No one knows with certainty what the hottest food trends will be over the next several years, but The Hartman Group has focused on the "why behind the buy" to look at four that may have a significant impact on the business. RetailWire explores each in this series of Discussions.
It's been a long-held belief in retailing circles that consumers go to food stores looking for a set of products. To help stimulate that activity and build market basket size, retailers have used a variety of tactics, such as sales and special offers, to accomplish their goals.
While there is no doubt that some success has been attained with this approach, Jarrett Paschal, Ph. D., said recent research demonstrates consumers look to "accomplish tasks on specific shopping occasions by engaging in a compelling set of experiences."
Of great importance to retailers, writes Dr. Paschal, is that "the channels chosen to accomplish those tasks, as well as the goals and tasks themselves, are decided at home and are frequently subject to the household debate. Likewise, those channels and occasions dramatically shape subsequent shopping behavior."
For example, Dr. Paschal maintains that after a full day's work, shoppers popping into a store for what's needed for that night's dinner are not really interested in the promotions being run. What they are looking for is "quick access to 'fresh' versions of certain products that are critical to mealtime preparation."
In practical terms, according to Dr. Paschal, stores can take advantage of this shopping behavior, for example, by deploying mobile displays with "meal-relevant solutions, such as fresh-baked breads, cheeses, water, wine, etc."
Discussion Question: Do you agree with Jarret Paschal's assertion "the channels chosen to accomplish those (shopping occasion) tasks, as well as the goals and tasks themselves, are decided at home" and that "those channels and occasions dramatically shape subsequent shopping behavior"?