Issue #1 (Volume 17 2021)

The online food delivery market in India perseveres to grow at a sustained pace. The business has unique dynamics and challenges with the spike in orders during weekends, meeting delivery schedules during peak demand, offering deep discounts to address wavering customer loyalty, reducing cash burns, and managing food quality inconsistency. In contrast, the fast-paced life and the rise of millennials in the workforce is likely to assure a promising future for the food aggregators. The above backdrop has led the researchers to pursue this study. An empirical study was carried out to explore the consumption occasion and the antecedents of online food ordering in the select cities in Karnataka, India. The data was collected from 385 respondents through telephonic and mail survey using a structured questionnaire. The responses were analyzed using exploratory factor analysis and multiple regression. The result of the study indicated a positive association between the constructs ‘buying motives’, ‘aggregator attractiveness’, and customer satisfaction. The variation in customers` satisfaction is largely attributable to the convenience of order placing, food quality, availability of food and restaurant reviews, offers and discounts, faster home delivery, and the wide choice of restaurants listed on the aggregator’s website. Additionally, the aggregator attractiveness showed a higher impact on customer satisfaction as compared to buying motives.

Awareness of healthy food, population growth, increasing incomes, and urbanization raise the global demand for fruit, where the second position goes to apples. However, their supply is insufficient, implying the lost revenues and exacerbating nutritional food insecurity. To help growers, traders, and consumers cope with such a challenge, this research focused on revealing some world patterns in apple production and trade detailed by groups of countries, their capacities, and prices. The explored data on fresh and processed apples derived from the Food and Agriculture Organization Statistics. The methodological framework of the study engaged divisive hierarchical clustering, analysis of interval variation series, and inequality indicators. The research findings identified two major clusters of 50 out of 96 countries specialized in production and foreign sales of 83.2% and 76.9% of apples. The study outcome comparing fair trade via two triple histograms specified the prevailing deviations between –82% and 80% around farm gate apple prices in 47 exporting countries and the same between –83% and 83% in 46 importing countries. Based on the Gini coefficient, Ratio 20/20, and Hoover index, the accomplished evaluations quantified total disparity in apple trading by 13% to 40%, calculated misbalance between 20% of the top and bottom world traders, and grounded preferable market alignments ranged from 9% to 38%.

In the retail environment, customers are stimulated by the look and feel of a store and how it is laid out. Certain store elements create an atmosphere that attracts customers to certain outlets as their preferred shopping destination. Therefore, retailers need to ensure the customers’ shopping experience is enjoyable. This study aimed to examine the influence of atmospheric store elements on the factors that influence customers` satisfaction. A quantitative, cross-sectional, descriptive study was conducted in four retail outlets in Cape Town, South Africa, with data collected through a structured questionnaire distributed to the outlets’ customers. A systematic random sample of 388 responses was achieved. The information collected was analyzed using relevant descriptive and inferential statistics. Although small, positive correlations were found between the independent variables (cleanliness, lighting, music, floor adverts, employee efficient service, employee appearance) and the dependent variables (positive image of store, pleasant mood, time spent in store, intention to revisit store). As such, the study highlighted the importance of store atmospherics to the factors that encourage customers` satisfaction. Since little research has been done into store atmospherics in the South African context of grocery stores, this study has contributed new knowledge in this field.

It is necessary to understand the customers’ perceptions of internet banking because it helps determining the direction and patterns of intention to continue using internet banking. This could also help bank policymakers to develop appropriate strategies to increase internet banking usage. The study aims to examine the determinants of user’s intention to continue using internet banking since there have been no systematic attempts to understand this aspect, especially in the Indian context. This research suggests and tests an extended model to predict the intention to continue using internet banking in India. The suggested study model was examined using survey data from 206 internet banking users. PLS-SEM was employed for data analysis. The findings imply that the most significant determinants of intention to continue using internet banking are service quality, trust, and user satisfaction. On the other hand, the study finds that intention to continue using internet banking is not impacted by system quality and information quality.

