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This paper advances the theoretical understanding of online customer experience in the context of e-shopping. Due to the multidisciplinary nature of experience, the relevant prior theories and definitions vary. This paper explores what an online shopping experience is as constructed by consumers, using their own words. Adopting Kelly's (1955) personal construct theory (PCT), twenty-three repertory grid interviews were conducted and analysed using multi-coder qualitative content analysis (with an inter-reliability score of 76%). The findings highlight the fluid nature of experience and its construction (emotional, perceptual, situational and behavioural). The variations in meaning explored in otherwise mutually agreed abstractions of what an experience is suggest a need for a strong emphasis on the individualistic dynamic nature of experience, both in theoretical and methodological terms. Accordingly, the paper contributes to theory by adopting a holistic approach that allows a definition of experience from the user's perspective, thus challenging current perspectives on the online shopping experience, and particularly on the emotion, risk perception and situational variables. Key managerial implications for online businesses are provided by highlighting the importance of finding better ways of managing the individualistic experience by focusing on dynamic customer journeys. Constructs of emotion, perception, situation and behaviour constitute an experience.The situational buying context shapes the shopping experience.The essence of experience is its fluid, highly individualistic nature.Trust is more important than risk in online fashion shopping experiences.

This paper presents a critical review of online environmental psychology articles based on the stimulus-organism-response paradigm. The structure of the paper follows the sequence of the S-O-R framework, i.e. starting with environmental stimuli both in traditional and online store settings. Then, consumers' inner organism theories are reviewed, followed by behavioural responses.\ud \ud This endeavour also table-summarises a selected set of the most relevant articles in the specific setting of online fashion shopping environments. Content analysis of the table shows that two main themes have emerged in literature; one investigates the influence of online environmental stimuli on consumer trust and risk perception; whereas the second theme is more emotion-centred. Finally, the paper highlights the limitations of current literature and presents an agenda for future research.

Concerns that small firms encounter credit constraints are well entrenched in the literature, despite widespread empirical evidence that a relatively small proportion of small firms have their loan applications rejected. However, many firms may be discouraged from applying for fear of rejection. These businesses are the focus of this paper. Based on responses to a large-scale postal survey of UK small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), we find that twice as many businesses were discouraged from applying for a bank loan than had their loan request denied. More particularly, we observe a number of distinguishing characteristics of “discouraged borrowers” (relative to applicants). These include: strategy, sector, prior entrepreneurial experience and banking relationships. The implications of our findings for policy and future research are briefly discussed.

Home-based businesses are a significant proportion of the small business sector. However, they are largely invisible, not separately identified in official statistics and difficult to survey. Home-based businesses account for 36% of all businesses in the UK. Most are full-time businesses and one in ten have achieved significant scale. They are found in all industry sectors. Only a small minority are largely or exclusively engaged in e-commerce. There is a striking association between areas with the highest proportions of home based businesses and the geography of economic prosperity. Local authorities should make home based business a focus for economic development. Von zu Hause aus geführte Unternehmen machen einen erheblichen Anteil des Sektors der Kleinunternehmen aus. Doch da diese Unternehmen unsichtbar bleiben, wird angenommen, dass sie nur einen geringen Beitrag zur Wirtschaft leisten. In diesem Beitrag wird diese Ansicht in Frage gestellt. Die Unternehmen sind mehrheitlich Vollzeit tätig. Jedes zehnte von ihnen hat eine signifikante Größe erreicht. Die Unternehmen schaffen Arbeitsplätze für mehr Personen als nur den bzw. die Eigentümer. Sie sind konzentriert in den Sektoren der Informationstechnologie sowie der geschäftlichen und professionellen Dienste angesiedelt. Ebenso zeichnen sie sich durch eine charakteristische Geografie aus. Den höchsten Anteil an von zu Hause aus geführten Unternehmen weisen ländliche und nicht-metropolitane Gebiete in Südengland auf. In urbanen bzw. industriellen Regionen finden sich die niedrigsten Anteile. Diese Tatsache legt nahe, dass die Rolle der von zu Hause aus geführten Unternehmen bei der lokalen Wirtschaftsentwicklung überdacht werden muss.

One of the most significant trends in the post-industrial era has been for the home to become an important focus for work. The boundaries between work and home are now increasingly blurred, reversing the forces of the industrial era in which places deemed suitable for each were clearly demarcated and physically separate. The most recent published figures available from the Labour Force Survey (2005)1 indicate that 3.1m people now work mainly from home, 11% of the workforce. This represents a rise from 2.3m in 1997 (9% of the workforce), a 35% increase. The majority of homeworkers (2.4m or 77% of the total) are 'teleworkers' – people who use computers and telecommunications to work at home. The number of teleworkers has increased by 1.5m between 1997 and 2005, a 166% increase. Clearly, it is the growth in the number of teleworkers which is driving the increase in homeworking.

A national minimum wage (NMW) was introduced into the United Kingdom in 1999 as part of New Labour's active labour-market approach. The level has been uprated on several occasions since then. Most research suggests that the NMW has benefited low-paid workers while having little adverse impact on employment levels. This paper explores the regional impact of the NMW on the small business sector, using data from the Federation of Small Businesses' biennial survey, the largest business survey in the United Kingdom. Overall, just over 21% of businesses with employees uprated employees and just under 10% of employees have benefited from pay uprates. The impact has varied across industries, with the greatest effects in the hotels and catering sector. In general, affected businesses have anticipated that they would be able to absorb the costs, although in some cases at the expense of a slight decline in profitability. The impact of the NMW also varies across the regions, having the least impact in London and the South East and the greatest impact in the ‘north‘. In the northern regions, businesses are less able to absorb the increased costs and more likely to respond by increasing prices. This has potential implications for the competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises in these regions, which is more likely to be based around price and cost advantages than their counterparts in the south. The Low Pay Commission therefore should give greater attention to the geographical impacts of the NMW in its evaluation and when proposing future increases in the rate.