Visual impairment is a rising concern, and there is a stronger push towards a more inclusive retail experience. However, these accommodations are often conceived as an altruistic movement to help the visually impaired, at the expense of the retail experience of non-visually impaired customers. This paper is an attempt to rethink inclusive design. Can accommodating visually impaired customers also improve the retail experience of the non-visually impaired? This study attempts to bridge the current scholarly literature on the two groups to examine how helping the former can also enhance the shopping experience of the latter. The central argument of this study is that there are needs of the visually impaired that, when addressed, would also enhance the shopping experience of the non-visually impaired. It is not possible nor effective to think of the two in isolation; in the real world, there is a single store frequented by all. Through a survey of 80 non-visually impaired respondents, the study has found that the non-visually impaired would also benefit from modifications in-store layout, price tag, product signage, and aisle signage designed to help the visually impaired. Thinking about the two groups together is a critical first step in creating a truly universal retail experience.
References
[1]
Abdel-Jaber, H., Albazar, H., Abdel-Wahab, A., Amir, M. E., Alqahtani, A., & Alobaid, M. (2021). Mobile Based IoT Solution for Helping Visual Impairment Users. AdvancesinInternetofThings,11, 141-152. https://doi.org/10.4236/ait.2021.114010
[2]
Babin, B. J., Darden, W. R., & Griffin, M. (1994). Work and/or Fun: Measuring Hedonic and Utilitarian Shopping Value. JournalofConsumerResearch,20, 644-656. https://doi.org/10.1086/209376
[3]
Baker, S. M., Stephens, D. L., & Hill, R. P. (2002). How Can Retailers Enhance Accessibility: Giving Consumers with Visual Impairments a Voice in the Marketplace. JournalofRetailingandConsumerServices,9, 227-239. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0969-6989(01)00034-0
[4]
Baker, S., Holland, J., & Kaufman‐Scarborough, C. (2007). How Consumers with Disabilities Perceive “Welcome” in Retail Servicescapes: A Critical Incident Study. JournalofServicesMarketing,21, 160-173. https://doi.org/10.1108/08876040710746525
[5]
Balabanis, G., Mitchell, V. W., Bruce, I., & Riefler, P. (2012). A Conceptual Stress‐coping Model of Factors Influencing Marketplace Engagement of Visually Impaired Consumers. Journal of Consumer Affairs, 46, 485-505. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-6606.2012.01234.x
[6]
Bettman, J. R. (1979). An Information Processing Theory of Consumer Choice. Addison-Wesley Pub. Co.
[7]
Bradley, R., Hopkins, T., Bailey, J. M., Bradley, R., Hopkins, T., Bailey, J. M. et al. (2000). A Study of the Influence of Visual Impairment on the Purchase of Clothing. BritishJournalofVisualImpairment,18, 79-81. https://doi.org/10.1177/026461960001800209
[8]
Conroy, R. M. (2018). The RCSI Sample Size Handbook. Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.
[9]
Crawford, I. M. (1990). Marketing Research Centre for Agricultural Marketing Training in Eastern and Southern Africa, Harare, Zimbabwe. https://www.scirp.org/reference/referencespapers?referenceid=2720416
[10]
DeJonckheere, M., & Vaughn, L. M. (2019). Semi Structured Interviewing in Primary Care Research: A Balance of Relationship and Rigour. Family Medicine and Community Health, 7, e000057. https://doi.org/10.1136/fmch-2018-000057
[11]
Dias de Faria, M., Ferreira da Silva, J., & Brantes Ferreira, J. (2012). The Visually Impaired and Consumption in Restaurants. InternationalJournalofContemporaryHospitalityManagement,24, 721-734. https://doi.org/10.1108/09596111211237264
[12]
Dodds, W. B., Monroe, K. B., & Grewal, D. (1991). Effects of Price, Brand, and Store Information on Buyers’ Product Evaluations. JournalofMarketingResearch,28, 307-319. https://doi.org/10.2307/3172866
[13]
Gould, C. S. (1999). Public Virtues and Private Pleasures in Classical Athens. PhilosophyandLiterature,23, 414-423. https://doi.org/10.1353/phl.1999.0039
[14]
