Product Description

This text provides a comprehensive introduction to Retail Marketing covering a wide range of types of retail organisation. It has a coherent structure, looking first at the nature of retail marketing, then at the environment, at consumer behaviour, segmentation and positioning and at the retail marketing mix. The book ends with chapters on retail marketing planning and control and a specific chapter on international retail marketing.
Designed to be student friendly, each chapter of the book follows a similar structure. All start with learning objectives, contain many examples and mini cases, summaries of future industry trends, revision questions, assignment tasks and lists of key terms.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #718967 in Books
• Published on: 1999-04-14
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 464 pages

About the Author
Ogenyi Omar Research Reader, School of Retail Studies, The London Institute

Customer Reviews

A very good retail marketing text and simple to read.
As a student of marketing and in my third year of a three-year degree course, I found this book rather interesting. It is very much an up-to-date text with a separate chapters on retail technology, retail segmentation and international retailing. But my major point of interest in this book is its chapter on techno-marketing dealing with several aspects of retail technology useful to students' exam revision. I think the entire book is written with students in mind. It is simple to read and understand. I like this book.

An excellent text on retail marketing
This clear and informative book on retail marketing fills the gap left by many other texts in the field by extending the range and depth of existing materials available. It uses a sound learning style and comprehensive coverage of the subject including e-commerce while at the same time offering a readable text which offers guides to current research.

Review

In a world with a proliferation of marketing textbooks it is refreshing to find a book focusing on retail marketing. As retailing represents a significant and dynamic sector of the UK economy it is paramount to have relevant and up to date texts for those studying retailing and those observing the sector. The sector faces formidable challenges from the new electronic retailers and overseas competitors such as Wal-Mart who have recently entered the sector through acquisition of the second largest supermarket chain, Asda. These factors coupled with the globalisation of retail are changing the face of retailing in the United Kingdom. This book is timely in that it focuses on the major challenges and opportunities for the sector. Information in the book is presented in a clear and concise style, making its complex subject matter available to a wide readership. Although written primarily with undergraduate students in mind the text is invaluable for self-study for practitioners working in the retail industry and relevant background reading for post graduate students including those on MBA and distant learning programmes.

The aim of the book, as stated by the author, is to provide an introduction to the theory and practice of retail management relevant to retail marketing management in the United Kingdom and Europe. Early observations with sales and student reaction confirm that this primary aim has been more than achieved. The success of the book is in part due to the approach taken. It analyses the key issues in retail marketing based on the problems faced by UK and European retailers in the late twentieth century, see McGoldrick's (1994) text for comprehensive view of retailing in this earlier period.

The book is an invaluable resource to both students and lecturers. Students have an interesting variety of relevant mini-case studies and review questions in each chapter. These questions are based on continuous reference to the practice of retail marketing management in retail organisations. The questions tend to vary in complexity, from those requiring very basic answers to those requiring the formulation of a complete retail-marketing plan. This pragmatic approach meets the needs of busy students who are required to consolidate their learning in manageable sections of text. The book is structured to focus on learning objectives in each chapter which identify what the reader should have learnt upon completion of each. These include the key conceptual framework, the theoretical base and practical applications; key issues in retail marketing management; examples, case studies, and box exhibits; future trends in the industry; revision questions; and references.

Of the sixteen chapters in the book chapters one, two and three deal with the introduction to retail marketing. Chapters four and five cover retail market segmentation and store image. Chapter six is concerned with logistics, Chapters seven through to twelve detail store location and promotional issues for the retailer and management processes and procedures. Chapter 13 examines retail information management systems and Chapters 14 and 15 are concerned with retail marketing planning and control, and the international perspectives of retail marketing management. The final chapter covers the deployment of technology by the retailers in order to differentiate themselves from their competitors in order to gain sustainable competitive advantage. One of the most important changes to world wide retailing is the development of online shopping with the arrival of e-commerce. The impact of this new electronic retailing channel has been addressed well.

Analysis of the book from the student's perspective indicates the main benefits include an appreciation of why retail marketing is so important within retail organisations, and what this means in the context of successful retail operations. It enables the student / learner to develop an understanding of the basic principles and main theories of retail marketing, together with how retail management may apply these in practice. They should be able to recognise the limitations of marketing theories, and the practical remedies which may help retail managers overcome them. From the text a student / leaner should understand the language used by retailers and marketing practitioners, and assess the merits of their recommendations in a retail marketing management context. Finally after studying the book they should be able to apply relevant marketing concepts and techniques to the more general retail management operations in the UK and elsewhere in Europe.

The books analysis covers a wide range of differing retail organisations and details their various functions and styles. This coverage allows material to be selected to meet specific individual needs across a wide spectrum of retail organisational situations. The coverage of the book is sufficiently wide for it to stand as a reference source even in the most demanding of retail marketing practice. In the academic sense, this book should equip students to meet most practical retail marketing requirements.

Alan Hirst Senior Lecturer in Marketing LCP School of Retail Studies The London Institute