In recent years, continuous changes in geo-economics and environment, especially the rise in global trade protectionism, have severely impacted China’s sporting goods manufacturing industry, which is dominant in international trade. Therefore, this paper attempts to examine the geo-economic environment and influence factors of China’s sporting goods manufacturing industry, and puts forward strategies to improve the competitiveness of China’s sporting goods manufacturing industry and promote its high-quality development.
This paper selects indicators that can reflect the geo-economic relationships of competition and complementarity, including household final consumption expenditure (% of GDP), sporting goods import and export trade volumes (% of GDP), FDI (% of GDP) and R&D (% of GDP) from 2013 to 2018. Using the standardized Euclidean distance method, the geo-economic relationship of sporting goods manufacturing industry between China and each One Belt and One Road Initiative (BRI) country is obtained. Statistic results show that the geo-economic relationship of the sporting goods manufacturing industry between China and other BRI countries is more competitive than complementary. Meanwhile, a map generated by the ARCGIS10.0 platform shows that competition between China and the BRI countries increased from 2013 to 2018. According to the analysis of statistical data regarding the aspects of the industrial structure of China’s sporting goods manufacturing industry, geo-economics and geopolitics, respectively, several proposals are put forward for the high-quality development of the sporting goods manufacturing industry in China.

The goal of this paper is to examine the effect of business orientation on the success of small and medium-sized enterprises in Saudi Arabia. Corporate performance is a dependent variable, whereas business orientation, competitor orientation and inter-functional orientation are used as independent variables. This cross-section analysis was based on a quantitative survey design. The target population consisted of 72 SMEs (industrial, commercial and service) identified by the Saudi Chamber of Commerce in Riyadh. The companies were selected from Riyadh, Jeddah, Abha, Dammam and Bisha, which were founded before March 1, 2005 with less than 100 employees in Saudi Arabia. The findings showed that consumer orientation, competitor orientation and inter-functional cooperation had a substantial positive influence on the success of SMEs in Saudi Arabia during the study period. Market orientation dimensions, in particular, demonstrated a modest relationship to company efficiency. It was concluded that the greater the orientation of the business, the higher the output and the income of the enterprises. SME owners/managers are advised to understand the consumer orientation dimensions that have a positive effect on the success of their firms. Involved parties also need to establish more consistent business-oriented strategies that assess corporate success in order to boost the output of Saudi companies.

This paper aims to investigate the impact of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) of Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) companies on consumer buying behavior in the Ukrainian market. The qualitative data for this study were collected with the help of semi-structured interviews conducted with a total of 10 respondents, including 5 Ukrainian consumers (with different levels of responsible consumption adoption) and 5 CSR experts from FMCG companies located in Ukraine (both local and global; with CSR adoption level varying from low to well-developed).
The data obtained for this study revealed that the level of consumer awareness about CSR in Ukraine is still low. However, the level of awareness and the actual consumption of responsible products are constantly growing. The results also show that Ukrainian consumers who already have some level of awareness about CSR perceive CSR communication as more credible when it does not originate from the company directly or is endorsed by a third party. At the same time, interviewed experts stated that to raise awareness among the wider population, FMCG companies have to communicate their CSR achievements directly and massively. Ukrainian consumers are mostly impacted by the product-related CSR type, such as bio-ingredients and sustainable packaging. Price premium for responsible products is the key factor that causes the “intention-behavior gap” in Ukraine.
Practitioners from the FMCG industry in Ukraine may use the information provided by this study to shape their CSR strategies, which will allow them to cater to societal demands and, as a result, impact consumer buying behavior.

The COVID-19 pandemic and quarantine measures have transformed the media agenda. The aim of the study is to identify the behavioral characteristics of the youth news audience, which is formed in the context of COVID-19. To solve research tasks, from March 24 to April 5, 2020, an intelligence survey of young Ukrainians as news readers was conducted. 364 respondents aged from 18 to 29, living in different regions of Ukraine, answered the questions of the Google questionnaire. The results of the survey are qualitative in nature and highlight the trends that exist in the youth audience. According to the data, the topic of coronavirus has become a priority for 82% of respondents. Phobias of young respondents increased: more than 70% stated they were worried and afraid. The alarm response to the pandemic has prompted many media consumers (46%) to turn to more information sources than usual. On the other hand, some media consumers have reduced their contact with the media, which is a typical protective reaction. Uncertainty, suspicion, and anxiety shake the confidence of the youth audience in public institutions and the media. The study showed the emergence of new challenges for media companies. The media should anticipate the consequences of disseminating information, fake news, and adjust content strategies accordingly: compliance with journalistic standards, responsible dissemination of news, fact-checking.

