UK: Asda sees market share hit record 17.3%
Asda has taken its highest- ever share of the UK grocery market, figures published yesterday show as retailers seen as budget operators are benefiting from shoppers hunting for value.
The UK's second-largest supermarket, owned by US giant Wal-Mart, took a market share of 17.3% in the 12 weeks ended September 7, figures from analyst TNS Worldpanel show, a record high for the company and up from 17% in the same period last year.
Asda chief executive Andy Bond yesterday sought to enhance its value reputation by announcing he is cutting the price of 5000 items and predicted that food price inflation has peaked.
Morrison also did well, recording the biggest year-on-year change among the big four supermarkets, up 9.1% with its market share rising from 10.8% to 11%.
Discounters saw their turnovers increase massively with Aldi and Lidl posting increases of 20.8% and 11.1% respectively, although their market shares remain small at 2.9% and 2.4%. Freezer centre Iceland produced a 12.9% increase in sales, taking its share to 1.7% of the market. In contrast, Tesco, while maintaining its dominance of the sector, saw its market share slip by 20 basis points to 31.5% while Sainsbury fell by the same to 15.8%.
Upmarket John Lewis-owned Watirose was particularly hard hit with growth held back to just 3.2% year on year, taking its share down 0.1 points to 3.8%.
The overall grocery market turnover grew 7.3% com-pared to last year, but TNS Worldpanel director of research Ed Garner said this hid static volumes with inflation of 9% boosting the numbers.
Source: theherald.co.uk
Publication date: 9/17/2008
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Sunday, December 7, 2008
pepsi and the recession
Commodity Online
NEW YORK: Soft drink giants, Coca Cola and PepsiCo are facing a severe demand slump for their liquid beverage business in North America due to economic slowdown. Coca Cola has reported a 14 percent growth in third quarter earnings while PepsiCo has reported a 11 percent net revenue.
However, PepsiCo, the second largest US drink maker seems to have been affected more by the crisis looking at the core earnings per share which has grown by only 6 percent as against 17 percent for Coke reported during the period. PepsiCo also has announced plans to cut 3300 jobs and close six plants following the lagging soft drinks sale in USA and the surging US dollar.
For both companies it was the demand from emerging economies that helped them to offset to slump in US demand. In China, Coke’s volumes rose by 13 per cent, and still drink sales was up 27 per cent.
“Coke’s “international operations, in particular the emerging markets, continue to drive our growth, more than offsetting the challenges that we are addressing in North America,” according to Muhtar Kent, Chief Executive of Coca Cola.
“We anticipate that the operating environment, especially in North America, will continue to be challenging as we finish 2008 and move into 2009. However, we have been diligent in taking the evolving landscape into account as we are planning for 2009, and believe that the solid fundamentals of our business, our strong balance sheet and cash generating capability, the experience of our management team and the strength of our brands will drive the business through these difficult economic times.”
PepsiCo has announced that they are implementing a broad-based productivity program, which is expected to produce $1.2 billion in pre-tax savings over three years. The majority of the savings will be invested in Pepsi’s businesses.
”We were adversely impacted by continued weakness in the U.S. liquid refreshment beverage category, which resulted in disappointing performance in our domestic beverage business. We are taking important steps to revitalize our beverage portfolio," according to Indra Nooyi, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of PepsiCo.
PepsiCo said it would renew its focus on carbonated soft drinks with a marketing campaign next year. That would be a reversal of its strategy to move toward more expensive alternatives, such as sparkling juice and energy drinks.
Coca-Cola also has been working to strengthen its US beverage business, especially its Coke brands over the past three years. It has been expanding its drinks portfolio to include newer juice and enhanced water brands such as Vitamin Water.
supermarket psychology 3
Have you ever walked into the supermarket with the intention of buying two items and instead walked out with more than a dozen? Coincidence? Probably not. Supermarkets have conducted extensive research on consumers and their shopping habits, and they know how to get you to fill your cart and empty your wallet.
