Managers’ and consumers’ representations of the closeness to a store : a contribution to retailer strategy
type: Dataset
description: Getting close to the consumer is one major concern in retailing. This research tries to understand the rehabilitation of small food stores in the French retailing context and explores the notion of closeness in all in its dimensions from a retailer as well as a consumer perspective. The research involves data collection from both retail companies and consumers. The qualitative and quantitative analysis show that creating closeness with the customer can be defined as the management of the spatial, temporal, functional and social distance that links a store to its customers. Seven dimensions can be identified: the access closeness, the functional closeness, the process closeness, the relational closeness, the identity closeness, the integration closeness and the assortment closeness. Some convergence or difference points between the retailers and the consumers perceptions can be describe. In general, managers and consumers both establish a dichotomy between practical and symbolic aspects of closeness. We can observe that managers see the relationship between the store and its clients in a more positive and global way whereas consumers are more rational and focus on practical elements. The tests of the hypothesis show us that the retailer image and the geographical location of the store have both a positive effect on perceived closeness to a store. Also, perceived closeness to a store increases consumer’s loyalty to the store. Our results demonstrate that location of the store is not enough to create a close relationship between the customer and the store; the closeness between a customer and a store is not only based on a spatial distance but also on a temporal, functional and social distance. Being close to its consumers not only means being close to them geographically. The consumer prefers a broader vision of closeness including practical and symbolic aspects
identifier: NNT: 2013DIJOE004
issued: 2026-05-05T10:26:03.084080
language: fr
modified: 2026-05-05T10:26:03.084084
contact point: Organization
  fn: CCSD
keyword: cartographie-cognitive
keyword: closeness-to-a-store
keyword: cognitive-maps
keyword: comportement-du-consommateur
keyword: consumer-behavior
keyword: distribution
keyword: fidelite
keyword: infoeu-reposemanticsdoctoralthesis
keyword: loyalty
keyword: pls
keyword: proximite-dun-magasin
keyword: representations
keyword: retailing
keyword: shsarchihumanities-and-social-sciencesarchitecture-space-management
keyword: shsgestionhumanities-and-social-sciencesbusiness-administration
keyword: shspsyhumanities-and-social-sciencespsychology
keyword: theses
landing page: https://theses.hal.science/tel-00995280

Managers’ and consumers’ representations of the closeness to a store : a contribution to retailer strategy
type: Distribution
format: HTML
issued: 2026-05-05T10:26:03.095862
modified: 2026-05-05T10:26:03.063527
access URL: https://theses.hal.science/tel-00995280

test_moissonnage_selune
type: Agent