Impact of Store Merchandising Quality on Purchase Intention of Supermarket Industry of Sri Lanka: The Moderating Effect of Demographic Factors

Abstract

The supermarket concept was initially started in Sri Lanka at 1980’s and the particular industry began to expand after the year 2000. Supermarket industry is one of the fast-growing industries in Sri Lanka. According to the prevailing literature, many researchers are emphasis that store merchandising plays a vital role in the shopping behavior in any retail context. Further, it has become an essential strategy in supermarket industry. There is fierce competition today in the retail industry. As a result, every marketer pays close attention to merchandising strategies attract the customers and survive in the industry. Based on the aforesaid situation, the main objective of this study is to identify the impact of store merchandising quality on purchase intention of supermarkets of Sri Lanka with paying special attention to the moderating roles of demographic factors. As this study was quantitative in nature, it used structured questionnaire to collect primary data from 190 respondents. Researcher analyzing data by using SPSS and findings revealed that in store merchandising plays a significant role in the purchasing intentions of shoppers in the modern trade environment. The present study has more practical contribution for the marketers in the supermarket industry for developing competitive advantage of the respective industry. Finally, the researchers suggested some strategies to improve store merchandising quality of supermarkets for stimulating purchasing intensions of the customers in the domestic market.