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How Do Customers Alter Their Basket Composition When They Perceive the Retail Store to Be Crowded? An Empirical Study

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  • Aydinli, Aylin
  • Lamey, Lien
  • Millet, Kobe
  • ter Braak, Anne
  • Vuegen, Maya

Abstract

Using data from a large-scale field study, we show that (perceptions of) crowding change(s) the composition of a consumer's shopping basket. Specifically, as shoppers experience more crowding, their shopping basket contains (a) relatively more affect-rich (“hedonic”) products, and (b) relatively more national brands. We offer a plausible dual-process explanation for this phenomenon: Crowding induced distraction limits cognitive capacity, increasing the relative impact of affective responses in purchase decisions. As we are the first to show that level of crowding relates to what shoppers buy (at both product and brand level), the implications of these effects for retailers are discussed.

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  • Aydinli, Aylin & Lamey, Lien & Millet, Kobe & ter Braak, Anne & Vuegen, Maya, 2021. "How Do Customers Alter Their Basket Composition When They Perceive the Retail Store to Be Crowded? An Empirical Study," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 97(2), pages 207-216.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jouret:v:97:y:2021:i:2:p:207-216
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jretai.2020.05.004
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    1. Nanni, Anastasia & Ordanini, Andrea, 2024. "Digital signage for promoting price discounts: First insights into customer spending on distant and nearby discounted products," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 100(2), pages 186-198.
    2. Rossetti, Tomás & Yoon, So-Yeon & Daziano, Ricardo A., 2022. "Social distancing and store choice in times of a pandemic," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    3. Huang, Rui & Huang, Minxue & Zhao, Jing & Liu, Yuan, 2024. "Absence makes the heart grow fonder: The interactive effect of crowding information and spatial distance on consumers’ patronage intention," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 176(C).

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