Master Thesis,
MSc in Marketing Management
“The Green Experience”
When going green becomes too green for a traditional Retailer
Friederike Marie Gräter
June 22, 2015
“The Green Experience”
When going green becomes too green for a traditional Retailer
Master Thesis
Faculty of Economics and Business MSc Marketing Management
22nd June 2015 Supervisors:
prof. dr. L. M. Sloot dr. L. Lobschat
Friederike Marie Gräter Moesstraat 51A
9717 JV Groningen
Telephone: + 31 622 04 97 25 Email: F.M.Graeter@student.
Student number: S2747650
Management Summary
The recent years have shown growing consciousness of shoppers regarding consumer goods’
impact on the environment, leading to the trend of green consumerism and green retailing.
Besides, in todays’ retail landscape, creating distinctive and superior customer experience is among the most important objectives and biggest challenges. Several retailers as the American supermarket chain “Whole Foods” succeed very well in exploiting both trends together: They present abundant assortments of green products in order to create extraordinary customer experience in their stores thereby corresponding to the consumer trend of green products. This study investigates if the Whole-Foods – example might also be a sound strategy for traditional retailers.
The research objective was to assess if increasing the number of green products in a store will lead to retail experience creation and to beneficial outcomes as increased willingness to buy (WTB) and willingness to pay price premiums (WTP). Moreover, interviewing field experts stressed the importance of in-store communication about green products in order to achieve these desired retailer outcomes. Additionally, this study wants to get further insights to what extent store experience depends on the consumer: It was assumed that consumers’ shopping motives and if consumers endorse strong green values impacts this relationship.
The study was conducted by setting up an online experiment. Data was collected from a 2x2x2x2 between-subjects full-factorial design, comprising the combined effects of two different amounts of green products, means of communication, organic vs. Fair Trade products and utilitarian vs. hedonic products. To test the hypotheses depicting the main-, interaction- and mediation effects, 2-way Anova, multiple regression, moderation and mediation analysis was performed. The main effect of green products leading to increased WTB and WTP could not be revealed in this research. Instead, the opposite has been found:
WTB and WTP increased when consumers were presented with less green products.
However, it was found that means of communication significantly increase WTP.
Furthermore, this paper found evidence for a mediating effect of in-store communication on experience creation and WTB. Besides, it has been revealed that high green consumer values lead to a negative perception of retail experience created by high green assortments.
Contrarily, retail experience in fact depends on hedonic shopping motives of consumers. This thesis further examined differences in (green) product types regarding retailer outcomes: It was found that Fair Trade and hedonic products mostly benefit WTB and WTP of green
products. However, Fair Trade products and utilitarian products mostly lead to shelf experience.
These findings show that traditional retailers, opposed to “green retailers” are advised to offer well-baöanced green assortments in their stores and not to allocate too much shelf space to green products. Additionally, they are advised to make use of in store-advertising and design cues in order to stimulate WTP and create retail experience that leads to WTB. Moreover, when aiming to target consumers with hedonic shopping motives, retail experience creation is an advisable strategy.
Key words: retailing, green products, in-store communication, customer experience, green consumer values, shopping motives
Preface
After finishing my Bachelors degree in Business Administration at the University of Hamburg in Germany 2013, I started an internship at the Unilever DACH headquarter in Hamburg. While working there, my interest for marketing, consumer behavior and consumer goods grew. Moreover, working in a Dutch company, I got into first contact with “the Dutch way of working” which I really liked. Starting my Masters at the University of Groningen in September 2014 permitted me to combine these experiences and interests. I knew I had made the right decision when I started my first courses. Studying in a foreign country with a different educational system and different expectations from the teaching staff, opened new perspectives and deepened my knowledge, which I gathered during my bachelor studies in Germany. Especially, writing the master thesis showed me how to work independently and how to overcome drawbacks.
When I started my studies, writing a master thesis always seemed to be so far away and, frankly speaking, looked like a little bit scary task. Well, time absolutely flew by, and before I knew it I was filling out my preference form for a thesis topic. I was very happy to be given the topic Retail Marketing, not only because this was a course that I had followed and enjoyed a lot. Under the supervision of prof. dr. Laurens Sloot I found a way to integrate consumer goods, sustainability - another field of my personal interest - and consumer behavior, which lead me to this very interesting research. With mixed feelings I put the finishing touches on my master thesis, and each sentence I write, will bring me closer to finishing this thesis, what also means that I am closer to finishing my time as a student in Groningen. But where one door closes another one opens, and I am looking forwards towards entering the real world of work.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank some people that have helped me writing my thesis. First of all, I would like to thank prof. dr. Laurens Sloot for his guidance and feedback.
Thanks to my fellow thesis group members for the practical support. Finally, a warm thank to all my friends and family for participating at my experiment and helping me along the road.
