The Influence of Store Atmospherics on Consumers Impulse Buying: A study on Organized Retail Stores in Kolkata

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1 The Influence of Store Atmospherics on Consumers Impulse Buying: A study on Organized Retail Stores in Kolkata *Aparajita Roy IMS Business School, Kolkata aparajita.roy77@gmail.com, Abstract: Impulse purchase is referred to an unplanned or otherwise spontaneous purchase of items which can be anything a new product, samples or well established products at surprisingly low prices. The current paper aims to explore the influence of store atmospherics (including window display, store layout, in store promotional signage, store smell and music) on consumers impulse buying behavior. The research was conducted among 117 customers of Kolkata using a structured questionnaire which was formulated based on previous literature. The data thus collected was analyzed using factor analysis and linear regression. The research findings suggested that store atmospherics like window display, in store promotional signage and store layout play an important role in enhancing customers impulse buying behavior. Key words: Impulse Buying, Store Atmospherics, Window Display, Promotional Signage, Store smell 1 IMS Management Journal/Volume: 10, Issue: 1/Jan-18/ISSN No

2 1. Introduction: Organized retailing business in India has grown rapidly in recent years. At present, majority of Indian consumers are found to be choosing retail outlets, particularly, supermarkets and hypermarkets in order to do their shopping. A large number of consumers have started switching from open unorganized local bazaars to more organized supermarkets, the main reason being that these types of retail outlet offer convenience, comfort and affordable prices for every day shopping. In responding to changing consumers buying behavior, retailers are continuously seeking new retail strategies and using different marketing tools in order to ensure that consumers will come back to the store repeatedly. In this regard, it is important to put emphasis on the role of store characteristics which directly influence consumers buying behavior. According to Tinnie (2010), store characteristics are determined by store layout, presence of salespeople, store atmospherics and store type. Specifically, store environment, design of the store, presentation and location of merchandise are considered to be important part of store characteristics. Another reason for retailers to design their stores and use different marketing tools is to give stimulus to consumers to purchase goods impulsively. According to Bellenger (1978) the consumers shopping behavior is divided into two types: Planned or Compulsive buying and Unplanned or Impulse purchase based on when, where and how the buying decision is made. Planned purchase decision is generally made before making a visit to the store, whereas impulse purchase decisions are made within the store due to various in store stimuli (cited in Raposo, 2013). Consumers stimuli to buy things impulsively are enhanced through store layout, in store signage (category, promotional, point of sale), feature areas (window display, promotional area, and entrance), visual merchandising and store atmosphere (lighting, color, music, scent). Thus, it is important for retailers to understand the impact of in-store characteristics on consumers impulse buying behavior, since impulse purchases constitute a large percentage of supermarket sales. According to Bell (2010) supermarkets are found to be the places which represent large percentage of impulse purchases and 60%-70% of purchases in supermarkets are made as a result of exposure to in-store stimuli. The objective of this paper therefore is to investigate the influence of store atmospherics on consumers impulse buying behavior using the 2 IMS Management Journal/Volume: 10, Issue: 1/Jan-18/ISSN No

3 case of selected organized retail outlets in Kolkata, the capital city of West Bengal where organized retail is growing at a rapid pace owing to changing consumers lifestyle and income. Another important reason to study the influence of store atmospherics is to provide suggestions on how to further improve store characteristics based on research outcomes. 2. Literature Review: Review of several literatures related to impulse buying provide evidence of several factors which influences consumers impulse buying, particularly in an organized retail format where display of items often trigger unplanned decision making. Kim (2003) in his study on impulse buying classified the stages of consumer decision making as, browsing (product awareness), creating desire, purchase decision, and post purchase evaluation. According to the impulse purchase model introduced by Kim (2003), impulse buying behaviors of shoppers begin with product awareness, where consumers start browsing the store without planning to buy specific products. During this same process, they are exposed to well-designed store atmosphere. As a result, the urge to buy impulsively arises due to stimulus observed inside the store (Kim, 2003). There are several internal and external factors which are likely to stimulate the occasion of consumers impulse buying. Kim (2003) reported that internal factors include mood, desire hedonic pleasure perceived by consumers while external factors are described by visual merchandising, window display and promotional signage Tinnie (2010) used four types of factors in order to study consumers impulse buying behavior in supermarkets of Bangladesh. These factors were consumer characteristics, store characteristics, situational factors, and product characteristics. Consumer characteristics were defined by personality traits which are likely to increase impulse buying including variables like gender, age, culture, mood, shopping enjoyment and impulse buying tendencies. Store characteristics consist of store layout, availability of salespeople, store atmospherics and store type. Another important factor identified by Tinnie, (2010) was situational factors which included availability of time and money, presence of others and in-store browsing. The last factor which was found to influence consumers impulse buying was product category and price of the products available. 3 IMS Management Journal/Volume: 10, Issue: 1/Jan-18/ISSN No

