Authors: Sayali Balasaheb Naikawadi, Dr. Kavita Ramchand Vaswani

Abstract: E-commerce has transformed the apparel retail industry by changing consumer purchasing behaviour, market access, competitive dynamics, and service expectations. However, the extent to which e-commerce adoption contributes to business growth among traditional apparel retailers remains an important empirical question, particularly for small and medium-sized businesses operating in competitive urban markets. This pilot study examines e-commerce adoption, customer engagement, logistics efficiency, digital marketing, and the challenges associated with transitioning to online retail among apparel retailers in Pune. The study uses a quantitative, exploratory research design based on questionnaire responses from 50 customers and 15 available retailer respondents. Customer responses were selected from the first 50 records in the supplied dataset, while all available retailer responses were analysed. Reliability was assessed using Cronbach’s alpha, followed by descriptive statistics and exploratory hypothesis testing. The customer questionnaire had high internal consistency for two sets of rating items, with alpha coefficients of 0.880 and 0.928. The retailer rating items produced an alpha of 0.561, indicating limited internal consistency for that item group. Exploratory tests found no statistically significant association between online selling adoption and reported sales increases among retailers ((p=.604)). Customer review importance was positively associated with overall online shopping satisfaction ((rho=.345, p=.014)), but its relationship with reported hesitation to reorder was not statistically significant ((p=.639)). No significant relationship was identified between retailers’ delivery-speed ratings and reported sales changes ((p=.705)), or between advertising-importance ratings and online-selling adoption ((p=.184)). The results point to the importance of digital retail capabilities, but also to the limitations of drawing definitive conclusions from a small, non-random pilot sample. The study provides a preliminary basis for refining the questionnaire, improving construct measurement and conducting a larger investigation on e-commerce adoption and apparel retail growth in Pune.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23696150