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Digital retailing is omnipresent, such that shoppers increasingly interact with digital devices in physical stores. In service interactions involving the use of digital devices, shoppers attain novel forms of support, but they still need a means to achieve a sense of autonomy. To address this challenge, the current article reports on a qualitative analysis that reveals three main dimensions of phygital autonomy (visual, verbal, and kinetic) that relate to fundamental human senses and may enhance or undermine shoppers' perceived autonomy, due to their extension or restriction. By reviewing the concept of autonomy across distinct retail settings, this study also provides theoretical and practical insights for how to reconcile shoppers' autonomy dilemma, across their desires for freedom of action, freedom of choice, and human support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For one-of-a-kind production (OKP) manufacturers adopting an engineer-to-order or make-to-order marketing strategy, it is very important to set an appropriate due date. We design an incentive-compatibility due-date quotation procedure to help OKP manufacturers obtain the rational due-date quotation from OKP customers. Based on the rational due-date quotation decision-making, the performance of an OKP shop floor controlled by load-based pull systems is evaluated in simulation. Our findings show that if the collaboration of due-date quotations and load-based pull control is effective, the order profit of OKP manufacturers will not be reduced when the delivery delay occurs. This study can provide more insights on order quotation decision-making and pull production control for OKP manufacturers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study proposes a unified, dynamic framework based on turnover event theory to evaluate the effects of dismissals, layoff announcements, and voluntary turnover on subsequent work-unit voluntary turnover. Applying our approach to 1,620 retail stores over 22 months, we show that modeling exit events as a dynamic and interdependent system adds to our ability to predict subsequent human capital outflow. Dismissals had the weakest total effect on subsequent voluntary turnover, layoff announcements had the strongest and most immediate effects, and voluntary turnovers had moderate but lasting effects. We also find that these three exit reasons each exhibit a distinct pattern of subsequent turnover intensity and longevity. Based on characteristics of work units in our setting, our results correspond to a cumulative worker-level average effect of 0.17 quits following dismissals, 0.23 quits following quits, and 2.2 quits following a layoff. We find that these "multiplier" effects are concentrated among workers of similar performance: high performer exits beget high performer quits, just as low-performer exits beget low-performer quits. Our findings suggest analyses offering individual-level estimates of turnover will generally underestimate the broader, work-unit level consequences of individual exit events on similar workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores into the levels of coliform contamination, prevalence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, and the hygienic practices in goat meat retail stores. Goat meat from 10 retail stores was analyzed for E. coli, Salmonella, and S. aureus using serological and PCR methods. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed using the Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method. Data on hygienic practices were collected through a structured observational questionnaire. Pearson's correlation analysis was also employed to establish the relationship between hygienic practices and coliform loads. The average coliform loads on goat meat ranged between 0.88-5.04 log10 cfu/g. Our results revealed that 52% of examined goat meat was deemed unacceptable (>3.30 log10 CFU/g). The overall level of good meat handling practices among meat handlers in our study was 45.75%. Further, the study establishes a significant correlation between the level of food safety practices and coliform load. Hence, stores with higher hygienic practice scores exhibited lower coliform loads. The prevalence of S. aureus (44%) in goat meat was significantly higher (p < 0.05) as compared to E. coli (29%), and Salmonella spp. (20%). E. coli isolates displayed the highest resistance to penicillin (31.2%), Salmonella spp. to oxytetracycline (13.9%), and S. aureus to ampicillin (29.0%). Resistance was observed across selected antibiotic classes, particularly in beta-lactams and tetracyclines, with penicillin (78.5%) and oxytetracycline (64.5%) exhibiting notable resistance. Cephalosporin resistance was noted, with 48.4 and 33.3% of isolates showing resistance to cephalothin and cefpodoxime, respectively. Bacterial isolates also demonstrated resistance to phenicol antibiotics, including chloramphenicol (9.7%) and florfenicol (16.1%), respectively. Approximately 44.1% of bacterial isolates displayed multidrug resistance and MAR index ranged from 0.25 to 0.75. The study's findings reveal heightened levels of coliform contamination, the presence of pathogenic and multidrug-resistant bacteria in goat meat, and suboptimal meat handling practices in retail stores. The significance of improving food safety practices in retail settings is emphasized to ensure the safety of goat meat, a matter of increasing importance due to its growing demand globally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trade in undomesticated ornamental animals has rapidly expanded beyond brick‐and‐mortar retail stores to now include growing numbers of internet marketplaces. The growing volume, diversity, and origins of invasive non‐native species in trade challenge already weak national biosecurity policies. Despite widespread focus on vertebrates, many knowledge gaps exist regarding the online global trade of ornamental invertebrates. We conducted the first global assessment of the online trade in and associated invasion risk of freshwater crayfishes, which are increasingly popular aquarium animals. We