Although mercers have long been recognised as one of the most influential trades in medieval London, this is the first book to offer a comprehensive and detailed analysis of the trade from the twelfth to the sixteenth century. The variety of mercery goods (linen, silk, worsted and small manufactured items including what is now called haberdashery) gave the mercers of London an edge over all competitors. The sources and production of all these commodities is traced throughout the period covered. It was as the major importers and distributors of linen in England that London mercers were able to take control of the Merchant Adventurers and the export of English cloth to the Low Countries. The development of the Adventurers' Company and its domination by London mercers is described from its first privileges of 1296 to after the fall of Antwerp. This book investigates the earliest itinerant mercers and the artisans who made and sold mercery goods (such as the silkwomen of London, so often mercers' wives), and their origins in counties like Norfolk, the source of linen and worsted. These diverse traders were united by the neighbourhood of the London Mercery on Cheapside and by their need for the privileges of the freedom of London. Extensive use of Netherlandish and French sources puts the London Mercery into the context of European Trade, and literary texts add a more personal image of the merchant and his preoccupation with his social status which rose from that of the despised pedlar to the advisor of princes. After a slow start, the Mercers' Company came to include some of the wealthiest and most powerful men of London and administer a wide range of charitable estates such as that of Richard Whittington. The story of how they survived the vicissitudes inflicted by the wars and religious changes of the sixteenth century concludes this fascinating and wide-ranging study.

This book attempts to shed light on why it is so difficult to develop and maintain successful businesses in the grocery e-commerce arena. Within the last five years, grocery e-commerce has experienced both consistent successes such as Tesco.com and irrevocable failures such as Webvan.com. Niels Kornum and Mogens Bjerre bring key researchers together to investigate the factors contributing to the success of grocery e-commerce, particularly in countries that had the earliest and most extensive experiences in this field: the USA, the UK and Scandinavia.The authors argue that grocery e-commerce is especially difficult to implement because it differs from other types of consumer sales in numerous aspects including low profit margins, low value density of products and high frequency purchases. As well as examining these unique characteristics, the authors present research on consumer behaviour, cross country comparisons and new empirical evidence in order to address the long-term prospects for the survival of grocery e-commerce. Recommendations as to how managers should respond to its challenges are also made. Academics, students and researchers focusing on marketing, consumer behaviour, logistics, e-commerce and business strategy will find this book to be a fascinating read.

'One of the bookaEURO (TM)s several strong points are the amusing, often fascinating sketches of government officials and British merchants. This is a book of light touch and readable style but also of much information. Especially useful to the specialist are the examination of European-Chinese credit relationships and the use of merchant house archive material. The book will take its place among principal works on Malayan economic history and should, over the coming years, further promote its ongoing revival.'Asian-Pacific Economic LiteratureThis is the story of British enterprise in Singapore and Malaya from 1786 to 1920, when British vision, zeal and drive developed Penang, then Singapore and, finally, the peninsular Malay States.In the initial years, commerce and finance were paramount. The seeds of these commercial activities had been planted initially in the days of the East India Company but later, and more importantly, by individual merchant firms, supported by credit from London. These merchants were the driving force of British investment and development on the Malay Peninsula. While the contributions of the Malays, Indians and, especially, the Chinese to economic development should not be under-rated, in the period under review, their activities were steered and monitored by the British.This book presents an original and coherent account of British Enterprise in Singapore and Malaya in an important historical period and includes substantial new material from primary records of merchant firms and banks which will be of great interest to students, professionals as well as the general public.

The author has virtually incomparable experience in both providing trade policy advice to more than 25 countries on behalf of the World Bank and also publishing quality journal articles in most of those cases. In this volume, he focuses on his work on: (i) trade policies for countries making the transition from planned to market economies; (ii) his trade policy guideline papers for the World Bank on trade policies for poverty alleviation, uniform tariff policy, adjustment costs of trade liberalization, exchange rate overvaluation, globalization and technology transfer and rules of thumb on regional trade policies; (iii) multilateral, dynamic and environmental issues in trade policy using computable general equilibrium models; (iv) trade policy of the United States in the auto and steel industries; and (v) mathematical methods for modeling. The papers show an unusual combination of policy relevance, advice and impact, with rigor and international trade theory insights.The papers in this volume have appeared in many of the economics profession's more prestigious journals, including Econometrica, Review of Economic Studies, Quarterly Journal of Economics, Economic Journal, the Journal of International Economics, International Economic Review, European Economic Review, Canadian Journal of Economics, Economic Inquiry, the Journal of Comparative Economic, Review of International Economics, World Economy, the Southern Economic Journal, the World Bank Economic Review, the Japanese Economic Review and the Latin American Journal of Economics. In this book, the author elaborates on the articles by discussing some of the policy contexts for the requests for the work from developing and transition countries to the World Bank, the key trade theory or policy insights, policy recommendations and conclusions and the policy impacts.