Groningen, June 2015
Friederike Marie Gräter
Table of Contents
1. Introduction ... 1
2. Literature Review ... 4
2.1 Green Assortments – An Emerging Trend in Food Retail ... 4
2.1.1 Organic Products ... 5
2.1.2 Fair Trade Products ... 5
2.2 Retailer Value ... 6
2.2.1 Willingness to buy ... 6
2.2.2 Willingness to pay ... 7
2.3 Store Experience ... 8
2.3.1 The importance of shelf experience for the total store experience ... 10
2.4 Factors influencing the perceived Shelf Experience ... 11
2.4.1 Green Consumer Values ... 11
2.4.2 Hedonic and Utilitarian Shopping Motives ... 13
2.4.3 Hedonic vs. Utilitarian Products ... 13
3. Interviewing Field Experts ... 15
3.1 Exploring the Value of Green products through In-Depth Interviews ... 15
3.2 Results of the Interview ... 15
3.3 Analysis of the Results ... 17
4. Model and Hypothesis ... 19
4.1 Direct Effect ... 19
4.1.1 Direct Effect of Green Products on WTB and WTP ... 19
4.1.2 Direct Effect of Green Communication on WTB and WTP ... 20
4.1.3 Interaction Effect of Green Products and Green Communication on WTP and WTB ... 20
4.3 Mediating Effect ... 21
4.3.1 Green Assortments/Communication, Shelf Experience and WTB ... 21
4.3.2 Green Assortments/Communication, Shelf Experience and WTP ... 21
4.4 Moderating Effects on Shelf Experience ... 22
4.4.1 Green Communication and Shelf Experience ... 22
4.4.2 Green Consumer Values and Shelf Experience ... 22
4.4.3 Shopping Motives and Shelf Experience ... 23
5 Methodology ... 24
5.1 Research Design ... 24
5.2 Participants ... 26
5.3 Measurements ... 26
5.3.1 General Questions on Shopping Behaviour ... 26
5.3.2 Measuring Green Consumer Values ... 26
5.3.3 Measuring Hedonic and Utilitarian Shopping Motives ... 28
5.3.4 Selection of Products ... 28
5.3.5 Measuring Shelf Experience as a Proxy for Store Experience ... 31
5.3.6 Measuring Green Communication ... 33
5.3.7 Measuring WTP ... 34
5.3.8 Measuring WTB ... 34
5.4 Control Variables ... 34
5.5 Plan of Analysis ... 35
5.5.1 Analysis of the Demographics and Control Variables ... 35
5.5.2 Basic Analysis and Pre-Insights ... 36
5.5.3 Testing Hypothesis ... 36
6. Results ... 37
6.1 Descriptive Statistics ... 37
6.2.2 WTB and WTP ... 40
6.2.3 Shelf Experience ... 41
6.2.3.1 Factor Analysis ... 43
6.2.4 Green Consumer Values ... 44
6.2.5 Hedonic and Utilitarian Shopping Motives ... 44
6.3 Assumption Testing for Further Analysis ... 46
6.3.1 Normality Test ... 46
6.3.2 Multicollinearity ... 47
6.3.3 Levene’s Test of Variance ... 48
6.3.4 Correlations ... 48
6.4 Testing Hypotheses ... Error! Bookmark not defined. 6.4.1 Direct Effect ... 50
6.4.1.1Willingness to buy ... 51
6.4.1.2. Willingness to pay ... 53
6.4.2 Mediating Effect ... 56
6.4.2.1 Level of Green Assortment, Shelf Experience, WTB ... 60
6.4.2.2 Communication, Shelf Experience, WTB ... 60
6.4.2.3 Level of Green Assortment, Shelf Experience, WTP ... 60
6.4.2.4 Communication, Shelf Experience, WTP ... 61
6.4.3 Moderation ... 61
6.4.3.1 Green Consumer Values ... 62
6.4.3.2 Hedonic Shopping Motives ... 63
7. Discussion ... 66
7.1 Conclusions ... 67
7.1.1 Direct Effect WTB and WTP ... 68
7.1.2 Shelf Experience ... 71
7.1.3 Green Consumer Values ... 73
7.1.4 Hedonic Shopping Motives ... 74
7.1.5 Green and Hedonic Product Types ... 74
7.1.6 Demographics and Control Variables ... 75
7.2 Implications ... 76
7.3 Limitations and Future Research ... 79
References ... 81
Appendix I: Shopping Motives Scale ... 91
Appendix II: Green Consumer Values Scale ... 92
Appendix III: The Retail Experience Scale ... 93
Appendix IV: Interview Field Experts ... 94
Appendix V: Shelves used within the controlled experiment ... 96
Appendix VI: Questionnaire ... 98
Appendix VII: SPSS Output ... 106
1. Introduction
The recent years have shown growing consciousness of shoppers regarding consumer goods’
impact on the environment, health issues, animal well-being and human labour conditions (Tully & Winer, 2014). Since these aspects affect consumers’ choices when buying food products (Kalafatis et al., 1999), retailers offering exclusively green products as Alnatura or denn’s Biomarkt (Germany), Marqt (The Netherlands) or Whole Foods (USA) have appeared in the retail landscape. However, sustainable products have also become a part of mainstream food retailing (Van Herpen et al., 2011) with many traditional supermarkets selling “green products”. In fact, in 2015, also discounter Aldi Süd in Germany established an assortment of animal products from sustainable and ethical husbandry (Focus, 2015). In order to examine the advantages and benefits for traditional retailers that may arise from consumers’ “green shopping behaviour”, it is essential to really understand this consumer trend, react to it and exploit it in the most effective way (BCG, 2009). Then, many beneficial retailer outcomes as willingness to buy and willingness to pay may be gained: Literature by e.g. Aertsens et al.
(2009) Bezawada and Pauwels, (2012) and Campo et al., (2000) reveals that mainstream retailers should increase green assortments to stimulate consumers green buying behaviour and push sales. Moreover, green assortments appear to trigger consumers’ willingness to pay price premiums as opposed to traditional1 products (e.g. BCG, 2009; Tully & Winer, 2014;
Van Doorn & Verhoef, 2009). Indeed, Tully and Winer (2005) found that around 60% of consumers are willing to pay price premiums for green products.
“Colourful chalkboards, baskets of fruit that greet customers, great pyramids of bright red apples and head-high vegetable hedges so that they glisten as with morning dew” (The Economist, 2014). This is what customer’s experience, when they enter an outlet of the American supermarket chain “Whole Foods” (The Economist, 2007). With its assortments of organic and Fair Trade products, retailer Whole Foods aims at creating a store atmosphere of festive street-markets with abundant displays of fresh food and tasting stations. The retailer succeeds very well in reacting to the current retail trend, called “customer experience”, which has emerged as a result of shoppers looking for entertainment, not just groceries (ibid).
Current research as by Verhoef et al., (2009) emphasizes the importance of creating superior
1 When referring to a “traditional” product, it is referred to offerings in which there is no known environmentally friendly attribute, though they are not necessarily harmful to the environment. This definition is adapted from
and distinctive customer experience as one of the central objectives and a key factor for the success of retailers in today’s highly competing retail environment. Also, Ahold CEO Dick Boer emphasizes the importance of a “customer experience of fresh food” including organic products, local products, transparent and sustainable product sourcing and healthy products for a successful retail strategy (Behrenbeck, 2013). Since retailer Whole Foods is very successful in creating customer experience with abundant assortments of green products, might this also be a sound strategy for traditional retailers in order to stimulate shoppers store experience? There is evidence to expect that distinctive and superior store experience, evoked by green assortments, may reinforce beneficial outcomes for traditional retailers: Backer et al., (1992) and Spence et al., (2014) underline that a pleasurable customer experience and store atmospherics trigger buying decisions. Also, Pine and Gilmore (2002) as well as Grewal et al., (2009) demonstrated consumers’ willingness to pay for retail experience creation.
