Segmenting Indian shoppers on mall attractiveness factors

In the last decade, the retail sector in India has transformed from small shops to modem shopping formats. Shopping malls have mushroomed across the country, especially, in metro cities. The existence of many malls has not only increased competition, but also has confused shoppers regarding the distinctiveness of one shopping mall from another. Therefore, it is highly imperative for mall managers to ascertain features that would differentiate their malls from their competitors'. The objective of this paper is to identify the various shopper segments and profile them on the bases of their orientation towards various factors associated with malls. The study adopted hierarchical and K-means clustering techniques. The findings advocated that there exist distinctive shopper segments based on various antecedent factors influencing mall selection. Three cluster groups - hygienic, extended and prudent, exhibited noteworthy differences. The findings of this study shall facilitate retailers in preparing differentiation strategies in order to cater to the target segment.