Convenience store locations prioritization : a fuzzy TOPSIS-GRA hybrid approach

Purpose The objective of the study is to develop a methodology to strategically rank store locations using criteria such as population, store site characteristics, economic considerations, competition and so on to select the most optimal retail convenience store location. Design/methodology/approach A case of National Capital Region, India, for a 24-h convenience store was considered for the study and the major criteria that affect the performance of a convenience store are identified, such as population characteristics, economic criteria, competition, consumer accessibility, store size, total cost, site attractiveness and security. Fuzzy AHP is utilized to find the weightage for each criteria and a combination of fuzzy TOPSIS and grey relational analysis (GRA) is applied to rank the alternative using these criteria weight. Further, results obtained are compared with results from fuzzy TOPSIS and fuzzy VIKOR methods. Sensitivity analysis is also performed for ensuring the robustness of the framework. Findings It is observed that outcomes do not change under various settling coefficient values, demonstrating that the methodology is very robust. The developed framework will be quite useful to diverse retailers looking to expand and generate substantial profits. Research limitations/implications A large sample size of number of locations encourages generalization of results. Strategic ranking of the selected locations is carried out on a few selected criteria. The study was limited by the designated geographical area. Originality/value The study contributes to the few available articles on convenience store selection using combination of fuzzy AHP, fuzzy TOPSIS and GRA for a developing country.