The Consumer Retail Search Process: A Conceptual Model and Research Agenda

Abstract

Consumers are continually faced with the task of finding their way through a wide variety of retail environments. Surprisingly, very little research has addressed questions about how consumers physically search through retail settings. This article explores this important, yet little researched behavior. A conceptual model of the consumer's retail search process (CRSP) and several research propositions are advanced. The CRSP model integrates research findings relevant to an understanding of consumer retail search behavior. Literature from such diverse fields of scientific inquiry as environmental psychology, human factors, architecture, and marketing are reviewed and serve as the theoretical basis of the CRSP model.