Introduction to the special section on retailing research: things change, things stay the same

摘要

The sixth SMA Retailing Research Symposium took place in New Orleans, Louisiana, November 4-5, as the opening event of the 2003 SMA Annual Conference. It was exciting, convivial and challenging. The program included 15 papers selected from over 30 submissions from the US, the UK, Australia, Canada, France, Brazil and Korea. Professor Gerard Cliquet (from France) was the guest speaker. He presented a lively and fascinating picture of the retail industry in Europe, pointing out the stark contrasts in constraints imposed by government regulations. Higher constraints affect the development of new forms of distribution, constrain competitive forces and limit the political influence of retail forms. Four papers were selected for this special section of the Journal of Business Research after completion of the review process which continued through much of 2004.