A PLS-SEM decision model of repeat patronage among generation Z: Retail environment quality, experiential strategy, and memorable experience

This study develops a decision-oriented model of repeat patronage among Generation Z visitors to shopping malls in Bali by examining how two controllable managerial inputs, retail environment quality and experiential retail strategy, influence future patronage choice directly and indirectly through memorable retail experience. Survey data were obtained from 210 respondents aged 17–27 years who had visited a mall in Bali during the previous three months. The model was estimated using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) with 5,000 bootstrap subsamples. Retail environment quality significantly increased repeat patronage intention (β = 0.312) and memorable retail experience (β = 0.398), while experiential retail strategy significantly increased repeat patronage intention (β = 0.289) and memorable retail experience (β = 0.421). Memorable retail experience was the strongest proximal predictor of repeat patronage intention (β = 0.356) and significantly mediated both strategic pathways. The model explained 71.4% of the variance in repeat patronage intention. The comparative effects indicate that environmental quality and experiential strategy function as complementary decision levers, while memory formation provides the internal mechanism through which both levers strengthen future patronage choice. The findings offer a practical decision architecture for balancing baseline environmental quality, experiential differentiation, and memory-forming engagement under limited managerial resources.