Understanding the factors that contribute to the success of local retailers is one of the key steps to exploring the nuances of SME development. Among the main brick-and-mortar retailers in the vicinity, one should mention the coffee shop established and run by one of the members of the local Italian American community. Having created a strong competitive advantage of building a unique atmosphere of Asian culture, the owner of the coffee shop has been attracting a range of visitors.
What makes the specified brick-and-mortar store especially valuable to me is the focus on the original and inimitable experience combined with a careful attitude and impressive attention to each customer. The shop owner remembers each customers’ name and coffee preferences, which contributes to the impression of hospitality and introduces a significant extent of lightheartedness and ease into communication. As a result, every visit feels like a trip to an old friend’s place.
Representing a complete contrast to the example above, my favorite online retailer is Amazon. Despite being the direct opposite of the intimate environment of the coffee shop, the website provides a customized approach as well, while also offering a plethora of products and services. Furthermore, Amazon offers free shipping, which is especially important in the current economic environment, when saving becomes one of the key principles of shopping (Roggeveen and Sethuraman 172). Overall, Amazon provides the needed combination of moderate quality and low prices, which attracts numerous customers, myself included.
Though the examples above are quite different from each other, both offer clear competitive advantages. Namely, both target customer-specific needs and allow modifying the purchasing process to create a comfortable experience. Therefore, despite the lack of similarity in their size and scope, both the local retailer and Amazon are worthy of customer loyalty.
Work Cited
Roggeveen, Anne L., and Raj Sethuraman. “How the COVID-19 pandemic may change the world of retailing.” Journal of Retailing, vol. 96, no. 2, 2020, pp. 169-171.