Department Store Industry

1: INDUSTRY OVERVIEW: DEPARTMENT STORES

Department stores are large retail outlets that contain numerous individual shops, providing a wide range of product lines. Department stores most oftentimes consist of the following product categories:

1)      Food

2)      Cosmetics

3)      Shoes and Accessories

4)      Clothing

5)      Interior Décor

6)      Restaurants

Depending on the type of department store, department stores can offer a much wider range of products, including furniture, toys, electronics, books, etc.

Department stores come in a wide range of qualities and prices. There are such things as “high-end department stores”, which would focus purely on offering high-profile brands and products, while there are more mass-market targeting department stores, which are more likely to include a wider range of products, including practical household products.

That said, department stores will oftentimes try to cater to specific types of market segments. Particularly in the case of department stores in large cities, each department store will try to position itself differently from its direct and nearby competitors: some will try to cater to younger generations, while some will try to cater to the older generations. Some will try to cater to those interested in mainstream brands, while others will focus more on boutique, independent brands.

In the US, the department store industry includes approximately 20 companies operating roughly 3,500 stores. Major department stores in the US include: Sears, JCPenney, Macy’s, and Dillard’s. The industry earns an annual revenue of around $60 billion USD, 95% of which is earned by the largest 8 companies in the industry.

Some links about the industry:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Department_store

http://vspages.com/mall-vs-department-store-5580/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shopping_mall

http://www.hoovers.com/industry/department-stores/1529-1.html

 

SPACE

2a: Implicit or Explicit?

From the department store owner’s standpoint, I would say that space is often sold explicitly, as they would charge the tenants per the size of the lease space. On the other hand, for stalls or booths set up in more open areas of the department store, space may be considered more implicit, as these spaces may be sold with less correlation to the exact size of the space.

2b: Ways of Splitting Space

Department stores have different types of spaces within the building that cater to their customers. The most typical type is the space split by fixed walls into one unit, and can usually be shut off or closed by a door or a shutter. These spaces cannot easily be adjusted in terms of size and layout without investment of significant time and money. These fixed spaces are generally leased out to a specific brand or company, such as Zara, Coach, Burberry, etc.

 

Then there is the semi-fixed space, such as the department store areas dedicated to selling cosmetics or shoes. These are oftentimes open areas in which a specific brand or merchandising line take up certain spaces, but are not divided up by physical walls or entryways. These areas are much more flexible in terms of changing the products being handled, given that one area can easily be changed to carry one brand/line from another; however, certain fixtures used for the displays will be fixed, and hence less flexible to change from a layout perspective.

 

There is also open space, in which temporary booths or stalls are built to sell a smaller line of products or services.

Different from other uses of store space is the use of space to purely focus on selling experiential services. For department stores, the focus generally remains on selling physical products. However, there are rare instances when space is allocated to selling services—one case being when department stores are attached to movie theaters.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2c: Creating Additional Revenue

One of the most standard ways for department stores to create additional revenue is by holding major seasonal sales. Because the product life cycle of clothes tends to be fairly short, many stores have inventory left over by the time they have to replace old products with new products. Having a highly publicized sale allows for these leftover products to be sold, be it at a lower price than its retail value.

One key to making people spend more money is to convince people to stay out shopping longer. A way to do this is to provide adequate opportunity for people to take a break from shopping and rest. Many department stores provide these venues by creating food courts—or in high-end places by providing patisseries or coffee shops at which people can recharge before going back to shop some more.

I also think one of the more creative ways in which department stores have used their space to create additional revenue is through creative use of its open space. Another approach department stores can use to bring people to their stores is to provide an additional incentive to go to that location. A common approach used to achieve this in the U.S. has been to create playgrounds in the open areas of the department stores. This service often incentivizes families to go to a department store, simply because it allows an opportunity for their children to play.

 One more approach commonly used in Japanese department stores to bring more people to the site is to host certain “festivals” or special events in their open space. For example, department stores would often host weekly “mini fairs” on either the ground floor or the top floor, in which one area of the department store would be devoted to hosting jewelry/clothes/food from brands and shops that usually were not represented at the department store. The content would be changed frequently, and the department store would often be able to bring new people into the store by publicizing new, limited-time genres of offerings at their store.

