It is common for consumers to rely on opinion leaders, who presumably have a higher expertise in the product category, to form beliefs about the product quality. At the same time, the evaluations and product adoptions of opinion leaders are influenced both by the product quality and by their...

Scalping has long existed in many markets. Scalpers purchase products with limited supply for resale at inflated prices later. A somewhat puzzling observation is that although firms often impose restrictions on scalping, we rarely observe actions that completely eliminate it. This paper explains...

Showrooming, the phenomenon of consumers visiting a brick-and-mortar (B&M) store to learn about products but then buying online to obtain lower prices, is attracting increased attention both in business practice and in academic literature. It is considered a major threat to the B&M retailers,...