterns for each MWC were investigated by visiting each distribution site. In this study, TOPS (Total Optimization Packaging Software, USA) was used as the tool for pallet loading efficiency simulations the maximum allowable dimension was set to 0.0mm to prevent the pallet from falling outside the parameters, and the loading efficiency was analyzed with the pallet area. In other words, the study focused on dimensions (length x width x height) according to the research purpose and thereby deduced results. Results - The analysis of pallet loading patterns showed that the most preferred loading patterns for loading efficiency according to product specification, such as pinwheel, brick, and block patterns, were used in the case of the general distribution products, but the products were configured with block patterns in most cases when delivered to MWCs. The loading efficiency by loading pattern was analyzed with respect to 104 nationally listed standard dimensions. Meanwhile, No.51 (330 × 220mm) of KS T 1002 (1,100 × 1,100mm) was found to be the dimension that could bring about an improved loading efficiency, over 90.0% simultaneously in both the T-11 and T-12 pallet systems in a loading pattern configuration with the block pattern only, and the loading efficiency simulation results also confirmed this as the standard dimension that can be commonly applied to both the T-11 pallet (90.0%) and the T-12 pallet (90.7%) systems. Conclusions - The loading efficiency simulation results by loading pattern were analyzed: For the T-11 pallet system, 17 standard dimension sizes displayed the loading efficiency of 90.0% or more as block patterns, and the loading capacity was an average of 99.0%. For the T-12 pallet system, 35 standard dimension sizes displayed the loading efficiency of more than 90% as block patterns (the average loading efficiency of 98.6%). Accordingly, this study proposes that the standard dimensions of 17 sizes with the average loading efficiency of 99.0% should be applied in the use of the T-11 pallet system, and those of 35 sizes with the average loading efficiency of 98.6% should be reviewed and applied in the use of the T-12 pallet system.
Ⅰ. Introduction Retailers in the 21st century are being told that future retailers are those who can execute seamless multi-channel access. The reason is that retailers should be where shoppers want them, when they want them anytime, anywhere and in multiple formats. Multi-channel access is considered one of the top 10 trends of all business in the next decade (Patricia T. Warrington, et al., 2007) And most firms use both direct and indirect channels in their markets. Given this trend, we need to evaluate a channel equity more systematically than before as this issue is expected to get more attention to consumers as well as to brand managers. Consumers are becoming very much confused concerning the choice of place where they shop for durable goods as there are at least 6-7 retail options. On the other hand, manufacturers have to deal with category killers, their dealers network, Internet shopping malls, and other avenue of distribution channels and they hope their retail channel behave like extensions of their own companies. They would like their products to be foremost in the retailer's mind-the first to be proposed and effectively communicated to potential customers. To enable this hope to come reality, they should know each channel's advantages and disadvantages from consumer perspectives. In addition, customer satisfaction is the key determinant of retail customer loyalty. However, there are only a few researches regarding the effects of shopping satisfaction and perceptions on consumers' channel choices and channels. The purpose of this study was to assess Korean consumers' channel choice and satisfaction towards channels they prefer to use in the case of electronic goods shopping. Korean electronic goods retail market is one of good example of multi-channel shopping environments. As the Korea retail market has been undergoing significant structural changes since it had opened to global retailers in 1996, new formats such as hypermarkets, Internet shopping malls and category killers have arrived for the last decade. Korean electronic goods shoppers have seven major channels : (1)category killers (2) hypermarket (3) manufacturer dealer shop (4) Internet shopping malls (5) department store (6) TV home-shopping (7) speciality shopping arcade. Korean retail sector has been modernized with amazing speed for the last decade. Overall summary of major retail channels is as follows: Hypermarket has been number 1 retailer type in sales volume from 2003 ; non-store retailing has been number 2 from 2007 ; department store is now number 3 ; small scale category killers are growing rapidly in the area of electronics and office products in particular. We try to evaluate each channel's equity using a consumer survey. The survey was done by telephone interview with 1000 housewife who lives nationwide. Sampling was done according to 2005 national census and average interview time was 10 to 15 minutes. Ⅱ. Research Summary We have found that seven major retail channels compete with each other within Korean consumers' minds in terms of price and service. Each channel seem to have its unique selling points. Department stores were perceived as the