Journal of Retailing Scopus: Profile, Metrics, Submission Guide

Quick Answer: What Is Journal of Retailing?

Journal of Retailing is an Elsevier-published research journal devoted to advancing knowledge about retailing and its management. Its official scope includes products and services, retail supply chains and distribution channels, relationships between retailers and channel members, direct marketing, and evolving market forms that connect firms with households. The journal welcomes rigorous theoretical and empirical work, including economic and behavioral approaches.

The journal is indexed in Scopus under the supplied Source Record ID 22990. Elsevier’s current Journal Insights page also lists Scopus, the Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), SCImago Journal Rank (SJR), and related journal-impact information. The publisher displays a CiteScore of 17.6 and an Impact Factor of 10.2 on the current ScienceDirect profile. Metrics are year-specific and can change, so authors should verify the latest database record before relying on them for university, promotion, or PhD requirements.

Researchers should consider the journal when their manuscript makes a clear contribution to retailing theory or practice and can withstand rigorous methodological and theoretical scrutiny. A paper about general marketing, consumer psychology, e-commerce, supply chains, or digital platforms is not automatically a fit; the retailing contribution must be central rather than incidental.

Key Takeaways

• Publisher: Elsevier.
• ISSN: 0022-4359; online ISSN: 1873-3271.
• Scopus: indexed; supplied Source Record ID 22990.
• Current publisher-displayed metrics: CiteScore 17.6 and Impact Factor 10.2.
• 2024 Scopus metrics reported by an institutional journal-metrics service: SJR 4.204, SNIP 2.965, Marketing category Q1, CiteScore percentile 93%.
• Peer review: double anonymized; suitable manuscripts are typically sent to at least two independent expert reviewers.
• Submission length: the official guide states a 50-page limit for submissions, including abstract, tables, figures, references, and appendices.
• Publishing model: hybrid—authors can publish through the subscription route without a publication fee, or choose gold open access subject to the current APC.

Journal Information at a Glance

What This Page Covers

• Journal identity, publisher, ISSNs, frequency, and editorial leadership
• Aims, scope, subject areas, and manuscript-fit questions
• Scopus, SSCI, CiteScore, Impact Factor, SJR, SNIP, and quartile context
• Article and manuscript expectations
• Double-anonymized peer review and submission workflow
• Open access, subscription publishing, and fee verification
• Research ethics, competing interests, authorship, AI declarations, and data statements
• A practical journal-fit and publication-readiness checklist

Methodology and Sources

This profile was prepared from the official ScienceDirect journal page, the Journal Insights page, the official Guide for Authors, Elsevier’s journal shop information, the supplied Scopus Source ID, and an institutional library service reporting 2024 Scopus Journal Metrics. Publisher data was preferred for scope, policies, peer review, editorial information, and publishing options.

Journal metrics, editorial appointments, APCs, indexing coverage, submission requirements, and turnaround information can change. In particular, two official Elsevier pages retrieved during preparation displayed different open-access APC figures. This guide therefore does not collapse that conflict into a single supposedly “current” APC; authors should use the price presented in the journal’s live submission/open-access workflow at the time they choose a publishing route.

What Is Journal of Retailing?

Journal of Retailing is a specialist journal centered on the institutions, channels, strategies, consumers, technologies, and theories that shape retail markets. Although its work overlaps with marketing, consumer behavior, services, economics, operations, and digital commerce, the journal’s identity remains retailing-focused. That distinction matters for authors: a strong marketing paper may still be unsuitable if it does not explain what the findings change about retailing knowledge.

The journal’s official description places substantial weight on both scholarly advancement and application. It includes product and service retailing, supply and distribution channels, retailer relationships with other channel members, direct marketing, and emerging markets that connect sellers with households. The journal states that articles can use economic or behavioral approaches, while empirical work should reflect scientific methods, appropriate sampling, and statistical analysis.

Journal of Retailing Aims and Scope

The journal aims to advance theory and evidence about all major aspects of retailing, its management, evolution, and practical application. A manuscript therefore needs more than a retail setting; it should address a meaningful retailing problem and make the retailing contribution explicit in the research question, theory, design, results, and implications.

Topics that may align include omnichannel and multichannel retailing, retail technologies, retail media, pricing and promotions, assortment, store and platform strategy, shopper behavior, service retailing, loyalty, customer experience, retailer–supplier relationships, distribution channels, direct-to-consumer structures, online marketplaces, digital commerce, retail analytics, sustainability in retail, and strategic adaptation of retail organizations. The journal’s actual recent issues should be checked because editorial interest evolves with the field.

Interdisciplinary work can fit when the manuscript uses theories or methods from psychology, economics, information systems, operations, strategy, or data science to answer a genuinely retailing-centered question. Conversely, papers that merely use retail respondents or retailer data without producing a retailing contribution may face a scope problem at editorial screening.

