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Omni-channel Retail Strategy: Managing Consumer Trust and Preference across Digital and Physical Apparel Stores

 

 

Srijal Singhai1, Prof. Shree Bhagwat2

1Ph.D. Research Scholar in Department of Business Management,

Dr. HariSingh Gour University,

Sagar - 470003, Madhya Pradesh, India.

2Professor in Department of Business Management,

Dr. HariSingh Gour University,

Sagar - 470003, Madhya Pradesh, India.

 

 

ABSTRACT

Consumer trust has emerged as a central construct shaping contemporary apparel shopping behaviour across online and offline channels. This paper presents a systematic conceptual review that synthesizes extant empirical and theoretical findings on trust antecedents, mechanisms, and consequences in the apparel retail context, with emphasis on comparative dynamics between e-commerce and brick-and-mortar settings. Drawing exclusively on the set of studies provided, the review identifies recurring trust dimensions (competence, benevolence, integrity), channel-specific antecedents (website quality, payment security, customer service, tangibility), and mediating constructs (perceived risk, satisfaction, perceived value). It highlights how online apparel shopping relies heavily on transactional cues such as payment security, ease of payment, reviews, and return policies, whereas offline apparel shopping is more strongly influenced by tactile assurance, store ambience, and in-store service quality. The review proposes an integrative conceptual framework linking trust dimensions to perceived risk and channel preference, identifies key moderators (digital literacy, age, gender, financial inclusion), and formulates a research agenda with testable hypotheses for future empirical work. Managerial and policy implications address channel-specific trust interventions: improving website and payment security, optimizing return and review mechanisms, enhancing tangibility and in-store data security, and fostering financial inclusion.

Keywords: Omni-channel, consumer trust, apparel shopping, online vs offline.

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