best electronic goods shopping destinations due to after service. Internet shopping malls were perceived as the convenient channel owing to price checking. Category killers and hypermarkets were more attractive in both price merits and location conveniences. On the other hand, manufacturers dealer networks were pulling customers mainly by location and after service. Category killers and hypermarkets were most beloved retail channel for Korean consumers. However category killers compete mainly with department stores and shopping arcades while hypermarkets tend to compete with Internet and TV home shopping channels. Regarding channel satisfaction, the top 3 channels were service-driven retailers: department stores (4.27); dealer shop (4.21); and Internet shopping malls (4.21). Speciality shopping arcade(3.98) were the least satisfied channels among Korean consumers. Ⅲ. Implications We try to identify the whole picture of multi-channel retail shopping environments and its implications in the context of Korean electronic goods. From manufacturers' perspectives, multi-channel may cause channel conflicts. Furthermore, inter-channel competition draws much more attention as hypermarkets and category killers have grown rapidly in recent years. At the same time, from consumers' perspectives, 'buy where' is becoming an important buying decision as it would decide the level of shopping satisfaction. We need to develop the concept of 'channel equity' to manage multi-channel distribution effectively. Firms should measure and monitor their prime channel equity in regular basis to maximize their channel potentials. Prototype channel equity positioning map has been developed as follows. We expect more studies to develop the concept of 'channel equity' in the future.
Park, Sung Hee;Jo, Yeon-Ji;Chun, Ji-Yeon;Hong, Geun-Pyo;Davaatseren, Munkhtugs;Choi, Mi-Jung
Food Science of Animal Resources
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v.35
no.6
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pp.793-799
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2015
The market sales of premium ice cream have paralleled the growth in consumer desire for rich flavor and taste. Storage temperature is a major consideration in preserving the quality attributes of premium ice cream products for both the manufacturer and retailers during prolonged storage. We investigated the effect of storage temperature (−18℃, −30℃, −50℃, and −70℃) and storage times, up to 52 wk, on the quality attributes of premium ice cream. Quality attributes tested included ice crystal size, air cell size, melting resistance, and color. Ice crystal size increased from 40.3 µm to 100.1 µm after 52 wk of storage at −18℃. When ice cream samples were stored at −50℃ or −70℃, ice crystal size slightly increased from 40.3 µm to 57-58 µm. Initial air cell size increased from 37.1 µm to 87.7 µm after storage at −18℃ for 52 wk. However, for storage temperatures of −50℃ and −70℃, air cell size increased only slightly from 37.1 µm to 46-47 µm. Low storage temperature (−50℃ and −70℃) resulted in better melt resistance and minimized color changes in comparison to high temperature storage (−18℃ and −30℃). In our study, quality changes in premium ice cream were gradually minimized according to decrease in storage temperature up to−50℃. No significant beneficial effect of −70℃ storage was found in quality attributes. In the scope of our experiment, we recommend a storage temperature of −50℃ to preserve the quality attributes of premium ice cream.
Complex and uncertain issues in supply chain result in integrated decision making processes in supply chains. So decentralized (distributed) decision making (DDM) approach is considered as a crucial stage in supply chain planning. In this paper, an uncertain DDM through coordination mechanism is addressed for a multi-product supply chain planning problem. The main concern of this study is comparison of DDM approach with centralized decision making (CDM) approach while some parameters of decision making are assumed to be uncertain. The uncertain DDM problem is modeled through fuzzy mathematical programming in which products' demands are assumed to be uncertain and modeled using fuzzy sets. Moreover, a CDM approach is customized and developed in presence of fuzzy parameters. Both approaches are solved using three fuzzy mathematical optimization methods. Hence, the contribution of this paper can be summarized as follows: 1) proposing a DDM approach for a multi-product supply chain planning problem; 2) Introducing a coordination mechanism in the proposed DDM approach in order to utilize the benefits of a CDM approach while using DDM approach; 3) Modeling the aforementioned problem through fuzzy mathematical programming; 4) Comparing the performance of proposed DDM and a customized uncertain CDM approach on multi-product supply chain planning; 5) Applying three fuzzy mathematical optimization methods in order to address and compare the performance of both DDM and CDM approaches. The results of these fuzzy optimization methods are compared. Computational results illustrate that the proposed DDM approach closely approximates the optimal solutions generated by the CDM approach while the manufacturer's and retailers' decisions are optimized through a coordination mechanism making lasting relationship.
