Impact of pricing leadership on blockchain data acquisition efforts in a circular supply chain

AbstractMotivated by the industrial observation of the increasing application of blockchain in the supply chain and its improvement in terms of consumer demand, this study examines the impact of investment decisions of blockchain data acquisition nodes upstream and downstream of the supply chain on firms’ product recycling and pricing, market demand, and profits. The influences of different pricing leadership (i.e. supplier-led vs. retailer-led) in a supply chain are also thoroughly investigated. First, the presence of a strong retailer dramatically reduces suppliers’ incentive to invest in blockchain. However, the supplier is still likely to invest more in a retailer-led supply chain than that in a supply chain led by itself under certain conditions; that is, the cost of blockchain is relatively small, or consumers’ sensitivity to blockchain or product recycling benefits is rather large. Second, the total number of blockchain data acquisition nodes, market demand, and supply chain profit in a retailer-led supply chain are higher than in a supplier-led supply chain. Finally, interestingly, the supplier will be better off in a retailer-led supply chain when the return effect of product recycling is relatively high, while the cost-effectiveness of blockchain investment is relatively low.KEYWORDS: Circular supply chainblockchainpricing leadershipproduct recyclinggame theory Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).Additional informationFundingThis paper was supported by China Postdoctoral Science Foundation [grant number: 2021M690654]; Jiangsu University Philosophy and Social Science Research Major Project [grant number: 2021SJZDA033].Notes on contributorsJunbin WangDr. Junbin Wang is an associate professor of Business School in Changshu Institute of Technology and a post-doctoral staff in Fudan University. His research interests include operations and marketing interface. He has published in such journals as International Journal of Production Research, Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Journal of the Operational Research, Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics, International Transactions in Operational Research, Industrial Marketing Management, Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, etc. Email: junbin_wang@cslg.edu.cn.Yangyan ShiDr. Yangyan Shi a faculty member at Macquarie Business School, Macquarie University in Australia. He is a Chartered Member of CILT-A. His research focuses on procurement, third-party logistics, operations management, and supply chain management. He can be reached at: peter.shi@mq.edu.au.Changping ZhaoDr. Changping Zhao is a professor of Business School in Changshu Institute of Technology. His research interests include international economic and political relations, and complex networks. He has published in such journals as International Journal of Production Research, Marine policy, Maritime Policy & Management, Journal of Cleaner Production, etc. Email: zhao0037@sina.com.V. G. VenkateshV G Venkatesh is an Associate Professor in supply chain management with EM Normandie Business School, France. He is a Certified Supply Chain Professional (CSCP) from APICS-SCC and having global industry and academic background. His teaching and research interests are in global procurement, logistics, sustainability, and technology applications. He is the visiting faculty to reputable global institutions teaching in Executive MBA and corporate programs. He can be reached at vgv1976@gmail.com.Weiwei ChenWeiwei Chen is an associate professor in the Department of Supply Chain Management at Rutgers University. He received his B.S. and M.S. degrees from Tsinghua University in 2003 and 2006, respectively, and his Ph.D. degree from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 2010. His research interests include data analytics in service operations, operations and finance interface, as well as optimisation and simulation in supply chain, logistics, and manufacturing systems. He is an associate editor of INFORMS Journal on Applied Analytics, IEEE Transactions on Automation Science and Engineering, and Journal of Simulation, and a guest editor of IISE Transactions, International Journal of Production Research, and Flexible Services and Manufacturing Journal.