2d: Potential New Ways of Splitting Space

There are several different directions department stores could potentially go in terms of splitting space differently. One direction would be to use space to create more personalized services to customers. Many of the spaces in department stores are “public”, but allocating a portion of space at high-end stores to allow for “private” space may allow for varying experiences for customers. Customers would be charged a premium for making use of these private spaces.

Another potential use may be to make the spaces more flexible. Instead of sticking with a model that leans heavily toward having “fixed” spaces, changing to a model in which it would be much simpler, cheaper, and quicker to change tenants may be an attractive approach for department stores that are pursuing a more trendy, up-to-date feel.

3: TIME

3a: Implicit or Explicit?

Department stores generally sell time implicitly: this is because the product being sold generally isn’t associated with a particular time limit. For example, it is not like a massage, where you are buying 60 minutes worth of service. The transaction is associated with a physical product unattached to time.

3c: Selling Time Explicitly

Time is currently being sold explicitly at certain department stores, although these cases are generally not a reflection of its overall business model. For example, some department stores may include shops that offer time-explicit services. Some department stores have massage shops, which are time-based service sales.

 As another example, some department stores in Japan have small football fields on their rooftops, which people can rent out on an hourly basis.

(http://www.futaba-sp.com/omiya/2010/03/post-23.html)

 

 

Some department stores also include game centers for children—some of these entertainment options include machines that run for a set period of time per game.

 

 

 

Department stores will often have restaurants on one of their floors. These restaurants can often choose to set time limits to each group of customers (ex. 2hr limit) to be able to take in more customers during peak times.

(http://www.mitokeisei.co.jp/shop/10_skygarden/11keizan.html)

 

 

 

3d: Creative Things to do with Time

There are a couple things that could be done creatively with time—some of which may already be being done to varying lengths at department stores. One might be to offer some sort of benefit if a certain amount of time is spent within the department store. For example, if a customer was to receive certain benefits if they stayed for 5 hours at a department store on an off-peak day, this could incentivize customers to spend more money during their wait time, and this could also help to improve the image of the department store by maintaining more customers.

 

Another thing they might potentially consider doing is to include shops that provide rental services. Some shops may already do tuxedo/dress rentals, which would be time-based; they could potentially take this further by doing time-based rentals of other high-end luxury clothes and accessories.

4a/b: Physical and Non-Physical Rate Fences

Below are several examples of physical rate fences (owner-tenant relationships are more likely to be involved with physical rate fences than the tenant-customer relationships)

  • (Owner-tenant POV) Depending on the size of the space being rented, owners can choose to increase or decrease the rates
  • (Owner-tenant POV) Certain areas of a department store are likely to be more popular/convenient; hence an owner can charge more depending on the location of the space within the store (http://www.ehow.com/facts_6313023_average-retail-lease_.html)
  • (Tenant-customer POV) For services such as restaurants within the department store, tenants can set rates by charging differently between open areas and private rooms

In terms of non-physical rate fences, I would say that there are many opportunities to create rate fences, depending on the type of service/product the store sells. There are also several opportunities within the owner-tenant relationship:

  • (Owner-tenant POV) Depending on the lease period, the owner can set different rates to charge the tenant
  • (Owner-tenant POV) Depending on the credibility/attractiveness of the tenant, the owner can set different rates
  • (Tenant-customer POV) Depending on the quality of the product, functionality of the product, or time/length of the service, rates can be set differently. There is an enormously wide range of examples of this in department stores. A Gap outlet, for example, may sell a tank top for $10, while a Burberry outlet would sell a similar styled tank top for $150. Similarly, a cell phone with 3G functionality may sell at a cell phone provider outlet at a certain price, while a phone with 4G functionality would sell at a much higher price.

4c: Creative Ways to Set Rate Fences

Some ways I can think of setting rate fences creatively is to perhaps offer more intangible services—rather than just the physical products. For example, an I Love Bangkok t-shirt may only cost $5 at the actual retail shop, but if the customer already knows what he/she wants, but doesn’t want to make the trip up 7 floors and 5 minutes of walking to get there, the store could potentially charge an extra $1 to have the t-shirt brought down to the concierge desk of the department store for a quick pick-up.

