dc.description.abstract | An Analysis of the Problems Faced by the Mass Merchandiser Carrefour Taiwan Entering the Community Supermarket
Abstract
Starting from the global financial turmoil, fueled by the rapidly expanding online shopping phenomena, there is a shift in consumer shopping habits, which results in escalating competition in the retailing industry. Carrefour Taiwan originally launched the community supermarket development plan in 2009. However, the headquarters in France carried out the cost-down project in response to the financial turmoil. Carrefour Taiwan suspended this development plan after establishing three supermarkets However, after that three-year period, Carrefour Taiwan found another problem of dwindling turnover, but also the decreasing customers. An internal investigation revealed that many original loyal customers did not switch to other discount stores, but rather, many of them switch to buy their daily product in National Union supermarkets located in their local community. The revenue of National Union also surpassed Taiwan Carrefour in 2012. Carrefour Taiwan finally restarted the supermarket development plan in 2013, and branded the new supermarket ”Easy-Buy” and decided to develop 30 new shops in 2014. Until 2014, Carrefour only operates 9 convenient shops, including the three old supermarkets opened in 2009. And one convenient shop in Kaohsiung city was closed after 3 months of frustrating operations. It was obviously that Carrefour Taiwan had serious problems in its new supermarket development project.
The researcher had the opportunity to participate in the first new supermarket operation in 2013. After 3 month, this study found 6 problem areas in the convenient shop operations, namely, location, human resource management, store layout, merchandise and selling price, ordering system and logistics, and service innovation problems.
This study focused on these problems, and proposes the respective solution. Hopefully, Carrefour Taiwan can win the customers back under this convenient- shop development project and keep shining in Taiwanese retail market.
Key words: hypermarket, supermarket, Easy-Buy, service innovation.
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