Discount Store - Publications - Faculty & Research

07 Jul 2019
HBS Case

Walmart's Workforce of the Future

Any discussion of the future of retail—or how we work—has to include Walmart. As of 2017, 90 percent of the US population lived within 10 miles of a Walmart store; with 11,766 locations worldwide and $514 billion in annual revenues, the View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna; Retail

25 Oct 2011
First Look

First Look: October 25

stores are multi-sided platforms (MSPs). We propose a definition that provides a more precise notion of MSPs by requiring that they enable direct interactions between the multiple customer types that are affiliated with them. Several... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

31 Jul 2012
First Look

First Look: July 31

magic, making them all but destined for success, while other items languish on store shelves? For a better understanding of that, perhaps there's no better place to turn to than the world of magic. Consider that some professional... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

01 Apr 2024
In Practice

Navigating the Mood of Customers Weary of Price Hikes

FTC is sending a strong signal that it is paying close attention to grocery store prices. Executives should be weighing this regulatory attention when considering prices over the years ahead. Alexander MacKay is an assistant professor of... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne; Retail; Consumer Products

30 May 2018
Research & Ideas

Should Retailers Match Their Own Prices Online and in Stores?

it had on the rack. I was surprised to see that the outfit I was holding in my hand was $10 cheaper online—from the same store. I asked the cashier if she would honor the online price in-store; she politely declined, saying the store... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Retail

21 Aug 2013
Research & Ideas

What Went Wrong at J.C. Penney?

available options, from low-end Walmart and discounters like TJ Maxx to Kohl's, Macy's, and Target. Beyond that, there are plenty of specialty stores such as The Gap and Gymboree. Aisner: That's a full plate... View Details

Keywords: by Jim Aisner; Retail

28 Nov 2018
HBS Case

On Target: Rethinking the Retail Website

jimkruger In the mid-1990s, Target was a discount superstore behemoth. The retailer had set itself apart from chief rival Walmart with a focus on more upscale but wallet-friendly fashion and lifestyle lines, spurring double-digit growth... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Retail

25 Oct 2010
HBS Case

Tesco’s Stumble into the US Market

Tesco PLC is the third-largest retailer in the world, just behind Wal-Mart and Carrefour. But that didn't make the UK-based chain immune from many costly mistakes as it entered the US market in 2006. For example, it opened some of its Fresh & Easy View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Retail

20 Dec 2017
Lessons from the Classroom

How to Design a Better Customer Experience

about meeting customer expectations, providing value, or generating good functionality. Instead, they are more often about encountering an unexpected problem: A consumer heads to an Apple store with a broken iPhone. An airline customer... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Health; Entertainment & Recreation

09 Dec 2019
Research & Ideas

Identify Great Customers from Their First Purchase

Testing data on 13,000 shoppers To show how the model works, Ascarza and Padilla fed it some customer data supplied by an international retailer that sells its own brand of beauty products exclusively in its stores and on its website.... View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz; Retail; Service

25 Jun 2013
First Look

First Look: June 25

environments. We find that candidates benefiting from favorable situations are more likely to be admitted and promoted than their equivalently skilled peers. The results suggest that decision-makers take high nominal performance as evidence of high ability and do not... View Details

Keywords: Anna Secino

02 Oct 2017
What Do You Think?

Do Bitcoin and Digital Currency Have a Future?

hinder its transnational efficiency.” Farah commented, “Bitcoins are useful for trading currencies internationally seamlessly in real time—something current banks lack ” According to Kueth Duany, they are “proving to be another interesting asset class to View Details

Keywords: by James L. Heskett; Financial Services

13 Oct 2009
Research & Ideas

7 Lessons for Navigating the Storm

fared poorly. Even fashion-forward discounters like Target have not done well. This doesn't necessarily mean consumers have lost their interest in upscale merchandise. Rather than returning to these same View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

09 Feb 2012
Sharpening Your Skills

Sharpening Your Skills: Online Marketing

retailer-initiated feedback loops. Retailers should ask themselves, How do I create a partnership with the consumer? Data collected from these programs can help merchants make smarter decisions on everything from where to open a new store... View Details

Keywords: Re: Multiple Faculty; Technology

25 Aug 2003
Research & Ideas

Should You Sell Your Digital Privacy?

you by stores, researchers, and credit agencies belongs to those companies, not to you. They in turn resell that information to others. So if our personal information is such an asset, shouldn't we benefit from our asset as well? Why shouldn't intelligent consumers... View Details

Keywords: by Manda Salls & Sean Silverthorne; Advertising

20 Aug 2018
Research & Ideas

Bargain Hunters Beware: A Store's 'Original Price' Might Not Be After All

PeopleImages Sale! Even the word is enough to send a flutter through the hearts of certain shoppers, who salivate in anticipation of scoring a discount off a product’s original price. Few consumers stop to think, however, that the only... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Advertising; Retail

02 Apr 2008
Research & Ideas

Four Companies that Conquered America

retailer, to enter the U.S. market with the new Fresh & Easy chain of discount grocery stores. Avoiding geographies where Wal-Mart is entrenched, Tesco has so far opened 50 stores in the growth markets... View Details

Keywords: by John Quelch

19 Nov 2018
Sharpening Your Skills

E-Santa: Is Retail Ready for Digital Christmas?

Banning Big Box Stores Can Hurt Local Retailers Research shows how regulations designed to protect independent retailers from big box competition may backfire. Empathy: The Brand Equity of Retail Retailers can offer great product... View Details