Internet commerce has been growing at a rapid pace for the last decade. Many firms try to reach wider consumer markets by adding the Internet channel to the existing traditional channels. Despite the various benefits of the Internet channel, a significant number of firms failed in managing the new type of channel. Previous studies could not cleary explain these conflicting results associated with the Internet channel. One of the major reasons is most of the previous studies conducted analyses under a specific market condition and claimed that as the impact of Internet channel introduction. Therefore, their results are strongly influenced by the specific market settings. However, firms face various market conditions in the real worlddensity and disutility of using the Internet. The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of various market environments on a firm's optimal channel strategy by employing a flexible game theory model. We capture various market conditions with consumer density and disutility of using the Internet.
shows the channel structures analyzed in this study. Before the Internet channel is introduced, a monopoly manufacturer sells its products through an independent physical store. From this structure, the manufacturer could introduce its own Internet channel (MI). The independent physical store could also introduce its own Internet channel and coordinate it with the existing physical store (RI). An independent Internet retailer such as Amazon could enter this market (II). In this case, two types of independent retailers compete with each other. In this model, consumers are uniformly distributed on the two dimensional space. Consumer heterogeneity is captured by a consumer's geographical location (ci) and his disutility of using the Internet channel (${\delta}_{N_i}$).
shows various market conditions captured by the two consumer heterogeneities.
(a) illustrates a market with symmetric consumer distributions. The model captures explicitly the asymmetric distributions of consumer disutility in a market as well. In a market like that is represented in
(c), the average consumer disutility of using an Internet store is relatively smaller than that of using a physical store. For example, this case represents the market in which 1) the product is suitable for Internet transactions (e.g., books) or 2) the level of E-Commerce readiness is high such as in Denmark or Finland. On the other hand, the average consumer disutility when using an Internet store is relatively greater than that of using a physical store in a market like (b). Countries like Ukraine and Bulgaria, or the market for "experience goods" such as shoes, could be examples of this market condition.
summarizes the various scenarios of consumer distributions analyzed in this study. The range for disutility of using the Internet (${\delta}_{N_i}$) is held constant, while the range of consumer distribution (${\chi}_i$) varies from -25 to 25, from -50 to 50, from -100 to 100, from -150 to 150, and from -200 to 200.
summarizes the analysis results. As the average travel cost in a market decreases while the average disutility of Internet use remains the same, average retail price, total quantity sold, physical store profit, monopoly manufacturer profit, and thus, total channel profit increase. On the other hand, the quantity sold through the Internet and the profit of the Internet store decrease with a decreasing average travel cost relative to the average disutility of Internet use. We find that a channel that has an advantage over the other kind of channel serves a larger portion of the market. In a market with a high average travel cost, in which the Internet store has a relative advantage over the physical store, for example, the Internet store becomes a mass-retailer serving a larger portion of the market. This result implies that the Internet becomes a more significant distribution channel in those markets characterized by greater geographical dispersion of buyers, or as consumers become more proficient in Internet usage. The results indicate that the degree of price discrimination also varies depending on the distribution of consumer disutility in a market. The manufacturer in a market in which the average travel cost is higher than the average disutility of using the Internet has a stronger incentive for price discrimination than the manufacturer in a market where the average travel cost is relatively lower. We also find that the manufacturer has a stronger incentive to maintain a high price level when the average travel cost in a market is relatively low. Additionally, the retail competition effect due to Internet channel introduction strengthens as average travel cost in a market decreases. This result indicates that a manufacturer's channel power relative to that of the independent physical retailer becomes stronger with a decreasing average travel cost. This implication is counter-intuitive, because it is widely believed that the negative impact of Internet channel introduction on a competing physical retailer is more significant in a market like Russia, where consumers are more geographically dispersed, than in a market like Hong Kong, that has a condensed geographic distribution of consumers.