Picture 1: Store experience creation with green products at Whole Foods supermarket
However, how consumers perceive the store experience created by green assortments also depends on their “green consumer values”. While some consumers have special motivations to buy green products (e.g. they would buy Fair Trade products to benefit the world’s poor or buy organic products to live more healthy (Van Herpen et al., 2011) or as a signal for status (Griskevicius et al., 2010)) and therefore enjoy shopping environments with increased green assortments. Contrary, other customers might be discouraged to shop at a store that offers a large green assortment. A reason for this could be that they prefer to buy cheap products or
might perceive the quality of green products being lower while being more expensive (Grieskevicius et al., 2010). In this case, offering green assortments would backfire.
Research states that shopping motives influence shopping decisions. Holbrook and Hirschman (1982) find that consumers’ shopping motives can be divided into hedonic shopping motivations (“purchases are inspired by the desire for pleasure, joy and fun offered by the possession and use of products”) or utilitarian shopping motives (“task-oriented acquisition of products in an efficient manner through cognitively information processing”). Thus, shopping can provide both hedonic and utilitarian value (Babin et al., 1994; Babin & Darden, 1995).
Arnold and Reynolds (2003) emphasize a major relationship between hedonic shopping and the success of experience creation as a retailing strategy. Consequently, also hedonic or utilitarian shopping motives of a consumer may also influence how the store experience, created by green assortment, is appreciated. Both, hedonic and utilitarian shopping values are found to influence key retail outcomes (Jones et al., 2006).
The exact role of green assortments and store experience and how it influences consumers’
willingness to buy and willingness to pay is still unexplored and will be investigated in this research. Moreover, it will be explored how green consumer values and shopping motives influence store experience. More specifically, the following problem statement has been formulated:
Do green assortments influence key retail outcomes as willingness to buy and willingness to pay price premiums and what role has store experience in this relationship? How do green consumer values and shopping motives influence store experience created by green assortments?
In order to understand these relations in more detail, this study is divided into six main variables that may have effects on each other. These are the green assortment (independent variable), the store experience (mediator), green consumer values (moderator), hedonic and utilitarian shopping motives (moderator) and the potential retailer benefits willingness to buy and willingness to pay (dependent variables).
Consequently, the following effects will be researched:
• The mediating effect of store experience between green assortments and willingness to buy and the willingness to pay.
• The moderating effect of green consumer values on the store experience created by green assortments.
• The moderating effect of hedonic and utilitarian shopping motivations on the store experience created by green assortments.
This thesis has the following structure: First the literature review will provide the theoretical background on the most important concepts. These concepts will be further substantiated by interviewing field experts, following in chapter 3. Based on the literature review and the interviews, in chapter 4 hypotheses will be formulated that correspond to a research model showing hypothesized relations between the concepts. Chapter 5, the methodology, gives an overview of the measurements used and the research design. The results of the research will be discussed in chapter 6. Finally, chapter 7 will cover an analysis and a discussion of the results. The thesis will conclude with managerial implications for retailers as well as limitations and suggestions for further research.
2. Literature Review
Reviewing different literature and theory will provide a better theoretical understanding of the concepts involved in this research and will substantiate the proposed research model and its hypothesis, presented in the next chapter. First of all, the emerging trend of retailers offering green assortments will be explained, followed by a discussion about the different types of green products. Next, the concepts of the retailer outcomes – willingness to buy and willingness to pay a price premium – as a consequence of offering green assortments will be elaborated. In addition to this, the underlying theories of the other variables, will be discussed in detail. First, the concept of the store experience will be explained and the relationship between green assortments and store experience reinforcing the retailer outcomes will be proposed. In the next step, the literature review will discuss the concepts of green consumer values as well as hedonic and utilitarian shopping motives in depth.
2.1 Green Assortments – An Emerging Trend in Food Retail
The importance of socially responsible and ethical consumerism has grown rapidly in recent years. In 2011, the Consumer Goods Forum ranked these topics as the one of the priorities for practitioners of the global retail and consumer goods sector (consumergoodsforum, 2011).
Since “green” matters to consumers around the word (BCG, 2009), socially responsible
produced products are becoming more important than ever for retailers and their presence continues to increase tremendously in today’s marketplace (Beer, 2008). In literature, a green product is described as one that is “produced with concern for the physical environment: air, water, land and people” (Shrum et al., 1995). Fair trade coffee and sustainable seafood are just a few examples of this growing trend (Tully & Winer, 2014). Hence, green products have become a part of mainstream food retailing (Van Herpen et al., 2011) and can provide retailers with a competitive advantage in product differentiation (BCG, 2009). However, there are significant differences between different kinds of green assortments and also consumer’s motivations to buy them (Van Herpen et al., 2011). Even though a variety of different green products exist, for this research, organic and Fair Trade products will be considered, since their regulations are clearly defined. Thus, the following pages will provide an overview about both green product types and their most important characteristics.
2.1.1 Organic Products
In recent years, organic food has emerged as an important segment in food retailing (Hsieh &
Stiegert, 2011). Organic foods are foods produced by organic farming with concern for the environment (Beer, 2008). Governmental food safety authorities such as the European Commission regulate selling food with the organic label (ibid). Previously seen as a niche market that originated approximately 20 years ago, now rapid growth with global sales estimated to be growing at 10% to 20% annually are registered (Zepeda & Li, 2007). These numbers strengthen organic products’ importance to be taken into consideration by traditional retailers. The growing demand for organic food is driven by its quality and safety, its natural ingredients, its better taste, and the impact of organic agricultural practices on the environment (Hamazaoui-Essoussi & Zahaf, 2012). Organic buyers are identified as a small core of big spenders, who are willing to put extra effort in buying these products (Cottingham
& Winkler, 2007). Thus, it is assumed that retailers can gain several benefits by adding organic products to their assortment.
2.1.2 Fair Trade Products
Fair Trade is a labelling initiative aimed at offering better terms to producers, helping them to organize and receive fair wages (Dragusanu et al., 2014). Even though the Fair Trade initiative is mostly associated with supporting producers in developing countries, also initiatives providing farmers with e.g. fair milk prices in the European Union are considered as Fair Trade (Fairtrade, 2015). Although Fair Trade-certified products still comprise a small
Fair trade coffee sales have increased from 12.000 tonnes in 2000 (Fair Trade International, 2012b) to 1.232.000 tonnes in 2011 (Fair Trade International, 2012a). In Germany, thanks to a Fair Trade offensive of German discounters, sales of fair traded products rose about more than 25% in 2014 (ksta, 2015). In 2014, German consumers were willing to spend 827 million euro for Fair Trade products, which is 26% more than the year before (ibid). The sales quantity rose about 44% on 103.000 tons (ibid). For consumers, the primary motivation to buy Fair Trade products is to benefit poor producers (Bowes & Croft, 2007). The Fair Trade consumer base is considered more diverse and less willing to spend effort in search for these products (De Pelsmacker & Janssens, 2007). Since also Fair Trade has revealed itself as a growing consumer trend, for retailers it is important to react to it and establish Fair Trade products in their assortments, possibly leading to several competitive advantages compared to other retailers.
