Retail Management: Online Retail Impact on Offline Strategies UAE

This literature review examines the evolving retail landscape in the UAE, focusing on the impact of online shopping on traditional brick-and-mortar strategies, consumer shopping experiences, and purchasing behaviors. It discusses how technological advancements and the rise of e-commerce have transformed consumer preferences, with factors such as convenience, price competitiveness, and the availability of diverse product ranges driving the shift towards online platforms. The review also addresses the challenges and opportunities faced by retailers in adapting to this changing environment, including the need to enhance both online and offline shopping experiences, leverage social media for promotion, and address concerns related to data security and delivery reliability. Furthermore, the study considers the influence of demographic factors, such as age and technological literacy, on shopping preferences, and emphasizes the importance of understanding consumer needs and expectations in order to develop effective retail strategies in the UAE market. This review highlights that while the online sector is growing rapidly, offline retail still holds significance due to social and experiential factors.

Running head: RETAIL MANAGEMENT
Retail Management
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Literature Review
1. Shopping experience of the consumers both online as well as offline
According to Singh and Singh (2014), the act of shopping does not only involve the needs
and preference of the consumer, but it is considered to be an experience that I motivate by
emotional requirements along with fulfilling needs of technological advancement, retailers are
focusing on elastic strategies, technologies as well a s business model that is imposing impact on
the shopping habits of the consumers as well as their preferences. Majority of the companies in
UAE are developing strategies to provide the consumers with best of both offline as well as
online shopping worlds. According to a survey, one of the chief reasons behind the attraction of
the consumers in UAE to online shopping is the enhanced shopping experience provided by the
same. According to Ahmeda et al. (2015) online shopping provides the consumers with an
individual experience that includes interacting through the browsing as well as website tools and
managing the shopping cart. On that basis, it has been pointed out that online shopping
experience of the consumers is quite similar to that of offline shopping. However, unlike offline
shopping, online shopping provides the consumers with a huge pool of products, both local as
well as international, to select from. This in turn motivates the same to purchase products. El-
Adly and Eid (2015) stated that now a days, popular social media platforms are used for
promoting online shopping and as a result of this shopping experience of the consumers have
transformed from being an individual experience to a social experience. Considering the fact that
more than 72.3 percent of the UAE population possess account in popular social media sites like
Facebook and Instagram, which enables them to share their shopped items as well as shopping
experiences with their friends and families. Not only that, the quality of the service provided by

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the online retailers that includes the availability of the range of products, number of paying
options as well as timely delivery also influences the shopping experiences of the consumers.
Celik (2016) stated that, in this of online shopping, majority of the consumers who goes
for offline shopping is not only for fulfilling their needs but for spending time together with
friend an families. Considering the fact that the major locations for offline shopping in UAE
includes shopping malls, more than 48.3 percent of the consumers are found to be visitors the
place with the intention of hanging out with peers and relatives along with shopping. This is a
reason why shopping malls are found to incorporate restaurants, cinemas, coffee shops and other
entertainment services. The chief purpose of these services is to enhance the shopping experience
of the consumer and making offline shopping more appealing to the same. Ahmad (2014) stated
that, when it comes to offline shopping, there prevails several factors that impose direct impact
on the experiences of the consumers. Firstly, the availability of a large range of products is
highly crucial since it is considered to be one of the chief reasons behind the popularity of the
online stores. The second crucial factor includes selecting the facilities and services based on
consumer’s preferences, housekeeping and hygiene, system innovation in special events,
selection of brands and tenant mix.
According to Almehairi and Bhatti (2014), the preference of shopping, either offline or
online depends on several factors. Ageing population is one of them. Considering the fact that
aging results in several health issues in human body, it has been observed that in developed
nations, majority of the aged consumers prefers online shopping over offline shopping. Online
shopping proves the consumers with the opportunity to buy necessary products at a price which
is quite similar to that of offline marketing, sitting at the ease of home. However, Mouakket
(2015) argued that the scenario is quite different when it come to developing countries like UAE.

