...Exchange School Donghua University Undergraduate Research Project: Motivations for impulsive buying behavior and the effective marketing strategies selling grocery products Case: CITY SHOP By: Ilja Khanan Nationality: Germany Major Business Administration Student ID: 113110246 Supervisor: Nikola Zivlak Date: June 2014 Abstract For over sixty years, marketers and consumer researchers have studied Impulsive-buying behavior. Today, 30 to 60% of all purchases are impulsive in the USA (Crawford & Melewar 2003) for different product categories and it is considered to have a $4.2 billion annual volume. That’s why it is becoming more important for marketers to understand how people can be influenced when shopping in order to increase revenues and profits. Millions of dollars are spent on in-store marketing efforts. Over the years, different models have been created for marketers to better understand the key drivers that lead to impulsive buying. This dissertation is written for the retailer or marketer who will adjust their marketing strategies to capture the opportunities of the consumer impulse purchases. This dissertation focuses on City shop and the strategies they use to encourage impulsive buying behavior. The thesis will cover the following topics in regard to impulsive buying: - Factors and influences that lead to impulsive buying behavior? - The different promotional approaches used by marketers? - What personal traits...
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...friends and family discounts … free shipping if you spend over $150! For an estimated 6% of Americans with compulsive buying tendencies, this is a tough time of the year. "The whole culture conspires against us in the holiday season," says April Lane Benson, a Manhattan psychologist who has treated compulsive shoppers for 15 years. Besides tempting sales, pressure to top last year's gifts and the urge to shop for oneself, she says, "the holidays bring up a lot of unfulfilled longing for some people—and that's one reason why they shop, as a salve for disappointment." While the stereotypical compulsive shopper is traditionally a woman in her 30s, experts say the ease and speed of Internet shopping is luring more men and more young people. Over Black Friday weekend, men outspent women $484 to $317, on average, according to the National Retail Federation. Men also spent an average of $200 online—twice as much as the average woman. In a 2005 survey of 195 U.K. teenagers, who grew up with the Internet, 44% showed signs of compulsive shopping habits, according to research published in the British Journal of Psychology. "The Internet is dangerous for compulsive buyers in two ways," says psychiatrist Elias Aboujaoude, director of the Impulse Control Disorders Clinic at Stanford University School of Medicine. Transactions move so quickly, it is hard to pause to reassess the buying urge, he says. The Internet also lets people dissociate from reality and assume a grandiose alter-ego fueled by virtual...
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...Many people have only witnessed hoarding via television shows that brought the phenomenon to the public eye, but for me, it was a long-lived reality. For those who are unfamiliar with the concept of compulsive hoarding, it is defined as: (a) the acquisition of, and failure to discard, a large number of possessions; (b) clutter that preludes activities for which living spaces were designed; and (c) significant distress or impairment in functioning caused by the hoarding” (Frost & Hartl, 1996). My sister and I lived with a hoarder from the moment we were born, until we were old enough to move out on our own. Naturally, we grew up believing that it was normal for families to live in clutter. We started to question the condition of our household however, when our parents adamantly refused to have company over, whether it was family or friends. This “rule” would lead to many years of arguments and fights within the family, and I grew distant and angry with my parents as time passed. To this day, I am embarrassed and disgusted with my parents and the way they live. It is because of what I experienced that I decided to research hoarding and illustrate the detrimental effects faced by families living with a hoarder. As I mentioned previously, my parents were strictly against inviting people over. While hoarders may be willing to meet friends and family members outside of their homes, for example at restaurants or at the other person’s home, they generally refuse to allow anyone who does...
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...every 30 adults suffer from compulsive shopping, it can be described as the human mentality of compulsive consumption, whether or not it is crucial for their needs or not. It is also stated as a mental disorder, referred to as oniomania, buying mania, compulsive consumption, compulsive shopping and addictive or impulsive buying. Marketers have always emphasized on how to encourage this consumption pattern among all consumers. A recent search has shown that in the area of disease theories, a model that is dominant metaphor used to increase both the drug addiction and alcoholism in many treatment program such as Alcoholics Anonymous. Within the market three characteristics have showed the common symptom of compulsive shopping that includes the presence of a drive, impulse, or urge to engage in the behavior, denial of the harmful consequences of engaging in the behavior and repeated failure in attempts to control or alter the behavior. The primary criterion to determine whether buying behavior is innocuous or potentially compulsive buying is whether or not such behavior is causing disruption in the normal life of the individual. One aspect of looking this is that it is an impact of marketer who is putting up such deals that their urge to buying the products is increasing. This can be explained by taking an example, a company is offering an exchange offer on a product and the extra payment has to be made through EMI than it is easier for any individual to buy as the payment has...