The Retail and Food Services sectors play an important role in Singapore. They add to the vibrancy of the economy and contribute to the social well-being of Singaporeans. At the same time, they are often highlighted and scrutinised for their low productivity performance and high reliance on manpower. There is to date a lack of local literature that addresses the issues faced by the two sectors at the enterprise and worker levels.This timely book includes major topics in services productivity in the Singapore context, with emphasis on Retail and Food Services. Topics covered include the key productivity levers of the services sectors: holistic productivity measurement framework, effective entrepreneurship, manpower management, promotion by social media, marketing, costing process and accounting sophistication. These areas are explored through literature reviews and in-depth interviews with companies and consumers. The chapters also include recommendations for policy makers and industry stakeholders. Written in a simple and accessible manner, this book will serve as an insightful guide to researchers, policy-makers, industry practitioners and enterprises and those who are keen to learn from the Singapore experience.

"A cut above most workplace histories. Looking at the separate but sometimes overlapping development of European and African-American hairdressing from the early twentieth century to the present, Willett shows how race shaped different trajectories for black and white salons."
--"Lingua Franca"

"Offers an unusually comprehensive look at a significant twentieth-century industry and female preoccupation"
--"American Historical Review"

"Refreshing to read a history so firmly historicized and grounded in working-class and Afro-American history"
-- "Journal of Social History"

"Carefully nuanced and [a] compelling history."
-- Nan Enstad, "The Journal of American History"

Throughout the twentieth century, beauty shops have been places where women could enjoy the company of other women, exchange information, and share secrets. The female equivalent of barbershops, they have been institutions vital to community formation and social change.

But while the beauty shop created community, it also reflected the racial segregation that has so profoundly shaped American society. Links between style, race, and identity were so intertwined that for much of the beauty shop's history, black and white hairdressing industries were largely separate entities with separate concerns. While African American hair-care workers embraced the chance to be independent from white control, negotiated the meanings of hair straightening, and joined in larger political struggles that challenged Jim Crow, white female hairdressers were embroiled in struggles over self-definition and opposition to their industry's emphasis on male achievement. Yet despite their differences, black and whitehairdressers shared common stakes as battles were waged over issues of work, skill, and professionalism unique to women's service work.

Permanent Waves traces the development of the American beauty shop, from its largely separate racial origins, through white recognition of the "ethnic market," to the present day.

This book is a key example of the emergence of public choice theory by an economist who was to become one of its major exponents. It combines a detailed, critical study of the Monopolies Commission, with an analysis of the economic issues involved in monopoly supervision and control.

The Active Consumer discusses how consumers seem to delight in trying new solutions and exploring new combinatory possibilities. This book provides an economic-theoretical understanding of this phenomenon and the many ways in which innovation can structure consumer choice. The authors show from different points of view how central novelty can be in consumer behaviour, how it relates to technical change and how new consumer capabilities are developed and organized.

This book rests on the proposition that the information techology revolution of the last ten years marks the beginning of a fundamental economic transformation. This transformation will affect every activity in which organization, information processing, or communication is important. It may well require changes in ideas about ownership, property, and control--the way in which governments regulate economies in the broadest sense of that term. The e-commerce transformation presents remarkable opportunities for businesses, governments, and other organizations to remake themselves, recreate what it is that they can do, and reconstruct their relationships with customers, citizens, and constituents. A project of the Berkeley Roundtable on the International Economy (BRIE) and the Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation (IGCC), this volume analyzes the way this transformation will affect market structure and pricing models in several major industries: retail financial services, air travel, music, automobiles, semiconductors, hearing instruments, food, textiles, and trucking.