4 Muruganantham (2010) proposed a model that explained the impact of four main factors on impulse buying behavior - external factors, internal factors, situational factors and demographics and socio cultural factors. External factors were defined as store related factors used by retailers to stimulate the impulse behavior whereas internal factors highlighted on emotions, mood, shopping enjoyment and feelings of customers. Situational factors included availability of time, money and presence of close friends or relatives whose advices were most likely to influence on impulse buying. Lastly, age, gender and culture can be attributed to demographic and socio cultural factors influencing impulse buying behavior of consumers. Yarahmadi, (2011) analyzed the impact of four variables including window display, free product, cash discount and credit card on consumer impulse behavior in a shopping mall in Iran. The findings of his research suggested that window display is regarded as the strongest variable which influences consumers impulse behavior. Mohan (2013) studied the impact of store environment on impulse buying behavior. Precisely, he measured the influence of music, light, layout and behavior of retail staff on impulse purchases along with individual characteristics including impulse buying tendency and shopping enjoyment tendencies. Mehta (2014) studied the impact of in-store characteristics including window display, store front, store environment and promotional signage on consumers impulse buying using the case of furniture outlets. His study revealed that window display and promotional signage have direct relationship with consumers impulse buying. Thus, it is evident from the above studies that store characteristics are under continuous consideration of retailers. Well designed and eye catching window displays are considered to be useful in terms of attracting the attention of customers and encouraging them to enter the store. Once customers are inside the store, the role of other external factors such as promotional signage, background music and store smell comes into force which can increase the chances of impulse buying. This paper therefore aims to focus on the influence of external factors like window display, promotional signage, store layout, music and store smell, collectively referred to as Store 4 IMS Management Journal/Volume: 10, Issue: 1/Jan-18/ISSN No

5 Atmospherics, in order to explain the process of impulse buying among consumers shopping from various organized retail outlets in Kolkata. 3. Objectives: 1. To identify the influence of window display on consumers impulse buying behavior 2. To evaluate the influence of promotional signage on consumers impulse buying behavior 3. To measure the influence of store layout on consumers impulse buying behavior 4. To identify the influence of background music on consumers impulse buying behavior 5. To identify the influence of store scent on consumers impulse buying behavior 4. Hypothesis: 4.1 Window Display: is used in the façade of the store by means of which retailers can draw the attention of the customers into the store, provide message about the products offered inside the store and also motivate them to visit the store (Levy and Weitz, 2002; Comelius, 2010). The related hypothesis therefore is: H10: Impulse buying behavior of customers is not influenced by window display 4.2 Promotional Signage: gives information about special offers and price discounts available in the store. In store promotion techniques such as in-store settings, reduced price promotions and coupons increase consumers impulse buying tendency (cited in Mururganantham, 2013). The related hypothesis therefore is: H20: Impulse buying behavior of customers is not influenced by promotional signage in store 4.3 Store Layout: a well organized store layout enhances the process of shopping by creating convenience for customers (Baker, cited in Mohan, 2013). In fact, good store layout enables customers to move about the store effortlessly and find the products of their choice in a quick and efficient manner. The related hypothesis therefore is: H30: Impulse buying behavior of customers is not influenced by Store Layout 5 IMS Management Journal/Volume: 10, Issue: 1/Jan-18/ISSN No

6 4.4 Background Music: According to the findings of Matilla and Wirtz (2001) consumers are more likely to stay longer in a store due to the presence of good background music and browse through the store looking at the merchandise offered. In fact music is considered as an important element of store atmosphere which directly influences consumers buying behavior (Levy and Weitz, 2002). The related hypothesis therefore is: H40: Impulse buying behavior of customers is not influenced by Background Music 4.5 Store Scent: Pleasant aroma within the store influences a customer s emotions and moods (Levy and Weitz, 2002). The impact of store smell on impulse buying behavior has been identified in the study of Matilla and Wirtz (2008) and Mohan (2013). The related hypothesis therefore is: H50: Impulse buying behavior of customers is not influenced by Store Scent 5. Research Methodology: Convenient sampling method was used to approach 170 customers across various organized retail outlets in Kolkata. Most of the customers were regular buyers at Spencers, Big Bazaar, Shoppers Stop and Pantaloons Retail, where they were found to purchase various items of their choice which included grocery items, cosmetics, apparels and other personal care products. 117 questionnaires were found to be completed and usable in the study. As such the final sample size was determined as 117. The demographic profile of the respondents is as follows: Demographic Profile of the Respondents Gender Male 56% Female 44% Age % % % 6 IMS Management Journal/Volume: 10, Issue: 1/Jan-18/ISSN No