systematically examined e‐commerce marketplaces in multiple languages, scrapping information that included species identity, price, quantity, and shipping designation from each crayfish listing. Next, we combined geographic pathways of shipping associated with online trade (introduction risk) and environmental suitability modeling (establishment risk) to estimate global risk of non‐native crayfish invasion risk. We identified hundreds of online marketplaces and thousands of sale listings in 33 countries (5 continents) involving 60 species and representing a selling value of ∼US$1.5 million. Invasion risk of non‐native crayfish in trade was widespread, with geographic hotspots coinciding with both elevated opportunities for introduction (greater shipping offerings) and establishment. Precise characterization of the online species trade is fundamental to support new and reformed biosecurity policies, build industry partnerships, and design educational campaigns to prevent species invasions through trade. We found that the taxonomy, geography, and economics of the global online ornamental crayfish trade are vast and require greater attention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By investigating emotional contagion in customer–employee interactions using the emotional facial action coding system, this study offers a means to separate primitive emotional contagion from its conscious counterpart. As an empirical validation of primitive emotional contagion and its impact on customer satisfaction, the multifaceted research approach, involving an experimental laboratory study and two field studies in hospitality and retail settings, reveals consistent findings. Additionally, the influence of emotional contagion on customer satisfaction is moderated by the esthetic appeal of the interior design. This work advances the theoretical understanding of the dynamics of primitive emotional contagion; it also offers practical insights regarding the importance of interior designs and busyness for enhancing service interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose a method that can generate customer trajectories and purchasing behaviors in retail stores simultaneously using Transformer-based deep learning structure. Utilizing customer trajectory data, layout diagrams, and retail scanner data obtained from a retail store, we trained a GPT-2 architecture from scratch to generate indoor trajectories and purchase actions. Additionally, we explored the effectiveness of fine-tuning the pre-trained model with data from another store. Results demonstrate that our method reproduces in-store trajectories and purchase behaviors more accurately than LSTM and SVM models, with fine-tuning significantly reducing the required training data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Recent reviews on prism adaptation training (PAT) for visuospatial neglect concluded that it is ineffective. In our view, this conclusion goes too far. In this contribution, we discuss the limitations present in these reviews: the inclusion of right-sided neglect patients; failure to differentiate between patients with and without parietal lesions; ignoring results of line bisection or other tests. We argue that another aspect may play a role in the effectiveness of PAT: the extension of the task-work space. We show that using a workspace of more than 10° toward the contralesional side seems to improve the effectiveness of PAT. PAT still offers an important approach to treating neglect patients, and future studies should consider the extension of the workspace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Growing popularity of self-service in retail stores and increasing associated shrinkage presents an urgent need for computer-vision-based product recognition in the area of self-checkouts. The article focuses on individual product recognition using automated workflow in images collected from retail store self-checkouts. The interest of this research lies exclusively in the recognition of barcodeless products—ones that present a challenge of being identified quickly and qualitatively at self-checkouts. Image sets representative of retail store product distribution do not exist as of the time of writing to the authors' knowledge. Images collected by exploiting self-checkout events often contain products partially covered by customer body parts, inside semi-transparent plastic bags, or not present in the area of interest. Due to the huge assortment of products that varies between stores and changes frequently, manual image labeling, filtering and long training time are unpractical. The proposed method investigates the need for automated steps to eliminate empty images and eliminate images where product visibility is unsatisfactory. Authors achieved 80.5±1.2% classification accuracy on a real-world dataset of 194 products using automatic workflow. The ablation studies proved the need for image filtering in both training and inference workflows. The neural network architecture tuned to the self-checkout dataset proved to outperform well-known networks: the suggested architecture's training time is a fraction of ImageNet's best EfficientNet and accuracy is slightly better. The suggested method generalization is proved on comparable products dataset Fruits 360, where 99.6% accuracy was achieved—comparable or better than other authors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper answers how changes in social media activity influence customers to visit nationally known, brick-and-mortar retail stores. We consider seven measures of social media activity within a Social Impact Theory framework and test under what context does online chatter about a brand lead to higher foot traffic to those brand stores. We use hierarchical linear regression to account for the random effects of brand and store heterogeneity, which is superior to ordinary linear regression. Despite wide variation, when brand mentions increase by one standard deviation—either in likes or disagreement—then next-day foot traffic to stores of that brand will increase by 0.04 standard deviations (3–4%). This modest but meaningful effect, however, fully