Why do online retailers succeed? The identification and prioritization of success factors for Indian fashion retailers

摘要

The exponential growth in online fashion retailing in India has brought several structural changes. Changing consumer needs and value propositions have made it imperative for online retailers to identify factors that are critical for its growth. The current study attempts to identify factors that influence consumers’ preference for online fashion retailers (OFR). The factors were identified and their weights were evaluated using the AHP methodology. Furthermore, the potential alternatives were ranked using VIKOR technique in R. Initially, 40 factors were identified, spread across 7 categories and in line with earlier research on online retail and views of retail experts from Indian online fashion retail sector. The analysis revealed that the category ‘webstore-image’ is most preferred and that the factors ‘online shop recognition’, ‘price’ and ‘reputation of stores’ were of importance. The study identified new factors that are important for the success and growth of online fashion retailing that are specific to India.