Contabilidad y marketing

The Antecedents of Category Management towards Customer Enhanced Services and Effects on Customer Satisfaction in Pharmaceutical Retailing: A Study with Special Reference to Medical Shops (Drug Stores) at Kanchipuram Town

Abstract

 Ramanathan V and Sonia C

Category planning and management is the vital strategic part of retailing. It is the instrument for differentiated customer service and customer satisfaction. The cause of category planning and management induce the effect on retention of customers in competitive retailing environment. The present study focuses to understand the antecedents of category planning and management among the pharmaceutical retailing by considering the product mix dealing of healthcare, oral care, skin care, personal care and homecare products and its line dealt by the drug stores for the enhanced service to customers on customer satisfaction as well retention at Kanchipuram town. The Category Management process undertaken by the medical shop retailers in the study area comprises product assortment, availability, pricing, promotion and reachability as important constructs with identified sub items through previous studies. The empirical data required for the study were collected from the customers during the time of purchase in different retail formats of pharmaceutical shops belong to brand and unbranded retailers in the study area. The conceptual theoretical background on retail Category Management model influence on enhanced customer service and customer satisfaction was tested through structural equation model (SEM-covariance) with the help of AMOS 17.0. The major observations of the study proclaims that the Category Management aspects have direct influence on enhanced customer service and no direct influence on customer satisfaction but at the same time the effect of enhanced customer service is high on customer satisfaction.