Productivity Measurement and the Output of Retailing

Journal of Retailing, Vol. 61, No. 3, pp. 83-88, Fall 1985

4 Pages Posted: 8 Jun 2011

See all articles by Dale Achabal

Dale Achabal

Santa Clara University

John M Heineke

Santa Clara University - Leavey School of Business

Shelby H. McIntyre

Santa Clara University

Date Written: 1985

Abstract

It is easy to equate the output of a retail establishment with the value of its sales (e.g., revenue). The simplicity of this approach is clearly the reason that it is so often used. However, we have argued that to do this is conceptually inappropriate because it confuses output and demand two distinct phenomena (Achabal, Heineke, and Mcintyre 1984).

Goodman (1985) once again asserts the, "value as output," point of view for retailers, and we feel that it is important to clarify several issues in light of his comments. With few exceptions, all points raised by Goodman fall in the same category; he would require that, "meaningful," measures of productivity be measures of the value of the product or service.

We have divided this paper into two sections. The first section contains general comments on Goodman's discussion of output measures for retail establishments. The second section addresses appropriate methods for using market data to estimate retail production functions.

Suggested Citation

Achabal, Dale and Heineke, John M and McIntyre, Shelby H., Productivity Measurement and the Output of Retailing (1985). Journal of Retailing, Vol. 61, No. 3, pp. 83-88, Fall 1985, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1859559

Dale Achabal

Santa Clara University ( email )

500 El Camino Real
Santa Clara, CA 95053
United States

John M Heineke (Contact Author)

Santa Clara University - Leavey School of Business ( email )

500 El Camino Real
Santa Clara, CA 95053
United States
408-554-4346 (Phone)
408-554-2331 (Fax)

Shelby H. McIntyre

Santa Clara University ( email )

Santa Clara, CA 95053
United States

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