Examining the UK Food Retail “Race for Space” and the Spectre of Market Saturation

When?

Wednesday 20 March 2013, 15.00 to 16.00

Where?

80 MS 02

Open to:

Alumni, Public, Staff, Students

Speaker:

Professor Steve Wood, University of Surrey

Abstract

This conceptual paper explores food retail space saturation in the UK in the light of an apparent recent peak of store space growth, an inferred decline of the hypermarket format, and, in particular, the deterioration in performance of the UK market leader, Tesco. We develop an understanding of retail saturation that rests on a spatial conceptualisation of retail development at a local catchment level and rationalise why, and in what ways, saturation manifests itself through sales impacts and cannibalisation. In the process, we analyse the differing local effects of new store openings, store extensions and format innovation to illustrate how saturation is contingent upon local catchment conditions, competitive interactions and the particular geography of retail brands and formats. Our study suggests that although a significant slow-down in new store construction may be a logical response at the level of the industry, this may not necessarily be the case for individual retail firms.

Biography

Professor Steve Wood is Chair in Retail Marketing and Management at Surrey Business School, University of Surrey and an Advanced Institute of Management (AIM) Scholar.  He was previously Reader in Strategy at University of Southampton. His research focuses on the following: (1) Strategic decision-making (particularly related to retail store locations, portfolio management and forecasting); (2) The financing and restructuring of retail corporate structures; (3) The strategic internationalisation of retailing. He has published across a range of journals that sit on the business management and economic geography divide including Journal of Economic Geography; Environment and Planning A; The Service Industries Journal; Regional Studies and International Review of Retail, Distribution and Consumer Research amongst others. Steve has recently completed a research project funded by the Nuffield Foundation focused on understanding retailers’ strategic decision-making relating to location planning (with Dr Jonathan Reynolds, University of Oxford).
Prior to 2005, Steve spent three years at Tesco PLC advising on store development strategy both domestically and abroad, and worked as a Retail Analyst for Verdict Research, a London-based retail consultancy.  He is an active member of the Society for Location Analysis (SLA), the European Association for Education and Research in Commercial Distribution (EAERCD) and is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society (FRGS).

To book a place please email: fbelevents@surrey.ac.uk