For example, one tactic supermarkets use is the smell of freshly baked bread coming from the in-store bakery during the after-work rush. The smell of warm bread makes people feel hungry. And when you feel hungry while shopping, you're more likely to buy additional items.
Another trick some retailers employ is stocking more expensive items at eye level and on the right. Because we read from left to right, our eyes naturally scan store shelves from left to right. The eye stops on the more expensive items on the right, making shoppers more likely to purchase them. Retailers also locate commonly purchased items, such as milk and eggs, at the back of the store so that shoppers have to walk through the entire store to get to the items they came in for.
Tickets and tags are another ploy retailers use to grab consumers' attention. We rely on retailers to use tags to highlight sale items, but they also may attach tags to non-sale items that say things like "everyday low price" to help maximize the sale of a product. Waiting in the check-out line? It's filled with impulse items like batteries, gum, candy bars, magazines and other frivolous products not on your list.
The good news is that, by being aware of supermarket marketing ploys and developing a shopping strategy of your own, you can save time and money as well as avoid the urge to make impulse purchases. Here are some tips to help keep impulse spending under wraps at the supermarket.
Write down what you need before you shop. Starting out with a shopping list not only reminds you of what you need, but it also will keep you from buying items you don't need.
Eat before you shop. Don't take hungry kids or spouses with you. Hungry shoppers are more likely to buy impulse items, especially ready-to-eat and snack items. If you do arrive on an empty stomach, stop by the in-store deli or head directly for the free samples that many supermarkets offer before making your selections.
Observe product placement. More expensive items are usually placed at eye level, within easy reach. Less expensive items are placed either high or low.
Double-check prices on product displays and aisle end caps. Store displays, including those located at the end of the aisles, do not always feature sale items. Also, keep in mind that non-sale items often are displayed along with sale items.
Check products and prices featured in weekly supermarket ads distributed in the local newspaper. Shop the specials only if you will use the product. And remember, although "buy one, get one free" may sound like a good deal, the "one" is often marketed at an increased price.
Avoid extra trips to the supermarket. There is no better way to curb impulse buying than to stay out of the supermarket. Try to keep your shopping trips down to once per week or less.
Compare unit price labels across brands and sizes within brands. While the larger size is often the least expensive per ounce or product unit, this is not always the case. And even if the economy size costs less per ounce, if you don't need it or it spoils before you can use it, it may be more costly per serving.
For example, one tactic supermarkets use is the smell of freshly baked bread coming from the in-store bakery during the after-work rush. The smell of warm bread makes people feel hungry. And when you feel hungry while shopping, you're more likely to buy additional items.
Another trick some retailers employ is stocking more expensive items at eye level and on the right. Because we read from left to right, our eyes naturally scan store shelves from left to right. The eye stops on the more expensive items on the right, making shoppers more likely to purchase them. Retailers also locate commonly purchased items, such as milk and eggs, at the back of the store so that shoppers have to walk through the entire store to get to the items they came in for.
Tickets and tags are another ploy retailers use to grab consumers' attention. We rely on retailers to use tags to highlight sale items, but they also may attach tags to non-sale items that say things like "everyday low price" to help maximize the sale of a product. Waiting in the check-out line? It's filled with impulse items like batteries, gum, candy bars, magazines and other frivolous products not on your list.
The good news is that, by being aware of supermarket marketing ploys and developing a shopping strategy of your own, you can save time and money as well as avoid the urge to make impulse purchases. Here are some tips to help keep impulse spending under wraps at the supermarket.
Write down what you need before you shop. Starting out with a shopping list not only reminds you of what you need, but it also will keep you from buying items you don't need.
Eat before you shop. Don't take hungry kids or spouses with you. Hungry shoppers are more likely to buy impulse items, especially ready-to-eat and snack items. If you do arrive on an empty stomach, stop by the in-store deli or head directly for the free samples that many supermarkets offer before making your selections.
Observe product placement. More expensive items are usually placed at eye level, within easy reach. Less expensive items are placed either high or low.
Double-check prices on product displays and aisle end caps. Store displays, including those located at the end of the aisles, do not always feature sale items. Also, keep in mind that non-sale items often are displayed along with sale items.