Journal Objectives and Scholarly Contribution

The practical objective for authors is to show why the study changes what scholars or decision-makers understand about retailing. A strong submission usually establishes a clear problem, positions that problem in relevant theory, demonstrates what previous research has not resolved, and uses a design capable of supporting the claimed contribution.

For empirical manuscripts, rigor is not only a matter of sophisticated statistics. Sampling logic, construct validity, identification strategy, measurement, robustness, alternative explanations, and transparent reporting should match the research question. For conceptual or theoretical work, the manuscript still needs disciplined argumentation and a contribution that goes beyond repackaging existing retail literature.

Is Journal of Retailing Indexed in Scopus?

Yes. Journal of Retailing is indexed in Scopus. The supplied source record identifies Scopus Source ID 22990, and Elsevier’s current journal information lists Scopus among the journal’s abstracting and indexing services. Researchers whose university or doctoral regulations require Scopus coverage should still check the live Scopus source profile immediately before submission or reporting a publication, because database coverage is maintained independently and can change.

The journal is also listed by Elsevier in the Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI). This is relevant for authors who must satisfy institution-specific Web of Science requirements, but the correct question is always whether the journal is covered in the specific database and category required by the institution—not simply whether it has a prominent citation metric.

Journal Metrics: CiteScore, Impact Factor, SJR, SNIP and Quartile

Metrics provide context about citation performance and visibility, but they should not replace a scope decision. The current ScienceDirect profile displays a CiteScore of 17.6 and an Impact Factor of 10.2. An institutional library page reporting 2024 Scopus Journal Metrics gives SJR 4.204, SNIP 2.965, and places the journal in Q1 in the Business, Management and Accounting – Marketing category, at the 93rd CiteScore percentile.

A quartile is category-specific. Saying only “the journal is Q1” removes important context: the category and reporting year matter, and journals can receive different classifications across databases or categories. Similarly, Impact Factor and CiteScore use different data sources and calculation methods. Authors should use the metric requested by their university or funder and record the metric year.

Publisher and Editorial Leadership

Journal of Retailing is published by Elsevier. The journal’s current ScienceDirect editorial-board page identifies Katrijn Gielens of Tilburg University as Editor-in-Chief and lists a large international editorial board. Editorial membership can change, so researchers should verify leadership from the live journal page if editor expertise is material to their submission decision.

Publisher reputation alone does not establish manuscript fit. Authors should examine recent papers, editorial statements, special sections, and calls for papers to see how the journal is currently defining important retailing questions.

What Types of Articles Does Journal of Retailing Publish?

The journal’s visible content includes peer-reviewed research articles as well as editorial material, and the journal has also announced themed or special initiatives such as its “First Insights in Retailing” section. The current Guide for Authors is primarily organized around article submissions and does not support inventing a fixed list of every possible manuscript type from third-party summaries.

For a planned submission, authors should confirm the live “article types,” active calls for papers, and any special-section instructions on ScienceDirect or Editorial Manager. A manuscript prepared for a special issue may have requirements that differ from a regular research article.

Who Should Consider Submitting?

Researchers should consider Journal of Retailing when the paper addresses a consequential retailing question and offers a contribution likely to matter to the journal’s academic readership. This can include faculty, doctoral researchers, postdoctoral scholars, interdisciplinary research teams, and professionals conducting rigorous academic research.

A useful pre-submission test is whether you can complete this sentence precisely: “This study changes what retailing researchers know about…” If the answer is mainly about generic marketing, generic consumer psychology, generic artificial intelligence, or generic supply chains, the retailing contribution may need sharper development.

Manuscript and Formatting Requirements

The official Guide for Authors states that Journal of Retailing uses Elsevier’s Your Paper Your Way approach for new submissions. Initial manuscripts can be submitted as a single Word or PDF file in a format that allows reviewers to evaluate the work, provided essential elements are present. This reduces unnecessary formatting work before editorial interest is established.

The journal also states a 50-page submission limit using letter-size paper, 12-point type, and double spacing, with that total including the abstract, tables, figures, references, and appendices. The submission checklist requires a designated corresponding author, keywords, figures and captions, tables and notes, matching in-text citations, permissions for copyrighted material, and a competing-interests statement.

Because the review is double anonymized, the title page and anonymized manuscript must be prepared separately. Authors should remove names, affiliations, acknowledgements, and other identifying information from the review manuscript while retaining them on the title page as instructed.

Peer-Review Process

Journal of Retailing operates double-anonymized peer review. The editor first evaluates submissions for journal suitability. Manuscripts considered suitable are typically sent to at least two independent expert reviewers to assess scientific quality. The editor makes the final publication decision.

This means readiness for editorial screening matters as much as readiness for external review. A paper may be rejected before review if the retailing contribution is unclear, the manuscript does not fit the scope, the theoretical advance is weak, or the research design cannot support the claims. The journal does not publicly state an official acceptance rate in the authoritative sources reviewed, so an acceptance percentage should not be estimated.