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...Are You a Shopaholic? 3 Steps To Fixing Your Addiction 1 Posted June 26, 2012 by Danica Saarah Nelson in Advice “The first step to recovering is admitting you have a problem,” is a cliché we hear all the time. But do you see overspending on constant shopping trips as a crucial life issue that’s nearly as harmful as drugs or alcohol? It can be! Spending your disposable income on unnecessary items (especially when they’re charged to your credit card) is a surefire way to an unsuccessful and unhappy future. Below are the first three steps you can take to curing your illness. Step 1 – Remove Yourself From ALL Mailing Lists It’s hard, but it’s the easiest way to avoid succumbing to the temptations of spending money on something you wouldn’t have otherwise if you weren’t victim to that specific e-mail. If you REALLY want to get exclusive information on a sale or get your hands on a coupon code, a simple Google Search will do the trick. Removing yourself from every mailing list you’ve subscribed to is your first step towards curing your spending habits! Step 2 – Ditch the Plastic. Adopt the Paper! This one is pretty simple. All you have to do is take your Credit and Debit Cards out of your wallet. People essentially spend less when they’re using cash because they can see for themselves how quickly it can decrease as opposed to when you’re using plastic, you just swipe and go. Ever change your mind about purchasing something because you don’t want to break your $20? Then...
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...committed to cultivating a spectacular wardrobe and could spend thousands of dollars on a pair of shoes or a designer dress without a gram of guilt. Going shopping was part of the routine for the protagonists of the program and Carrie became a fashion icon that illustrated the relationship between women and shopping. Is it true that we shop more than men, that shopping pleases us on a bad day or we have this uncontrollable urge? Researchers agree that its much more than opening the wallet and removing the card. In fact, women complete many of the visits to a store or mall without purchasing anything. That’s because for women these visits also symbolize entertainment, creativity, pleasure and independence. Which matters much more than just buying, says Patricia Huddleston, consumer specialist at the University of Michigan, in her book behavior Consumer Behavior: Women and Shopping. But is there such thing as too much shopping? Shopping addiction is characterized by an uncontrollable urge to buy unnecessary and superfluous products and when the wild and compulsive consumption exceeds the financial capacity of the person it is when the problems begins. In this post we will see what is Compulsive Shopping Disorder, its main problems and how we can overcome it. What is shopping addiction? As mentioned earlier, shopping addiction is an uncontrollable impulse to buy products that a person does not need. This disorder ends up creating a relationship of dependency and tolerance...
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...Shopaholic Tomas Garcia Newberry College Submitted in partial fulfillments of the requirements for BUA 311-Business Ethics Octuber 2, 2015 Semester and Year: Fall, 2015 Address: 2100 College Street City, State, Zip: Newberry SC, 29108 Email: tomas.garcia@newberry.edu Instructor: Gerald Seals Abstract This paper discusses how compulsive spending fits the ethical issue of compulsive behaviors and describes the different ways compulsive consumption can be manifested. Addictive behaviors are characterized by the ability to produce immediate satisfaction or relief from any discomfort. Addictions begin as pleasant behavior but later in variable term for each of them, enslave the subject who feels compelled to repeat, despite the discomfort that you are causing, and may provoke some conflicts. If the person is caught in this repetitive behavior, he finally created a real addiction. We talk about addiction when an addictive behavior so largely it involves the subject that leads to a dependency. Conspicuous consumption is becoming a cultural problem in the society, leading to crippling consumer debt and our consumption is unsustainable both economically and environmentally. Consumerism goes hand-in-hand with a compulsive attitude. This compulsive attitude is a pathological behavior and is considered as physiological dependence, or a behavior addiction. It is considered a recurring behavior, which despite attempts to resist the urge occurs. A behavior is considered...