Although the Anti-Corn Law league played a most important part in the politics of the 1840's, there is no modern study of its activities and organization. Based on several years work on the original sources, as well as papers belonging to George Wilson, President of the League for most of its life, this book sheds light on the internal history and organization of the League. Written from a political perspective, Dr McCord describes the origin, organization and activities of the League, together with its effect on the contemporary political scene, and as such, fills an important gap in our knowledge of the political history of early Victorian England. At the same time, the book provides an analysis of an unusually well-documented political pressure group, making it a most welcome addition to literature for historians and economic historians, as well as students of political science. This book was first published in 1958.

Competition Policy in East Asia clarifies the key issues and provides a framework for understanding competition policy, looking in-depth at a number of regulated sectors for additional perspectives.
Until two or three decades ago, competition and consumer protection policies were the preserve of the major developed economies like the United States, the United Kingdom and some European countries. Now competition issues are at the top of the international agenda as globalization spreads and as the operations of the World Trade Organization, the World Bank, the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum and other organizations have brought about a realization that regulatory reform - and in many economies the creation for the first time of regulatory instruments for competition and consumer protection - is an imperative.

"Competition Policy in East Asia "draws together a collection of papers on competition policy that were presented at the Twenty-Eighth Conference of the Pacific Area Forum on Trade and Development (PAFTAD), held in Manila on 16-18 September 2002. It seeks to clarify the issues and provide a framework for understanding competition policy, looking in depth at a number of regulated sectors for additional perspectives
Until two or three decades ago, competition and consumer protection policies were the preserve of the major developed economies like the United States, the United Kingdom and some European countries. Now competition issues are at the top of the international agenda as globalization spreads and as the operations of the World Trade Organization, the World Bank, the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum and other organizations have brought about a realization that regulatory reform - and in many economies the creation for the first time of regulatory instruments for competition and consumer protection - is an imperative.

From the earliest times, people have striven to turn their houses into homes through the use of decoration and furnishings, stimulating in turn a major commercial sector dedicated to offering the products and services essential to feed the ever-changing dictates of domestic fashion. Whilst there is plentiful evidence to show that these phenomena can be traced to medieval times, it is arguable that the eighteenth century witnessed the birth of a widespread and sophisticated consumer society. With a comparatively wealthy and socially mobile society, eighteenth-century Britain proved to be a fertile ground for ideas of home improvement and beautification, which were to persist to the present day. Turning Houses into Homes not only maps the history, changes, development and structure of the retail furnishing industry in Britain over three centuries, but also examines the relationships between the retailer and the consumer, looking at how retailers helped stimulate and shape the demand of their customers. Whilst work has been done on specific aspects of the home, very little has been written on the interaction between the retailer and consumer, and the pressures brought to bear on them by issues such as gender, education, status, symbolism, taste, decoration, hygiene, comfort and entertainment. As such, this book offers a valuable conjunction of retail history and consumption practices, which are examined through a multi-disciplinary approach to explore both their intimate connections and their wider roles in society.

In the second half of the twentieth century, 20 percent (10,000) of all retail druggists were Rexall druggists. Now there are none, and this book explains why! The Rexall Story: A History of Genius and Neglect shows how a brilliant and successful business/pharmacy venture was allowed to fail through carelessness and an inattention to the original formula of the company. From the celebrated genius of Louis Liggettwho started United Drug in 1903to the business's demise nearly 75 years later, this significant text will provide you with new insight into the pharmacy industry. With The Rexall Story, pharmacists, pharmacy and business educators, and historians alike can see how Louis Liggett single-handedly transformed the retail drug business using innovative business practices and policies. Author Mickey C. Smith, editor of the Journal of Research in Pharmaceutical Economics and principal author and editor of the seminal book Pharmaceutical Marketing: Principles, Environment and Practices, uses his expertise to explain how Louis Liggett's techniques were so successful in the industry. This book explores in detail his communication and merchandising skills, his principles in doing business, and his revolutionary techniques for keep his business prosperous. Using internal documents, photographs, and direct quotes from radio promotions, and the recollections of former Rexall employees, this book chronicles Rexall's story, including: the beginnings of Rexallits origins and expansion, International Rexall Clubs, and the unparalleled efforts of Liggett and his franchisees the Dear Pardner letters (1903-1923)unprecedented in Big Business even today, these were personal letters between Liggett and his people the Rexall familyconversations and correspondence with former Rexallites, capturing how the ret

