Theses and dissertations (Management Sciences)
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Item Electronic contract challenges of consumers in the Durban area and the implications of selected consumer legislation from a fairness-based perspective(2023) Dwarika, NikitaThe aim of the study is to explore consumer challenges with respect to electronic contracts of consumers in the Durban area and the implications of selected consumer protection legislation in South Africa. Since the Internet became available for commercial use in the early 1990s, the means of doing business changed forever. The Internet and electronic commerce have allowed people to engage in business transactions by means of electronic communications, which makes it possible for them to conclude contracts with people situated within foreign jurisdictions. Consumers have been cautious to make use of electronic commerce, as they are uncertain about the consequences that their actions might have. Consumers will only utilize e-commerce if they have confidence in the legal system regulating it; therefore, legislation was needed to regulate their ecommerce activities. Most of the studies on contract agreements have focused on the implications of formal written agreements, particularly from the perspective of businesses. Limited research has been conducted on electronic contract consumer challenges and the rights offered by existing consumer law in South Africa. Therefore, this study seeks to fill the gap by exploring online consumer challenges in electronic sales contract and protection offered by existing consumer protection legislation in South Africa. Through a quantitative study using questionnaires, data was collected from 384 consumers in the Durban area. The findings from the study revealed that even though the Consumer Protection Act has been in existence for more than ten years, there are still consumers that still do not know and understand their basic consumer rights. The study has shown that there are multiple challenges and barriers facing consumers concerning the conclusion of electronic consumer contracts, notably, which have not been adequately addressed.Item Ecommerce adoption by small medium enterprises in fashion : the case of Durban fashion fair designers(2021) Nhuvira, Chiedza Elizabeth; Dorasamy, NirmalaSmall Medium Enterprises are one of the country’s engineers for transformation through economic growth, innovation and employment creation. The fashion industry is rated the second largest manufacturing curbing unemployment for both formal and informal sectors of fashion through providing one of the human basic needs. Due to the low entry barriers, the competition is rife both locally (other fashion designers) and internationally (imports) which has led to initiatives such as ‘fast fashion’ which represents the process of selling designs showcased on the catwalk in stores in the shortest possible. However, this is a challenge without the right platforms to advertise and sell the clothing. Initiatives such as Durban fashion fair have been good in providing the Durban designers with a local platform to showcase but Small Medium Enterprises greatest challenge is that Durban market is flooded despite designers offering niche products because it’s the same customers with limited income to buy the offerings, such that customer acquisition beyond the confines of the Durban is a necessity for business sustenance. Durban fashion designers are creative business people, knowledgeable in the fashion industry, however with the challenges that they are facing, there is limited research of their use of ecommerce in solving the stated problems. Ecommerce is perceived as an innovation that has transformed Small Medium Enterprises is developed nations such as China and America however the case is unknown for developing nations such as South Africa. The purpose of the case study is to determine how far the fashion designers have used ecommerce in their businesses and the factors that influence them to adopt taking into account the benefits and challenges that they face. The case study encourages multiple sources and techniques to gather data. Mixed method approach was conducted for data collection, for the Durban fashion fair designers quantitative study was undertaken while the Durban fashion fair management were interviewed. The data was analysed using statistical method SPSS and use of thematic analysis for quantitative. Results from the study supported the literature while other results revealed gaps for further research. The study revealed the following results, that the majority of fashion SMMES are cognisant that the South African population is moving to online buying and that there are business opportunities to be exploited online. Secondly, the challenges hindering the fashion SMMEs was the low profits and internet fraud. The findings revealed that the greater percentages of fashion SMME are survivalist entities earning profits of less than 50 000 rand annually. The low profit margin affects the acquisition of gadgets and infrastructure is deemed costly; moreover the SMMEs lack the financial collateral security to borrow from the banks. The other challenge mentioned was that internet fraud was the lack of digital training literacy and training such that fashion SMME perception of internet fraud was exaggerated. Thirdly, the results highlighted that the management benefited from the adoption by making better decisions. The better decisions can be attributed to knowledge of customer, the promptness of making decisions and the management’s previous online experience. Fashion SMME highlighted the benefits accrued from implementation of effective ecommerce practices, were increase in sales despite the number of years the business has been trading. The use of ecommerce, the results indicate that the fashion designers use free applications available since their profitability margins are low. Most of the SMME advertise on the social media Facebook and Instagram, they also use the social platforms for product research and prevailing trends too. And lastly they use banking applications to make payments to suppliers as well as receive payments from customers. The fashions SMME have not adopted ecommerce by using second parties such as paid second party sites.Item The use of digital payment for online shopping amongst millennials in the greater Durban area(2021-10) Zitha, Themba; Penceliah, Darry SoobramoneyDigital payment performs a vital role in the transaction method of payment for online shopping. Online shopping is often the first step in gaining millennials’ attention before using digital payment. With the evolution of online shopping, there is a shift from traditional payment methods to digital payment methods. Online retail stores, online marketers and banking sectors understand the force behind millennials shopping online. The purpose of this exploratory study was to determine the millennials’ perceptions of using digital payment for online shopping. The cross-sectional study was undertaken using a quantitative method. Three hundred and ninety-three millennials residing in the greater Durban area of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa completed a self-administered questionnaire. Descriptive and inferential statistics methods were utilised