2.2 Retailer Value
Offering green assortments in their stores may have several beneficial outcomes for retailers.
Among the most important are the willingness to buy green products and the willingness to pay a price premium. Therefore, the following section will take a deeper dive into these potential outcomes in order to provide a clearer understanding.
2.2.1 Willingness to buy
Green products have been revealed as a current trend in retailing. But what exactly drives consumer’s decision to buy these products? Understanding the dimensions influencing consumer’s willingness to buy (WTB) is essential to retailers since it directly impacts key retailer outcomes (Backer et al., 2002; Jones et al., 2006). Many researchers have dedicated themselves to shed some more light on what influences consumer’s decision to buy or not to buy a (green) product, finding that consumer’s buying behaviour is influenced by different factors. Generally, it can be decided between external factors (e.g. the retail environment, the presentation in the shelf, the product’s packaging or labels indicating the heritage or quality of the product) and internal factors (e.g. consumer’ values, motives and attitudes) that influence consumer’s buying decisions (Bartels & Onwezen, 2014). Internal factors will be discussed later on in the literature review. Regarding external factors, several researchers already tried to reveal the dimensions influencing WTB: Vermeir and Verbeke (2006) state that the mere availability of green products significantly influences consumer’s intention to buy them.
Furthermore, Bartels and Onwezen (2014) found that promoting the sustainability of products is a relevant strategy to stimulate consumer’s WTB. Additionally, Aertsens et al. (2009) indicated that the wider the assortment of green products, the greater is the opportunity and
probability for consumers to buy them. Likewise, Campo et al., (2000) highlight that increased distribution of green products makes it more worthwhile for especially “non-green consumers” to buy them. Also, Bezawada and Pauwels, (2012) stated in their research that mainstream retailers should consider increasing green assortments to push sales. Moreover, Van Herpen et al. (2012) depict that an increase in the number of facings of green products has a positive effect on sales.
Contrary, reported reasons that prevent consumers from buying green products are e.g.
expensiveness and limited availability (Gleim et al., 2013; Wier & Calverley, 2002). Even though already different perspectives on factors influencing consumer’s willingness to buy green products exist, evidence still seems to be mixed and no real consent seem to be found.
Hence, this paper intends to provide an additional view on this issue.
2.2.2 Willingness to pay
Even though many consumers report green-minded attitudes, often this is not expressed by their actual purchasing behaviour. Since green products are usually more expensive than their conventional counterparts, pricing has been suggested to be one of the major barriers for purchasing non-green products (Gleim et al., 2013). Still, many consumers indicate a high willingness to pay (WTP) for green products (Hamzaoui-Essoussi & Zahaf, 2012). WTP is commonly defined as the economic term, reservation price or the maximum amount a customer is willing to pay for goods (Tully & Winer, 2014). WTP can be measured in different ways: For example, open-ended responses allow a respondent to supply their own value of WTP (Tully & Winer, 2014).
There are several reasons why consumers are willing to pay more for green products. Rao and Bergen (1992) state that one reason for consumers’ WTP is to ensure product quality.
According to them, the price premium for green products, meaning the excess price paid over the ‘fair” price, is justified by the „perceived“ value of the product. Likewise, literature by e.g. Van Doorn and Verhoef (2008) emphasized that associated characteristics as superior quality of green products triggers consumers’ WTP. Moreover, Tully and Winer (2014) differentiate between WTP for products that benefit the environment, human working conditions and animal well-being. In their study it is found that consumers are willing to pay a positive and significant premium for socially responsible products, which is about 16.8 % more than for products without socially responsible features. However, their research indicates that retailers may be able to achieve a higher price premium for products that
safety and quality, as well as trust in the organic label seem to be the most important factors affecting consumers’ WTP (Krystallis & Cheyssohoidis, 2005). Some consumers with high environmental concerns are also willing to pay premium prices to support organic producers (Yiridoe et al., 2005). Besides, Bolderdijk et al., (2012) reveal a different reason why consumers’ engage in paying premium prices: Their research showed that maintaining a positive self-concept stimulates people to pay more for green products. But how can retailers use marketing techniques to stimulate consumers to pay more for green products most effectively? Research by Silverstone (1993) states that a wide, and accessible supply of green products is vital for inducing higher prices. This finding is supported by Bezawada and Pauwels (2013) showing that an increase in facings with green products stimulates sales as well as WTP. However, since evidence for reasons of WTP for green products appears to be mixed, it needs to be investigated further. Therefore, this thesis will provide additional insights into this domain.
2.3 Store Experience
The concept of experience creation in the retail environment is among the most discussed topics in current retail management literature. Also, in the context of green food products, the concept of experience creation is of major interest. As highlighted by Verhoef et al., (2009), creating superior and distinctive customer experience is one of the central objectives and a key factor for retailers’ success in today’s highly competing retail environment.
A clear example of customer experience creation in a store is provided by the American food retailer Whole Foods. By selling green products, the retailer “creates markets that are a celebration to food; bright, well staffed, and seductive; a mouth watering festival of colours, smells, and textures” (Fishman, 2004). Since consumers are increasingly demanding more in terms of originality and authenticity of their food (Beer, 2008), the retailer succeeds in reacting to the shopper trend of looking for entertainment, not just groceries. But can adapting Whole Foods’ strategy of experience creation with green products also lead traditional retailers to success? The consumption experience has become an important element in understanding consumer behaviour and in designing products and services (Carù & Cova, 2003). In fact, Pine and Gilmore (1999) see the creation of memorable experiences in a retail setting as the key to sustainable competitive advantages. Therefore, a closer look at the concept of customer experience creation in retail settings is desirable.
