The Role of E-Business for Competitive Advantage

e-Business Research Center
RESEARCH REPORTS 5
2003

THE ROLE OF E-BUSINESS FOR
COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE IN THE
TRANSFORMING
EUROPEAN FOOD AND NON-FOOD
RETAIL BUSINESS

Richard Windischhofer

i

Distribution e-Business Research Center
Published by
Tampere University of Technology and University of Tampere
Printed edition

Electronic edition in http://www.ebrc.info

ISSN
ISBN

ISSN
ISBN

1459-0158
952-15-0950-3
951-44-5548-7

Cover design by Mainoscraft Oy
Printed by Cityoffset Oy, Tampere 2003 ii 1459-0166
952-15-0951-1
951-44-5549-5

Preface
This study is part of the eTampere project, a joint project of the University of
Tampere and the Tampere University of Technology. Within this project, the eBusiness Research Center (eBRC) represents the home of this study on “The role of eBusiness for competitive advantage in the transforming European food and non-food retailing business”.
The project has been supervised by Kari Neilimo, Professor of Management
Accounting at the University of Tampere. The report has been conducted and written by Richard Windischhofer, student of Social Economics at the University of Linz while studying as visiting student at the University of Tampere. The study was conducted during the period of August 2001 and June 2002. The results were disseminated in June 2002 as Richard’s Master’s Thesis, and appear under the same title, but with slight modifications as this publication.
The study represents a literature review on retailing transformation, its effects on strategy and competitive advantage and the role of electronic business in that context.
It is directed to anyone who aims to gain a basic insight on these issues or seeks to engage in deeper research in a specific area of retailing and e-Business. The writer hopes that especially students will profit from this study as an introduction to strategy, retailing and e-Business.
Because of the wide field to cover, this report represents

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