Sri Lankan consumers and the market

BackgroundThe supermarket industry in Sri Lanka is set out for an explosive growth in the recent years this is with the western lifestyle of modern Sri Lankans where convenience is a key benefit sought after. The traditional grocery store concept has been evolving in to a “Mega Stores” and the heavy discounter concept which carry all the goods shoppers want. If we look at the drivers for the evolution of modern supply chains, or “Modern Trade” they have been persistent in increase demand for value added consumer products, convenience food, beverage, and frozen confectioneries.ObjectiveThe purpose of this paper is to get a clear idea about Sri Lankan consumers and the market in order to approach new supermarket to the industry.MethodsSurvey questions have been designed after a careful review of related literature. This survey has been chosen because this is the best way to gather and explore about the thoughts, feelings, perceptions and opinions of respondents and also there are other reasons as well such as this is self-administered because of its simplicity, reliability of data and also this reduces the variability in results because of the fixed response questions.ConclusionIn Sri Lankan context the supermarket industry is becoming very popular and also competitive industry. Therefore, there are many aspects need to be smoothly considered before starting a new supermarket and also the market is very competitive and new strategies will be needed in order to survive and to gain the competitive advantage over competitors. Service quality, reliability, accuracy should be high and also more facilities should be provided. In Sri Lankan supermarkets, mainly non-durable products which are required on daily basis takes the first place. In Sri Lanka, there are no many categories of supermarkets on the basis of social class. Therefore, in one supermarket, there should be many varieties which will be useful for any category in social class. The price should be competitive and here many supermarkets have higher prices and a smaller number of promotions and discounts for consumers. Considering all aspects, it is good to commence operations in Sri Lanka and it would be profitable.

Pozzolanic Effect on the Hydration Heat of Cements Incorporating Fly Ash, Obsidian, and Slag Additives

Made up of an engineered mix of ordinary Portland cement (OPC) with artificial pozzolans such as trass, fly ash, and slag, the blended cements have been intensely employed within cementitious materials. The main reasons behind this intensive use can be clarified by enhanced workability/strength, the high resistance to chloride/sulfate, reduced permeability/alkali-silica reaction, and a drop in the heat generated by cement’s hydration. The use of cementitious blends within concrete not only offers durable products but also cuts climate impact by energy saving and falling CO2 emissions. This study presents pozzolanic effect on the hydration heat of cements incorporating fly ash, obsidian, and slag additives. The blended cements were manufactured by three different replacement ratios of 20%, 30%, and 50%. The change in the hydration heat of obsidian-, fly ash-, and slag-based cements was observed by several Turkish standards (TS EN 196-8 and TS EN 196-9). Mortars were used for determining the uniaxial strengths of obsidian-, fly ash-, and slag-based cements. The results show that cement’s hydration heat decreases as the rate of additives (e.g., obsidian) increases from 20% to 50%. The cement’s fineness greatly affects its hydration heat. Increasing the refinement of pozzolanic material to a certain level (30%) leads to an increase in the hydration temperature. After reaching this level, there is no clear relation between the fineness and the replacement rate of pozzolans. As a result, the findings of this work will provide a good understanding of artificial pozzolans on performance and quality of obsidian-, fly ash-, and slag-based cements.

Sustainable Design of a Multi-Echelon Closed Loop Supply Chain under Uncertainty for Durable Products

The increased awareness of environmental sustainability has led to increasing attention to closed loop supply chains (CLSC). The main objective of the CLSC is to capture values from end-of-life (EOL) products in a way that ensures a business to be economically and environmentally sustainable. The challenge is the complexity that occurrs due to closing the loop. At the same time, considering stochastic variables will increase the realism of the obtained results as well as the complexity of the model. This study aims to design a CLSC for durable products using a multistage stochastic model in mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) while considering uncertainty in demand, return rate, and return quality. Demand was described by a normal distribution whereas return rate and return quality were represented by a set of discrete possible outcomes with a specific probability. The objective function was to maximize the profit in a multi-period and multi-echelon CLSC. The multistage stochastic model was tested on a real case study at an air-conditioning company. The computational results identified which facilities should be opened in the reversed loop to optimize profit. The results showed that the CLSC resulted in a reduction in purchasing costs by 52%, an annual savings of 831,150 USD, and extra annual revenue of 5459 USD from selling raw material at a material market. However, the transportation cost increased by an additional annual cost of 6457 USD, and the various recovery processes costs were annually about 152,897 USD. By running the model for nine years, the breakeven point will be after three years of establishing the CLSC and after the annual profit increases by 1.92%. In conclusion, the results of this research provide valuable analysis that may support decision-makers in supply chain planning regarding the feasibility of converting the forward chain to closed loop supply chain for durable products.

To Study the Role of E-Commerce to Sustain Agripreneres

India is called as Agrarian country as many people dependent on agriculture for their livelihood. Agriculture plays a vital role in the development of economic system. The agricultural sector contribution is majorly increasing to marketable surplus. The durable products like rice, pulses, cereals ,legume , spices, tobacco, coffee, etc. are being marketed through online. Nearly 50 E commerce websites are promoting technology as well as agri products. Agri-Commerce constitutes a good market in business world. COVID -19 an outbreak of a pandemic disease. The entire world faces this pandemic in unified isolation. It is badly affected to marketing of agricultural products due to lockdown. Logistic system is stopped to avoid the spreading of corona. All business partners and retailers are shutting their entrance doors around the world and encouraging their customers to shop online instead of direct sales. Perishable goods like Fruits and Flowers market has significantly affected. Mango fruit- juice Manufacturing Market has also been significantly impacted. This paper is exploring the problems faced by mango business people during covid age in prakasam dt and identifying a solution of to this problem by creating the information system (IS) which is formal and user friendly. An organized system can be designed to collect, process, store, and distribute seasonal fruits with good quality for consumers at easy delivery and at low prices. ANOVA and Literature Survey Method are mainly used to reach the objectives.

