"This book provides a significant contribution to the discursive analysis of service encounters. It demonstrates, in a very elegant way and based on a solid empirical investigation, how mediated discourse analysis may be enacted to describe and understand the social and cultural practices associated with space, time, ethnicity and identity construction. A must-read for researchers and practitioners interested in language use in professional contexts." -- Laurent Filliettaz, University of Geneva, Switzerland "This book contains one of the most thorough and productive applications of the theoretical and analytical apparatus of mediated discourse analysis I have come across, demonstrating how the moment-by-moment ways that people appropriate discourse to perform mundane daily activities such as shopping contribute to the broader maintenance of social identities and communities. The analysis is meticulously undertaken and communicated in clear, elegant prose. This book will be of interest to anyone working in the field of discourse studies." -- Rodney Jones, University of Reading, UK This book investigates the social practices of service encounters in the context of a typical Persian shop in Sydney. Although by nature goal-oriented speech events, the book posits that service encounters are not simply limited to achieving business transactions, but that they incorporate a range of social and discursive practices. Analysing ethnographic data using the frameworks of Mediated and Multimodal Discourse Analysis, the author explores how people use everyday activities to enact social and cultural identities, construct linguistic authenticity, and maintain strong economic ties to the community. It will be of interest to scholars and students of the sociolinguistics of ethnic/ minority sites and urban spaces. Dariush Izadi holds a PhD in Sociolinguistics and teaches Language and Linguistics Research Methods, Sociolinguistics, Discourse Analysis and TESOL Units at Western Sydney University, Australia. In his work, he applies mediated discourse and nexus analysis to investigate practices and methods through which participants accomplish their actions in social settings.

For courses in Retail Buying, Retail Merchandising and Fashion Merchandising. Retail Buying, Ninth Edition, is known for its clear depiction of retail buying, reflecting what buyers face every day in their pursuit of excellence. Focusing on the changes in today's market, the book addresses topics such as diverse ethnicities and the nuances of purchasing abroad. Contemporary market considerations are highlighted throughout, including chapters on buying for discount operations, using the Internet for product procurement, and methods of analyzing customer demand. With a host of end-of-chapter materials and visual aids, this book continues its tradition of effectively preparing students for their role as professional retail buyers.

For Services Management/Marketing or Marketing courses, particularly for undergraduate and graduate programs in Hospitality Management, Tourism Management, Leisure Management and Retail Management. This book addresses the hospitality industry from a services management perspective, offering the reader a series of management concepts - operations, marketing and human resources - all of which are capable of being effectively incorporated into all hospitality operations. The book's focus is on the ever-increasing demand of customers for service quality, as well as the other challenges facing hospitality establishments today - including intense competition, globalization, and technological innovation. This book stresses the point that in all services, including hospitality services, the human element (both employees and customers) is absolutely crucial - in selling services, hospitality enterprises are 'selling' personal relationships. Hospitality providers of all types will benefit from adopting the management philosophies and practices in this book - ones that have proven so effective in other service sectors.

The Association of Retail Technology Standards is an organization of retailers and vendors who have come together to create an extensive set of standards to reduce the cost and time for upgrading existing applications or adding new capabilities. To understand the depth of support that ARTS offers, consider that the granddaddy of ARTS standards, the ARTS Data Model, has more than seven hundred tables and seven thousand attributes.

In this new guide, author Richard Halter reveals how ARTS standards can help your business turn more consumers into customers and maximize profits. You can learn how to

- communicate better with potential customers;- harness the power of social retailing;- boost the success of promotions and discounts; and- organize your store to maximize sales.

Written in a language that everyone can understand, this guidebook explains how ARTS works together to help retailers and vendors. Take your business to a higher performing level and put more money in your pocket with ARTS for Retail.

Learn about the luxury brand industry from the inside out with this masterful and insightful resource The newly revised Fourth Edition of Luxury Brand Management in Digital and Sustainable Times delivers a timely re-examination of what constitutes the contemporary luxury brand landscape and the current trends that shape the sector. Distinguished experts and authors Michel Chevalier and Gerald Mazzalovo provide readers with a comprehensive treatment of the macro- and micro-economic aspects of management, communication, distribution, logistics, and creation in the luxury industry. Readers will learn about the growing importance of authenticity and sustainability in the management of fashion, perfume, cosmetics, spirits, hotels and hospitality, jewelry, and other luxury brands, as well as the strategic issues facing the companies featured in the book. The new edition offers: A new chapter on the "Luxury of Tomorrow," with a particular focus on authenticity and durable development A completely revised chapter on "Communication in Digital Times," which takes into account the digital dimension of brand identity and its implications on customer engagement activities and where the concept of Customer Journey is introduced as a key marketing tool A rewritten chapter on "Luxury Clients" that considers the geographical changes in luxury consumption Considerations on the emerging notion of "New Luxury" Major updates to the data and industry figures contained within the book and a new section dedicated to the hospitality industry New semiotic analytical tools developed from the authors' contemporary brand management experiences Perfect for MA and MBA students, Luxury Brand Management also belongs on the bookshelves of marketing, branding, and advertising professionals who hope to increase their understanding of the major trends and drivers of success in this sector.

