Are food retailers resilient amid crisis? A cultural resource-based exploration of Lebanese consumers’ engagement with the food retail landscape

Abstract

Supermarketization is transforming global food retailing, but research gaps around this transformation include the role of consumers and of crises in informing the supermarketization process, with implications for the resilience of retail structures. This study aims to apply a cultural-resource based theory of the customer and show that retailers need to think more broadly about the value they create for consumers and the meaning they engage in their interactions with consumers. We performed in-depth interviews with Lebanese consumers to understand whether and to what degree COVID-19, economic, and political crises have altered their food purchasing habits and perceptions, and the implications for the developing country context of supermarketization and retail modernization. Findings reveal that multiple factors influence the choice of food shopping destination ranging from those identified in mainstream retail theories (price, product assortment) to the individual-level activation of meaning and identity creation consistent with the cultural resource-based theory of the customer. Recent shifts in retail patronage patterns are linked to specific crisis impacts but do not uniformly favor modern or traditional retailers, suggesting ambiguous impacts on retailers’ resilience and the future trajectory of supermarketization in Lebanon.