Retail Location Decision Using an Integrated DEMATEL-ANP Method

This study focuses on developing a model for making retail location decisions which addresses the limitations of existing methods. The integrated DEMATEL-ANP method used here successfully accounts for interdependencies between the selected criteria. After reviewing the existing methods for decision making, the Decision Making Trial and Evaluation (DEMATEL) and the Analytical Network Process (ANP) methods were chosen. DEMATEL evaluates the degrees of influence the criteria have on each other. ANP is used to assign weights to criteria and the sub-criteria, and eventually derive the weights for the alternative locations. The integrated model helps prioritize among the available alternatives based on scientific methods, much more reliable than intuition and experience based methods still practiced today. Adopting this method can help retail chains make more informed decisions. This is the first time an integrated DEMATEL-ANP method has been applied in the context of retail location decision.