Do You See What I See? Effectiveness of 360-Degree vs. 2D Video Ads Using a Neuroscience Approach

This study compares cognitive and emotional responses to 360-degree vs. static (2D) videos in terms of visual attention, brand recognition, engagement of the prefrontal cortex, and emotions. Hypotheses are proposed based on the interactivity literature, cognitive overload, advertising response model and motivation, opportunity, and ability theoretical frameworks, and tested using neurophysiological tools: electroencephalography, eye-tracking, electrodermal activity, and facial coding. The results revealed that gaze view depends on ad content, visual attention paid being lower in 360-degree FMCG ads than in 2D ads. Brand logo recognition is lower in 360-degree ads than in 2D video ads. Overall, 360-degree ads for durable products increase positive emotions, which carries the risk of non-exposure to some of the ad content. In testing four ads for durable goods and fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) this research explains the mechanism through which 360-degree video ads outperform standard versions.

Key Life Test Process Optimization Using Six-Sigma Approach

The progress of automotive companies has led to a broad development in all sectors of the automotive industry, having an impact on all processes of design, engineering, systems, prototyping, testing and validation. At the same time, consumers’ demand for durable products remains high.

Reducing obsolescence practices from a product-oriented PSS perspective: A research agenda

This conceptual article reviews current knowledge across relevant disciplines and proposes a research agenda related to the capacity of product-oriented product–service systems (PSS) – which are servitization practices, similar to product–service bundling – to mitigate the obsolescence problem of durable products (in the form of deliberate curtailment of product lifespans or symbolic devaluation of devices). Taking both consumer and company perspectives on this possibility, this study outlines paths for research into how marketing can advance knowledge, particularly in relation to product design and sustainable marketing fields. As a contribution to product–service bundling literature, this article also proposes that different types of bundling strategies can be deployed strategically to enhance environmental performance and reduce obsolescence. The effects of product-oriented PSS on obsolescence depend on the type of added services that companies bundle with their products. This insight offers some implications for managers who might seek to adopt product–service bundling and for regulators and policy makers who want to combat obsolescence.

EXPRESS: Buy Less, Buy Luxury: Understanding and Overcoming Product Durability Neglect for Sustainable Consumption

The authors propose that high-end goods, such as luxury apparel, can be more sustainable than mass-market products because they have a longer life-cycle. Across six studies, the authors examine the sustainability of high-end products, investigate consumers’ decision making when considering high-end versus ordinary goods, and identify effective marketing strategies to emphasize product durability, an important and valued dimension of sustainable consumption. Real-world data on new and secondhand accessories demonstrate that high-end goods can be more sustainable than mid-range products because they have a longer life-cycle. Furthermore, consumers engage in more sustainable behaviors with high-end goods, owning them for longer and disposing them in more environmentally friendly manners. Nevertheless, a series of studies shows that many consumers prefer to allocate the same budget on multiple ordinary goods in lieu of fewer high-end products partly because of product durability neglect, a failure to consider how long a product will last. Finally, this research offers actionable strategies for marketers to help consumers overcome product durability neglect and nudge them towards concentrating their budget on fewer high-end, durable products.

Value added and Profitability analysis of bamboo products in case of Banja district Awi zone Amhara regional state Ethiopia

Background Bamboo meets a rising and diverse consumer demands and generates income and contribute to reforestation and climate change mitigation due to its rapid growth and environmentally friendly character. Most bamboo processing enterprises and farmer and consumers use manual technology and produce less durable products. Since there is no research conducted in the area related to profitability of different bamboo products and the distribution of value added Therefore, this study aims to analyse the profitability of bamboo products for producers, traders and processors in the same way it analyses the value added distribution among different agents. Methods To collect primary data 122 smallholder bamboo producers, 13 traders and 16 bamboo product processors were selected. To analyse the data descriptive statistics were employed. Results On average producers supply 374.79 bamboo culms and earn revenue of 7,623.23 ETB. The total value added at the producer level was 15.64 ETB per culm. On average local traders, retailers and wholesalers earn 7.52%, 9.51% and 9.23% of profit Margin and these traders earn average revenue of 66,420 ETB, 129,360ETB and 280,343 ETB respectively. Traditional bamboo product processors produce 687 traditional bamboo chairs on average per year and gained 3.06 ETB/culm as a net profit. Bamboo furniture enterprises on average process 823 modern bamboo chair per year and they earn 197.91 ETB per chair as a net profit. Higher value is added at bamboo furniture enterprise level and lower value is added at producer and trader level. Conclusion The result of the study revealed that all actors have positive profit and value is added by different chain actors and distributed to different agents. Bamboo furniture enterprises gained higher profit margin than traditional bamboo processors. The contribution of the bamboo sector to the government economy is limited. Based on the finding of the study, an effort should be made to increase the contribution of the sector to the national economy. In addition to this, providing working capital and working place and enhancing the processors’ skill and capacity to transform the business into more modern and profitable bamboo furniture enterprise is advisable.