A View of Retailing Formats Based on the Assortment Dimension: An Analysis in the Spanish Context

Abstract

Assortment, as a key component of marketing mix, constitutes a fundamental positioning tool for retailers. Assortment composition can influence both current and future product choices by helping shape consumer preferences. Consumers expect retailers to provide a suitable mix of products; the impact that a retailer’s assortment design has on their sales and profit margins is clear. Assortment planning, therefore, represents an opportunity for the academic world to contribute to improving retail practice, although a dominant solution to such planning has not yet emerged. Several criteria have been used in literature to classify retail stores. A relevant classification is the one that classifies retailers attending to the variety, or breadth and depth, of the assortment. In Spain, the most recognized retail store commercial formats are: traditional commerce, specialized commerce, category killer, convenience store, self-service, supermarket, hypermarket, department store, popular store and discount store.