dissipates within 1 week. The weak cross-brand effects show that social media has distinct and larger influence on brands individually rather than universally. Our approach is novel due to (1) the large scale of data, (2) the breadth of analysis, (3) the multi-level specification, and (4) in estimating global elasticities between changes in electronic word-of-mouth (WoM) communication about brands and changes in store visits of those brands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Small retail stores in the luxury market face significant challenges due to fluctuations in market demand. This task turns challenging as it requires effectively coordinating and translating customer needs into specific requirements that align with retail goals and available resources. However, limited empirical research exists investigating how managers can address service value and quality attributes in small retail stores. This article aims to bridge this gap by investigating the role of quality function deployment (QFD) in improving market and quality requirements management in small retail stores. Design/methodology/approach: Based on the case study, a customer survey was initially conducted to gather information on critical characteristics valued in the luxury retail segment. QFD was used to assist the company in identifying and prioritizing key quality attributes to meet customer requirements effectively. Findings: The findings demonstrate that implementing QFD in small luxury retail stores empowers managers to identify previously neglected product and service quality aspects. The article shows that QFD informs organizational adaptations that align with the demands of the retail market, leading to an improved ability to meet customer expectations and enhance customer value through the development of enhanced products and services. The study showcases the efficacy of the tested methodology in effectively capturing and prioritizing both tangible and intangible customer needs in retail. Practical implications: Findings offer valuable insights to retail managers of small luxury stores, providing actionable market-oriented strategies. By implementing the recommended practices, managers can improve the store's competitiveness and better cater to the customer base. Originality/value: This study contributes to bridging persistent knowledge gaps by addressing the unique context of small luxury retail stores and introducing the application of QFD in this setting. The insights gained from this research are relevant to both retailing and quality management literature. Considering the growing prevalence of transformations in the retail industry, the study provides practical implications for retail managers in effectively navigating these changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We consider an order fulfillment problem of an omni-channel retailer that ships online orders from its distribution center (DC) and brick-and-mortar stores. Stores use their local information, not observed by the retailer, that can lead them to accept or reject fulfillment requests of items in an online order. We investigate the problem of sequencing requests to stores and inventory rationing decisions at the DC to minimize expected costs under uncertain store acceptance behavior and when items are indistinguishable in terms of shipping. First, under the scenario that stores are used only when the DC has insufficient inventory, we propose a Markov Decision Process formulation and analyze the performance of myopic policies that are preferable because of their interpretability. We show that the performance rate of a myopic approach that orders stores by cost only depends on the number of items in an order, which is small in practice. We also determine conditions for the range of acceptance probabilities for the myopic policy to be optimal for small-sized orders. Using optimality conditions for a special case of the problem, we develop an adaptive variant of the myopic policy, and propose a new degree-based strategy that balances shipping costs and acceptance probabilities. Numerical testing suggests that the best-performing sequencing policy is within 1% of optimality on average. Moreover, using two years of data from a large omni-channel retailer in North America, we observe that adaptive policies, albeit more complex, are beneficial in reducing costs and split deliveries if acceptance rates can be estimated accurately. Second, we determine when the retailer should ship from stores or ration the inventory at the DC. We show that for single-item orders, the optimal policy has a threshold structure, where, remarkably, the highest priority region is also subject to rationing. We then consider the novel multi-unit-single-item rationing problem, and leverage the structure of the single-unit model to develop a heuristic. We numerically establish the efficacy of rationing models and our heuristic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the impact of accounting information systems (AIS) on the performance of retail stores, with Ok Gweru supermarket as the case study. The traditional manual accounting systems used by supermarkets have been replaced by computerized accounting systems due to globalization. However, these systems sometimes fail to process transactions quickly and are also vulnerable to criminal attacks. The study aimed to identify the reasons for these problems and provide solutions to address them in the retail industry. The research design involved a sample of 36 respondents, stratified according to their job roles. Data was collected using questionnaires. The study found a positive relationship between AIS and performance, as integrated systems that meet the basic reporting requirements of IFRS and GAAP can produce relevant information for sound economic decisions. Staff training to ensure user competency was found to be necessary, and supermarkets were identified as being at risk of cyber-attacks due to a lack of resources to protect their systems. It was recommended that these issues be continually discussed with employees to increase awareness of these malicious activities and how to counter them.

