Evaluating operational efficiency of a bookshop chain in Turkey and identifying efficiency drivers

Purpose – Comparative shop efficiency within a chain is a key factor in strategic management decisions such as evaluation, promotion and development of shop personnel. Furthermore, overall efficiency of the firm depends on the efficiency of individual shops within the chain. The purpose of this paper is to assess operational efficiency of a bookshop chain in Turkey, and identify efficiency drivers. Design/methodology/approach – The sample includes 79 bookshops within a bookshop chain. The study uses two‐step procedure. In the first stage, data envelopment analysis (DEA) is utilised to evaluate the comparative efficiency of bookshops. The second stage attempts to determine what drives efficiency by using Tobit regression. Findings – After assessment of shops’ efficiency by DEA, the results of Tobit regression revealed that shop age has positive significant influence on bookshop efficiency, whereas manager experience, staff experience, and education level of the shop manager do not. Research limitations/implications – The findings of the paper are based on a single bookshop chain. Thus, one should be cautious while interpreting results. Originality/value – The contribution of the paper to the literature is of great importance, since no prior Turkish study has dealt with the subject to this extent. Furthermore, although there are studies conducted on various subsectors of retail industry in other countries, there seems to be no study at all conducted on bookshop chains.