Factors affecting the adoption of e-tailing by selected clothing companies in Cape Town, South Africa

Abstract

The continuous change in the technological landscape has driven e-tailing to become the fastest growing business platform within the technological sphere. E-tailing is becoming more popular among customers worldwide due to the simplicity of shopping. In South Africa, there is a lack of e-tailing adoption in many retailers, resulting in lower customers convenience of purchasing their products online. This study sought to identify the key factors affecting the adoption of e-tailing within selected clothing retailers in Cape Town. Although the adoption of e-tailing has been researched immensely in other countries, little has been researched in South Africa. This study is influenced by the potential advantages that e-tailing has for the clothing retail Companies. The study adopted a quantitative research approach, with a close-ended questionnaire used as a primary data collection tool. Data were collected following ethical protocols of informed consent, anonymity and confidentiality. A total of 100 questionnaires were administered to individuals who worked for three conveniently selected clothing retail companies and 88 questionnaires were used for the data analysis. The reliability of the questionnaire (0.6) was acceptable according to Cronbach’s alpha scale for the study to proceed. Charts, frequency tables, and non-parametric statistics were applied on the data to produce meaningful results. This study managed to determine the factors that affect the adoption of e-tailing by the clothing retail business in Cape Town. Respondents agreed that the size of the business affects e-tailing adoption process as small businesses usually struggle with adopting technological advances as they lack resources and are not motivated to invest in technological advances. Most respondents agreed that the adoption process of e-tailing is expensive because of the required resources. Most respondents also agreed that the adoption of e-tailing is affected by the fact that it is less attractive for some customers due to face-to-face preference. The current study complements the empirical work that has been conducted in this particular field, specifically in the context of South African clothing companies. This study also contributes immeasurably to academic research in the field of retail management as the adoption of technological advancement in businesses has been growing.