Dr Ranis Cheng

This study examines the impact of institutional pressures on restaurant entrepreneurs' adoption of biodegradable cutlery and tableware at the Macao Food Festival. Through semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis with 30 entrepreneurs, the study reveals that despite the increasing demand for sustainability, entrepreneurs often prioritise other business concerns. However, findings highlight that implementing regulations at the food festival can create learning opportunities that influence entrepreneurs' psychological mechanisms, leading to a favourable attitude, intention and behaviour towards sustainable practice. Drawing on Institutional Theory and the Theory of Planned Behaviour, the study develops an Integrated Model of Institutions and Planned Actions, shedding light on the institutionalisation process. Additionally, the 5Ps typology captures the diverse range of entrepreneurial attitudes towards sustainable practices. These insights provide valuable implications for policymakers and practitioners seeking to promote sustainable entrepreneurship in the restaurant industry.

Purpose The paper seeks to examine the role of corporate identity in UK clothing retail organisations, focusing on the “fast fashion” sector. The aim is to analyse the “gap” between desired identity and perceived identity within the sector. Design/methodology/approach An instrumental case study approach was adopted for this research. Companies' web sites and press releases were reviewed to find out the desired identity of organisations, while semi‐structured interviews were carried out with customers to elicit the perceived corporate identity. Themes developed from the cases will form the basis of further research. Findings This study has shown that although there are similarities, considerable “gaps” are present between the desired and perceived corporate identity of organisations, the latter being more important in understanding the research questions addressed which relate to corporate identity and the gap between desired and perceived identities. A number of propositions have emerged from the findings, which when investigated empirically will be useful for forming corporate identity constructs in the fashion retail sector. Research limitations/implications This research provides some useful insights into the role of corporate identity within the fast fashion retail sector; however, it is not sufficient to make generalisable claims outside the cases examined. Further research is required to test some of the conceptual issues and propositions raised by this work. Practical implications The paper gives practitioners better insights into the gap between desired and perceived identity with a view to improving strategic interventions to close the gap. Originality/value The research makes a contribution to retail identity literature by emphasising the importance of perceived identity. The work is unique in being the first research to explore further the relationship between desired and perceived identity from a fashion retailing perspective. As a consequence the strategic implications from this work for desired identity are highlighted.

Purpose The corporate branding concept places an emphasis on employees' attitudes and behaviours. This has given rise to internal branding and employer branding, which argue for a closer alignment between the employees' values and those of the corporate brand. However, few studies have attempted to provide a platform by which the two concepts could be synergised to achieve a strong, consistent corporate brand. This paper therefore seeks to explore and demonstrate how the three concepts of branding are interrelated through a new framework. Design/methodology/approach Three bodies of literature (corporate branding, internal branding, and employer branding) were selected for review and examination in terms of their implications for the proposed framework that conceptualises the relationships between the three areas. Findings The review of the literature highlights the importance of employer branding and internal branding, and its potential to support the corporate brand‐building initiatives, whilst maintaining their distinctiveness in the literature. It also sheds light in terms of the inter‐relationships among the three concepts of branding. Originality/value The analysis of the literature reveals a degree of synergy and integration between employer branding and internal branding. It also facilitates a comprehensive understanding of the implications of the two concepts for branding and integrated corporate brand management.

Purpose This study aims to explore the role of marketing in small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) and to consider how amendments can be made to the UK higher education (HE) teaching curriculum to inform marketing teaching and learning around a small business context. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative, exploratory approach using semi‐structured in‐depth interviews amongst ten owners of SMEs in the East Midlands region of the UK was used. Findings Marketing in SMEs is centred on customer engagement, networking and word of mouth communication. HE academic institutions should take account of these findings and work towards introducing SME‐specific marketing material in its teaching and learning curricula. Research limitations/implications This study uses a small number of SME companies in one region and therefore the generalisability of the findings may be limited. Further research could extend the number of SME companies and to other regions of the UK. Practical implications The findings have a bearing on the UK HE marketing curriculum. This study offers insights into how the marketing curriculum in HE needs to be adapted in light of the findings to ensure marketing graduates are equipped to enter SME employment. Originality/value Studies aligning how marketing in SMEs is practiced compared to HE teaching curriculum are limited. This research contributes to the body of literature by further exploring the characteristics and marketing activities of SMEs and highlighting the need to align teaching and practice of marketing in UK HE institutions.