Since 2020, many types of intoxicating cannabis products have entered the U.S. market. Hemp-derived intoxicating cannabis products, including hexahydrocannabinol and delta-8 tetrahydrocannabinol, pose concerns regarding their youth-oriented marketing, potency, and health effects. Some states have attempted to ban, restrict, or regulate their sale. However, the effectiveness of these laws and their enforcement is unclear. This study provides insights into the retail landscape of intoxicating cannabis products sold across the U.S. In November–December 2023, researchers systematically identified, called, and completed brief surveys with 520 U.S. vape shops: (n =10 per state, n =10 in District of Columbia, n =10 in Puerto Rico). The survey assessed the availability of 6 commonly sold intoxicating cannabis products. Data were analyzed by regulatory context. Analyses were conducted in 2024. A total of 74% of vape shops sold any intoxicating cannabis products. Intoxicating cannabis products were sold in 43% of shops in states with delta-8 tetrahydrocannabinol bans, 53% in states with substantial regulations (intended to support safe use), 90% in states with significant restrictions (intended to limit potency/availability), and 92% in states with limited/no regulations. Intoxicating cannabis products were sold in vape shops in each state except Washington and Alaska, both of which banned hemp-derived intoxicating cannabis products and had active retail of legalized nonmedical cannabis. Taking licensed dispensaries into consideration, intoxicating cannabis products can be purchased in retail stores located in all 50 states; Washington, District of Columbia; and Puerto Rico. Intoxicating cannabis products are widely available in vape shops, even in most states with relevant bans/restrictions. Enhanced laws, surveillance, and enforcement are needed. The 2024 Farm Bill and state laws should explicitly prohibit hemp-derived intoxicating cannabis products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Person re-identification (re-id) attempts to match a person from the images of different time steps. Existing deep learning approaches either use appearance or geometry features for re-id which does not provide the required robustness because of higher intra-class similarity. Existing supervised re-id approaches utilize Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) and identity-labeled images to train, where the person images are taken by the sensors from a horizontal view. The horizontal view exposes the privacy of the people because of their facial appearance in the image. Moreover, person re-id includes new unseen people; however, CNN does not have the ability to identify the new unseen people because of a lack of continual learning. Privacy-preserved computer vision-assisted person re-id systems can benefit from visual appearance and geometry features extracted from top-view RGB and depth input. This paper presents the privacy-preserved person top-view re-id few-shot network which uses the appearance and geometry features. The EfficientNet is used for appearance-based features from RGB input, while PointNet is used to extract the geometry features from the point cloud which is made from the RGB-D image registration. Concatenated features from EfficientNet and PointNet are fed to the two-layer Bi-LSTM network for person identification. Finally, the whole network is converted into a few-shot network to achieve continual learning by removing the output layer and joining the similarity measurement unit. This approach is based on CNN and fine-tunes a TVPR/2 dataset acquired by using a top-view arrangement that is publicly available. The experimental results on TVPR/2 and GODPR datasets show that the proposed re-id network outperforms other state-of-the-art networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has taken the world by a storm for over three years now. With new variants and developments constantly being brought to light, it has become imperative for citizens to get vaccinated and maintain social distancing in public places, such as retail stores, in order to curb the spread of the virus. Statistics suggest that being fully vaccinated can prove to be, on average, 81% effective against the COVID-19 virus. This project aims at developing a customer screening system that dynamically counts the number of customers inside a store at a particular point in time and allows conditional entry only if the customer is fully vaccinated and wearing a face mask. This system is developed using Open-CV and MobileNetV2 for detection of facial characteristics, and achieved 98% accuracy for face mask detection. Further, a QR Scanner has been employed in conjunction with the Indian government-authorized CoWIN portal for verification of vaccination details, and Flask for the development of a web server for implementation. Additionally, key demographic information pertaining to customers and entry logs have been automatically populated into an Excel-based database for predictive crowd analysis. In doing so, the manual labour required for the customer screening process has been reduced to zero whereas the health and safety of individuals is promoted, consequentially curbing the spread of the virus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When reviewing the safety of food packaging, safety assessors must determine the migration levels of a food contact substance (FCS) from the packaging into the contained food products. Migration values can be expressed relative to levels in food using a single 'food mass-to-surface area (mF/A) ratio', representative of the general food supply. Because no published literature has examined mF/A ratios for the current U.S. food supply, this study aimed to use food databases to develop a standard mF/A ratio representative of packaged foods in the current U.S. food supply. First, we obtained information on the food-contact surface area (A) and food mass (mF) for a selection of packaged foods sold in U.S. retail stores. To adequately represent the variation of food products on the market, we identified a representative product per food category, using a 95-category list that was derived from the USDA WWEIA Food Categories. The values for A and mF per package were determined for each representative product using product size information from the Syndigo Nutrition Database. These data were used to calculate the A/mF ratio for each of the 95 representative products, and the average A/mF ratio was determined. The average A/mF ratio was weighted using consumption data from the WWEIA component of NHANES, so that more weight was given to foods that are consumed in greater quantities. The final step was to then take the reciprocal of the averaged A/mF ratio to obtain the final mF/A ratio. The resulting mF/A ratio was 4.8 g/in², which rounds to 5 g/in². In summary, we determined that 5 g/in² is representative of the current U.S. food supply and could be used as a standard mF/A ratio when estimating migration levels of an FCS from packaging into food. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