446,488 thoughts on “Department Store Industry

  1. EGFR-IN-7
    3% pre-mandate to 29.0% post-mandate.

    From these changes, it is evident that the UNOS mandate achieved its goal of increasing equity of liver organ allocation, but HCC patients are nonetheless dropping off of the wait list at an increased rate and are therefore disadvantaged.

    From these changes, it is evident that the UNOS mandate achieved its goal of i

  2. click here
    Our findings suggest that prolonged HFD consumption leads to anhedonia and altered feeding choices, and this is associated with changes in mesolimbic dopamine signaling.Caffeine is a commonly used stimulant of the central nervous system that reduces fatigue, increases alertness, and exerts positive effects on emotion through actions on various brain structures. High doses of caffeine can cause headaches, heart palpitations, hyperactivity, an

  3. traffic
    Although you may contract out some of the work, Search engine optimisation remains your main work as being a website operator. What this means is you will need to manage the procedure, as tedious as it can certainly appear from time to time. You cannot allow

  4. Selleck Panobinostat
    Environmental water quality monitoring plays an important role in human health risk assessments for pharmaceuticals in water and pollutant source control. A new chemical detection method was developed to enhance molecular selectivity and portability by combining the molecularly imprinted technique and an electroosmotic pump (EOP), which requires only a small pump, batteries and stopwatch in principle. Selective

  5. C646
    GATA6 is a critical regulator of pancreatic development, with heterozygous mutations in this transcription factor being the most common cause of pancreatic agenesis. To study the variability in disease phenotype among individuals harboring these mutations, a patient-induced pluripotent stem cell model was used. Interestingly, GATA6 protein expression remained depressed in pancreatic progenitor cells even after correction of the c

  6. https://cleanlucky.com/
    deposit merupakan satu sisi penting yang benar-benar harus kita melakukan ketika akan main perjudian online apa saja termasuk judi slots. anda mesti pahami kalau anda benar-benar diwajibkan untuk mendeposit terlebih dulu saat sebelum dapat bermain perjudian online. sebelumnya anda dibolehkan buat membuka permainan di web slots online bukan selenggarakan tergabung, anda disarankan untuk deposit lebih dahulu jadi satu diantara persyara

  7. 텐텐벳사이트
    Baccarat 웹사이트는 한 가지 핵심 방식으로 강조되어야 합니다.

    유래에 대해 이야기하다 보면 핵심어를 이해하기가 더 쉬울 거라 생각합니다.

    역사적으로 Baccara는 프랑스어로, Bsccsrst는 이탈리아어로 작성되었습니다.그것은 15세기에 유럽의 프랑스와 이탈리아 지역에서 시작되었습니다.

    바카라 게임, 시간이 지남에 따라 사람들에게 점점 인기를 얻었습니다. 현대에 이르러 성장했으며, 다양한 기기와 기술의 놀라운 발전으로 인터넷을 통해 온라인에서 쉽게 이용하고 즐길 수 있는 바카라 사이트 업체들과 함께합니다.

    룰렛, 블랙잭, 포커 등 다양한 카지노 게임은 마틴게일 베팅, 파롤리 베팅, 10% 베팅, 슈퍼마틴 베팅

  8. motocykl prawko
    Driving Licences – Category A1

    The category A1 driving licence permits the use of motorbikes with the power of up 35kW. This category includes motor tricycles. This category is available to anyone aged 24 or over who have completed the mandatory basic training (CBT), as well as a theoretical exam.

    <b

  9. Zegocractin clinical trial
    0 and IWGSC RefSeq v2.0). Selective footprints for Aegilops tauschii, wild emmer, domesticated emmer, bread wheat landrace and bread wheat variety are evaluated with two statistical tests (FST and Pi) based on SNPs from whole-genome resequencing data. In addition, we provide the Genome Browser to visualize the genomic variations, the selective footprints, the genotype patterns and the read coverage depth,

  10. FRAX597
    Objectives Most patients with small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) experience relapse because of the emergence of drug-resistant tumor cells. Therefore, second-line therapy is subsequently required to prolong their survival. However, it is unclear whether second-line chemotherapy can provide a survival benefit to elderly patients with relapsed SCLC. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate survival and identify prognostic factors i