to summarise and analyse the results. Factors such as brand popularity and pricing influenced millennials’ online shopping behaviour. Some of the challenges of the digital payment method are security, privacy, and trust issues. Therefore, there is a need to develop intervention strategies that can create awareness among consumers to address their concerns.Item E-procurement for destination management companies within the tourism industry in South Africa : digital era trends, challenges and responses(2022-04) Berndt, Lucy; Mbali, CharlotteThe study attempted to identify digital era Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) that suppliers used, and the challenges, responses, and trends they generated for e-procurement in Destination Management Companies (DMCs). The objectives were to analyse e-procurement in DMCs, through suppliers using ICTs, whilst concentrating on the elements from the new economy through investigation and evaluation; to predict new phenomena in this ever-changing field; and lastly, assessing the challenges that DMCs experienced because of suppliers using ICTs, with possible solutions or recommendations for procurement. Qualitative methodologies were used in order to observe various ICTs in the Tourism Distribution Channel (TDC). The population consisted of eight suppliers, representing over 135 different products and services, each differing from one another in terms of regions they cover, representation, and size. Seven DMCs ranging in size, in various locations and operating or specialising in different markets were selected for the research. To accomplish the objectives, questionnaires, and telephonic discussions with Revenue Managers, Contract Managers or International Sales Managers were conducted. The methodology is based on internal validity as the researcher is close to reality, spending large amounts of time in the field and having collected multiple data and therefore the gaps have been reduced. Reliability of the study can be tested through triangulation as different sources have been used to build a coherent justification. The results show that there is still much to be done before the successful implementation of eprocurement.Item The effect of customer perception towards electronic Brick-and-Click retailers in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal(2018-04-23) Buthelezi, Makhosazane; Moodley, PadhmaBrick-and-Click retailing was introduced in the 21st century and it was a challenge to traditional retailers (Diamond and Pintel 2013: 91). Kloppers (2014: 1187) reveal that online shopping has grown tremendously worldwide in the last few years but South Africa seems to lag behind the rest of the world where the development of Brick-and- Click is concerned. Gupta, Mittal and Nayyar (2011: 401) state that electronic retailing is now a trending shopping tool. Laudon and Traver (2010: 6) assert that as electronic retailing drastically grows, most customers act and react based on their perceptions, not objective reality. According to Hawkins and Mothersbaugh (2010: 278) customer’s perception are much more vital than their knowledge of objective reality. Customer’s perception affects their actions, leisure and buying habits which has a great impact on the Brick-and-Click retailers. Laudon and Traver (2010: 5) believe that electronic retailing is challenging to most retailers, as there are many factors that need to always be considered. Botha et al., (2008: 277) mention that the South African online retail market needs to overcome a number of obstacles in order to enhance the growth of online shopping. The aim of this study is to identify the factors that affect customer perception on electronic retailing in Brick-and-Click retailers in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. The primary objective of the research is to examine the effect of customer perception of electronic retailing in Durban. Durban is known as the largest city in KwaZulu-Natal, therefore using Durban as the sample was advantageous to the study in terms of results. Furthermore, this study obtained permission (see appendix C-gatekeepers letter) from Mr Price Clothing who is one of the largest retailers in Durban to engage in this study. The study followed a quantitative research method in order to attain the set objectives of the study. Non-probability sampling technique was employed in recruiting the participants. Convenience and purposive sampling techniques were used to generate the sample population in this study. The target population for the study were all the customers that shop at the Brick-and-Click retailers in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. Questionnaires were administered electronically via the database of Mr Price. The study used both descriptive and inferential statistics. Statistical Package for Social Scientists (SPSS) version 23.0 was used to analyse the data. The results suggest that Brick-and-Click retailers pay more attention towards the factors that affect the customer perception as they can determine the success or failure of the business. Researchers in the literature review highlight that customer perception is the way customers view shopping quality of the stores performance and effectiveness in terms of its product or services (Ha and Stoel 2011: 199). Aspfors (2010: 10) believes that it is essential to identify customer’s needs and wants by knowing customer perceptions. The study revealed that majority of customers indicated that they are aware of electronic retailing, a frequency of 2-3 times a month was the highest followed by never shopped online customers. The study also discovered that customers were influenced by different factors to shop online, less are of the opinion that online shopping is secure, and even fewer are prepared to make online payments. Finally, only few have a positive attitude toward online shopping. Lastly, the study also discovered that prices and delivery are the main motivating factors for customers to shop online while the least motivators were referrals from friends, family and review site, company reputation and appealing product description. Lee and Barnes (2016: 48) suggest that Brick-and-Click retailers invest in Research and development (R&D) to discover various factors affecting the customers to buy electronically. Brick-and-Click retailers are further advised to develop strategies pertaining how to retain customers especially strategies suitable for their target market as they all differ from one retailer to another. Research and development can assist in implementing the right strategies at the right time minimizing cost. Through research and development, the retailer can also determine the needs and wants through understanding perception of customers. Retailers must be aware of all the factors in order to provide ideal strategies. Recommendations on how to use the important factors in online shopping could be aimed at developers of websites and owners of Brick-and-Clicks. They should change their marketing strategies giving priority to customer orientation and they should be particularly focused on the ease of use of online shopping services. Brick-and-Click retailers should devote resources to better understand consumer behaviour, technologies of the future and their development (Baubonienė and Gulevičiūtė 2014:81).