The spatial aspects of musical taste:conceptualising consumers' place-dependent identity investments

Consumer research has largely left implicit the interrelationships of space and place with taste. This multi-sited ethnographic study explores how consumers enact, perform, and further develop their musical tastes via their aesthetic experiences in popular (indie) and classical music places. Our findings suggest that consumers create place-dependent identity investments, which unfold via a tripartite experiential process of manifesting habitus, undertaking habitation, and expressing idiolocality. Our study contributes to diverse streams of consumer research such as consumer behaviour, consumer culture theory, and experiential marketing, and opens up avenues for future research focused on the intersections of place with taste

The use of geographical information in retail locational decision-making

This paper discusses an on-going programme of research that investigates the use of Geographical Information (GI) in retail locational decision-making. The continued pressures facing UK multiple retail organisations are such that decisions regarding the location of outlets are of significant importance. These locations represent sites where significant amounts of retail capital are 'sunk'. Once taken, decisions regarding the location of outlets cannot be easily altered. In order to assess the current role and use of GI in locational decision-making a three-stage approach has been adopted and is reported here. First, exploratory research was undertaken to assess decision-makers' use and awareness of the geographic nature of one particular type of GI. Secondly, a detailed postal survey was distributed to those responsible for locational decisions. This recorded a 36 per cent response rate and is the main focus of this paper. Thirdly, detailed case study research is proposed in three multiple retail organisations. It is envisaged that the results thus generated will provide a richer understanding of the nuances of retail locational decision-making

"Say what you see": preliminary observations on the role of spatial cognitive mapping in retail locational planning

It has become apparent in recent years that the planning and management of location has become increasingly important to outlet-based retail and service organisations. Clearly, the subjective, 'lived' experiences of locational decision-makers impinge greatly on the locational decision and cannot be wholly supplanted by a computer. This paper seeks to explore how locational decision-makers visualise potential retail locations through a preliminary discussion of the role of spatial cognition and cognitive mapping. Spatial cognition, an established sub-field of both environmental psychology and behavioural geography, refers to how individuals internally reflect and (re)construct space and shape such information in the form of the cognitive map. The researcher can subsequently glean the nature of the cognitive map through the medium of the self-drawn sketch map. In a spatially-dependent field such as locational decision-making, it can be assumed that differences in locational planners' spatial cognitive abilities may have a significant impact on the subsequent choice of where to locate. Here, literature pertaining to spatial cognition and cognitive mapping is discussed, prior to discussion of appropriate methods for capturing the internal representations of locational actors in this particular research context

The mediating role of competitive advantage in the relationship between organisational capabilities and retail performance

This paper investigates the relationships between market, learning and brand orientation with competitive advantage and organisational performance in the context of the UK retail industry. The results indicate that competitive advantage contributes to strategic effectiveness and mediates the relationship between learning and brand orientation and strategic effectiveness. No significant relationship was found in relation to financial performance. Moreover, market orientation was not found to have a significant direct effect on competitive advantage or indirect affect on performance.<br /

Experiential marketing and the changing nature of extraordinary experiences in post-postmodern consumer culture

Prior experiential marketing research suggests that extraordinary consumption experiences take place within antistructural frames, i.e. outside the realms of everyday life. This paper challenges that notion, through an ethnographic study of consumers attending the Primavera Sound music festival in Barcelona, Spain. We demonstrate that festival attendees perceive their experiences to be extraordinary, despite these occurring within ‘everyday’ structural frames. Consumers’ extraordinary experiences unfold through their negotiation of a series of structural and antistructural marketplace tensions, including commercialism/authenticity, ordinary/escapist, and immersion/communing. We outline the theoretical implications of our research for the changing nature of extraordinary consumption experiences, in light of post-postmodern consumer culture. We conclude with managerial implications and provide suggested avenues for future research

Strategic alternatives for small retail businesses in rural areas: evidence from the Southern Western Isles of Scotland

The issue of retailing in rural areas has received relatively little attention in recent years. This paper considers retail businesses in a remote, rural area, the Uist chain in the Western Isles of Scotland. Drawing on the marketing and retail strategy literatures, a 'funnical' model of rural retail strategies is developed, and examples of independent retail businesses that have adopted both market-led and product-led strategies are posited. These have ranged from a situation of 'strategic stasis' within some retail organisations, where more 'extensive' methods of running retail outlets have been adopted, through to various new development strategies, including the expansion of businesses beyond the island locality to attract both national and international consumers. In the light of these findings, the paper considers the implications presented for retailers in other rural areas of the UK

Spatial Authenticity and Extraordinary Experiences:Music Festivals and the Everyday Nature of Tourism Destinations

Research taking into account the everyday nature of tourism destinations and its impact upon authenticity and attendees’ resulting extraordinary experiences is limited. Drawing upon a three-year ethnography (including fieldnotes, photos/videos, artefact material) and interviews with festival attendees, we explore the interrelationships between authenticity and extraordinary experiences in the context of Primavera Sound music festival. Our emergent thematic categories – the festival’s indie music character, its urban and quotidian configuration, and the instrumental orientation of the festival experience – suggest the festival is firmly positioned within the structures of the indie music industry, while also being located within the confines of day-to-day urban life. Attendees seek to achieve a sense of spatial authenticity by engaging with the features of tourism destinations. We contribute to discussions about authenticity and extraordinary experiences by unpacking the everyday nature of tourism destinations, demonstrating that not all music festivals need to be “extraordinary” muddy camping events

Musical taste and the creation of place-dependent capital:Manchester and the indie music field

Drawing on qualitative interviews with indie music fans in Manchester, UK, we explore how experiences in the indie music field inform spatial and place-specific understandings of musical taste. Inspired by Bourdieu’s sociology of taste, the concept of place-dependent capital incorporates the interplay of the experiential dimensions of taste, and the overall structures in which they are embedded. We develop our findings into three themes, which allow us to highlight the diversity of ways in which our participants create place-dependent capital: exploring the taste of place; dwelling in place; and creating a sense of place. We propose the usefulness of place-dependent capital as an alternative theoretical tool, which acknowledges both structural and experiential dimensions of musical taste, allowing us to demonstrate the situatedness of indie music fans’ tastes

Spatial taste formation as a place marketing tool:The case of live music consumption

Purpose - The aim of this paper is to explore how spatial taste formation and the interrelationships between place and taste can inform the development of contemporary place marketing and/or place management strategies. Design/methodology/approach - The paper draws on previous research conducted within the context of live music consumption and, in particular, within live musical spaces such as festivals and concert halls. Findings - Our study illustrates how spatial taste formation can inform the development of topographies of taste which focus on the creation of field-specific experiences. It also offers insights for understanding the phenomenological uniqueness of various places and the role of place users and other stakeholders in the creation of place marketing and branding value. Originality/value - We elaborate upon the potential usefulness of spatial taste formation for place management and marketing research practice and draw out implications for future research. We advance a holistic and phenomenological understanding of place which illustrates how users’ perceptions of place are shaped by their experiences in various places and by the interplay of these experiences with their individual tastes and vice versa