7 % Marital Status Married 71% Unmarried 25% Others 4% Family Income per Month Below 30, 000/- 10% 30, 001/- - 40, 000/- 29% 40, 001/- - 50, 000/- 42% Above 50, 001/- 19% Table 1: Demographic Profile of the Respondents (Primary Data) The proposed research framework has been adopted from Kim (2003), which is as follows: Figure 1: Consumers Impulse Buying Behavior (Kim, 2003) 6. Data Analysis and Interpretation: A Principal Component Analysis was conducted on 9 items with Varimax Rotation. The 9 items related to impulse buying were loaded in one component, with factor loadings higher than.050 and Eigen values higher than 1, were considered with 56% variance explained. The alpha 7 IMS Management Journal/Volume: 10, Issue: 1/Jan-18/ISSN No

8 coefficient for the nine items is.82, suggesting that the items have relatively high internal consistency. Items Impulse buying Sometimes I feel like buying things on the spur of the moment I see it, I buy it describes me Just do it describes the way I buy things I often buy things without thinking I carefully plan most of my purchases I buy things according to how I feel at the moment Buy now, think about it later describes me Sometimes I am a bit reckless about what I buy I often buy things spontaneously Eigen value 5.03 Variance 56% Cronbach α 0.82 Table 2: Principle Component Analysis The Rotated Component Matrix indicates that there are four components under which all the factors can be grouped. In this study, four components have been identified: Promotional Music and Window Items Scent Signage Layout Display If scent of store is pleasant I intend to go back to the store in future If I like the music inside the store my chances of unplanned buying become greater The scent coming from the stores entices me IMS Management Journal/Volume: 10, Issue: 1/Jan-18/ISSN No

9 to go inside If the store smells good, I tend to stay longer and look at the merchandise Layout of the store is well-structured so that consumers have no difficulty finding their way I am more likely to make unplanned buying if the store smells good I am more likely to make unplanned buying if the product has a sale sign Walking space in the store is not crowded If I see an interesting offer on in-store signs of the store, I am more likely to buy it Sales signs used by the store entices me to look through the merchandise The music playing in the store influences my impulse buying behavior I spend more time in the store browsing through the products, if I like the ambience and the background sounds When I enter a store, I tend to follow the store layout while browsing through The store makes me feel like exploring it I am more likely to enter the store, if it has an eye-catching window display When I see a special promotional signage in the store, I go inside to look at the product I feel compelled to visit the store, if it has an interesting window display IMS Management Journal/Volume: 10, Issue: 1/Jan-18/ISSN No

10 I pay attention to the store's window display 0.61 Table 3: Factor Loadings for Impulse Buying The variables included in the questionnaire were loaded into 4 components, where only factor loadings higher than 0.50 were extracted. Items related to smell within the store loaded in the first component labeled as Store Scent. Component 2 represented items included in Promotional Signage while Component 4 represented Window Display. However, items related to music and store layout was represented under the same factor and together named as Music and Layout. Based on the output of factor analysis, factor scores were further used in regression analysis to test the hypothesis. 6.1 Regression Analysis The influence of Window Display on consumers impulse buying The results of linear regression show that there is a significant relationship between consumers impulse buying and window display. Since p value (0.005) is less than 0.05, it can be stated that null hypothesis was rejected The influence of promotional signage on consumers impulse buying The results of linear regression show that there is a significant relationship between consumers impulse buying and promotional signage used in the store. Since p value (0.023) is less than 0.05, it can be stated that null hypothesis was rejected The influence of store layout on consumers impulse buying The analysis of regression for the given sample showed that there is a significant relationship between store layout and consumers impulse buying behavior. Since p value (0.018) is less than 0.05, it can be stated that null hypothesis was rejected The influence of music on consumers impulse buying The results of regression analysis revealed that there is no significant relationship between impulse buying and Background Music, with p value (0.317) greater than Therefore, the null hypothesis was accepted 10 IMS Management Journal/Volume: 10, Issue: 1/Jan-18/ISSN No

