关键词: 双渠道, 风险规避, 搭便车, 定价决策

Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the retail industry, accelerating changes in retail channel selection and consumer behavior. As a result, more and more manufacturers are turning to online platforms and online retailers to expand their market share. This has led to the development of a dual channel sales model that includes both online and offline sales. Offline sales refer to traditional retailers purchasing products from manufacturers and selling them in physical stores. In contrast, online sales have two channels: Direct sales and distribution channels. Direct sales refer to manufacturers setting up flagship stores on online sales platforms where they are responsible for promoting and selling products to attract consumers. On the other hand, distribution channels refer to online retailers purchasing products directly from manufacturers and engaging in self-operated sales through online sales platforms. The dual channel sales model is beneficial as it can better meet customers' differentiated needs. In addition to having a preference for products, consumers may also exhibit purchasing behavior that favors different channels. The smooth flow of information has also led some consumers to engage in “free-riding” behavior by purchasing products online after experiencing them for free in offline retail stores. In addition, consumer behavior under the dual channel sales model leads to increased uncertainty in demand, which may result in risk aversion behavior among traditional retailers. This can have a significant impact on pricing decisions, requiring consideration of inter-channel competition and consumer personalized channel selection behavior on demand.
To address this issue, this paper uses the theory of dual channel supply chain, mean-variance theory, Stackelberg model and other related theories to build a dual channel supply chain model with manufacturers as leaders and retailers as followers. The model examines the impact of “free-riding” behavior and consumer retail preferences on pricing decisions under the dual channel sales model. The results show that: First, regardless of the online direct sales or online distribution model, when manufacturers learn that traditional retailers have risk aversion behavior and take price reduction measures, they will try to maximize their own profits by increasing wholesale prices. Second, the optimal price for manufacturers' online retail is not affected by traditional retailers' risk aversion behavior in the online direct sales model. However, in the online distribution model, when the cross price elasticity coefficient exceeds a certain threshold, it will cause online retailers to set lower prices to attract customers and ensure market share. Third, the study finds a significant synergistic effect between consumer retail preferences and market demand on the optimal price of retailers in both the online direct sales and online distribution sales models. This means that traditional retailers should actively expand market demand to mitigate the impact of risk aversion behavior on their own profits. Finally, government subsidies can help alleviate the losses caused by traditional retailers' risk aversion behavior and the impact of opening online retail channels on the traditional retail industry.
In addition, future research will also consider manufacturers' risk aversion behavior to study their cross effects. Overall, this study provides valuable insights into pricing decisions made by manufacturers and retailers under the dual channel sales model. It will contribute to economic recovery in the post-pandemic era and provide intellectual support for pricing decisions made by manufacturers and retailers.

Key words: dual-channel, risk aversion, free-riding, pricing decision