Check products and prices featured in weekly supermarket ads distributed in the local newspaper. Shop the specials only if you will use the product. And remember, although "buy one, get one free" may sound like a good deal, the "one" is often marketed at an increased price.
Avoid extra trips to the supermarket. There is no better way to curb impulse buying than to stay out of the supermarket. Try to keep your shopping trips down to once per week or less.
Compare unit price labels across brands and sizes within brands. While the larger size is often the least expensive per ounce or product unit, this is not always the case. And even if the economy size costs less per ounce, if you don't need it or it spoils before you can use it, it may be more costly per serving.
supermarket psychology 2
Most of our supermarket buying is habitual. We don’t tend to put a lot of cognitive effort into the purchase of most of our brands. We mostly choose from the same brands week after week, so to convert people (or get them to change brands), supermarkets like to create dissonance in our mind. They do this by using cues such as specials, price changes, and the use of colour (red, for example, is the most noticeable colour in the spectrum, while blue is said to promote trust).
Placement of entry has a significant effect on how people shop, and how much they spend.
Right-hand side entries favour counter-clockwise movement through the shop, while left-hand side entries favour clockwise patterns.
Counter-clockwise shoppers spend, on average, $2 more per trip, than do clockwise shoppers.
The average shopping trip covers about 25% of the supermarket.
People who use the fresh food (e.g., meat, fruit and vegetables) area tend to spend more, so supermarkets place the produce area at the beginning (or the end) of the supermarket experience. They also make the produce area a relaxed, inviting, and fresh/clean environment to create a sense of trust, and emotional involvement in the shopping experience.
Contrary to popular belief, we don’t weave up and down aisles. Research of movement patterns show that people tend to travel in select aisles, and rarely in a systematic up and down pattern.
Even long shopping trips are punctuated by short excursions into and out of the aisle, rather than traversing the entire length of the aisle.
What this means is that key products (the ones with the greatest profit margins, or those that have paid a premium), will be placed at the ends of aisles in endcap displays.
Also, familiar brands are placed at the end of aisles to serve as a psychological “welcome mat” to those aisles, which results in increased traffic.
Products at the centre of the aisle will receive less “face time”
People also tend to use the perimeter of the shop as the main thoroughfare, rather than heading down aisles.
People use the perimeter as a home base, so key items are placed on the perimeter of the supermarket.
Shorter trips tend to stick predominantly to the perimeter.
Some products are categorised, and shelved, according to their value to the shop.
Leading brands, and, more recently, store-labels, are put in high traffic locations, and are given priority for secondary placement.
Niche categories, are placed in visible, but low traffic areas – because the target market is willing to hunt for them.
Supermarkets don’t block your way, but they do “push” the products that you may be interested in, into your path.
Many items are opportunistic purchases, or impulse, however, they tend to, again, be in the main pathways around the supermarket - although there are some caveats to this, particularly in relation to the placement of staples such as milk and bread.
Retailers ask whether the rate of conversion is justifying the amount of exposure of products, i.e., if a product is put in a premium zone, are people buying it? Not just sales, but also in relation to the amount of traffic that it is receiving.
Confusion and Emotional Involvement will have an effect on how long a person spends in front of a particular area. For example, in Melbourne, Australia (where good coffee is important), you might find consumers spending a long time in front of the coffee selection area. Similarly, baby food purchasing tends to take longer because of emotional involvement. In terms of confusion, soups and dressings are often long “buy-times”, but usually because of confusion. What this means is that long “buy-time” products are put in places where shoppers will not feel hurried or crowded. It also means that shoppers are not getting in the way of other customers, as they spend long periods working out what they are going to buy.
The people who do venture into the centre of aisles, and the shop, tend to also spend more time in the shop, but not necessarily more money, relative to the amount of time in the shop.
Some supermarkets now micro-manage, sections of the shop. Instead of approaching the shop as one big entity, they have begun to separate areas into particular zones, e.g., health goods, bakeries, confectionary, and developed different marketing plans for each of these areas.