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Due to lower access to the modern technology, a good number of the aged consumers in UAE
prefer traditional shopping over online shopping since they feel more comfortable to
communicate verbally with the sales executives than selecting products or make decision online
all by themselves. However, majority of the young and middle aged consumers in the nation
prefers online shopping experiences over offline shopping experiences. Huge availability of
products, effective availability of the internet facilities throughout the nation, lucrative offers
from the organizations are few of the factor that are responsible for enhancing the online
experiences of the consumers to a great extent.
Al Dmour, Alshurideh and Shishan (2014) stated that both offline as well as online
shopping experiences in UAE posses a few loopholes that are responsible for decreasing the
shopping experience of the consumers. When it comes to online shopping, one of the chief
reasons that has been reported by consumers for having bad shopping experience is late delivery
from the shopping site. Late delivery impose negative impact o the expectations of the
consumers that leads to deterioration of their shopping experiences. Not only that, delivery of
broken materials or rotten foods is another reason that give birth to ineffective shopping
experience. When it comes to factors that are responsible for imposing negative impact on
offline shopping experience, they are inappropriate greeting behaviours of the sales executives,
low quality of products and unhygienic sanitary system. These three factors prevent consumers
from revisiting offline shopping sites due to previous ineffective shopping experiences.
Khan, Awan and Ho (2014) pointed out that when it comes to fashion industry, one of the chief
drawback of online shopping is that the consumers will not be able to feel the texture of the
cloths to be purchased or the exact colour of the cloths during order the product. In several cases,
unsatisfactory shopping experience has been reported by the consumer where the chief concerns

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are either undesired colour of the apparel ordered or chief quality of the same. 78 percent of the
consumers, who buys apparels only from offline stores, stated that the two above mentioned
issues are the chief reasons behind avoiding online purchasing. According to Li and Hong
(2013), in spite of the fact that that the name of the fibre used for the making of the dress as well
as the colour of it is mentioned online, several time the description provided online do not
matches with the delivered item. Thus it can be understood that the online retailers needs to
concentrate on proper picturization of the material, quality of the apparel and delivery of the
expected item in order to enhance the consumer experience.
2. Factors that influences UAE consumers to purchase online
As being discussed earlier, the intensity of online shopping in UAE as got enhanced by 23
percent in the last 3 years. The chief reason behind this is the 24*7 availability of the internet.
While more than 50 percent of the consumers are found to be assessing internet for online
shopping, approximately 80 percent of them are found t be highly satisfied with their online
shopping experiences. Along with the availability of the internet, the gradual inclination of the
new age consumers of UAE towards technological advancement is another major reason that has
impose positive impact on online shopping. The government of UAE has embraced the potential
of technology in order to enhance the lives of nation’s citizens. One of the major evidence of the
recent the technological advancement in UAE includes Dubai’s Smart City which was first
announced in the year 2013.
The second factors that enhances the inclination of the UAE consumers towards online
shopping is lack of time. Due to globalization, the work pressure at both the government as well
as private originations in UAE has got enhanced to a commendable amount. As a result of this, it

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becomes difficult for the office goers to manage time for shopping purposes. Considering the
fact that more than 47.9 percent of the total population of UAE is within the range of 324-50
years old, this problem is quite evident in the nation. Since, online shopping allow the
consumers to browse stores , select product and order the same while performing any kinds of
activities without time restrictions, driving to car parking lots, bothering about the weather and
time restrictions like the offline stores, online shopping is considered to be more time saving as
well as feasible to the UAE working class. When it comes to the students who are between the
age range of 16 to 20, it has been found that curiosity of them is the chief driving force for them.
Considering the fact that this generation is more active technologically, a good number of
teenagers prefers to shop online by comparing product from different online stores and thus
obtaining the best offers available. However, according to Hsu et al. (2013), a major drawback
faced by the online store when it comes to attracting the teenagers and students in UAE is that
students are often afraid of sharing their personal data or credit card details online. Zhanget al.
(2014) has founded that one of the chief tools that are being used for online shopping purpose is
Smartphone. The chief reason behind this is that Smartphones are highly user-friendly. Not only
that, since they are portable, consumers can go though shopping sites at any point of time in
order to order products. Besides that Smartphone are also used for pre-purchasing activities like
evolution of reviews, looking for discounts as well as finding alternatives of the products.
Another factor that influences the online shopping experiences of the UAE consumers is the
price of the products. According to majority of the consumers, products that are available online
are much cheaper compared to the products that are available offline provided that the quality of
the products is almost same. Considering the fact that that unlike offline stores, online stores do
not need to invest on physical resources, the online retailers can invest fully on the quality of the