11 6.1.5 The influence of store smell on consumers impulse buying Regression analysis also revealed that there is no significant relationship between impulse buying and store smell. The p value (0.321) was more than 0.05, indicating that the null hypothesis was accepted. Hypothesis Coefficient p-value H1. Impulse buying behavior of customers are not influenced by ** Rejected window display H2. Impulse buying behavior of customers are not influenced by ** Rejected promotional signage H3. Impulse buying behavior of customers are not influenced by ** Rejected store layout H4. Impulse buying behavior of customers are not influenced by Accepted store background music H5. Impulse buying behavior of customers are not influenced by store smell/scent Accepted The above analysis reveals that Consumers impulse buying is influenced by three factors among buyers in Kolkata. They are: Window Display, Promotional Signage within the store and Store Layout. However, the other two factors, Background Music and Store Smell do not have any influence on impulse purchase of goods. 7. Conclusion: The analysis has revealed that impulse purchase is influenced by attractive Window Display, in line with studies by Tinnie (2010), Mehta (2014) and others who have identified significant positive relationship between impulse buying and window display in their studies. Results of the research implied that if customers see an attractive and interesting Window Display, they are likely to visit the store more frequently. Consequently, they tend to make an unplanned purchase. Furthermore, customers also make their decisions whether to shop or not in particular store by paying attention to the window display. It was also found that point of purchase posters positively influences consumer impulse buying. Precisely, point of purchase posters are 11 IMS Management Journal/Volume: 10, Issue: 1/Jan-18/ISSN No

12 considered as special forms of sales promotions that can be found near the entrance and checkout areas of organized retail stores which often help customers to realize the need for certain products which were perhaps not in their to buy list. Besides the above two factors, the other important thing that plays a significant role in enhancing impulse purchase is store layout. The research revealed that arrangement of shelves and items within the store helps customers to not only locate items of their choice but also often notice items which they have not thought of purchasing before. The two other factors, i.e. background music and store smell did not have much of an influence on impulse purchase among shoppers in Kolkata organized retail sector. The result of this research study can be used by organized retailers in Kolkata to modify and reframe their marketing strategies so as to maximize footfalls in their store. In addition to that it will also help retailers identify and understand the various methods by means of which they can prolong a customer s stay in the store so that he/ she may look around and browse through more an d more products, which will further enhance the possibilities of impulse purchase. This study is confined to the responses of only 117 shoppers at selected organized retail outlets in the city of Kolkata which has a population of more than four million. The result can be more appropriate if the sample size is increased. Future research can be conducted in different categories of retail separately grocery, apparel, footwear, household items, etc. moreover, this study was based on internal factors of shopping only. Future studies can be conducted on Situational Factors, like availability of time and money, which can have a major influence. References: 1. Baker, J., Parasuraman, A., Grewal, D. and Voss, G. B. (2002), The influence of multiple store environment cues on perceived merchandise value and patronage intentions, Journal of Marketing, Vol.66 No.2, p Bell, D., (2010). Unplanned Buying on Shopping Trips, Journal of Marketing Science, 10 (4).pp Bellenger, D. N., Robertson, D. H. and Hirschman, E.C (1978)., Impulse buying varies by product'', Journal of Advertising Research, IMS Management Journal/Volume: 10, Issue: 1/Jan-18/ISSN No

13 4. Cornelius, B., Natter, M., & Faure, C. (2010). How storefront displays influence retail urge. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 17 (2), Kim, J. (2003). College students apparel impulse buying in relation to visual merchandising [online]. Available from [Accessed 2 February, 2015] 6. Levy and Weitz (2002).Retailing Management. 8th ed. USA, New York: The McGraw- Hill Companies. 7. Mattila, A. and Wirtz, J. (2001).Congruency of scent and music as a driver of in-store evaluations and behavior.journal of Retailing, 77(2), pp , 8. Mattila, A. and Wirtz, J. (2008).The role of store environmental stimulation and social factors on impulse purchasing.journal of Services Marketing, 22(7), pp , 9. Mehta, N. (2014). Impact of Visual merchandising on Consumer buying: A study of furniture outlets, Universal Journal of Management 2 (6), pp Mohan, G., Sivakumaran, B. and Sharma, P. (2013). Impact of store environment on impulse buying behavior.european Journal of Marketing, 47(10), pp , 11. Raposo, D., (2013). Drivers of snack foods impulse buying behaviour among young consumers, British Food Journal, 115 (9), pp , 12. Yarahmadi, et. al. (2011).Evaluating Effective Factors on Consumer Impulse Buying Behavior, Asian Journal of Business Management Studies 2 (4): , ISSN IMS Management Journal/Volume: 10, Issue: 1/Jan-18/ISSN No