Submission Process

1. Compare the manuscript with the journal’s current aims and scope and several recent articles.
2. Read the current Guide for Authors.
3. Prepare a title page containing author details and a separate anonymized manuscript for review.
4. Check the 50-page limit and the journal’s required declarations, references, figures, tables, and supplementary items.
5. Prepare funding, competing-interest, data-availability, and AI-use statements where applicable.
6. Submit through Editorial Manager.
7. Respond to editorial and reviewer comments with a point-by-point, evidence-based revision document if invited to revise.

Open Access and Publication Fees

Journal of Retailing supports both gold open access and subscription publishing. Elsevier’s journal profile states that authors choosing the subscription route are not charged a publication fee and that published subscription articles are available to subscribers. Authors choosing gold open access pay an APC unless an agreement, funding arrangement, or applicable reduction changes the amount.

During this review, two official Elsevier pages returned different APC figures for the journal. Because APCs are subject to change and can also be affected by institutional agreements, the responsible approach is to verify the price presented in the journal’s live open-access or submission workflow before making a financial decision. Do not rely on an old article, cached search result, or third-party fee table.

Publication Timeline

Elsevier’s Journal Insights page currently reports approximately 12 days from submission to first decision, 112 days from submission to decision after review, and 535 days from submission to acceptance. These are journal-level historical indicators, not guaranteed timelines for an individual manuscript.

A paper requiring additional review rounds, major methodological changes, new analyses, delayed reviewer reports, or extensive author revision may take longer. Authors facing graduation, funding, or employment deadlines should not plan around the shortest displayed figure.

Publication Ethics and Research Integrity

The journal follows Elsevier’s ethics and publishing policies. The Guide for Authors requires disclosure of financial and personal relationships that could create competing interests. It also addresses authorship changes, copyright, funding disclosure, inclusive language, sex- and gender-based analysis where relevant, research data, and responsible sharing.

The guide requires authors to declare generative AI or AI-assisted technologies used in the manuscript-preparation process when the use goes beyond basic tools such as routine grammar, spelling, or reference checking. Authors remain responsible for accuracy, originality, citations, permissions, and all submitted content. Reviewers and editors are not permitted to use generative AI tools in ways that compromise confidentiality under Elsevier’s stated review policy.

How to Decide Whether the Journal Fits Your Manuscript

Common Reasons a Manuscript May Be Unsuitable

• The paper uses a retail setting but does not make a distinct retailing contribution.
• The literature review describes prior work without identifying a consequential gap.
• Theoretical framing is added after the analysis rather than guiding the research design.
• The sample, measurement, causal claims, or robustness checks are not strong enough for the conclusions.
• The manuscript is positioned as novel because of a new country, platform, or technology without explaining why that context changes theory.
• The paper is written as a consultancy report or managerial essay rather than a scholarly contribution.
• The manuscript exceeds requirements or is not prepared for double-anonymized review.

Publication-Readiness Checklist

1. Confirm live Scopus and SSCI status if these matter for your institution.
2. Read at least several recent papers from the journal that are closest to your question and method.
3. Write a one-paragraph journal-fit statement explaining the specific retailing contribution.
4. Stress-test the novelty claim against recent literature, not only older canonical studies.
5. Audit the methods section for reproducibility, sampling logic, measurement validity, and analysis transparency.
6. Check that results support the strength of every claim in the abstract, discussion, and conclusion.
7. Remove identifying information from the anonymized manuscript.
8. Verify references, permissions, declarations, funding, competing interests, AI-use disclosure, and data statement requirements.
9. Reconfirm the current APC only if choosing gold open access.
10. Review the final files in Editorial Manager before submission.

How Contentxprtz Can Support Ethical Publication Readiness

Contentxprtz can support authors with journal publication services, manuscript editing, academic proofreading, journal-format checks, reference consistency, cover-letter editing, reviewer-response editing, and publication-readiness assessment. Support should strengthen clarity and compliance while preserving the researcher’s authorship, analysis, argument, data responsibility, and final decisions.

No legitimate editing or publication-assistance service can guarantee acceptance, indexing, peer-review success, citation performance, or a specific review timeline. A journal’s editors and reviewers make independent decisions based on fit, originality, rigor, ethics, and the manuscript’s contribution.

Summary

Journal of Retailing is a highly visible Elsevier journal centered on rigorous research that advances knowledge about retailing, retail management, channels, consumers, services, and evolving market structures. Its Scopus indexing, current publisher-displayed CiteScore and Impact Factor, and Q1 placement in the cited 2024 Scopus Marketing metrics can be useful indicators of scholarly visibility, but manuscript fit remains the decisive starting point.

Before submitting, authors should verify the live journal scope, Scopus record, author guidelines, editorial information, publishing option, and any current fees; prepare a double-anonymized manuscript within the stated page limit; and ensure that the contribution is genuinely about retailing. Ethical publication support can improve presentation and readiness, but it cannot guarantee editorial or peer-review outcomes.

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