They also use anchor departments, such as Fresh Fruit and Vegetables, Meat, Dairy, and Bakery. This gives consumers a sense of individual difference, and extends the shopping experience.
Short trip shoppers are encouraged to get in, and get out, e.g., buy milk, bread, etc., where as long term shoppers are led through the store, and tend to spend more. The placement of bread and milk at the back of the shop is now being seen by psychologists and designers as ineffecient, although most supermarkets still believe that this has an effect in encouraging impulse purchases. The evidence from research suggests that this is not necessarily the case, and it is more efficient to have these products toward the front of the store, but with other impulse products close by.
Placement of entry has a significant effect on how people shop, and how much they spend.
Right-hand side entries favour counter-clockwise movement through the shop, while left-hand side entries favour clockwise patterns.
Counter-clockwise shoppers spend, on average, $2 more per trip, than do clockwise shoppers.
The average shopping trip covers about 25% of the supermarket.
People who use the fresh food (e.g., meat, fruit and vegetables) area tend to spend more, so supermarkets place the produce area at the beginning (or the end) of the supermarket experience. They also make the produce area a relaxed, inviting, and fresh/clean environment to create a sense of trust, and emotional involvement in the shopping experience.
Contrary to popular belief, we don’t weave up and down aisles. Research of movement patterns show that people tend to travel in select aisles, and rarely in a systematic up and down pattern.
Even long shopping trips are punctuated by short excursions into and out of the aisle, rather than traversing the entire length of the aisle.
What this means is that key products (the ones with the greatest profit margins, or those that have paid a premium), will be placed at the ends of aisles in endcap displays.
Also, familiar brands are placed at the end of aisles to serve as a psychological “welcome mat” to those aisles, which results in increased traffic.
Products at the centre of the aisle will receive less “face time”
People also tend to use the perimeter of the shop as the main thoroughfare, rather than heading down aisles.
People use the perimeter as a home base, so key items are placed on the perimeter of the supermarket.
Shorter trips tend to stick predominantly to the perimeter.
Some products are categorised, and shelved, according to their value to the shop.
Leading brands, and, more recently, store-labels, are put in high traffic locations, and are given priority for secondary placement.
Niche categories, are placed in visible, but low traffic areas – because the target market is willing to hunt for them.
Supermarkets don’t block your way, but they do “push” the products that you may be interested in, into your path.
Many items are opportunistic purchases, or impulse, however, they tend to, again, be in the main pathways around the supermarket - although there are some caveats to this, particularly in relation to the placement of staples such as milk and bread.
Retailers ask whether the rate of conversion is justifying the amount of exposure of products, i.e., if a product is put in a premium zone, are people buying it? Not just sales, but also in relation to the amount of traffic that it is receiving.
Confusion and Emotional Involvement will have an effect on how long a person spends in front of a particular area. For example, in Melbourne, Australia (where good coffee is important), you might find consumers spending a long time in front of the coffee selection area. Similarly, baby food purchasing tends to take longer because of emotional involvement. In terms of confusion, soups and dressings are often long “buy-times”, but usually because of confusion. What this means is that long “buy-time” products are put in places where shoppers will not feel hurried or crowded. It also means that shoppers are not getting in the way of other customers, as they spend long periods working out what they are going to buy.
The people who do venture into the centre of aisles, and the shop, tend to also spend more time in the shop, but not necessarily more money, relative to the amount of time in the shop.
Some supermarkets now micro-manage, sections of the shop. Instead of approaching the shop as one big entity, they have begun to separate areas into particular zones, e.g., health goods, bakeries, confectionary, and developed different marketing plans for each of these areas.
They also use anchor departments, such as Fresh Fruit and Vegetables, Meat, Dairy, and Bakery. This gives consumers a sense of individual difference, and extends the shopping experience.
Short trip shoppers are encouraged to get in, and get out, e.g., buy milk, bread, etc., where as long term shoppers are led through the store, and tend to spend more. The placement of bread and milk at the back of the shop is now being seen by psychologists and designers as ineffecient, although most supermarkets still believe that this has an effect in encouraging impulse purchases. The evidence from research suggests that this is not necessarily the case, and it is more efficient to have these products toward the front of the store, but with other impulse products close by.