Purpose Handbills are an interesting advertising medium since they are distributed by people in a social context. Little, however, is known about why handbills are often avoided. This study was designed with the purpose of extending previous research on advertising avoidance by using social psychological variables to explain consumers' avoidance of handbills in Hong Kong and the UK. Design/methodology/approach A survey of 337 individuals was conducted (166 in Hong Kong and 171 in the UK). A series of hypotheses relating to perceived handbill clutter, perceived goal impediment, and the perceived manner of the distributer were tested. Findings Perceived handbill clutter was found to be the strongest predictor of handbill avoidance in both Hong Kong and the UK. The second strongest predictor was perceived goal impediment. The perceived manner of the distributor did not predict handbill avoidance in Hong Kong, but it did predict handbill avoidance in the UK. Research limitations/implications The study's methodology has a number of limitations. First, the measure of the distributor's perceived manner may not have directly tapped the distributor dimensions of importance to handbill avoidance. Second, no account was taken of non-response bias. The model also did not recognize that there may be other variables capable of explaining handbill avoidance. Practical implications The results suggest that effort is needed to raise the perceived value of handbills so that their perceived value neutralizes any perceptions of goal impediment. In addition, handbill designers need to find creative ways to stand out from the clutter. In the UK, deportment should be considered when distributors are recruited and trained. Originality/value Handbills are frequently used as a promotional tool. In two contrasting countries, this study found that perceived handbill clutter, perceived goal impediment, and perceived manner of the distributer influence handbill avoidance. The research has extended theoretical knowledge related to advertising avoidance and generated insights that are likely to be of practical value to marketers.

Purpose The purpose of this study is to evaluate the success of a scheme, supported by the Ugandan Agribusiness Initiative Trust, to fund gender and entrepreneurship training for women farmers in the north of Uganda (Gulu District and Lira District). Moreover, this paper reflects upon our experience of delivering training for women farmers and highlights key observations related to women’s entrepreneurship in Uganda. Design/methodology/approach A practitioner-based reflection which shares the experiences of the process of developing and delivering gender and entrepreneurship training for women in Uganda. Findings Through the experience of running gender and entrepreneurship training for women farmers in Uganda, a series of barriers to female rural entrepreneurs are highlighted: lack of access to credit, gender inequality, poor infrastructure, lack of access to knowledge and education, negative attitudes towards women and few initiatives to facilitate economic and business success. Originality/value This paper provides reflection of the experience gained from the delivery of training and interaction with women farmers and entrepreneurs in Uganda.

It has generally been argued that women have higher moral standards or display greater concern about the effects of their actions on others when responding to ethical dilemmas. However, the findings of empiricists have hardly been conclusive. We contend that it is important to investigate the ethical attitudes towards business practice of those who are at the early phase of the entrepreneurship path such as enterprise students (n = 128) and nascent entrepreneurs (n = 204). The findings revealed sex differences in the ethical attitudes of enterprise students, but not of nascent entrepreneurs. In addition, the business ethics of male nascent entrepreneurs were significantly higher than those of male enterprise students. We argue that sex-role socialisation reduces differences among individuals performing similar activities, and use moral development theory to explain that ethical values evolve over time.

Purpose The study examines how the micro, meso and macro-levels influence learning (forward-facing and backward-facing) and opportunity identification among young entrepreneurs in the UK and China starting green and conventional businesses. Design/methodology/approach The study is based on 20 young (18–30) entrepreneurs in the UK and China. Thematic and content analysis identified and categorised various themes. The data were then analysed using ORIGIN GraphPad software to identify statistical differences and their significance levels. Findings General influences on starting a business were relatively evenly spread across the micro (individual), meso (family and social networks) and macro levels (institutional) for the two groups; the only exception was the higher micro-level influences for the green entrepreneurs. The barriers to startups were concentrated at the meso and macro levels, but there were significant differences between the green and conventional startups. Practical implications A noteworthy finding was the dominance of experiential over cognitive learning among entrepreneurs, including those starting green businesses. Considering the importance of young people establishing environmentally friendly companies, this lack of focus on forward-looking cognitive learning represents a significant educational gap. Greater emphasis should be placed on encouraging green entrepreneurs to devote more attention to the forward-facing, cognitive dimensions of learning. Originality/value The findings demonstrate the importance of considering the interplay between micro, meso and macro levels on both forward-facing cognitive and backward-facing experiential learning in entrepreneurship. The multilevel impacts provide a more nuanced understanding of the influences shaping entrepreneurial learning and opportunity identification among young entrepreneurs starting businesses with different sustainability orientations.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the extent to which traditional marketing theory and practice can be applied in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and consider how owner-managers perceive their own role in marketing within a small business setting. Design/methodology/approach –A qualitative exploratory approach using semi-structured in-depth interviews amongst owner-managers of SMEs in the UK. Findings SME marketing is effective in that it embraces some relevant concepts of traditional marketing, tailors activities to match its customers and adds its own unique attribute of self-branding as bestowed by the SME owner-manager. Research limitations/implications The study was limited to the UK and to a small sample of SMEs and as such the findings are not necessarily generalisable. Originality/value A “4Ps” model for SME self-branding is proposed, which encompasses the attributes of personal branding, (co)production, perseverance and practice.

