CRS News & Updates
Center for Retailing Studies Sponsor Forum Dr. Subodah Kumar urges retailers to avoid “the knee jerk reaction of price matching” when it comes to showrooming.* His research concludes that price matching is not a long-term success strategy for brick-and-mortar retailers facing off against on-line sites. Instead, stores should focus on relationship building with guests and view showrooming as an opportunity for sales. Even though 24% of shoppers admit to showrooming – a number expected to surge with more smartphone use and increased WiFi access – there is still no real replacement for a quality in-store experience. Kumar’s talk was part of CRS’s annual Sponsor Forum, an exclusive executive education event that showcases retailing research at Mays Business School for its corporate partners. Center director Cheryl Bridges says, “We want companies to know that not only can they find great student talent at Texas A&M, but worldclass faculty engaged in relevant industry research, as well.” Addressing the heavily HR-focused audience, Murray Barrick, director of the Center for Human Resource Management, discussed his research on employee motivation. He concludes that employers should focus on job enhancements that give employees ownership and control over their workplace. This investment pays off in terms of engaged employees who are intrinsically motivated and more knowledgeable. As for supply chains, retailers have some of the most extraordinary supply chain systems in the world. Since the recession, companies have invested more in these systems to be even more efficient and money saving. However, according *Showrooming is when a shopper visits a store to check out a product but then purchases the product online from home.
Murray Barrick, Director of the Center for Human Resource Management, talks about employee motivation
to Xen Koufteros Associate Professor of INFO, more should be done to protect product supply and consumer safety. He advises companies to invest in preventative measures to protect supply chain security. “If you allow a security breach, everyone goes down; brands and companies fail.” Experts predict the next terrorist attacks will happen through supply chain. Koufteros shocked audience members with a video of Chinese food forgery through the manufacturing of chemical filled fake eggs. Surprises continued when colleague Neil Geismar discussed his research on shelf space optimization and noted that beer and diapers share cross product elasticities. Perhaps (he postulated) this is because both diapers and beer share rectangular packaging which is visually appealing to customers, or , (he joked) maybe new babies just make you want a beer. The day’s program concluded with a networking dinner at Madden’s. Participants all share a common value in investing in retailing education at Texas A&M; all present agreed it’s good business to meet and network together.
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