Shopping is one of the most challenging and rewarding human activities. Pooler offers a captivating exploration of the emotional and psychological dimensions of shopping. What drives shoppers in various situations? Why do we shop the way we do? Why do people go to malls, boutiques, and Web sites with their credit cards in hand, despite not knowing what it is they're looking for? This book answers such questions, taking an incisive look at how shopping and shoppers have changed in recent years. For those in retailing and marketing, this guide to the fickle consumer's mindset offers concrete and practical advice on modern shopping behavior, along with important insights into the shopping psyche. Comprehending why people shop as they do is a daunting challenge for today's retailer. For example, why do people shop for bargain groceries yet purchase the latest luxury-model SUV? Why do people feel justified in splurging for Christmas, birthdays, or anniversaries, but suffer guilt from over-spending at other times of the year? Is clothes-shopping all about price and practicality, or is it more about emotional reward and psychological needs? Is the excitement in the quest or the acquisition? Why is there such a thing as a morning-after "urge to return" among certain shoppers, while others refuse to return an item even if it's flawed or doesn't fit? Pooler probes to the heart of today's complex shopper, providing valuable insights for retailers, advertisers, marketers, and consumers.

Grocery shopping is an often ignored part of the story of how food ultimately gets to our pantry shelves and tables. "A Theory of Grocery Shopping" explores the social organization of grocery shopping by linking the lived experience of grocery shoppers and retail managers in the US with information transmitted by nutritionists, government employees, financial advisors, journalists, health care providers and marketers, who influence the way we think about and perform the work of shopping for a household's food. The author provides insight into the contradictory messages that shape how consumers provision their households, and details how consumers respond to these messages. The book challenges the consumer choice model that places responsibility on the shopper for making the "right" choice at the grocery store, thereby ignoring the larger social forces at work, which determine what products are available and how they get to the shelves.

Using various research methodologies, such as reviews, case studies, analytical modeling and empirical studies, this book investigates luxury fashion retail management and provides relevant insights, which are beneficial to both industrialists and academics. Readers gain an understanding of luxury fashion retailing, including proper operations and strategic management, which now are the most crucial items on the luxury fashion industry's senior management agenda.

The continued advancement of globalization, increases in internet connectivity, compatibility of international payment systems, and adaptability of logistics and shipping processes have combined to contribute to the rapid growth of the cross-border e-commerce market. Due to these advancements and the ubiquitous presence of smartphones, consumer use of cross-border e-commerce is increasingly simplified, and thus, sellers are hardly restricted to a specific country in terms of promoting, selling, and shipping goods worldwide. The burgeoning opportunities, habits, and trends of shopping on cross-border e-commerce platforms have expedited the prospect of becoming a presence in the global market. This is true for enterprises of all sizes, especially for small? and medium?sized enterprises (SMEs) that want to add their footprint in the international market for the first time. Like any other industry, cross-border e-commerce has its specific economics and driving forces, but has different scopes, challenges, and trends due to the geographic and cultural expanse of relevant environments. Cross-Border E-Commerce Marketing and Management was conceptualized by identifying the scope of new complementary information with a comprehensive understanding of the issues and potential of cross-border e-commerce businesses. The authors believe that this book will not only fill the void in the current research but will also provide far-sighted vision and strategies, as it covers big data, artificial intelligence, IoT, supply chain management, and more. This book provides the necessary knowledge to managers to compete with the competitive market structure and ultimately contribute to the sustainable economic growth of a country. It works as a guideline for existing cross-border e-commerce managers to formulate individual strategies that combine to optimize the industry while keeping the enterprise competitive. This book is useful in both developed and developing country contexts. This publication is an ideal resource for academicians, policy makers, stakeholders, and cross-border e-commerce managers, especially from SMEs.

This book argues that we need to focus attention on the ways that workers themselves have invested subjectively in what it means to be a worker. By doing so, we gain an explanation that moves us beyond the economic decisions made by actors, the institutional constraints faced by trade unions, or the power of the state to interpellate subjects. These more common explanations make workers and their politics visible only as a symptom of external conditions, a response to deregulated markets or a product of state recognition. Instead - through a history of retailing as a site of nation and belonging, changing legal regimes, and articulations of race, class and gender in the constitution of political subjects from the 1930s to present-day Wal-Mart - this book presents the experiences and subjectivities of workers themselves to show that the collective political subject 'workers' (abasebenzi) is both a durable and malleable political category. From white to black women's labour, the forms of precariousness have changed within retailing in South Africa. Workers' struggles in different times have in turn resolved some dilemmas and by other turn generated new categories and conditions of precariousness, all the while explaining enduring attachments to labour politics.