This study aims to find and analyze the profitability level of Fried Onion Small Business in Palu City, influenced by Patronage Buying Motives (PBM), which consist of company reputation, location of sales, selling price and guarantee to profitability. The population of this study was 52. Population was chosen based on small business that still survives in fried onion business as a local business. The sample taken by purposive sampling was 35. Data collection was carried out by distributing questionnaires to the managers of fried onion small businesses. The analytical tool used is multiple linear analysis. The results shows that F test of PBM had a significant influence on profitability at 0,822 or 82.2%. This means a very strong influence of the value of PBM. T-test shows that corporate reputation is of significant value of 0,286, location of sales – 0,426, and selling price has a significant value of the 0.235 influence on profitability, except guarantees that do not affect profitability because the value of 0.151 is less than the t table value of 2.0395. The impact of this study implies that small food businesses do not really need a guarantee like electronic products, because reputation and quality have become their guarantee.

To survive in the ever-increasing competition in the financial market, commercial banks need successful innovative strategies. However, there is insufficient information on appropriate innovative strategies required by banks. Primary data were obtained through a structured questionnaire. It was distributed among 1,200 bank employees and 300 bank customers of all eight systematically important banks (Access, Diamond, Eco, First, GTB, Polaris, UBA and Zenith) out of 21 deposit money banks in Nigeria as of December 31, 2016 by random sampling and stratified sampling techniques. The data were fitted to the regression-based model. The identified marketing innovation adopted by banks include innovative service provision (4.02), generation of new product with quality (3.65), entrance into new markets (3.60) and adoption of technological tools (3.57). Performance indicators considered are customer satisfaction and customer retention. Results showed that marketing innovation strategies of the banks significantly (p < 0.05) improve customer satisfaction. Improved service and product quality, introduction of new products and entrance to new market exert a positive and significant effect on outcomes of the banks. The estimated regression on customer retention showed that in a competitive environment, improved service exerts positive and significant (p < 0.05) influence. Furthermore, the impact of reduction in service cost is also positive and significant (p < 0.05), which is similar to the effect development of new banking products. The findings suggest that the pathway to raising performance of financial institutions in a competitive environment is diverse. There is a need for deployment of a modern banking technology, innovations around banking products and associated services.

The marketing strategy phenomenon improves significantly, narrowing from a general to a specific cultural ethnicity base and from variable to dimension analysis. This study examines the impact of culture, brand image and price on buying decisions. The study population comprised retail consumers in the sampled area of Situbondo, East Java, Indonesia. A multi-stage sampling technique was used to derive a sample of 112 respondents as a primary data source – descriptive statistics allows for the demographic characteristics of retail consumers in East Java, Indonesia. Surprisingly, the data showed that gender involvement in buyer decision-making was dominant. Most retail customers were identified as private-sector employees and indicated for higher income earners. Responses were then analyzed using multiple linear regressions to answer the research hypotheses. The results showed that Hofstede’s culture dimension and the brand image and price significantly affected consumer buying decisions at retail stores in East Java, Indonesia. Regarding the strength of Islamic culture in East Java, price was the primary consideration in buying decisions. Further research, preferably using ethnographic approaches with an emphasis on qualitative research, is needed to investigate the implications of these relationships.

Acknowledgment
We would like to thank the Research Centre (LP2M) of University of Jember, East Java, Indonesia, for their support and funding. We also want to thank Rusdiyanto, a Ph.D. student from the Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas Airlangga, Surabaya, Indonesia, for his helpful discussions and contributions.