Product assortment and online sales in community group-buying channel: Evidence from a convenience store chain

Although community group-buying (CGB) has been adopted worldwide since its emergence in China, empirical research examining how retailers' assortment strategies affect sales performance and consumer behavior in CGB channels is scarce. We explore the impact of three product assortment characteristics–assortment width, perishability, and recommended diversity–on CGB sales and consumer behavior. Our assessment of CGB sales relies on sales revenue per group-buying for each store as a primary metric; the average item quantity per order (average basket size) and average item price in all orders (average item price) are utilized as fundamental indicators for evaluating consumer behavior. This study employs panel fixed effects models to analyze operational CGB data. Our results show that assortment width, perishability, and recommended diversity have significantly positive impacts on CGB sales. Furthermore, assortment width positively and significantly influences both the average basket size and average item price. The perishability of an assortment negatively affects the former but positively impacts the latter. Conversely, the recommended diversity of assortments positively impacts the average basket size but has a negative impact on the average item price. Additionally, holidays can moderate the impact of product assortments on CGB sales and consumer behavior.