Although there are many different definitions and perspectives of customer experience in today’s retail marketing literature, most of them have in common that they describe the
customer experience as a holistic concept, meaning that multiple store environment cues influence customer perceptions of value and their subsequent behaviour (e.g. Bitner, 1990, Verhoef et al., 2009). Moreover, it is argued that the customer experience is a multisensory experience, thus customers respond at different levels, such as rational, emotional, sensory, physical and spiritual (e.g. Krishna, 2010 & 2012, Spence et al., 2014). In current retail management literature, there is much empirical evidence supporting the new conceptualization of the store as an experience environment allowing sensory, emotional and social stimuli (e.g. Turley & Milliman, 2000; Fiore & Kim, 2007; Pucinelli et al., 2009). The conception of store atmospherics influencing purchase behaviour was first emphasized by Kotler (1973), being the first to use and define the term “atmospherics” as the intentional control and structuring of environmental cues. Seeing Kotler’s work as a starting point, many marketing researchers have come to the realization that if consumers are influenced by physical stimuli experienced at the point of purchase, the practice of creating influential atmospheres should be an important marketing strategy (Turley & Milliman, 2000).
In the literature, it is emphasized, that pursuing a strategy of experience creation has numerous beneficial outcomes for retailers. In fact, Bitner (1990) emphasizes, that atmospheric planning can make the difference between a business success and failure. In line with that, Fiore and Kim (2007) demonstrate the importance of the sensory of the shopping experience and their implications in the retail setting. Thus, the retail setting can be seen as a part of shoppers’ “visual landscape that influences experience and hence fosters more favourable in store actions of the shopper”. Moreover, Baker et al., (1992) emphasize that a pleasurable retail environment and atmosphere trigger purchasing behaviour. This aspect is further elaborated by Turley and Milliman (2000), showing the relationship between retail environmental factors and consumption behaviour. Their research has demonstrated the impact of the retail environment on the shoppers’ sensory stimulations, which leave the shopper pleasured and aroused in the buying effort. Also Pucinelli et al.’s (2009) analysis highlights significant importance to store atmosphere, which is defined as the design, ambience and social cues present in a physical space and its positive influence on buying behaviour. More recently, further investigations in the influences of store atmospherics on buying behaviour by Spence et al., (2014) has shown that the store environment with every product category influences the consumer’s sensory experience and its shopping behaviour.
Additionally, Pine and Gilmore (2002) found significant influence of retail experience
aquired in this environment. Likewise, research by Grewal et al., (2009) identifying larger wallet shared as well as higher profits for firms pursuing shopping experience creation as a retail strategy. In line with this also research by Pucinelli et al. (2008) states that consumer’s pricing decisions are based on the shopping experience they have been exposed to.
Several articles confirm the assumption that the choice of products or the assortment is among the most important antecedents of the store experience. Indeed, Verhoef et al., (2009) emphasize the variety, uniqueness and quality of the assortment as one of the most important antecedents for the customer experience of a store. Furthermore, Yoon (2013) has suggested a relationship between the type of product and the consequent in-store experience. According to this study, shoppers’ experiential perceptions varied according to the type of product.
Importantly, Pescararo et al., (2014) suggest that retailers should consider differences in products when developing a product mix. It should be based not only on functional attributes but also on the experiential attributes of the products. A direct link between green food products and the store experiences is emphasized by Ahold CEO Dick Boer. He highlights that fresh food, including organic products, local products, transparent and sustainable product sourcing and healthy products can contribute significantly to the store experience of customers (Behrenbeck, 2013). Summing up, research directly investigating the effect of green products on the store experience is missing so far. Therefore, the aim of this study is to shed some more light on the potential of green food products regarding the experience creation in retail environments and the retailer outcome. Table 1 summarizes the most important definitions leading to the conceptualization the green assortments as antecedent for store experience creation.
Authors Contribution to conceptualization of green products as an antecedent of the store experience
Pine and Gilmore (1999)
The creation of memorable experiences in a retail setting is the key to a sustainable competitive advantage.
Fiore & Kim (2007)
The retail setting as a part of shopper’s visual landscape that influences experience and hence fosters more favourable in-store actions of the shopper.
Verhoef et al.
(2009)
The variety, uniqueness and quality of the assortment as one of the most important antecedents for the customer experience of a store.
Yoon (2013) Suggests a relationship between the type of product and the consequent in-store experience.
Behrenbeck (2013)
Fresh food, including organic products; local products, transparent and sustainable product sourcing and healthy products can contribute significantly to the store experience of customers in a store.
Table 1: Conceptualization of green products as an antecedent of customer experience creation
2.3.1 The importance of shelf experience for the total store experience
Literature states that in order to create store experience, often it is not enough to simply add labelled green products to traditional products, but also other aspects significantly influence
the store experience. One of these aspects is the presentation of the products in the store. In the retail environment, products are commonly presented in shelves. In current retail literature, a lot of research is dedicated to the importance of shelf layout, shelf space allocation, arrangement of products and number of facings (e.g. Eisend, 2013, Van Herpen et al., 2012, Mümin & Beril, 2011) since these are major factors influencing the entire retail experience. Likewise, Castro et al., (2013) state that shelves are commonly observed cues in the marketplace and significantly influence how consumers perceive the retail environment and the overall store experience. In addition to this, research by Clement et al., (2013) found that shoppers’ attention is mostly influenced and disrupted by the shelf display. Furthermore, research by Dréze et al., (1994) highlights the importance of “shelf experience” for the total shopping experience: They manipulated shelf layouts resulting in an increase of the total shopping experience of a supermarket which in turn lead to increased sales. Also, the CEO of the Fair Trade initiative in Germany states that the increased sales of Fair Trade products are due to sustainability initiatives of many retailers, leading to more prominent presentation of Fair Trade products in shelves (ksta, 2015). Therefore, this study will consider “shelf experience” as a proxy for the total store experience.
2.4 Factors influencing the perceived Shelf Experience
The following pages serve to provide a deeper dive into the concepts of shoppers’ attitude towards sustainability issues as well as what motivates consumers to shop. These concepts are expected to influence how experience creation with green products is perceived.
2.4.1 Green Consumer Values
Shoppers differ in terms of their basic values and their lifestyle characteristics, which are reflected in their purchase patterns, underlying food consumption and buying behaviour (Hamzaoui & Zahaf, 2006). These values may also influence attitudes regarding ethical and sustainability issues and determine consumers’ purchasing behaviour of green products as well as how they perceive certain retail settings. Since the growing trend of green products,
“green consumer values” and consequently green consumption behaviour are closely related, understanding what determines these values is imperative. Haws et al., (2013) describe green consumption values as “the tendency to express the value of environmental protection through one’s purchases and behaviours”. Consumers with stronger green consumption values (i.e. “green” consumers) are generally oriented toward protecting resources at both the environmental and personal level (ibid) what impacts their lifestyle and consumption
purchases”. Hence, a green consumer purchases environmentally friendly products to minimize the potentially negative environmental impact of purchases. Furthermore, there are several other reasons due to which consumers may buy green products. Research states that although green consumers are environmentally conscious, many studies confirm the predominance of egocentric values like health, taste, and freshness that influence the choice of sustainable products to a larger extent than the attitudes towards environment and ethical problems (e.g. Fotopoulos & Krystallis, 2002; Zanoli & Naspetti, 2002). Additionally, Zanooli and Naspetti (2002) highlight that consumers oftentimes buy green products as status symbols. Moreover, Grieskevicius et al., (2010) argue that consumers choose green products over more luxurious non green products due to status motives as a form of “costly signalling”:
By buying green products, consumers appear as being altruistic, since these products are often more expensive than their conventional counterparts, but they benefit the environment for everyone. By buying green products, these consumers state that they can “incur for the costs of the whole group”. Hence, by buying green products, these consumers engage in
“competitive altruism” (ibid).
