Susanne Mann "Retail concepts for securing basic supply in rural areas "

Functional local supply structures constitute a crucial component of essential goods provision and social participation. However, in many rural areas, individuals are increasingly unable to fulfill their needs locally. In view of a decline in household size, consumers, and incomes in rural Germany, retail chains re-locate their stores to sites with optimal conditions regarding population density, absolute purchasing power, and infrastructure. Given the conditions, it is equally challenging for privately owned small supermarkets, corner shops, or family-run markets to operative profitably in such environments, leaving a gap in local supply for the rural consumer. Against this backdrop, a multitude of innovative retail concepts have been developed in recent years that incorporate higher levels of automation and in-store technology, but fewer staff to cope with new demand structures and economic constraints. However, these concepts often meet with low consumer adoption. The aim of this study is to investigate the drivers and barriers for the adoption of innovative retail formats in rural Germany. Methodologically, our study builds on qualitative expert interviews and current literature to categorize operational characteristics of rural retail concepts, followed by a quantitative stated preference experiment and extensive conjoint analysis to empirically predict the impact of these characteristics and underlying mechanisms on consumer adoption.

Susanne Mann (formerly Gillig) is a PhD candidate at KLU, working in the field of transport and logistics. Her research explores factors that promote or hinder user acceptance and adoption of innovative logistics and supply schemes in rural regions.