  11. read more
    The simulations show that the preference of Ca2+ to the LAS molecules is due to a strong specific attraction with the sulfonate head-group, besides the electrostatic one. This specific attraction involves significant reduction of the hydration shells of the interacting calcium cation and sulfonate group, which couple directly and form surface clusters of LAS molecules, coordinated around the adsorbed Ca

  12. bandar togel online
    Bermain togel (Toto Gelap) adalah salah satu hiburan yang banyak diminati di Indonesia, di mana pemain memiliki kesempatan untuk meraih hadiah besar hanya dengan menebak angka yang akan muncul dalam pengundian. Namun, meskipun terlihat mengasyikkan, togel adalah permainan yang juga mengandung risiko, terutama bagi pemula yang belum berpengalaman. Oleh karena itu, memilih permainan togel dengan risiko yang lebih rendah adalah langkah y

  13. najlepsza szkoła jazdy motocyklowej
    Riding a Motorcycle Safely

    Riding a motorbike offers an experience of freedom and independence that isn’t available in a car. This also creates a bond of camaraderie between riders.

    To decrease the chance of motorcycle accidents it is crucial to remain alert and prioritize safety. T

  14. Mitoubiquinone order
    Compared to preoperation Harris score, the Harris score of 6 months postoperation and 12 months postoperation significantly improved. At 12 months postoperation, the excellent and good rate was 76.5% in the impaction bone graft group and 87.5% in the rotational osteotomy group. No significant difference in Harris scores was detected in the 2 groups.Surgical dislocation and impaction bone graft and

  15. egzamin a1
    Driving License Scooter Laws

    Based on the state you live in depending on the state, you may not require an extra license to operate scooters. New York, for example is classified according to their maximum speed and requires registration, licensing and insurance.

    In Alaska you must have an endorseme

  16. check details
    Hemodialysis patients with upper extremity vascular access and subclavian vein stenosis at the thoracic outlet can present with significant arm edema and threatened dialysis access that is frequently refractory to endovascular therapy without bone decompression. We have presented our long-term results of first rib resection, followed by endovascular therapy.

    We performed a retro

  17. 8kbet
    Nếu bạn đang tìm kiếm một nền tảng cá cược trực tuyến uy tín, đẳng cấp và mang lại cơ hội thắng lớn, thì 8KBET chính là sự lựa chọn hoàn hảo! Dưới đây là những lý do khiến 8KBET được đông đảo cược thủ yêu thích:

    🎯 1. Uy tín hàng đầu

    8KBET hoạt động với giấy phép hợp pháp, đảm bảo minh bạch và công bằng trong mọi giao dịch.

    🎮 2.

  18. this website
    Collagen membranes have been used as bioresorbable barrier membranes in guided tissue/bone regeneration. However, the collagen membranes currently used in clinics lack an active antibacterial function, although infection at surgical sites presents a realistic challenge for guided tissue/bone regeneration. In this study, we successfully prepared novel and advanced collagen composite

  19. Vismodegib
    The optimized procedures detailed here make it practical to generate genetically modified Clytia strains and to maintain their whole life cycle in the laboratory.This article has an associated First Person interview with the two first authors of the paper.Mutations in superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) cause familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in humans. ALS is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by progressiv

  20. Cytidine 5′-triphosphate ic50
    2-fold increase in plasma Cmax and 1.5-fold increase in AUC0-inf with a meal compared with fasted conditions. The PBPK model was verified using clinical food effect data with pivotal clinical formulation (PCF) and then applied to predict the performance of a commercial formulation (CF) in healthy volunteers. The model successfully predicted the outcome of a clinical bioequ

  21. 휴게텔
    This will have an effect on the publishing of the patron worth inflation merchandise indices and value quotes microdata, partly as a end result of quote-level microdata for the groceries market might be discontinued. So that we will think about and finest meet user wants when making any adjustments, we are looking for your suggestions to higher understand how you could have used these microdata. The Retail Prices Index (RPI) does not meet the required

  22. 8kbet
    Nếu bạn đang tìm kiếm một nền tảng cá cược trực tuyến uy tín, đẳng cấp và mang lại cơ hội thắng lớn, thì 8KBET chính là sự lựa chọn hoàn hảo! Dưới đây là những lý do khiến 8KBET được đông đảo cược thủ yêu thích:

    🎯 1. Uy tín hàng đầu

    8KBET hoạt động với giấy phép hợp pháp, đảm bảo minh bạch và công bằng trong mọi giao dịch.