Despite many consumers expressing their concerns for sustainable issues, environmentally sustainable products still represent only a small fraction of global demand. Specifically, estimates report the market share for green products at about four percent worldwide (Gleim et al., 2013). This suggests that many consumers face barriers why not to engage in green purchase patterns and might be discouraged in their buying decisions when presented with green assortments (Schuitema & De Groot, 2015). Non-green consumers are described as individuals who purchase goods not in the best interest of the physical environment when environmentally friendly and ethical alternatives are available (Shrum et al., 1995). But what are the reasons for consumers not to engage in green purchase patterns but choose the less ethical alternative? Besides more obvious reasons as higher prices, limited availability, unsatisfactory quality, lack of trust, lack of perceived value, and misunderstanding of green foods production processes (Fotopoulos & Krystallis, 2002; Gleim et al., 2013; Wier &
Calverley, 2002) also intrinsic factors harm consumers’ green consumption. Schuitema and De Groot (2015) refer to biospheric values (environmental values) explaining the extent to which consumers decide to buy the sustainable alternative. They point out that if biospheric values are weak, egoistic product attributes such as the price are more influential, whereas if biospheric values are strong, green product attributes are more influential. In line with this, Bolderdijk et al., (2013) reveal that only participants who strongly endorse biospheric values,
motivated to act upon environmental information and adapt their purchase pattern.
Finally, Haws et al., (2013) developed a scale of green consumption values (i.e. the GREEN scale) that can be used to capture green consumption values in order to predict relevant purchase behaviour.
2.4.2 Hedonic and Utilitarian Shopping Motives
In order to better comprehend the potential benefits of green assortments, a clearer picture of what consumers value when doing grocery shopping is needed. Consumers’ motives, that drives them to spend more money for green food products than for conventional food products has to be further analysed and understood. Shopping motives and shopping values determine the reasons why and what we buy as well as how we perceive certain retail environments. Holbrook and Hirschman (1982) established the belief that some consumption choices are task-oriented and inspired by consumers’ efforts to solve problems and address needs and wants through cognitively processing product information. On the other hand, some shopping choices can also relate to the “multisensory, fantasy, joy and fun offered by the possession and use of products.” Based on that, Westbrook and Black (1985) elaborated the experiential approach and defined it as hedonic motivation to shop whereas the information-processing approach has been characterized as utilitarian shopping motives.
Utilitarian motives are described as product-related motives, connected to the acquisition of a product and successfully accomplishing the shopper’s goal, whereas hedonic motivation describes satisfaction deriving from non-product related needs as a stimulating retail atmosphere. Thus, shopping can provide both hedonic and utilitarian value (Babin et al., 1994; Babin & Darden, 1995). Moreover, Arnold and Reynolds (2003) identified six hedonic shopping motives in their research, which are either purchase or non-purchase oriented.
Consumers with non-purchase oriented motivations are more likely to browse and to shop for fun and enjoyment in pleasurable retail settings. These are adventure shopping, social shopping, gratification shopping and idea shopping. Instead, purchase oriented shopping motivations are role and value shopping.
2.4.3 Hedonic vs. Utilitarian Products
Products themselves can be characterized as hedonic or utilitarian, too. According to Hirschman and Holbrook (1982) hedonic products can provide pleasure, fun and excitement to the consumer. Additionally, Batra and Ahtola (1991) state that the hedonic dimension in products is determined by sensory attributes and aims at the affective gratification of the
instrumental beliefs a consumer has about a product. Utilitarian food products might be bread and butter. Moreover, Dhar and Wertenbroch (2000) found that for products reflecting utilitarian involvement, consumers tend to focus on intrinsic attributes (e.g. the taste, function, design, and colour of the product) to assess the value of products, whereas for products reflecting hedonic involvement, consumers typically focus on extrinsic elements as the overall image and symbolic meanings. Other studies based on hedonic/utilitarian product classification have established that hedonic products cater to consumers’ psychological pleasure and delight and provide them with sensory pleasures such as fun, joy, and excitement. Contrary, utilitarian products help meeting consumers’ functional or utilitarian needs (Park & Mittal, 1985). However, considering a product as hedonic or utilitarian also depends on the perception and importance of its attributes to the single consumer.
Green products’ value is mostly determined by their intrinsic attributes. Oftentimes, they are perceived as being healthier, more natural, they benefit people and animals producing them, what according to Dhar and Wertenbroch, (2000) and Hwang (2006) is in line with utilitarian products. Contrarily, green products are used to create hedonic store experience (Fishman, 2004). Therefore, it appears still unclear which of the utilitarian and hedonic dimension of green products addresses which retailer outcomes. Hence, further examination is needed whether hedonic or utilitarian green products are more appealing regarding experience creation as well as WTB and WTP.
Based on the information obtained, reviewing many theoretical concepts in the literature, the following conceptual model was created. The next chapter will generate a different perspective on the variables included in the model. Field experts will be interviewed in order to validate the model from a practical viewpoint. The model is shown in figure 1.
3. Interviewing Field Experts
Valuable insights from field experts will be helpful to enrich the information gathered by reviewing literature and lead to a clearer understanding of the concepts as well as the relevance for retailing practice. Thus, in order to obtain first hands insights, qualitative research in form of in-depth interviews will be conducted. Qualitative research techniques have the advantage of being a creative means of ascertaining stakeholders’ perceptions that may otherwise be difficult to uncover (Malhotra, 2012). The two experts interviewed for this research are both operating in the business of green food products. Field expert 1 is chain manager of the “Truefoods” project, a project focusing on guiding and advertising green product introductions, innovations, consumer research and change processes within the agricultural food sector in the Netherlands. Field expert 2 is purchasing manager at
“Ekoplaza”, a Dutch food retailer, selling exclusively organic products. Both have been interviewed about their opinions regarding the different concepts included in the model.