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...1. Signages and graphics should act as a bridge between the merchandise and the target customers. The color and tone of the signages and graphics should complement the merchandise. Color combinations should appeal to specific target customers or highlight specific merchandise. For example, green color for fresh market in vegetables department, bright color for sportswear, pastel for lingerie, and hot vivid colors for teens. 2. Signages and graphics should be up to-date and relevant to the items displayed and should take down after the displays are removed. Fraught, faded, and forgotten signages and graphics if not take down after the display or promotion ends will affect a store’s image. 3. All signages should display at where the merchandise is...
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...requests by store operations personnel B) vendors that are preferred by retail personnel C) budget requests for capital equipment D) customer requests for merchandise that is either out of stock or unstocked 3) Customer requests for unstocked or out-of-stock merchandise are recorded in a(n) ________. A) generic product file B) OCR-A system C) UPC system D) want book or want slip 4) Which of the following is not a merchandise source? A) resident buying office B) company-owned C) outside, regularly used supplier D) outside, new supplier 5) A deduction from a bill made by a retailer due to such infractions as late shipping or improper labeling is called a ________. A) penalty B) liquidated damage C) chargeback D) holdback 6) A purchaser of fine antiques is most likely to evaluate merchandise through ________. A) description B) sampling C) inspection D) testing by an independent agency 7) An example of items which should be evaluated by a retailer by inspection are ________. A) college textbooks B) antique furniture C) color televisions D) file cabinets 8) Description buying is most appropriate for ________. A) breakable, perishable, or expensive items B) standardized, nonbreakable, and nonperishable merchandise C) jewelry and art works D) nonstandardized, breakable, and perishable merchandise 9) A new or special order usually results in a ________. A) negotiated...
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...Chapter 2: Fashion Merchandising Organizations Chapter contents: 2.1 Introduction 2.2 Types of fashion merchandising organization 2.2.1(a) The buying agents 2.2.1(b) Store-owned buying offices 2.2.1(c) Cooperative buying offices 2.2.2 Independent trading companies 2.2.3 Offices of manufacturer-importer 2.3 The major service offered by a fashion merchandising organization 2.3.1 Private label programme 2.3.2 Group purchasing 2.3.3 Centralized buying 2.3.4 Other merchandising services 2.4 The major organizational structures for fashion merchandising activities 2.4.1 Functional division type 2.4.2 Product/market division type 2.4.3 Matrix organization type 1 Objectives After studying this chapter, you should understand the following: the various types of fashion merchandising organizations major merchandising services offered by these organizations the major ways to establish merchandising organizational structure Case Study The merchandising agent, Fashiontex, received a set of lab-dip (colour dyeing samples) from the supplier, for final confirmation as the pre-production standard in dyeing process. The team checked the samples with the original standard provided from its European buyer and found the sample very satisfactory. The colour shades submitted from the supplier were nearly 100 percent the same as the original ones. The team was very confident that the buyer would accept it and grant approval for bulk production. In normal procedure, the team would...
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...University System Abstract TJX Companies, Inc. is known as the world’s leading off-priced retailer of apparel and home fashions. With its steadily growing brand portfolio, the company aims to offer consumers better value proposition than department stores. Keywords: global strategic management, corporate governance, off-price retail, Global Strategic Management: A Case Study of The TJX Companies, Inc. Company Overview Based in Framingham, Massachusetts, The TJX Companies, Inc. (TJX or “the company”) is the leading retailer of off-priced fashion and home goods merchandise in the United States and worldwide. The company’s brand portfolio includes T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, HomeGoods and the Sierra Trading Post in the U.S.; Winners, HomeSense and Marshalls in Canada; and T.K. Maxx and HomeSense in Europe. These stores specialize in brand name apparel, footwear, accessories and home décor merchandise at discount prices, usually 20- 60% below department and specialty store prices. In 2013, TJX ranked 115th in the Fortune 500 rankings, jumping 10 spots from the previous year. This ranking makes the company number one in the specialty apparel retail industry on the Fortune 500 list, followed by Gap, L Brands, and Ross [ (Cable News Network, 2014) ]. Market and Products TJX operates in the niche off-price segment of the retail industry. The company operates under four major retail divisions: the Marmaxx Group (T.J. Maxx and Marshalls) and HomeGoods in the U.S., TJX Canada...
