Title: Using customers data for defining retail market size: a GIS approach

Authors: Abdulkader A. Murad

Addresses: Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Faculty of Environmental Design, King Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 80210, Jeddah-21589, Saudi Arabia

Abstract: Geographical Information Systems (GIS) systems provide a wide array of tools for site, demographic and competitive analyses which enable retailers and marketers to answer several questions that are related to retail location. The aim of this paper is to use GIS to define questions such as the market size of retail centres, the demographic profile of the retail customers in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and the methods to expand the existing retail market. The Al-Hijaz shopping centre in the northern region of Jeddah was chosen for the analysis of its retail customers. ArcGIS software was used for data processing by the retail planners of this centre in evaluating the current retail market and identifying the possibilities for expansion. Several GIS functions and tools, such as address geocoding, feature query and identification, proximity and overlay analysis, were used. This methodology could help promote the effective marketing policy of shopping centres.

Keywords: retail market size; geographical information systems; GIS; retail customers; geocoding; market analysis; Jeddah; Saudi Arabia; retail centres; demographics; shopping centres; retail planning; marketing policy; customer data.

DOI: 10.1504/IJBIS.2009.024100

International Journal of Business Information Systems, 2009 Vol.4 No.3, pp.340 - 359

Published online: 25 Mar 2009 *

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