Innovation and Digital-Driven Retail Business Models

Abstract

Retailers are facing new challenges like changing customer behavior into digital channels. The aim of this paper was to contribute to the need for retail store business model development with digital innovations We conducted three experiments to advance retail store customer experience and boost customer – store personnel interaction. Current study revealed both theoretical and practical contributions. It improved our understanding of different store innovation paths and their implications for store stakeholders, such as customers and store personnel. While digital innovations in general were adopted well among store customers, study indicated that changes in established and familiar user interfaces can have negative consequences for customer experiences. Our study underlines value-related actions, innovations, and development processes executed at the store level, where customers are in contact with services and store personnel. While the lifespan of the retail business model is getting shorter, ongoing innovation activities are critical for successful retail operations.