KOREASCHOLAR

This study is one of a study of the innovation process of Co-Created Value (CCV) typed Supermarkets in Japan. The study is done through a collaboration style with Yaoko and Hallo-day, which are recognized as the most CCV typed Supermarkets in Japan for the past 6 years (The two Supermarkets are similar to Wholefoods Market and Wegmans in the U.S.). Basically, this study aims to indicate the mechanism of why these SM manage to grow continuously. The hint to finding the answer in these SM is hidden in“Highly Sticky Information (HSI)”, which is the precious information attached to these employees working in Meal Solution Space refined as “Cooking Support Corner (CSC)”. This HSI is only the source of a competitive power. In Management and Marketing study, I believe the Market Orientation (MO) and CCV is strongly related. To note, inside the company function is MO, and outside relation of the company and the consumer is defined as CCV (See Figure 1). The existing studies in this study are summarized into five directions; “Theory of Sticky Information (TSI), Service-Dominant Logic (SDL), Service-Logic (SL), CCV, and MO”. First, TSI by v. Hippel (1994) and Ogawa S. (1998) were advocated. This theory explains that the HSI is attached to people, and it is the precious information (e.g., Consumers’ needs, insights, and dissatisfaction experience in retailing) and its transfer cost is expensive. Therefore, the company must find a way to collect this precious information in low cost and smoothly absorb such information effectively in their company. In order to do so, the company needs to have a place to communicate with their customer. This lead to the incremental innovation of interactive community space within SM. Secondly, the SDL by S.L. Vargo and R.F. Lusch (2004), and the SL by C.Grönroos, (2006) were advocated. Their concept is basically common understanding of“Consumer 1)shinya.nakami182367@gmail.com Creates Context Value.”However, SDL tends to centralize the concept from the point of the goods more so compared to SL, ; SDL is based on 4Ps marketing in the U.S., whereas the SL is based on the relationship marketing and service marketing in North Europe. Third, the CCV by C.K. Prahalad & V. Ramaswamy (2004) and Muramatsu,J. (2015, 2016) were advocated. Their concept is related to the SDL and the SL. In short, their concept explains that the Value communicates and interacts with consumers and employees in the communication space (Real-Store or Virtual), then, the consumers may need to explain a bit, and finally they create the context value. This stream is the “CCV in Marketing.”And it is important that“Consumers Create Customer Experience”.Nowadays, as many may have already recognized, the CCV is closely related to “Omni-channel”phenomenon. At last, MO by K. Kohli & B.J. Jaworski (1990) and J.C. Narver & S.F. Slater (1990) were advocated. Their concept is constructed roughly in three processes. First step is to collect the customers’ needs and insights. Second step is to sharing such resource within the company. Third step is a feedback, which allows improvements and the production of goods and service to the customers. MO shows how the company understands and work with the customers’ viewpoint. In summary, TSI, SDL, SL, CCV and MO are closely linked with the concept of “Customer Satisfaction and Engagement Orientation by V. Kumar (2016)”in service marketing. And this study is very unique to connecting CCV and MO based upon“TSI”in Japanese CCV typed SM, using not only quantitative, but also in qualitative survey. Next, the purpose of this study is to analyzed the relationship between Performance and “CCV and MO” with awareness of HSI, which is attached to the employees working in Meal Solution Corner of CCV typed Supermarkets, and to make a theoretical framework. The main SM reference is Yaoko in Saitama prefecture and Hallo-day Co. in Fukuoka prefecture, Japan. They both hold two unique and strong points. First, they have a clear cooperate policy. Another is that they have established a clear business positioning. In their interviews, the head representatives from both SM stated that, the most important key for the SM is to be loved by their customers, and to be trusted. Also, my hypothesis was that because the two SM companies had the strong character of CCV orientation, they can continue on with the incremental innovation. The reason why is that, they had 5 elements from customers’ viewpoint, “Koten-keiei” based on Chain Operation, CCV Orientation, Hypothetical Culture, Learning Organization, and Cross-Functional Organization (Nakami 2015, 2016). With 5 such key elements, they manage to increase the sales and profit for over 20 years. In Retailing, store has two meanings. One is a space for selling goods, the other is that it is a “community space” for the residents in each region. Nowadays, the latter role seems to be especially important for strategy in differentiating with Virtual-retailer versus Real- retailer. The two SM companies, Yaoko and Hallo-day, have interactive communication space called “CSC”at the store. The employees as house-wife is working in CSC (Often times, the employees are also relatable to consumers as they themselves are housewife working part time.). By communication of employees and customers in CSC learns about customers’ needs, insights, and possible dissatisfaction in service and even some resource issues within the consumer’s family. These precious information are the most precious and important resources for the retailers. Therefore, CSC is positioned as the information center between the store and the Headquarter. But the average SM has not recognized this importance. They have recognized CSC simply as a Sample Tasting Corner. This is a big mistake. They see the place as similar to eat-in-corner. CSC is the space of “Solving Problem”in the customers based on Job theory by C.M. Christensen (2016). In this study, there is one more important viewpoint, which is known as MO. This concept was proposed by Kohli & Jaworski (1990) and Narver & Slatter (1990). This study is based on the concept of MO in the action viewpoint by Kohli & Jaworski, where the employees working in CSC has the HSI from the customers and share this with the store amongst different departments along with the headquarter, and to propose the counter action to the customers. If the retailing has understood this concept, they would be able to produce incremental innovation. The research question of this study as mentioned in prior, has two unique points. One is to why this study analyzes the importance between performance and HSI, CCV and MO both the consumer’s side and Company’s side. In short, one of the character is how the consumer reputes the CSC with HSI. Second is to how the middle management (GM and manager) working in Yaoko and Hallo-day’s headquarter and the management (shop manager and the chief in each department) in the store repute the CSC, and to what degree do they hold the ability of MO (See Figure 2). There are two analysis approaches in this study. First, Regression Analysis approaches the store-loyalty-focuse of CSC from consumers’ side. Second is Covariance Structure Analysis, which is similar to Sakagawa’s where after the factor analysis of MO and CCV ability in both Headquarter and Store management workers within he company side. The summary of this study is as follows. The consumers see the CSC as the space to gain further and deeper knowledge of goods and a place of communal gathering and interactive space, with mind also placing in hopes that they can provide awareness to the workers in regards to their dissatisfaction in service or further requests and demands in service. On the other hand, the management layers in headquarter reminds CSC as the space of cross MD and the space to execute MO”. The store manager is almost same similar to the management layers in headquarter. However, the difference in view of the two may seem the only true difference is MD Standardization. The reason why is that a manual is needed to establish MO within a store. This CCV typed study result seems to be similar to the study result of Sakagawa’s Chain Store Model in Japan (2016) that MD Standardization is important to execute MO in Retailing especially. In present, this study is continuing to build up the research framework compared between Chain Store Model in Japanese SM by Sakagawa Y. (2016) and CCV Model, and whether there is a CSC in store or non-cooperating supported Hallo-day SM quantitatively. At the GMC2018, I plan to deliver the report of analyzed result and the research framework. Finally, these findings of quantitative and qualitative study will be useful and beneficial towards the study of innovation process in the retailing, both consumers’ and companys’ viewpoint. Perhaps, HSI will be more effective to create CCV and MO in Retailing as the platform between the consumers and retailers continues to seek for enhancement in high quality and demand. Also, this study will be extended to Omni-channel study to make Customer Experience in Real store and Virtual (Customer Touch-point).

• Shinya Nakami(Gakushuin University, Japan)