ABSTRACT
The postcrisis regional business environment witnessed a generalized backlash by traditional, local family retailers against the increased multinational impingement upon their territory – instanced by the likes of Tesco, Makro and C. R. C. Ahold. Within the retail trade itself even resident expatriates were beginning to deride the strategies of these latter Western incumbents – criticized for their prices (over and above the “odd discount”), delivery systems and overall service. The service element was particularly castigated – standardized global methods falling way short of the “smiling, gentle, attentive,” Asian approach.