Subliminal persuasion - it works!… Sometimes
Subliminal persuasion - it works!… Sometimes
Although James Vicary’s 1957 experiment, where he said that he subliminally broadcast the words “Drink Coca-Cola” and “Eat Popcorn’’ to influence movie-goers’ purchase behaviour, was later shown to be a hoax, there is now more and more evidence to suggest that under certain conditions, subliminal persuasion can indeed influence behaviour.
Research published in Neuron in September, 2008, and the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology in 2005 and 2006, suggests that subliminal priming will work under certain conditions. In general, the conditions were that the prime should be goal-relevant, and respondent should be motivated to pursue that goal. In one experiment, respondents who were exposed to a subliminal message (i.e., below their awareness threshold – at 23ms or 23/1000 of a second) that was thirst-related (e.g., words such as thirst, dry) were more likely to drink more after this exposure, than those who were subliminally primed with neutral words (e.g., pirate, won).
In another experiment, participants who were already thirsty (i.e., they hadn’t had anything to drink for 3 hours) were subliminally primed with an image of Lipton Ice, and were more likely to choose that brand when offered a selection of drinks, than those who were primed with neutral images.
Regardless of these findings, psychologists and consumer behaviour specialists are coming to realise that there is more to persuasion than meets the perceived (and attended) eye.
It is becoming clearer that advertising works on many levels, and bodies such as ACMA, along with advertisers and policy makers, need to recognise that even incidental exposure via billboards or posters, is likely to have some impact over our eventual behaviour, even though we may not be aware of their influence. This is of particular importance in situations when vulnerable consumers, such as children, may be exposed to an image, and despite their understanding of its intent, may not be in a position to control its eventual effect on their behaviour
Although James Vicary’s 1957 experiment, where he said that he subliminally broadcast the words “Drink Coca-Cola” and “Eat Popcorn’’ to influence movie-goers’ purchase behaviour, was later shown to be a hoax, there is now more and more evidence to suggest that under certain conditions, subliminal persuasion can indeed influence behaviour.
Research published in Neuron in September, 2008, and the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology in 2005 and 2006, suggests that subliminal priming will work under certain conditions. In general, the conditions were that the prime should be goal-relevant, and respondent should be motivated to pursue that goal. In one experiment, respondents who were exposed to a subliminal message (i.e., below their awareness threshold – at 23ms or 23/1000 of a second) that was thirst-related (e.g., words such as thirst, dry) were more likely to drink more after this exposure, than those who were subliminally primed with neutral words (e.g., pirate, won).
In another experiment, participants who were already thirsty (i.e., they hadn’t had anything to drink for 3 hours) were subliminally primed with an image of Lipton Ice, and were more likely to choose that brand when offered a selection of drinks, than those who were primed with neutral images.
Regardless of these findings, psychologists and consumer behaviour specialists are coming to realise that there is more to persuasion than meets the perceived (and attended) eye.
It is becoming clearer that advertising works on many levels, and bodies such as ACMA, along with advertisers and policy makers, need to recognise that even incidental exposure via billboards or posters, is likely to have some impact over our eventual behaviour, even though we may not be aware of their influence. This is of particular importance in situations when vulnerable consumers, such as children, may be exposed to an image, and despite their understanding of its intent, may not be in a position to control its eventual effect on their behaviour
Saturday, December 6, 2008
supermarket psychology
supermarket psychology
From a consumers point of view, a supermarket is quite simple; Put what you want into your trolley and go through the check-out. Behind the scenes though, psychology is used a lot to define what products and brands you buy in supermarkets. Stands are designed to catch your eye and the store layout is structured to maximise profit.
Through my investigations, I have found the following tactics can be used supermarkets and similar stores.
Eye level marketing
Generally speaking, the most expensive items with high profit margins are placed on shelves that are at shoppers' eye level. This is because you are more likely to see them than the less profitable brands at the very top or near your feet..