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products as well as services. Due to the same reason, online retailers are able to provide the
consumers products at a much lower price compared to the offline retailers. Online retailers offer
price advantages but that is based on the shipping cost versus travel to retail cost. Due to lower
price range, consumers at UAE are getting more inclined towards online shopping. Wei and Lu
(2013) argued one of the chief reason of providing cost advantage by the online retailers is due to
gain comparative advantage. Considering the fact that one of the major loopholes of online
marketing is that consumers cannot test the quality or color of the products during the time of
shopping, online retailers attracts consumers by offering the product at a lower price range.
Retailers who sell their products at multiple channels are found to be more efficient in lowering
the price range of the products while the single channel retailers charges more for similar
products.
Al-Debei et al. (2015) stated that considering the fact that a good number of organizations in
the fashion industry of UAE posses both online and offline stores, the pricing strategy of
different organizations are different. In several stores, the management of the organizations keep
the price range of the online products high and invest more on satisfying local consumers by
focusing on the quality of the products sold in offline store and for monitoring the performances
of the staff. On the contrary, many organizations are there where priority is given to the online
stores since it generate more revenue compared to the offline stores. Business model in the retail
industry has got changed and online marketing ha become an valuable option for the retailers of
the fashion industry in order to enhance the overall revenue of the organization. This change in
the mentioned industry is also making the consumers to adapt them. The online shopping facility
is chiefly used in two was by the consumers in UAE. While a good numbers of consumers used
the online store in order to gather information about the apparel or cosmetics they wants to

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purchase, evaluates is reviews and obtain a idea of its price before buying it from a offline store,
several consumer uses online shopping sites as a purchasing tool and as a interaction platform
sending feedback and preferences to retailer.
When it comes to the type of the products, it becomes highly difficult for the retailers to sell
the products offline. One of the chief barriers of buying fashion product online is lack of physical
interaction. However, according to researchers, technological advancement posses the potential
to make it easier for online consumers to buy fashion products online. The revelation of the
digital technology has the potential to convey the retail atmosphere to the online platform,
technological innovation can translate colour, music, light, shapes, size, dimensions and touch to
the online virtual environment which will have a direct effect on the shoppers’ response during
the website visit and create an interactive online shopping experience. Thus it can be clearly
understood that digital revelation has empowered online shoppers to a great level and have made
their shopping behaviour more exploratory.
Another major factor that influences online shopping is the reviews available on the social
media platforms like Facebook, Twitter and instagram. Even Youtube is a major factor that
influences the same. Products that are reviewed as good quality product are found to be
purchased more compared to the products that are reviewed to have poor quality. According to
Aboelmaged and Gebba (2013) since consumers are not able to test or feel the products by
themselves during online shopping, majority of them are depending on the reviews that are
available on the mentioned platforms in order to understand the quality as well as feasibility of
the product.
3. Barriers to traditional (offline)shopping

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The fact that the consumers of the fashion industry o UAE are getting more and more
inclined towards online shopping cannot be avoided. In order to deal with the fact, the
management of the offline fashion stores in the nation needs to understand the chief barriers that
are preventing their enhancement in revenue. Ahmeda et al. (2015) states that stock capacity of
the offline store can be considered as one of their major limitation. Since physical stores are
comprised of a limit area, it is not possible for offline retailers to showcase a huge variety of
dresses like those of the online stores. As a result of this, majority of consumers finds it feasible
for them to select dresses from online store since more options are available for them online. The
second sector that acts as a barrier for the offline store is the time of opening and closure.
Considering the fact that offline retails needs to maintain a specific time due to their physical
existence, they are not available to consumers for 24*7 hours. On the other hand, online
organizations provide the consumers with the facility to shop any time they want to. Besides that
offline organizations posses several factors to look after, like the behavior of the sales
executives. Along with that the number of suppliers is higher in case of offline store compared to
that of the online stores. Hence the price range of the apparel offered by the offline retailers
includes all charges. As a result of this the offline suppliers are not able to provide the consumers
apparels at a price range similar to the online stores. Online retailers need not to worry about
such factors. However Guercini and Runfola (2015), argues that offline shopping provides the
feeling of authentication to the consumers which is not possible for the online retailers to
provide. Offline shopping enable the consumer to feel , taste as well as try the product in order to
understand whether it is a perfect math for him or not or whether he or she wants to buy it or not.
Especially when it comes to buy cloths online, it becomes highly difficult for them to understand
the size, fittings, textures and appropriate color of the cloths with the help of pictures. However,

