Food Retail Chains: Hungary in the EU

The role of retail chains is signifi cant, not only in the European but also in the Hungarian market. Major changes can be seen in the food trade, and hypermarkets and supermarkets are becoming more widespread, which has an international tendency. We are able to see the transformation of trade structure and changes in customer behaviour. On the customers’ side, this means newer demands on retail chains, which fact greatly determines the location and shape of stores. In Hungary, the presence of small shops is still signifi cant, in accordance with European and international trends; yet on the basis of turnover, the increasing dominance of larger sales centres can be seen.

An empirical study of international private label branding in the food sector in Hungary

Private label branding strategies differ to that of the manufacturer. The study aims to identify optimal private label branding strategies for (a) utilitarian products and (b) hedonistic products, considering the special factors reflected in consumer behavior related to private labels in Hungary. The issue of House of Brands and Branded House strategies are discussed and evaluated in the light of retail business models. Focus group interviews and factor analysis of the survey found differences in branding strategies preferred by consumers for the two product categories. The study also outlines a strong trend in possible private label development based on consumer’s changing attitude in favor of national products.

Antecedents of loyalty for food products – Investigating the effects of subjective constructs

Our research aimed to reveal the effects that can be observed during the buying process of food products and can influence the decisions of customers. We focused on the role of enduring involvement in customers’ behavioural loyalty, that is, the repurchase of food brands. To understand this relationship in a more sophisticated way, we involved two mediating constructs in our conceptual model: perceived risk and perceived knowledge of food products. The data collection was carried out among undergraduate students in frame of an online survey, and we used SPSS/AMOS software to test the model. The results only partly supported our hypothesis, although the involvement effects on loyalty and the two mediating constructs were strong enough, loyalty couldn’t be explained well by perceived risk and knowledge. The roles of further mediating/moderating variables should be determined and investigated in the next section of the research series. Keywords: involvement brand loyalty, subjective knowledge, perceived risk, food products

A szerződések teljesülése a magyar élelmiszerláncban (Contract fulfilments in Hungarian food chains)

A tanulmány célja, hogy azonosítsa azokat a tényezőket, amelyek befolyásolják az élelmiszer-gazdasági kis- és közepes vállalkozások szerződéseinek teljesülését a Közép-magyarországi régióban. Számításaink megerősítik Guo-Jolly [2008] eredményeit, amely szerint a szerződések tartalmi elemeinek kulcsszerepük van a szerződések teljesülésében. Továbbá a vállalatvezetői képességek, a vállalati és tranzakciós jellemzők szintén jelentős hatást gyakorolnak a szerződések teljesülésére. Érdekes módon az ágazatspecifikus jellemzőknek csak korlátozott szerepük van a szerződések teljesülésének magyarázatában. / === / The paper analyses the contractual relations and contract fulfilment of small and medium-sized firms along the food chain, in the central region of Hungary, using survey data. The estimates also reveal that contract fulfilment is significantly affected by the design of the contract. They confirm that an important role in contract fulfilment is played by corporate and managerial attributes and transaction characteristics. Interestingly, branch-specific characteristics play only a limited role in explaining contract fulfilment.

A kiskereskedelmi stratégiai szövetségek hatása a kiskereskedelmi marketing tevékenységére és teljesítményére = Effects of the retail strategic alliances to the retailers' marketing activity and performance

A kilencvenes évek második felétől egyre jelentősebb szerepet játszanak a vállalatközi együttműködések, hosszabb távú kooperációk a hazai élelmiszer- és napi cikk kiskereskedelemben. A társulások szintjén a piaci siker egyértelmű, amely jól nyomon követhető az évente megjelenő kiskereskedői rangsorokban. A cikk viszont a tagkereskedők szemszögéből vizsgálja a kérdést, vajon a társuláshoz való csatlakozás ténylegesen javítja-e a kiskereskedő teljesítményét és milyen dimenziókon keresztül. _____________ From the second half of the ’90s the strategic alliances, the long term cooperations have been increasingly role in the domestic food and FMCG retail. On the level of the alliances the market success has been obvious, which has well presented in the annual retail rankings. The article examines the issue from the retailers’ point of view: whether the accession to the alliance has effectively improved the retalier’s performance and which dimensions through.

Effects of the current financial and economic crisis on the rural landscape as well as the agri-food sector in Europe and Central Asia

This paper reviews the expected effects of the current financial crisis and subsequent recession on the rural landscape, in particular the agri-food sector in Europe and Central Asia (ECA) on the basis of the structure of the rural economy and of different organisations and institutions. Empirical evidence suggests that the crisis has hit the ECA region the hardest. Agriculture contributes about 9% to gross domestic product (GDP) for the ECA region as a whole with 16% of the population being employed in the agricultural sector. As far as the impact of the financial crisis on the agri-food sector is concerned, there are a few interconnected issues: (1) reduction in income elastic food demand and commodity price decline, (2) loss of employment and earnings of rural people working in urban centres, implying also costly labour reallocation, (3) rising rural poverty originating mainly from lack of opportunities in the non-farm sector and a sizable decline of international remittances, (4) tightening of agricultural credit markets, and the (5) collapse of sectoral government support programs and social safety-net measures in many countries. The paper reveals how the crisis hit farming and broader agri-business differently in general and in the ECA sub-regions.

Winners and Losers in the Liberalized Energy Retail Sector in Hungary:A Co-evolutionary Approach

This paper examines the recent history of the Hungarian energy trading market in a co-evolutionary framework. Hungary is characterized by a mixed ownership structure with mainly multinational incumbents in energy retail and distribution, while the wholesale is dominantly owned by state-owned companies. The legal framework also has dual characteristics, with free-market regulation for industrial consumers and a regulated price regime for households. Our research method follows a longitudinal approach from the period of market liberalization in 2008 until 2013. We identified strong relationship between the individual and sector performance of the trading companies and the current political ideology and institutional regime.

Country-specific determinants of horizontal and vertical intra-industry agri-food trade: the case of Bulgaria and Romania

The article analyses patterns and country-specific determinants of agri-food trade of Bulgaria and Romania with the European Union. As literature focusing on agricultural aspects of the topic is limited, the paper seeks to contribute to the literature by providing up to date results and suggestions as well as by identifying the determinants of horizontal and vertical intra-industry trade of the Bulgaria and Romania after EU accession. Results suggest that intra-industry agri-food trade is mainly of vertical nature, referring to trade of different quality products. Results verify that determinants of horizontal and vertical IIT are similar and suggest that economic size and FDI are positively, while factor endowments and distance are negatively related to both sides of IIT. Results are mainly in line with the majority of empirical literature in the field.