Three Essays on Consumer-Based Strategies in Retailing

This dissertation explores consumer consumer-based strategies in retailing. Consumer Consumer-based strategies prioritize understanding and responding to customer needs, desires, and behaviors. These strategies emerged in the past seventy years because they align business strategies and operations with customer preferences, leading to increased customer satisfactio n, customer loyalty, and long long-term profitability. Over time, the academic field and business practice have shifted their focus from merely satisfying customer needs to enhancing the overall customer experience and, most recently, inspiring customers. This shift underscores the recognition that in today's market, simply fulfilling existing needs and achieving customer satisfaction is no longer sufficient for differentiation; creating memorable experiences and inspirational moments is crucial for driving cust omer engagement and loyalty. The dissertation is structured around three essays that collectively advance the field of consumer -based retail strategies in retailing. The first essay offers a systematic literature review on cross-selling and cross cross-buying, clarifying their definitions a nd strategic roles in retail organizations . This essay addresses the conceptual ambiguity between these constructs and provides a comprehensive framework for their application in modern consumer centric retailing. The second essay investigates the impact o f thematic congruent in store visual cues on consumer perception and behavior in grocery retailing through a quasi quasi-experimental field study. The findings demonstrate that visually harmonized store environments significantly enhance customer satisfaction, loyalty, foot traffic, and sal es, emphasizing the importance of creating inspirational shopping experiences. The third essay presents a framework for managerial considerations in Metaverse retailing, exploring how immersive and personalized virtual experien ces can inspire and engage customers, thereby representing a new frontier for consumer consumer-based strategies in retailing retailing. Overall, each essay essay–individually and as part of an interconnected set set–underscores the transition from customer satisfaction to customer experience and now to customer inspiration. This dissertation offers valuable insights for academia and retail practice, showcasing the critical importance of evolving consumer consumer-based strategies in response to changing market dynamics and technological advancements.