Rodney Runyan, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
I am an Assistant Professor of Retailing, and teach courses in Retailing Principles and International Retailing. My research interests include small business, downtown retail districts, entrepreneurship, and international retailing. Some recent empirical articles have appeared in Journal of Retailing, Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship, the International Review of Retail, Distribution and Consumer Research, Journal of Small Business Management and Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services. I truly look forward to working with the outstanding graduate and undergraduate students at UT.
Prior to entering the academy, I spent 15 years working in the retailing industry (Kmart Corporation) and in the apparel marketing industry (Cole of California, Reebok, and others). Before coming to the Land of Orange, I taught at the University of South Carolina and served as the Graduate Director for the Retail program. I have presented my research at many international conferences, and served as a consultant in Russia to two different Russian companies. Recently I was able to conduct research into small business recovery in the Gulf States following Katrina, and traveled to Costa Rica and Chile’ to extend my international research.
Education
Ph.D., Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI
Dissertation title: "Predicting Downtown and Small Business Success:
A Resource Based View"
M.S., Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI
B.A., Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI
Research Interests
Retail entrepreneurship
Downtown shopping districts
Internationalization of retailing
Intersection of entrepreneurial retail growth and public policy
Awards and Honors
John Jack Award for “Outstanding paper addressing issues in entrepreneurship under conditions of adversity.” USASBE/SBI Annual Conference, Orlando, FL (January) 2007.
John Jack Award for “Outstanding paper addressing issues in entrepreneurship under conditions of adversity.” USASBE/SBI Annual Conference, Tucson, AZ (January) 2006.
College Developing Professional Award, College of Human Ecology, Michigan State University, 2004.
Recent Publications
2009 Karen E. Lear, Rodney C. Runyan and William H. Whitaker, “Sports celebrity endorsements and retailing: Can athletes provide a competitive advantage?” International Journal of Retail and Distribution Management, 37(4) 308-321.
2009 Rodney C. Runyan and Patricia Huddleston, "Small business recovery from a natural disaster: Lessons from Katrina," in (Robin P. Malloy, ed.) Law and Recovery from Disaster: Hurricane Katrina, Ashgate, Burlington, VT: 127-140.
2009 Rodney C. Runyan, "The intersection of sport and retail," International Journal of Retail and Distribution Management, 37(4) Guest Editor.*
2009 Rodney C. Runyan, Patricia Huddleston and Jane L. Swinney, "A model of small retailer innovation proneness: Early internet adoption as a measure of innovativeness,"
Business Quest, (in press).
2009 Rodney C. Runyan "Where's the real criac?: A resource-based view of authenticity in Irish pubs, " Journal of Business and Retail Management Research , 3(2), (in press).
2008 Rodney C. Runyan and Cornelia Droge, “Small store research streams: What does it portend for the future”? Journal of Retailing, 84(1), 77-94.
2008 Rodney C. Runyan, “Defining a forum for retailing scholars: Academics’ rankings of journals in the discipline,” International Review of Retail, Distribution and Consumer Research, 18(4), 437-446.
2008 Rodney C. Runyan, Cornelia Droge and Jane L. Swinney, “Entrepreneurial orientation versus small business orientation: Do their relationships to firm performance depend on longevity?” Journal of Small Business Management, 46(4), 567-582.
2008 Brenda Sternquist, Rodney C. Runyan and Zhengyi Chen, “The use of buying committees by Chinese retailers: The effects of environment and strategy upon structure,” Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 15(2), 93-103.
2007 Jane Swinney and Rodney C. Runyan, “Native American entrepreneurs and strategic choice,” Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship, 12(3), 257-273. Lead Article
2007 Rodney C. Runyan, Patricia Huddleston and Jane Swinney, “A Resource-based view of the small firm: Using a qualitative approach to uncover small firm resources,” Qualitative Marketing Research, Special Issue on Small Firm Branding, 10(4), 390-402.
Contact Information
1215 W. Cumberland Ave.
245 Jessie Harris Building
Knoxville, TN 37996-1911
Phone: 865-974-4594
Email: rrunyan@utk.edu
Contact the Department of Retail, Hospitality,
and Tourism Management
1215 W. Cumberland Ave.
110 Jessie Harris Building
Knoxville, TN 37996-1911
Email: rhtm@utk.edu
Fax: 865-974-5236
Hotel, Restaurant, & Tourism
Phone: 865-974-2141
Retail & Consumer Sciences
Phone: 865-974-2141