Holbrook, M. B., & Hirschman, E. C. (1982). The Experiential Aspects of Consumption: Consumer Fantasies, Feelings, and Fun. JournalofConsumerResearch,9, 132-140. https://doi.org/10.1086/208906
[15]
Hung, Y., Feng, C., Lin, C., & Chen, C. (2019). Research on Wearable Shopping Aid Device for Visually Impaired People. In M. Antona, & C. Stephanidis (Eds.), LectureNotesinComputerScience (pp. 244-257). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23560-4_18
[16]
Jones, M. A., Reynolds, K. E., & Arnold, M. J. (2006). Hedonic and Utilitarian Shopping Value: Investigating Differential Effects on Retail Outcomes. JournalofBusinessResearch,59, 974-981. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2006.03.006
[17]
Kaplan-Myrth, N. (2000). Alice without a Looking Glass: Blind people and Body Image. Anthropology & Medicine, 7, 277-299. https://doi.org/10.1080/713650612
[18]
Kaufman‐Scarborough, C. (2001). Accessible Advertising for Visually-Disabled Persons: The Case of Color-Deficient Consumers. JournalofConsumerMarketing,18, 303-318. https://doi.org/10.1108/07363760110392985
[19]
Khattab, D., Buelow, J., Saccatelli, D. (2015). Understanding the barriers: Grocery Stores and Visually Impaired Shoppers. Journal of Accessibility and Design for All, 5, 157– 173. https://doi.org/10.17411/jacces.v5i2.105
[20]
Kulyukin, V., & Kutiyanawala, A. (2010). Accessible Shopping Systems for Blind and Visually Impaired Individuals: Design Requirements and the State of the Art. TheOpenRehabilitationJournal,3, 158-168. https://doi.org/10.2174/1874943701003010158
[21]
Larson, R. B. (2019). Controlling social desirability bias. InternationalJournalofMarketResearch,61, 534-547. https://doi.org/10.1177/1470785318805305
[22]
López-de-Ipiña, D., Lorido, T., & López, U. (2011). Blindshopping: Enabling Accessible Shopping for Visually Impaired People through Mobile Technologies. In B. Abdulrazak, S. Giroux, B. Bouchard, H. Pigot, & M. Mokhtari (Eds.), LectureNotesinComputerScience (pp. 266-270). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-21535-3_39
[23]
Martino, L. L., & David Miguez, J. (2019). Independent Random Sampling Methods. Springer.
[24]
Mashiata, M., Ali, T., Das, P., Tasneem, Z., Badal, M. F. R., Sarker, S. K. et al. (2022). Towards Assisting Visually Impaired Individuals: A Review on Current Status and Future Prospects. BiosensorsandBioelectronics:X,12, Article ID: 100265. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biosx.2022.100265
[25]
Miller, G., & Rossi, P. (1988). Placement of Visually Impaired Persons: A Survey of Current Practices. JournalofVisualImpairment&Blindness,82, 318-324. https://doi.org/10.1177/0145482x8808200807
[26]
Stevens S. (2003). Assisting the Blind and Visually Impaired: Guidelines for Eye Health Workers and Other Helpers. Community Eye Health,16, 7-9.
[27]
Story, M. F. (1998). Maximizing Usability: The Principles of Universal Design. AssistiveTechnology,10, 4-12. https://doi.org/10.1080/10400435.1998.10131955
[28]
Tenny, S., Brannan, J. M., & Brannan, G. D. (2022). QualitativeDesign. StatePearls.
[29]
Tullio-Pow, S., Yu, H., & Strickfaden, M. (2021). Do You See What I See? InterdisciplinaryJournalofSignageandWayfinding,5, 42-61. https://doi.org/10.15763/issn.2470-9670.2021.v5.i1.a69
[30]
WHO (2012). WHO Releases New Global Estimates on Visual Impairment. https://www.emro.who.int/control-and-preventions-of-blindness-and-deafness/announcements/global-estimates-on-visual-impairment.html
[31]
Wilson, C. (2014). Semi-Structured Interviews. In C. Wilson, Ed., Interview Techniques for UX Practitioners (pp. 23-41). Morgan Kaufmann. https://doi.org/10.1016/b978-0-12-410393-1.00002-8
[32]
Yu, H., Tullio-Pow, S., & Akhtar, A. (2015). Retail Design and the Visually Impaired: A Needs Assessment. JournalofRetailingandConsumerServices,24, 121-129. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2015.03.001
[33]
Zitkus, E., Langdon, P., & Clarkson, P. (2013). The Limits of Inclusive Design in the Current Design Practice. In H. Bartolo (Ed.), GreenDesign,MaterialsandManufacturingProcesses (pp. 539-544). CRC Press. https://doi.org/10.1201/b15002-104