3.1 Exploring the Value of Green products through In-Depth Interviews
By interviewing field experts, the experiences and the meaning they place on the different dimensions of green products can be captured. Since qualitative research may involve prolonged or intense contact with the participants, this will also provide a holistic view through the participants’ own words and perceptions (Malhotra et al, 2012, Miles &
Huberman, 1994). Moreover, qualitative research allows the researcher to probe wherever needed, and the participants are in their comfortable own atmospheres where they can freely share their thoughts (Malhotra et al, 2012). The in-depth interviews will be taken by using a semi-structured, question based interview guide. The semi-structured set-up creates consistency within the interviews, but leaves enough space for elaboration or additional information on specific follow-up questions. Both interviews started with general opening questions, followed by a variety of follow-up questions. During the interviews, laddering techniques as well as probing were used, in order to extract as much information as possible.
After the in-depth interviews have been conducted, the qualitative data is analysed in order to create supporting dimensions in line with the existing theory (Malhotra, 2012). The insights extracted from the qualitative research, will then serve as foundation for the subsequent quantitative research. The interview questions asked can be found in appendix IV.
3.2 Results of the Interview
Throughout the interviews, the participants elaborated the value of green food products and
Field expert 1 was very enthusiastic about the topic and liked sharing his thoughts. He states that in his view, organic and Fair Trade products contain the biggest potential to achieve benefits for retailers, since they both have clear labels and therefore can convey actual information to the consumer. Moreover, he states that in order to achieve retail benefits as WTB and WTP, “customer experience creation is an essential antecedent.” From his point of view, creating customer experience with green products can be achieved most effectively by spreading them throughout the whole store and placing them next to traditional products, whereby they have to be clustered in categories (e.g. dairy products). Moreover, he explains that in order to make green products contribute to the store experience, means of communication such as posters next to the shelves and stickers on the shelf edges have to be employed: “In order to create store experience with green products and thereby influencing WTB and WTP, it is not enough simply adding them to the traditional assortments but the way they are presented in the store and the communication about them is essential”. Additionally, he highlights that today most consumers are “a bit green”, whereas only few consumers exist who endorse strong green values and are willing to put extra effort in buying green products and spending extra money for them. “Nowadays, most people are a bit green, they would buy the green product if it is convenient for them. They buy green products without endorsing strong green values. These light green consumers are not willing to put a lot of effort in their goal to buy green products.”
Field expert 2 outlines that both kinds of green products might add value for retailers: ”For retailers both items can be an added value to their assortment, because nowadays, consumers are looking for products with some sort of story.” In his opinion, Fair-Trade products and the story behind them are very understandable for most consumers. He names the chocolate bars Tony’s Chocolonely, produced by a Dutch company, as a very good example, since the products provide consumers with information and an additional personal touch. Furthermore, organic products might be less interesting for retailers, because they include less storytelling:
“Consumers choosing organic products mostly do it based on a certain level of knowledge and are intrinsically motivated.” Moreover, Field expert 2 states that consumers’ WTB might be affected in a positive way by adding green products because they perceive the assortment as being more distinctive. In addition to this, he agrees with expert 1 on the fact that in order to make green products contribute to the store experience, means of communication about them have to be employed. Specifically, he highlights a 360 degree approach, including pictures and storytelling as a means of communication contributing to the store experience:
“Connecting the grower/producer with the consumer again, would certainly have an added
value for the consumers. Most important is a 360 degrees approach, so not only having a picture of the farmer next to the products, but also storytelling, tastings and consumer days at the farm”. In line with field expert 1, field expert 2 states that today there are different kinds of green consumers: “In my opinion there is no one green consumer, but there are different groups of green consumers. According to him, today, many people are “light” green consumers who buy green products without endorsing strong green values or a strong intrinsic motivation. “These light green consumers are not willing to put a lot of effort in their goal to buy green products.” Nevertheless, there are also “dark” green consumers who only buy 100% organic food products due to their belief that they are healthier and better for our world. The expert additionally states that in his view, the consumers obtain hedonic shopping value by visiting a store with green assortments. Furthermore, field expert 2 distinguishes between both categories of green products regarding their classification as hedonic or utilitarian. In his opinion, organic products are regarded as utilitarian, whereas Fair Trade products can be seen as containing both, hedonic as well as utilitarian elements.
3.3 Analysis of the Results
After conducting the two semi-structured personal interviews with both field experts, the results can be summarized in table 2. The relevant statements were grouped and linked to the concepts extracted from the already existing theories (see table 2). These elements and their definitions will serve as the foundation for the up following quantitative research.
Variables Theory Relevance
Green Products (IV)
Hsieh & Stiegert (2011), Zepeda & Li (2007), Dragusanu et al, (2014), De Pelsmacker &
Janssens (2007)
Fair Trade and organic products are a growing consumer trend. It makes sense to choose these green products for research since their labels are clearly defined.
Added Value (DV)
WTB: Backer et al. (2002), Jones et al. (2006), Vermeir & Verbeke (2006), Bradu et al. (2014), Bartels & Onwezen (2014); WTP: Tully &
Winer, (2014), Bolderdijk et al, (2012), de Pelsmacker, et al. (2005)
WTB and WTP can be generated by green products, however, store experience is an essential antecedent
Store/ Shelf Experience (Mediator)
Kotler (1973), Pine & Gilmore (1999), Fiore &
Kim (2007), Verhoef et al. (2009), Behrenbeck (2013), Eisend (2013), Van Herpen et al. (2012
Can be gained by adding green products. Antecedent for WTB and WTP.
Green Opinion (Moderator)
Haws et al. (2014), Grieskius et al. (2010), Schuitema & De Groot (2015), Bolderdijk et al.
(2013)
Mixed relevance. Today everyone is a little bit “green”
Shopping Motives (Moderator)
Holbrook and Hirschman (1982), Westbrook &
Black (1985), Arnold & Reynolds (2003)
Hedonic for Fair Trade, utilitarian for organic
Communication (Additional IV)
Baxendale et al, (2015), Clement et al (2013), Jones et al, (2008)
Essential factor to create store/shelf experience with green products and
Considering the output of the field experts’ interview, general support for the concepts and variables included in the model can be observed. However, both field experts stress the importance of using means of communications in order to enhance WTB and WTP as well as to create store experience with green products. From their view, only adding green products to the conventional assortment will not be sufficient in order to achieve the desired outcomes.