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in order to solve this issue, the online retailer provides several facilities like the cash back offer
as well as replacement to the consumers in case any kinds of issues related to the above
mentioned factors. It has been found that majority of the residents of UAE prefers to buy cloth
online in spite of the above mentioned issues. The chief reason behind this is the huge variety of
the cloths offered to the consumers as well as the reasonable price of the cloths offered.
According to survey, the young generation of UAE makes their purchase based on information
and knowledge provided by the sales consultant especially for new product into market.
Considering the fact that the 60 percent of the consumers of the fashion industry of UAE is
consist of consumers of age ranging between 18 years to 50 years, majority of them prefer online
shopping over offline shopping since the for provides them with the necessary information and
knowledge about the product they wants to purchase.
4. Changes retail store can implement to compete with online channels
It is highly crucial for the offline retailers to understand that store experience is the key for
creating value proposition and is the chief pillar to establish an effective shopping experience of
the consumers. In spite of the huge market demand of the online stores, the Brick and Morter
stores of UAE does posses the potential to compete with the e-commerce giants. For this the
latter needs appropriate sales force, marketing products and strategies. According to Cohen,
Prayag and Moital (2014), the offline retailers of UAE should take the advantage of the
shortcomings faced by the online retailers. Considering the fact that majority of the online
retailers have to wait for at least few days before the arrival of the purchases, the offline retailers
needs to take the advantage of this. While promoting their products, the offline shoppers can
mention that they don’t need to wait for certain product if they consider buying offline. This
technique is applicable for the local consumers since it will be convenient for them to wall in the

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store and buy product instead of waiting several days for a product to arrive. Besides that offline
retailers can also use the traditional techniques like campaigns and sponsorship in order to make
the local consumers aware of their presence.
The physical appearance of the retail store does also impose impact on the impression of the
same on the consumers. It impose direct impact on the consumer experience psychologically as
well as behaviorically and reflects on the interior design, store layout, music and in store
technology. According to the study of technology there are four elements that posses the
capability to affect the experience of the consumers along with the efficiency of the retail store.
Firstly, the quality of the products offered to the consumers determines consumer experience to a
great extent. It has been found that offline stores that provides good quality products to the
consumers posses higher consumer loyalty ad trustworthiness from the sides of the consumers.
The second factor that posses the potential to provide efficiency to the offline store so that they
can compete with the online giants is assortment. Considering the fact that one of the chief
reasons behind the preference of online stores over offline store is the huge variety of products
provided by the online retailers, if offline retailers provide wide range of variety, it can be a
major threat for the online retailers. Proving thug variety the consumers will satisfy different
tastes of consumers and thus will not only enhance the overall revenue of the organizations but
will also enhance their competitive advantages over the offline stores. The third aspect based on
which the offline stores can compete with the online ones is consumer attention. In UAE, a good
number of consumers prefer to visit offline store where they will be able to experience human
interaction while shopping. Specially the consumers of age range 45 to 65 years finds it easier
to buy products with the help of sales executives who facilitate them during heir buying process
by providing them which a huge range of information about the products they wants to buy. Thus

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the management of the offline organization in UAE should focus on providing effective training
to the sales executives so that they can provide efficient guidance to the shoppers and enhance
their shopping experience.
According to Carraher (2014), the location of the offline stores is highly crucial since it
determines whether it will be convenient for the consumer to visit the products for purchasing
purpose. Considering the fact that brick and mortar stores posses a opening and closing time, the
location of the stores helps the consumer to determine whether they will consider timing an
effort of reaching the store. Hence it is advised hat offline retailers should invest more on
establishing their stores on highly communicable locations at metro cities of the nation.
Fernandes (2013) stated that the atmosphere off the offline store is a major factor on which the
consumer satisfaction of the consumers depends. An inappropriate store location discourages the
consumers to revisit the store. On the other hand, stores that possess appropriate music, lighting,
colours, and window display and mode type to be more appealing to targeted consumers.
Flexibility can be considered as another strong point for offline consumers. Brick and mortar
stores that can be flexible with payments can attract customers from online merchants. Hence
organizations should try to incorporate more flexible payments like split payments, lay buys or
partial payments in order to provide more options to the consumers. This will help the online
stores to gain competitive advantage over the online stores and also help them to enhance their
consumer loyalty.
Chapter 3: Research Methodology
Research methodology can be defined as the specific procedure which is used to select,
identify, process as well as analyze information about the topic. This section has been