    🎮 2.

  23. Phenylbutyrate supplier
    The impact of right ventricular impairment (RVI) on the morbidity and mortality of patients with Takotsubo syndrome (TTS) is well-debated. We conducted a meta-analysis to evaluate the mortality and morbidity risk associated with RVI compared with those without RVI in patients with TTS. A comprehensive search was performed in PubMed and Embase from inception to April 19, 2019. Our primary outcom

  24. Tucidinostat purchase
    To develop a method of visualising electrooculography data to improve the interpretability of nystagmus eye-movements captured using the Continuous Ambulatory Vestibular Assessment (CAVA

    ) device.

    We are currently undertaking a clinical investigation to evaluate the capabilities of the CAVA

    device to detect periods o

  25. RepSox Smad inhibitor
    9L/minute pre-operatively, improving to 95L/min post-operatively. Statistically significant improvements were seen in functional and aesthetic scores.

    Balanced cantilever grafts support the weakened part of lateral nasal wall by their elastance. Minimal cartilage is required and can be altered to support various parts of the lateral nasal wall. This graft does not cause a

  26. 해외에이전시
    실시간 고객센터 문의 가능

    모든 인터넷 카지노 사이트에는 일반적으로 고객 센터가 있으며 플레이어가 어려움을 겪을 때 이러한 센터에 연락하는 것이 매우 편리하고 매력적입니다. 기본적으로 불편사항이나 문의사항은 고객센터를 통해 답변 및 처리가 가능합니다. 또한 초보자는 아직 익숙하지 않은 인터넷 카지노 사이트에 대해 어려움을 겪을 수 있습니다. 이 경우 고객센터에서도 초보자를 위한 가이드를 제공합니다. 인터넷카지노사이트는 다양한 프로그램을 조합하여 만들어지기 때문에 간혹 오류가 발생할 수 있습니다. 해당 오류 상황을 확인하고 고객센터로 연락하시면 적절한 조치를 취하세요.

    인터넷 카지노 팁

    이용약관 확인

    인터넷 카지노 사이트에는 자체

  27. deposit 10000
    Slot QRIS adalah metode pembayaran inovatif yang memungkinkan pemain slot online melakukan deposit menggunakan kode QR. Dengan QRIS, pemain dapat melakukan transaksi dari berbagai aplikasi pembayaran seperti OVO, GoPay, Dana, dan lainnya hanya dengan satu kode QR.

    Keunggulan utama slot QRIS adalah kemudahan dan kecepatan proses pembayaran. Anda hanya perlu memindai kode QR yang disediakan oleh si

  28. selleck inhibitor
    Nevertheless, higher body weight and average daily gain were observed upon increasing dietary protein level. In conclusion, increasing dietary protein resulted in higher proteolytic fermentation, altered microbial community and intestinal physiology. Supplementing diets with fermentable carbohydrates could be a promising strategy to counteract these effects and should be further investigated.

    We compared the effect

  29. selleck products
    These results suggest that in brown bears the absence of early atherogenesis is likely associated with a lower affinity of LDL for arterial PGs and an elevated CEC of bear plasma.Rehearsal during working memory (WM) maintenance is assumed to facilitate retrieval. Less is known about how rehearsal modulates WM delay activity. In the present study, 44 participants completed a Sternberg Tas

  30. BETTOR365
    In the particular growing world of online gambling, GAMBLER 365 has surfaced as a popular platform for each seasoned bettors and even beginners. Offering a broad range of sports to bet in, competitive odds, in addition to an easy-to-use software, BETTOR 365 has positioned itself because one of the top destinations with regard to sports enthusiasts searching to add excitement to their favorite games. This content explores the essential featu

  31. this website
    Out of interest, two bacterial strains, namely, M3 and M8 were subjected to 16S rRNA molecular sequencing and phylogenetic analysis and were identified as Bacillus subtilis and Pseudomonas resinovorans. The two bacterial strains showed promising dye degradation property when checked with nine different textile dyes of wavelength ranging from 400 to 600 nm and removal of cadmium from the growth mediu

  32. https://hunterfaster.com/
    slots online popular buat dipermainkan di feature mobile. koleksi permainan casino mobile semakin berkembang karena bertambah banyak judul dipertambah dengan teratur. apabila anda anyar saat bermain slots dan games gadget dianjurkan anda memandang empat slots mobile yang sudah dibahas tersebut ini sebab mereka yaitu satu diantara judul terpopuler untuk diadaptasi buat permainan gadget.

    avalon ii

  33. psychiatrist near me for diagnosis
    Finding a Clinical Psychologist Near Me

    Psychologists are experts in the human mind. They have graduated from a doctoral program in clinical psychology or therapy and work directly with clients.