Literature provides general support for the field experts’ assessment. Research by e.g. Bartels and Onwezen (2014) found that promoting the sustainability of products with ethical claims is important to stimulate consumer’s WTB. Additionally Bradu et al., (2014) revealed significant impact of informing about the ethical aspects of the product on consumers’
decision to buy the product. Likewise, Collins et al., (2007) highlight that responsible buying behaviour can be triggered by providing reliable information about environmental and social aspects of products. Considering communications’ effect on WTP, research by e.g. Lam et al., (2001) and Bemmaor and Mouchoux (1991) demonstrated the positive effect of in-store advertising on average spending. Likewise, Bezawada and Pauwels (2012) showed that traditional supermarkets achieve higher margins for green products by promoting them through in-store advertising.
Considering the effect of communication efforts on experience creation, literature shows a relevant impact of in-store communication in order to influence the customer and contribute to the perceived in-store experience. Literature by e.g. Kaltcheva and Weitz (2006), Shankar et al., (2011) and Baker, et al., (2002) emphasizes that experience creation can be mostly achieved by employing design cues. Additionally, Baxendale et al., (2015) state that in-store communication is among the most important touch points for product consideration.
Additionally, Jones et al., (2008) found that communications about Fair Trade products (information about producers) and organic products (information about fitness and healthy eating) were most effective when gaining attention for the shelf by using banners and posters.
Consequently, it appears reasonable to include an additional independent variable in the model, which will examine the differential effects “green communication” will have on the WTB, WTP and store experience. Based on the outcomes of the literature review and the qualitative research, in the following chapter, the final model and the underlying hypothesis can be formulated.
4. Model and Hypothesis
The discussed literature as well as the qualitative data provides the foundation for the variables included in the research model and will substantiate the formulated hypotheses. To begin with, the model will conceptualize the direct effect that offering different amounts of green products has on retailer value, expressed by willingness to buy and willingness to pay.
A distinction hereby is made between the effects of organic and Fair Trade products as well as hedonic and utilitarian products, which will serve as covariates in this research. Additionally, the direct effect of means of communication about green products will be assessed. Next, other effects on the direct effect will be hypothesized. First, this will be the mediating effect of the shelf experience created by green assortments and communication on the retailer outcomes. Second, the moderating effects of green consumer values and consumers’ either hedonic or utilitarian shopping motives on shelf experience, will be proposed. The final conceptual model is shown below in figure 2. The next section will explain the formulated hypothesis.
Figure 2: Final Conceptual Model
4.1 Direct Effect
4.1.1 Direct Effect of Green Products on WTB and WTP
From the literature it can be concluded that the amount of green products, consumers are presented with, has an impact on their buying decisions. Research by e.g. Campo et al., (2000) highlights that increased distribution of green products makes it more worthwhile to buy them. Moreover, Van Herpen et al., (2012) state that an increase in the number of facings
H1a: Increasing green assortments in supermarket shelves has a positive direct effect on WTB.
The literature reveals that generally, consumers indicate a higher WTP for green products.
Nevertheless, evidence about what exactly drives consumers to pay more for these products is mixed. Current literature states that a wide and accessible assortment of green products is vital for inducing higher prices for green products (Silverstone, 1993). Moreover, as Bezawada and Pauwels (2013) indicate, an increase in facings of green products stimulates sales and WTP for green products. Thus, the hypothesized positive effect on WTP when increasing the number of green products in a supermarket shelf can be formulated as:
H1b: Increasing green assortments in supermarket shelves has a positive direct effect on WTP.
4.1.2 Direct Effect of Green Communication on WTB and WTP
As stated in the previous chapter and emphasized by interviewing field experts, means of communication about green products may affect consumers’ WTP and WTB. Research by e.g. Bartels and Onwezen (2014) found that advertising the sustainability of products with ethical claims stimulates consumers’ buying efforts. In addition to this, research by e.g. Lam et al., (2001) and Bemmaor and Mouchoux (1991) demonstrated the positive effect of in-store communication on average spending. Hence, hypothesis 2a and 2b can be formulated as the following:
H2a: Means of communication about green assortments have a positive direct effect on WTB.
H2a: Means of communication about green assortments have a positive direct effect on WTP.
4.1.3 Interaction Effect of Green Products and Green Communication on WTP and WTB The field experts stated that it is especially the interaction effect of green products and green communication that triggers WTB and WTP of green products. This is undermined by e.g.
Bradu et al., (2014) and Collins et al., (2007) showing that communicating the ethical aspects of green products sold in stores will have significant impact on their sales. Therefore:
H3a: The interaction of increased green assortments and communication has an increased positive effect on WTB.
H3b: The interaction of increased green assortments and communication has an increased positive effect on WTP.
4.3 Mediating Effect
As stated in the previous chapters, experience creation can lead to many advantages for retailers. Besides, experience creation can be achieved by an increase in the level of green assortments as well as means of communication (Behrenbeck, 2013; Jones et al., 2008).
Hence, this research will shed more light on beneficial outcomes that may arise from retail experience, suggesting a mediating effect of shelf experience created by green assortments and communication on retailer outcomes.
4.3.1 Green Assortments/Communication, Shelf Experience and WTB Several previous studies of retail management have provided a wide range of insights into intangible dimensions of the in-store experiences that determine consumers’ decisions to buy.
Various researchers such as Summers and Herbert (2001), Baker et al. (2002) and Morrison et al. (2011) have highlighted the importance of atmospheric factors for buying decisions.
Furthermore, Yoon (2013) highlights the product-store-experience linkage, which may influence shoppers’ buying behaviour. His findings contribute to the view that assortments and other in-store marketing efforts contribute to the store experience, which triggers and even reinforces consumers’ intention to buy a product. Moreover, Merrilees and Miller (2001) emphasize that store design cues, advertising and atmosphere are very important factors influencing buying decisions. Nevertheless, research clearly revealing the effect of wide green assortments and green communication on store experience, which in turn influences willingness to buy, yet is scarce. Thus, this paper hypothesizes a mediating effect of the store experience on willingness to buy. Hence, hypothesis 4a and 5a can be formulated as follows:
H4a: The shelf experience created by increased green assortments has a positive mediating effect on WTB.
H5a: The shelf experience created by green communication has a positive mediating effect on WTB.
4.3.2 Green Assortments/Communication, Shelf Experience and WTP As indicated in the literature review, there exist evidence that retail experience creation stimulated consumers’ to pay higher prices for this experience (e.g. Pine & Gilmore, 2002).