"Sensing in Social Interaction: The Taste for Cheese in Gourmet Shops" by Lorenza Mondada is a book that explores the sensory experiences and interactions that occur in cheese shops. The author takes an ethnomethodological approach, focusing on how sensory moments are embedded in actual activities and how they are socially constructed. The book presents extensive video data from gourmet cheese shops in 11 countries, analyzing the sequential aspects of seeing, touching, smelling, and tasting cheese. The author emphasizes the importance of multisensory experiences and the intersubjective understandings that shape these interactions. Overall, the book offers valuable insights into the social and cultural dimensions of sensory experiences in cheese shops. [Extracted from the article]

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The influx of tourists alters language culture, particularly in public signage, reflecting linguistic shifts, especially in Peunayong, a tourist hub in Banda Aceh, Indonesia. This study examines language use and its correlation with shop names and tourism in this area. Data from 81 shop names and 10 shop owners were collected through photographic documentation and a questionnaire. The results on the monolingual shop names reveal that English dominates at 32% of shop names, followed by Indonesian at 21%, and Acehnese at 4%, showing an evolving linguistic landscape amidst globalization. Bilingual (43%) and multilingual (1%) shop names embrace diversity and cultural heritage. Factors shaping these names include linguistic, commercial, and cultural aspects, with foreign influences recognized for their appeal. However, opinions on their prestige vary. Owners strategically choose names to attract customers, match their products, convey luxury, and display the local culture. Therefore, it is necessary to balance English dominance to preserve local identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently people often purchase their daily needs at retail stores. Therefore, crowds might happen due to a manual queueing system. To overcome the problem, the smart system based on object detection has been conducted using several object detection methods. This study proposed YOLOv8 combined with transformer Real-Time Detection Transformer (RT-DETR) model to enhance the method performance in detecting the detail products. The intra-Class Variation method has been used to recognize the characteristics of the products such as size, color, and variant of the product. To validate the proposed model, three different datasets have been applied that is grocery dataset that displays products one by one in the training and validation process, the RPC-dataset that has many products in one image, and the D2S dataset with products that have varying lighting and stacked products. Results showed that the proposed model outperformed compared to other models, with a mean Average Precision (mAP) of 99.5% for the grocery dataset, 99.3% RPC-dataset, and 85.5% D2S dataset, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to deepen the knowledge of consumer wellness by conceptualizing this construct in an everyday retail setting, specifically a health food store. With wellness seeking being a central theme in the positioning strategy of many food retail stores, this study aims to investigate the development of an everyday wellness pursuit in a retail setting, identify its underlying dimensions in a health food store setting and establish the key managerial drivers that nurture it in such context, from the consumer standpoint. Design/methodology/approach: The research design uses a qualitative approach. In-depth interviews with 20 customers of six multibranch health food retailers were carried out. Findings: The findings show the holistic and multidimensional nature of wellness in an everyday consumption setting and highlight the development of physical, emotional, intellectual, social and spiritual consumer wellness in this context. They also bring to light how, in an everyday activity such as a health food retail store visit, retailers can co-create and nurture consumer wellness through their product assortment, store environment and employees' orientation toward customer wellness. Originality/value: The main contribution of this study lies in the conceptualization of the retail wellnesscape, defined as a retail space that consumers choose to visit in their daily lives that contribute to their holistic wellness journey. This paper emphasizes both the importance and the feasibility of cultivating consumer wellness on an everyday basis, for both consumers and retailers, while it has traditionally been associated with more occasional and out of the ordinary settings such as wellness tourism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a smart checkout system designed to mitigate the issues of noise and errors present in the existing barcode and RFID-based systems used at retail stores' checkout counters. This is achieved by integrating a novel AI algorithm, called Improved Laser Simulator Logic (ILSL) into the RFID system. The enhanced RFID system was able to improve the accuracy of item identification, reduce noise interference, and streamline the overall checkout process. The potential of the system for noise detection and elimination was initially investigated through a simulation study using MATLAB and ILSL algorithm. Subsequently, it was deployed in a small-scale environment to validate its real-world performance. Results show that RFID with the proposed new algorithm ILSL and AI basket is capable of accurately detecting the related items while eliminating noise originating from unrelated objects, achieving an accuracy rate of 88%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multi‐method research was conducted in South Africa to explore the personal values that shape millennial men's clothing retail store choices when purchasing semi‐formal/smart workwear for themselves. The qualitative phase comprised in‐depth, personal interviews with 25 participants, implementing soft laddering to elicit the preferred attributes and desired consequences that drive clothing retail store choices. These 'easier to communicate' properties formed the crux of the phase 2 measuring instrument. The online quantitative questionnaire, an interactive version of the established Association Pattern Technique (APT), was completed by 408 millennial men as part of the means‐end chain (MEC) procedure. The stepwise process produced a series of hierarchical value maps (HVMs), disclosing two prominent underlying personal values that drive millennial men's clothing store choices. 