Competition, Monopoly and Corporate Governance covers three broad themes, each associated with a particular strand of Keith Cowling's own writings in industrial economics and each represented by four specially commissioned papers. Providing a critical perspective on many current issues in industrial economics the themes are as follows: internationalisation, trans-nationalism and technical change; monopoly, oligopoly and social welfare; and corporate governance, mergers and the evolution of industrial structure. These chapters provide a challenge to much of the prevailing orthodoxy. There is also an appreciation of Keith Cowling's long association with the University of Warwick, spanning more than 30 years. A distinguished series of authors have contributed to the book, including several of Europe's best-known industrial economists. Academics, economists and political scientists in the area of industrial economics will find this volume invaluable.

England's economy between 1050 and 1550 mirrored that of much of continental Europe in its growing dependence upon trade over both short distances and long. The essays in this collection are the fruit of forty years of research into the complex and interrelated issues involved. Describing this change can be achieved in part through quantitative indices, such as the number and size of towns, markets and fairs, and the volume of monetary circulation. A full account also requires a discussion of widespread changes of work experience, customary practices and moral values as households became more dependent upon markets. In addition, the evidence of transformative commercial growth in the medieval period gives rise to numerous questions concerning its relationship to more modern times. Modern economic growth and modern capitalism have often been contrasted starkly with medieval economic stagnation and traditionalism, but recent research implies a more continuous process of economic development than that implied by these older stereotypes. Many of the items in this collection are also relevant to this more discursive aspect of medieval commercialisation.

This book provides an incredibly detailed and thorough account of how Vietnam's dependence on Soviet aid during the 1960s and 1970s sustained and yet ultimately undermined the centrally-planned economy. Foreign aid provided most of the resources which, in the context of an under-developed agrarian economy, permitted planned industrialisation. Yet, as in other socialist countries, chronic shortages emerged and, particularly when aid supplies were cut after 1975, encouraged individuals and enterprises to divert resources to local uses. The authors show how development of non-plan trading relations was based on supplies of scarce, aid-subsidised goods which provided the means for local authorities, enterprises and individuals to convert their positions of political and social power into capital. They further highlight the ways in which new, market-oriented trade relations emerged in symbiosis with the planning system and continue to influence the economic structure and institutions today. Economic Transition in Vietnam outlines the many problems currently facing Vietnam, not least how new global forms of integration are affecting future development.

In developed countries, the food superstore or hypermarket has become the dominant mode of food distribution; and their success has transformed the retail sector. But each new store has changed the employment regime of the stores they replace. For retailers, labour is a major cost; with opening hours being extended, and consumer demand patterns changing, one solution has been the use of part-time labour. Extensive use of such labour characterises British food retailing for example whereas it is less common in France. This book examines the reasons for such differences, and the potential which management and employees have within the operation to manage working time to their benefit. This book makes use of a four country research programme, covering France, Germany, Great Britain and Japan. Investigations and interviews at store, company and individual level, paint a picture of working time in the sector and in each of the countries. The volume provides some explanations for national differences as well as the similarities; supply and demand issues, as well as societal and social backgrounds. Large format food retailing is a major force in each country, employing millions in many di

Examines the fast growing role of internal and international tourism on local economic development in certain areas of China, and identifies the factors that determine the success or failure of tourism-oriented development.

The Active Consumer discusses how consumers seem to delight in trying new solutions and exploring new combinatory possibilities. This book provides an economic-theoretical understanding of this phenomenon and the many ways in which innovation can structure consumer choice. The authors show from different points of view how central novelty can be in consumer behaviour, how it relates to technical change and how new consumer capabilities are developed and organized.

This book, first published in 1995, analyses both theoretically and empirically the effects of a material injury clause of the type found in the Trade Act of 1979 on the behaviour of the dumping or subsidised foreign and import-competing domestic industries. The insight underlying the investigation is that the existence of such a material injury clause in an unfair trade law presents a moral hazard for representatives of the industry because it implies that tariff protection is more likely when the ITC perceives the injury to the US industry to be greater. Therefore, an incentive exists for the US industry to let itself be (or appear to be) injured today in order to benefit from tariff protection in the future.