Factors affecting customers' in-store shopping experience (Case study: Hypermarkets in Tehran)

This research aimed to evaluate the customers' in-store shopping experience in hypermarkets of Tehran. The conceptual model consisted of 17 sub-components, including the experience of interaction with the community, friends, and family members, hedonistic value, profit-minded value, in-store sentiment, volatile, advertising, comfort, price, product, learning, design, staff, visual, olfactory, hearing, and touch. Social, value, emotional, practical, intellectual, and sensory experience are examined as the six primary components of the customers’ in-store experience. The measurement instruments were developed based on the qualitative and multi-stage screening findings. The collected data were analyzed by a questionnaire with 72 and 66 items and using 638 statistical samples, collected through stratified relative random sampling with exploratory factor analysis, structural modeling, and path analysis. The results of structural equation modeling confirmed the effect of each of the 17 components of customer experience on customer satisfaction and the effect of customer satisfaction on the intention to return to the store. According to the path analysis results, the effect of all six primary components of customer experience on customer satisfaction, intention to return to the store, as well as the effect of customer satisfaction and intention to return to the store are positively supported.