Aisle order
Some customers, particularly men, tend to simply shop for what they want, walking down an aisle grabbing what they want, turning back and walking the way they came, this is called the 'Boomerang Effect'. In order to maximise shopper and produce contact time, shops therefore place major items and brands in the middle of aisles ensuring that from any direction the customer has to walk the furthest to reach them.
Product grouping
Items that complement each other are often found close together to entice you to buy more. You'll often find pasta sauces on the same display as a featured brand of pasta.
Food smells make you feel hungry
Another tactic supermarkets use is the smell of freshly baked bread coming from the in-store bakery during the after-work rush. The smell of warm bread makes people feel hungry. When you feel hungry while shopping you are more likely to buy additional items.
Canned smells
Most Supermarkets bake their bread early in the morning, however to entice more custom some have resorted to pumping out the smell of fresh baking bread to add to the illusion that it is constantly baked through the day.
Essentials at the back
Supermarkets hit upon the idea of placing the essentials, such as bread and milk, at the back of the shop. This is in order to make people have to walk past the rest of the produce, and heighten the possibility of impulse buys, in order to get their necessities. Changing rooms in clothes shops are almost always situated at the rear of the shop.
Attracting children
One American supermarket chain hit upon the idea of drawing a hopscotch in the aisle next to the children's cereal in order to make the children play and thus pin Mum & Dad to a point where the children could hassle them for treats.
Irrational Pricing
Irrational pricing is putting the price of items at say 4.99 instead of 5. The reason offered for not instead rounding $4.99 to $5.00 is based on memory processing time. Rounding upward involves an additional decision compared with storing the first digits. Furthermore, due to the vast quantity of information available for consumers to process, the information on price must be stored in a very short interval. The cheapest way to do so, in memory and attention terms, is by storing the first digits. Therefore customers perceive to be getting a better deal than they in fact are.
Order Of Price
Shops will often be laid out in order of price with the most expensive items being encountered at the beginning of your visit and the cheapest at the end. This is done to play on our sense of comparison, we are much more likely to spend money on accessories etc if we have just agreed to buy an expensive item, as in comparison they will seem cheaper than had we encountered them first.
Point Of Sale
Whilst you are waiting to pay retailers often install Point Of Sale displays, this is especially prevalent in Supermarkets who install racks of chocolate to tempt bored children waiting with their parents.
Shuffle
Many shops have a policy of regularly rotating the stock, this happens especially in supermarkets where people regularly shop for the same items. The idea obviously is to confront customers with a variety of items aside from their regulars and encourage them to explore areas of the shop they may not usually visit.
Time
The longer customers spend in a shop the more they are likely to spend. Therefore shops work to make sure customers have to spend the maximum amount of time in their stores, placing obstacles constantly in the way of efficient shopping.
From a consumers point of view, a supermarket is quite simple; Put what you want into your trolley and go through the check-out. Behind the scenes though, psychology is used a lot to define what products and brands you buy in supermarkets. Stands are designed to catch your eye and the store layout is structured to maximise profit.
Through my investigations, I have found the following tactics can be used supermarkets and similar stores.
Eye level marketing
Generally speaking, the most expensive items with high profit margins are placed on shelves that are at shoppers' eye level. This is because you are more likely to see them than the less profitable brands at the very top or near your feet..
Aisle order
Some customers, particularly men, tend to simply shop for what they want, walking down an aisle grabbing what they want, turning back and walking the way they came, this is called the 'Boomerang Effect'. In order to maximise shopper and produce contact time, shops therefore place major items and brands in the middle of aisles ensuring that from any direction the customer has to walk the furthest to reach them.
Product grouping
Items that complement each other are often found close together to entice you to buy more. You'll often find pasta sauces on the same display as a featured brand of pasta.
Food smells make you feel hungry
Another tactic supermarkets use is the smell of freshly baked bread coming from the in-store bakery during the after-work rush. The smell of warm bread makes people feel hungry. When you feel hungry while shopping you are more likely to buy additional items.