This volume discusses continuous improvement strategies of Japanese convenience store operators. The study highlights the efforts of companies operating under lean management systems to identify new, dynamic, firm-specific capabilities in highly competitive markets.

Globalization has pushed the use of technology in business with advancing information and communication technology becoming a key factor in the future development of the retailing industry. Technology applications have significantly contributed to the exponential growth and profits of retailing institutions worldwide. ""Information Communication Technologies and Globalization of Retailing Applications"" critically examines the synergy of technology use and conventional wisdom in retailing and explores contemporary changes determining higher customer value. Discussions in this book encompass strategy implications for managers to optimize their advantage in retailing through the application of ICT, bridging the customer-technology gap.

Continuous improvements in digitized practices have created opportunities for businesses to develop more streamlined processes. This not only leads to higher success in day-to-day production, but it also increases the overall success of businesses. E-Manufacturing and E-Service Strategies in Contemporary Organizations is a critical scholarly resource that explores the advances in cloud-based solutions in the service and manufacturing realms of corporations and promotes communication between customers and service providers and manufacturers. Featuring coverage on a wide range of topics including smart manufacturing, internet banking, database system adoption, this book is geared towards researchers, professionals, managers, and academicians seeking current and relevant research on the improvement of cloud-based systems for manufacturing and service.

As financial systems migrate to a pervasive, online environment, business leaders and layman investors alike must adapt to changes in the market brought about by this new age of business. Strategic E-Commerce Systems and Tools for Competing in the Digital Marketplace advances the body of knowledge on electronic business and commerce with an in-depth look at the opportunities and concerns surrounding online business and finance. This cutting-edge reference aids business leaders, financial managers, investors, and consumers looking to build their portfolios and thrive in modern digital business environments.

A consequence of business specialization is the implementation of weak processes that cross departmental and corporate boundaries. Supply chain management (SCM) addresses this issue by requiring a process view that reaches across these confines. Due to globalization and a competitive environment, those within the retail supply chains are particularly vulnerable. New ways of managing require an understanding of the entire chain by participants at every level-retailer, distributor, manufacturer, and service provider. Demonstrating the link between markets, products, and product strategies in the supply chain, Retail Supply Chain Management provides the knowledge and skills required to thrive in this environment. It demonstrates the connection between the processes involved in manufacturing, distribution, warehousing, and transportation, and how to use these connections to their best advantage. The book offers fresh insights into the financial and operational tools that are available and how to use these tools in order to deliver quality products in the most cost efficient manner. The authors' collaboration brings together expertise from both operations and retail business management, matching the solutions available from SCM with the challenges and opportunities that arise in the retail industry. The text also includes case studies and experiences from leaders in SCM as well as hard lessons learned by those trying to lead. These examples illustrate specific solutions to common situations in a retail supply chain.

This book will help small business owners and marketers feel comfortable using social media to promote their businesses, regardless of their past experiences or level of expertise. Social networking plus small business is a slam dunk! Small Business Smarts: Building Buzz with Social Media explains why that's so and helps small business owners decide whether social media tools are right for them. Assuming the answer is yes, the book offers concrete advice and implementation suggestions that make using tools to start building word-of-mouth quick and easy. Built around actual success stories from small businesses, such as the Roger Smith Hotel, Dutch Bros. Coffee, Cafe Yumm, and the Tattered Cover Bookstore, the book illustrates how different social media can help achieve different business goals, how the Internet can be used to "listen" to customers, how networks and relationships are built online for both B2C and B2B, and how effective messages can generate awareness and attract customers. Measurement strategies and techniques for a social media audit are included. For the complete novice, step-by-step instructions on getting started with popular social media applications are provided as well. Interviews with 25 small business owners and marketers detailing how they are using social media successfully right now An evaluation tool and example spreadsheets for conducting a social media audit Call-outs that show how different types of businesses can implement various marketing ideas Action-item tips that can be used in online messaging today

As media evolves with technological improvement, communication changes alongside it. In particular, storytelling and narrative structure have adapted to the new digital landscape, allowing creators to weave immersive and enticing experiences that captivate viewers. These experiences have great potential in marketing and advertising, but the medium's methods are so young that their potential and effectiveness is not yet fully understood. Handbook of Research on Transmedia Storytelling, Audience Engagement, and Business Strategies is a collection of innovative research that explores transmedia storytelling and digital marketing strategies in relation to audience engagement. Highlighting a wide range of topics including promotion strategies, business models, and prosumers and influencers, this book is ideally designed for digital creators, advertisers, marketers, consumer analysts, media professionals, entrepreneurs, managers, executives, researchers, academicians, and students.