'Pleasure' emerged as the most prominent personal value, signalling millennials' high regard for enjoyable shopping experiences. The importance of a sense of 'security' should also be noted. Accordingly, the underlying forces that drive this financially lucrative cohort's clothing retail store choices extend beyond the marketing principles taught in business schools. Retailers will, therefore, have to delve deeper to understand their target markets' needs to prosper in a highly competitive marketplace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Manufacturers in online retailing are exploring a physical store option: showroom, retail store, or hybrid model. We've built game‐theoretic models to study their deployment strategies and channel preferences of e‐tailers and consumers. Our analysis reveals that manufacturers opt for a hybrid store with a small showrooming effect, showroom with a significant effect, but rarely a retail store. Consumers generally favor manufacturers introducing an offline channel while e‐tailers prefer this when the online channel has a large market share. When the online channel dominates, e‐tailers are more motivated to choose a hybrid store while consumers lean towards a showroom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article provides an update on Patagonia, a clothing wear company known for its commitment to minimizing its environmental impact. The company's origins can be traced back to a blacksmith shop in downtown Ventura, California, which has recently been designated as a historic landmark. The shop, where Patagonia's founder Yvon Chouinard started his business in 1967, remains an important part of the company's headquarters. Patagonia's dedication to sustainability is highlighted, including its unique anti-consumerism ad campaign. The article also mentions that in 2022, Chouinard transferred ownership of the company to an environmental nonprofit and a purpose trust to further its mission of fighting climate change. [Extracted from the article]

The article is a book review of "Multimodality and Social Interaction in Online and Offline Shopping," edited by Gitte Rasmussen and Theo van Leeuwen. The book explores the discursive dynamics of multimodal shopping interactions in the context of e-commerce and traditional retail settings. It examines various shopping scenarios, including online platforms and physical stores, and analyzes the role of language, gestures, and other modes of communication in shaping the shopping experience. The book employs a multidisciplinary approach, combining linguistic methodologies with sociological frameworks, to study the complex dynamics of shopping activities. [Extracted from the article]

Impulse Buying and the drivers of similar consumer behaviours have captured the interest of researchers for quite some time now. The construct was first explored in the context of offline or brick and mortar stores. However, with the growing popularity of online retail stores has led to the concept being included in studies on customer behaviour, specifically in the online context. In the current study, the researchers attempt to contribute to literature on customer behaviour in the online environment by exploring the relationship between E-Shopping Orientation, Trust and Impulsive Buying Behaviour. The focus of the currents study is the members of Generation Y. The scope was limited to this specific section, given that each generation differs from the other in terms of their behaviour, needs and drivers. While the direct impact of E-shopping Orientation on Impulsive Buying Behaviour was found to be not statistically significant, the indirect effect was found to be significant. This suggests that Trust fully mediates the relationship between E-Shopping Orientation and Impulsive Buying Behaviour. In addition to contributing to literature in the area of customer behaviour, the findings also add to our understanding of a major section of the Indian customer base. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines how patron-client relationships deepen into relations of pity, obligation, and dependency through rural neighbourhood stores. Based on ethnographic research on Palawan Island, I examine relations between Tagbanua and their store-owning neighbours in order to consider firstly, how social differentiations of class and ethnicity are reproduced through stores, and secondly, the role of these stores in the reproduction of contending moral claims regarding the foundational basis of this inequality. I suggest that what is being debated can be understood in terms of a right to provision. In drawing on this case study, I argue that the right to provision allows us to consider how the right to provide is bound within claims about the right to be provided with the conditions that make viable provision possible. Shopping in the rainforest, therefore, concerns the moral claims central to how a person can make a living and live with others. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research examines the application of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems in service shops, focusing on the specific challenges unique to these environments compared to those in the manufacturing sector. Service shops, distinguished by their smaller scale and variable demands, often need different functionalities in ERP systems compared to manufacturing facilities. Our analysis is based on detailed billing records and monthly cash flow data to deliver critical insights into businesses' performance for service shop managers. This study analyses ERP data from 27 service shops over 35 months. It is based on detailed billing records and monthly cash flow data to deliver critical insights into businesses' performance for service shop managers that support managerial decision making. Our findings emphasise the importance of incorporating additional contextual information to augment the effectiveness of ERP systems in service contexts. Our analysis shows that simple, standardised data mining methods can significantly enhance operational management decision making when supported with visuals to support understanding and interpretation of the data. Moreover, this study suggests potential directions for future research aimed at improving business analytics and intelligence practices to optimise the use of ERP systems in service industries. This research contributes to the academic discourse by providing empirical evidence on utilising ERP data in service shops and offers practical recommendations for ongoing operational improvements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This scientific article addresses the regulation of fixed odds betting in Brazil and the changes promoted by law n° 14,790 of 2023. The topic under analysis was chosen because it is an area currently widely used by the population, but little explored legally and due to the desire to expand the reflection and knowledge about the legalization of betting shops in Brazil, especially knowing your rights, thus presenting the following problem: what points are covered with the implementation of this regulation? A bibliographical survey and study on the topic was initially carried out. Studies on the topic, such as Araújo (2020), Val (2022) and others, were involved to provide theoretical support and encourage the discussion presented in the work. It can be concluded that the legislative branch took a step of great importance for the country by approving the regulation of sports betting. However, this trade requires special attention in the coming years, as it is a practice that is still little explored from a criminal point of view and its regulations must be updated frequently until the illicit acts that can occur in this sector are restricted as much as possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Good