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...task it was made to do. For example if you were to advertise a computer it has to work properly and have everything as described in the advertisement. The merchandise will have a return policy to return any products to collect a refund or trade it for another and this would usually be around 30 days. Should company’s hire purchase equipment but find it is faulty this is not included in the sales of goods act 1979 but instead any hire purchase equipment falls under the supply of goods implied terms act 1973. Should the product you bought not fall under any of these factors then the company who sold it to you is in breach of the sales of goods act and you could claim under this act. For the NMM this could cause problems should the merchandise be broken or damaged because they bought it from the manufacturer which therefore is then held liable. If the NMM had a breach in the sales of goods act 1979 then this could have a big effect on their future business as people would be put off buying merchandise from them which would therefore lead to a decrease in profit from the products and potentially a big cost for the NMM should they be found guilty and have to pay out to the customer. This could also cause the government to rethink their contribution to the company as they will think that their money is going to dodgy merchandise and cut the funding at which point the NMM will struggle to keep the exhibitions open because they no longer have the money to keep them open which could as...
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...summary of significant accounting policies, what is American Eagle's procedure in accounting for inventory? pA-12 AE evaluates merchandise inventory at the lower of average cost or market, utilizing retail method. Average cost includes merchandise design and sourcing costs and related expenses. AE records merchandise receipts at the time merchandise is delivered to the foreign shipping port by the manufacturer; at this point the title and risk of loss is transferred to the company. 2. For the most recent year, what is the amount of inventory in the balance sheet? What does this amount represent? Merchandise inventory Jan 30, 2010 - $326,454. This amount represents a current asset which reports the cost of goods purchased to be resold, which have not yet been sold as of January 30, 2010. 3. American Eagle refers to its cost of goods sold using a different name. What is it? Cost of sales, including certain buying, occupancy and warehousing expenses. 4. For the most recent year, what is the amount of cost of goods sold in the income statement? What does this amount represent? Cost of goods sold – $1,832,471. This amount represents the cost of the merchandise that was sold to customers and includes the cost from its supplier plus any additional costs necessary to get the merchandise into inventory and ready for sale. AE specify buying, occupancy and warehousing expenses. 5. Calculate American Eagle's inventory turnover ratio and average days in inventory...
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...| Introduction: Our team visited Shopper’s Stop, Rajouri Garden and narrowed our research to ethnic wear section. We observed a lady, who was in her late 30’s, accompanied by her daughter. We observed her for 40-45 minutes which helped us to understand her buying behaviour and also the factors that influenced her in making the decision for a particular product and brand in the ethnic wear section. Since we visited an MBO, we could observe the customer with ease and permission from store was also not a problem. Once she was over with her purchase and was making the payment we introduced ourselves to her and interviewed her on a few basic points and why did she choose Shopper’s Stop for making a purchase. This activity instilled in us the power of observation and helped us know various aspects that a customer keep’s in his/her mind while making a purchase decision. Buying Process: 1. Need Recognition- Observation- The lady was specifically looking for pastel colored suits (ethnic wear) with very light embroidery or design. Inference- Maybe she wore Indian formals to her office. She had a need to buy suits for her office wear purposes. 2. Information Search- Observation- Initially the lady specifically looked for brands like Biba and ‘W’. Inference- Maybe through her past shopping experience she wanted to but only these two brands. She was comfortable with the fit and style of these two brands and was quite satisfied with its...
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...Sense Caledonia is thinking of launching new merchandise, the company must decide whether to lease or buy. Caledonia is in the 34 percent marginal tax bracket with a 15 percent call for a rate of return on cost of capital, the new project being a fad will only be a for five years. When deciding to lease, Caledonia must consider how reducing out of pocket cost could benefit the company. Though leasing would mean they do not fully own the product. When leasing, Caledonia must consider the rates that will be used in the cost of leasing. The company’s credit rating will determine if they will receive a good rate on their lease. Another factor is will the company have enough income to pay the lease as necessary. In order to be protected shareholders ponder on having current paycheck stubs furnish to verify that the cost. In most instances the merchandise expenses are paid in full and then the lease is up. The leasing company owns the merchandise until expenses are paid in full. The budget is an important component to take into account to decide how much product the company would be able to acquire. The company should be certain the products have face values and is able to provide adequate income. A back up plan should always be considered by a business, in case a payment is missed. The company has the option to own it, when buying a product. The best value offered in most cases is when you are buying a brand new product, and have the best value offered, and the best prices is...
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