Increased negative media attention has focused on the environmental impacts the fashion industry has on the natural environment, thereby calling for solutions, focused on clothing purchase, use and end-of-life treatment. This research explores the relationship between consumers and their clothing consumption (from purchase through to disposal), through the lens of life histories, and thus exploring what impacts on end-of-life clothes treatment. The novelty of this study lies within connecting fashion consumption practices with the self-concept in the context of clothing consumption (pre- purchase through to disposal), from an individual's life history perspective. This qualitative enquiry utilised life histories, thereby conducting 20 in-depth semi-structured interviews that were analysed through a grounded approach. Findings indicate that fashion consumption is heavily influenced by an individual's “self”, in that those that have a positive perception of themselves have reduced shopping habits, whilst those with a negative perception increase them. Our results show that our participants go through various consumption practices (hoarder, oniomaniac, and “fashionista”) that co-exist within them and are influenced by the individual's self. Our study calls for more intergenerational research exploring fashion consumption and disposal.

The growing infrastructure and the surge of world-renowned retailers in Macao has led to the new demand for knowledgeable managers and practitioners. This study aims to identify views from retail and marketing experts in order to unearth essential and relevant learning outcomes which in turn support the review and improvement of the Tourism Retail and Marketing Management program at Macao Institute for Tourism Studies. Kolb’s experiential learning theory and Bloom’s taxonomy are adopted to explain the expectations from industry experts in order to provide clearer understanding. An integrated ‘Bloom-Kolb Learning Design Canvas’ is proposed to support future design of training and learning activities. Through purposive sampling, nine industry experts from different retail companies were approached and interviewed to generate data for this study. Thematic analysis revealed desirable competencies of the retail graduates, as well as gaps that existed between industry practice and education programs in areas including knowledge, skills, and attitudes that are essential for graduates to possess. The findings were valuable for improving the existing program to become more relevant to the graduates and industries.

his chapter maps and analyses the supply chain of four micro-organisations operating in the slow-fashion industry utilising the Seven-R framework. It focuses on the challenges these companies are facing, as well as aspects these organisations are handling well within their supply chain. The chapter briefly outlines current events, issues, and challenges faced in the slow-fashion industry before presenting a comprehensive literature review of sustainable supply chain management (SSCM). This chapter utilises a case study approach and analyses its findings by following and extending the Seven-R Framework. The concluding remarks highlight key implications of this chapter and emphasise on potential areas of further study.

This chapter highlights the challenges of teaching sustainability in business schools. The authors provide a discussion of economic liberalism and different forms of stakeholder theory to explain the varying at- titudes among educators towards ethics, responsibility and sustainability. The assumption that business schools encourage a ‘profit-first-mentality’ is fleshed out, and it is argued that this attitude likely affects the effectiveness of teaching and learning in respect to ethical, responsible and sustainable values. The chapter later questions whether it is better to flow with the dominant economic-driven values as pre- scribed by conventional business education or to challenge it in order to nurture sustainability-driven values among students. These options are explored and the suggestion that entrepreneurship has a role to play as a pedagogical tool to support the teaching of sustainable development is offered. It is argued that entrepreneurship does not confront, but supports the extant values of conventional business educa- tion and therefore is a feasible approach for business education. Finally, implications for business and management education, as well as, the role of entrepreneurship to promote sustainability-values are discussed drawing on models and two case studies (UK and China).

Purpose Despite rising graduate unemployment in the UK, there are insufficient numbers of graduates employed in small and medium sized-enterprises (SMEs). The literature suggests that a teaching emphasis on large organisational business models in higher education institutions, particularly in the teaching of marketing theory, renders the SME sector unattractive to graduate employment and conversely, it is perceived that graduates lack additional “soft skills” vital for SME development and growth. The purpose of this paper is to provide an analysis of how SMEs define marketing and to compare student perspective on marketing within a SME context. This paper also examines the need to improve the conventional marketing curriculum with additional teaching solutions that consider the reality of UK SME ownership and student employment prospects. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative research approach was adopted using in-depth interviews amongst ten SME owners and 20 undergraduate marketing students of a UK university. Findings Findings revealed that the marketing practices used in SMEs were not present in the marketing curriculum in the case university. The employment of marketing graduates was not positively perceived by SME owners and equally, marketing undergraduates did not view SMEs as the career organisation of choice. Originality/value The study re-evaluates the HE marketing curriculum and suggests an update of the curriculum in order to move the university-industry-government relationship away from the traditional knowledge transfer perspective.