manufacturing practices play an important role in obtaining safe food and preventing foodborne diseases. To achieve this goal, food handlers must receive appropriate training to be aware of their responsibilities. In this work, compliance with specific personal hygiene requirements by food handlers was assessed in a cross-sectional study of traditional small retail establishments, namely butcher (n = 56) and fishmonger (n = 17) shops in Almada, Portugal. Food handlers (n = 140, of which 113 worked in butcher shops, and 27 worked in fishmonger shops) were interviewed for data collection, and retail establishments were audited considering specific hygiene requisites. In fishmonger shops, most food handlers are women (89%), aged 18 to 45 years (70%), with a high school degree, having worked for less than 5 years in this activity, while in butcher shops most food handlers are men (90%) over 45 years old (58%), with a basic education level, and more than 26 years of experience. Most food handlers (>95%) attended recent food safety and hygiene training courses and were able to recognize that hand sanitizers cannot replace a proper hand wash, and to identify Staphylococcus aureus transmission routes to food. However, approximately 23% of retail establishments failed to provide hot water in the handwashing basin and exhibited improper placement of handwashing instructions. Furthermore, these establishments did not implement corrective actions following non-conforming microbiological results of hand hygiene monitoring. These findings reinforce the need for consistent management commitment, and for providing food handlers with regular training, which is crucial for maintaining a strong food safety and hygiene culture in these traditional small retail establishments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research background: Generation Z, a consumer base with significant global impact, strongly relies on smart devices, shaping their unique consumption patterns. As this demographic becomes increasingly influential, understanding their shopping behavior is crucial for effective retail marketing strategies. Purpose of the article: This article aims to evaluate the shopping behavior and habits of Generation Z, particularly focusing on the determinants that influence their choices, with a specific emphasis on the role of smart technology. The objective is to uncover insights that explain the relationship between smart device usage and shopping behavior, offering perspectives for retailers aiming to tailor their strategies to the preferences of this demographic. Methods: A survey conducted during the 2019/2020 season involved 1,756 respondents from the Czech Generation Z. To estimate the relationships between smart device usage and shopping behavior, the linear probability and the logit models were employed. Additionally, descriptive statistics provided a comprehensive overview of respondents' preferences and habits. Findings & value added: The results indicate that while the average time spent on smartphones does not inherently correlate with an increased preference for online shopping, it does enhance the likelihood of engaging in online transactions. Contrary to expectations, brick-and-mortar stores remain competitive and are slightly more preferred than online shops among the Czech young generation. This preference is attributed to the tangible experience of touching products and immersing in the store's ambiance. Furthermore, a relationship emerges between concerns about data security and a reduced frequency of online shopping, emphasizing the need to address such apprehensions in marketing strategies. Overall, these findings provide insights into the nuanced shopping behaviors of Generation Z, with implications that extend beyond regional boundaries, guiding retailers in adapting and optimizing their approaches to meet the needs of this demographic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Returnable packaging systems (RPS) related to consumer products help to reduce problematic plastic and glass waste in supply chains. The purpose of this paper is to investigate distribution and return processes and the related cost drivers and benefits of returnable packaging with a deposit refund system in retail stores. Through the lens of the actor–network theory and based on 30 interviews with store managers, including on‐site observations, we develop a research model that structures key processes of RPS and their input and output factors. By subsequently applying system dynamics modeling, we find that: (1) customers' process satisfaction, (2) price elasticity of demand, and (3) time between repeat purchases are key variables that impact RPS' attractiveness and performance. This research contributes to an in‐depth understanding of processes within RPS as well as interdependencies between cost drivers and benefits for retailers. From a managerial perspective, these insights can enable retailers to take action based on the influencing factors for efficient operations related to RPS. Finally, this research has policy implications as it provides argumentation for the commercial benefits of RPS for retailers aside from the overemphasized cost perspectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aims to determine the effect of store atmosphere on purchasing decisions and visitor satisfaction as an intervening variable at Kopi Praja Bintaro, South Tangerang, Banten Province, Indonesia. This type of research is quantitative descriptive with path analysis using Accidental Sampling; the sample size is 100 respondents. The data collection technique is by distributing questionnaires with a Likert scale of 1 to 5. The research results show: (1) The shop atmosphere has a significant effect on visitor satisfaction; (2) Visitor satisfaction has a significant effect on purchasing decisions; (3) The store atmosphere has a significant effect on purchasing decisions through visitor satisfaction. The atmosphere at Kopi Praja Bintaro South Tangerang creates a positive experience for visitors that is comfortable, friendly, and satisfying. This increases customer satisfaction, builds long-term relationships, and expands the popularity of these places in the local community. It is essential to maintain a friendly and fun atmosphere with staff peering in and giving open feedback to improve the quality of service. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Waiting is a ubiquitous constituent of many purchase situations. This research investigates the emotional discomfort experienced by customers visiting retail stores in India throughout the checkout process, focusing on three distinct phases: before joining the queue, while waiting, and during billing. The study examines the circumstances and underlying factors that lead to emotional discomfort among customers while they wait at the checkout counter. A cross-sectional survey involving 385 participants was undertaken to evaluate perceptions related to the waiting experience. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was utilized to validate the conceptual model. The study uncovers diverse contributors to emotional discomfort during queueing, such as extended wait times, physical constraints, and perceived time prolongation, highlighting the multifaceted nature of this experience. Notably, the absence of a significant link between emotional discomfort and overall satisfaction implies that, while emotional discomfort is a factor, other elements such as pricing, promotions, and product offerings may exert a more significant influence on customers' comprehensive satisfaction assessments. The research makes a significant contribution by shedding light on the challenges associated with prolonged waiting times at checkout counters in multi-brand food and grocery retailers. The results provide valuable insights into the emotional experiences of customers during waits and their impact on overall shopping satisfaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research is focused on addressing the energy-aware distributed heterogeneous welding shop scheduling (EADHWS) problem. Our primary objectives are to minimize the maximum finish time and total energy consumption. To accomplish this, we introduce a learning-based cooperative and competitive multi-objective optimization method, which we refer to as LCCMO. We begin by presenting a multi-rule cooperative initialization approach to create a population that combines strong convergence and diversity. This diverse population forms the foundation for our optimization process. Next, we develop a multi-level cooperative global search strategy that explores effective genes within solutions from different angles and sub-problems. This approach enhances our search for optimal solutions. Moreover, we design a competition and cooperation strategy for different populations to expedite convergence. This strategy encourages the exchange of information and ideas among diverse populations, thereby accelerating our progress. We also introduce a multi-operator cooperative local search technique, which investigates elite solutions from various directions, leading to improved convergence and diversity. In addition, we integrate Q-learning into our competitive swarm optimizer to explore different regions of the objective space, enhancing the diversity of the elite archive. Q-learning guides the selection of operators within the small-size population, contributing to more efficient optimization. To evaluate the effectiveness of LCCMO, we conduct numerical experiments on 20 instances. The experimental results unequivocally demonstrate that LCCMO outperforms six state-of-the-art algorithms. This underscores the potential of our learning and knowledge-driven evolutionary framework in enhancing performance and autonomy when it comes to solving EADHWS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antibiotics are routinely added to ornamental fish tanks for treating bacterial infection or as a prophylactic measure. However, the overuse or subtherapeutical application of antibiotics could potentially facilitate the selection of antibiotic resistance in bacteria, yet no studies have investigated antibiotic use in the retail ornamental fish sector and its impact on microbial communities. The present study analyzed the concentrations of twenty antibiotics in the carriage water (which also originates from fish tanks in retail shops) collected monthly from ten local ornamental fish shops over a duration of three months. The antibiotic concentrations were correlated with the sequenced microbial community composition, and the risk of resistance selection in bacteria was assessed. Results revealed that the detected concentrations of tetracyclines were the highest among samples, followed by fluoroquinolones and macrolides. The concentrations of oxytetracycline (44.3 to 2,262,064.2 ng L−1) detected across three months demonstrated a high risk for resistance selection at most of the sampled shops. Zoonotic pathogens (species of Rhodococcus, Legionella, and Citrobacter) were positively correlated with the concentrations of oxytetracycline, tetracycline, chlortetracycline, and enrofloxacin. This suggests that antibiotic use in retail shops may increase the likelihood of selecting for zoonotic pathogens. These findings shed light on the potential for ornamental fish retail shops to create a favorable environment for the selection of pathogens with antibiotics, thereby highlighting the urgent need for enhanced antibiotic stewardship within the industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the relationship between e-commerce development and the intensity of commodity tax competition under two tax principles for goods purchased online: the destination principle and the origin principle. The main findings are as follows: Given that origin-based tax is applied to purchases made in brick-and-mortar stores, (i) tax competition under destination-based taxation on e-commerce is more intense than tax competition under origin-based taxation; and (ii) the expansion of the online market intensifies destination-based tax competition while easing origin-based tax competition. The main factor leading to the results is that replacing the choice of "where to purchase" goods, consumers will have a new choice of "how to purchase" when online purchasing becomes available, and destination-based taxation distorts the latter choice, while origin-based taxation is neutral. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The large retail chains represent the main distribution channel for wine sales in Italy. Retailers, therefore, define the wine supply of their points-of-sale based on their own commercial strategies, taking into account evolving consumer demand, producer characteristics, and product types. Wine bottles from different producers with varying characteristics, sales performances, and commercial trends can be found on shelves next to each other. The aim of this study is to investigate the performance of various producers whose wines were sold in large retail chains in Italy before the pandemic. This analysis enabled us to observe market trends without disruptions. We focused on the two most sold Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) wines, Chianti DOCG and Montepulciano d'Abruzzo DOC. For this purpose, cluster segmentation was implemented using variables related to sales (value of sales, number of labels, average price, discount units, discount percentage, units sold above a certain price), and sales trends of each producer present in large retail chains with these products. The results show that, although there are different trends and commercial strategies among the producers of each of the two denominations of origin, there are similarities between the clusters of the two different denominations. In particular, in the domain of large-scale retail, wine sales are dominated by a few wineries with a strategy based on high sales volume, a wide range of labels, low prices, and promotional sales. The remaining sales refer to wines from producers with different characteristics that record positive sales trends and producers characterised by the declining value of sales. The identified results provide valuable insights for a better understanding of the dynamics of the large retail chain in Italy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]