Canned smells
Most Supermarkets bake their bread early in the morning, however to entice more custom some have resorted to pumping out the smell of fresh baking bread to add to the illusion that it is constantly baked through the day.
Essentials at the back
Supermarkets hit upon the idea of placing the essentials, such as bread and milk, at the back of the shop. This is in order to make people have to walk past the rest of the produce, and heighten the possibility of impulse buys, in order to get their necessities. Changing rooms in clothes shops are almost always situated at the rear of the shop.
Attracting children
One American supermarket chain hit upon the idea of drawing a hopscotch in the aisle next to the children's cereal in order to make the children play and thus pin Mum & Dad to a point where the children could hassle them for treats.
Irrational Pricing
Irrational pricing is putting the price of items at say 4.99 instead of 5. The reason offered for not instead rounding $4.99 to $5.00 is based on memory processing time. Rounding upward involves an additional decision compared with storing the first digits. Furthermore, due to the vast quantity of information available for consumers to process, the information on price must be stored in a very short interval. The cheapest way to do so, in memory and attention terms, is by storing the first digits. Therefore customers perceive to be getting a better deal than they in fact are.
Order Of Price
Shops will often be laid out in order of price with the most expensive items being encountered at the beginning of your visit and the cheapest at the end. This is done to play on our sense of comparison, we are much more likely to spend money on accessories etc if we have just agreed to buy an expensive item, as in comparison they will seem cheaper than had we encountered them first.
Point Of Sale
Whilst you are waiting to pay retailers often install Point Of Sale displays, this is especially prevalent in Supermarkets who install racks of chocolate to tempt bored children waiting with their parents.
Shuffle
Many shops have a policy of regularly rotating the stock, this happens especially in supermarkets where people regularly shop for the same items. The idea obviously is to confront customers with a variety of items aside from their regulars and encourage them to explore areas of the shop they may not usually visit.
Time
The longer customers spend in a shop the more they are likely to spend. Therefore shops work to make sure customers have to spend the maximum amount of time in their stores, placing obstacles constantly in the way of efficient shopping.
Monday, November 24, 2008
Warburton Consumer Research
An Interview with Craig Morris, General Manager of Newport Bakery, Warburtons.
- Business coverage
Basically Warburtons is operating its business through all over the UK, the business in heartland is their strongest region and it takes about 45%-50% of the market shares, meanwhile, south and west region is their weakest business region, it only takes 10% of the market shares. However, over the last three years, Newport bakery and the Pot Talbot’s depot’s open have strengthened its business in those regions. And also the Bristol bakery’s open in this September has support the business operations as well.
Products- please have a look the company’s website on http://www.warburtons.co.uk/
Main customers: supermarkets (Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury and Morrison), independent shops, it has a different customer groups in different region, in the most sophisticated region of heartland; its big customers are supermarkets and also the independent shops. But in the weakest region of west and south, the main customers are supermarket at the moment. - Distribution channels
The company mainly delivers its products to the customers by its own van team on a daily basis. - Quality control
Retain high standard of raw materials, such as wheat, flour. The company imports wheat from Canada, because their wheat at a high quality.
Right equipments on plants are very necessary to maintain a high standard of products.
Staff training is also very important, there is regularly staff training course are carried out in the company to equip the staff to have the necessary skills with the new equipments.
- Price
They believe they are producing the premier products by using the high standard raw materials, so the products are selling at a bit higher price than their competitors.
Objectives
To be the favorite baker in the UK is always the first target, although they have gained the biggest market share in the UK bread market.
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
DON'S MOUSTACHE
Let's get the votes in.... who reckons Don should shave off the atrocity resting on his top lip?
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Friday, November 14, 2008
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
BREAKING NEWS!
My mother who has spent money all her life on the most expensive brands only, has bought Sainsburys own brand Cornflakes! It would seem the credit crunch is effecting even the hardcore brand obessed of us. But not to fear, BEFORE tasting them first thing this morning she threw the whole box away claiming "They will never be the same".
Thought Don would find this interesting
http://inventorspot.com/articles/mcdonalds_japan_goes_nobrand_with_quarter_pounder_shops_19505
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
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