    The Clinical Psychology Department is particip

  34. Selleckchem YM201636
    05 MSs and median of 1 in 4.625 (range 1 in 2.47-10.71). The remaining BBPEs reported included blood and bodily fluid splashes (n = 37, 19%), other mucocutaneous exposures (n = 7, 3.6%), and uncategorized injuries (n = 2, 1%). Conclusions One-third of senior MSs reported BBPEs during clinical rotations. Most BBPEs were NSIs. Quantifying this risk allows for anticipatory education and protocol development to pr

  35. https://cleanlucky.com/
    ya pertanyaan penting yang selanjutnya mesti dapat ada jawaban dalah mengenai argumen kelebihan apa sich yang dapat peroleh. dengan ada banyaknya alternatif keuntungan yang dijajakan itu lantas beberapa orang pengin bermain dan masuk di situ. tanpa seluruh keuntungan itu, kayaknya tiada yang pengen untuk main di situss slots online terpilih itu. kemungkinan ini membikin anda ingin tahu apa sich keuntungan yang dijajakan dan dapat did

  36. anti-cancers
    The ELT-3 mobile range was made use of to examine mobile goals after incorporating recombinant PEDF into the culture media. Athymic nude feminine mice were utilized as an in-vivo design. These were injected with ELT-3 cells to induce ectopic fibroid lesions, then addressed with recombinant PEDF. Outcomes RNA phrase of PEDF as well as its receptors had been found in both leiomyo

  37. read more
    tential and reliable predictor for the incidence of severe illness in this specific patient with COVID-19, which could guide clinicians on early classification and management of patients, thereby relieving the shortage of medical resource. However, it is warranted to validate the reliability of the predictor in larger sample COVID-19 patients.

    Malaria incidence has plateaued in Sub-Saharan Africa des

  38. hoki311
    games slots online 3d punyai sangat banyak pengagum. satu diantaranya variasi permainan slots online itu betul-betul punyai sejumlah kelebihan yang dapat dirasa oleh banyak petaruhnya dengan cara langsung. dengan bermacam keuntungan yang ada itu, betaruh dapat peroleh keuntungan dengan lumayan mudah. berikut di bawah ini ialah sejumlah keuntungan main games slots online 3d.

    jekpot yang besar

    jekpot yang sangat

  39. see more
    Primary care physicians should be encouraged to give practical aspects of self-care practices and counseling regarding diabetes distress. To perform self-care practices adequate, support from the family level and community level is imperative.

    Primary care physicians should be encouraged to give practical aspects of self-care practices and counseling regarding diabetes distress. To perform self-care pr

  40. 6-Aminonicotinamide
    re overload resulted in reactive oxygen species-dependent dendritic cell accumulation of IsoLG protein adducts, which induced robust CD4+ T-cell proliferation.

    Our study demonstrates an important role of reactive oxygen species-induced formation of IsoLG-modified cardiac neoantigens that lead to TCR-dependent CD4+ T-cell activation within the heart.

    <

  41. best adult toys for couples
    Adult Toys For Men That Go Beyond Vibrating

    From motorized cock rings to Fleshlights, men’s sex toys come in all shapes and sizes. However some exceed vibrating toy basics with additional features like rubbing, suction, and even climax activation.

    For optimal pleasure, apply a water-based l

  42. THZ531
    Most of the participants who accepted Tdap vaccination during pregnancy and who believed that the Tdap vaccine could protect their infants from pertussis reported the receiving sufficient information to make an informed decision and trust in the information. By contrast, a large proportion of the participants who declined Tdap and who did not want to experience possible fetal side effects of Tdap reported not getting sufficie

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *