Consumers Shop for Discounts Outside Grocery and Drug Stores
A new consumer survey released by Vertis, a provider of technology-based integrated marketing services, reconfirms the obvious. “A growing number of discount store shoppers are purchasing both over-the-counter drugs and convenience grocery products at discount stores.”
According to a summary of the Customer Focus 2002 survey on grocerynetwork.com:
- Twenty percent of discount shoppers have purchased food and beverages at a discount store instead of a supermarket in the past two weeks. This number was up from 11 percent in 1998.
- Thirty-one percent of shoppers reported they had most often visited a discount store to purchase over-the-counter medications in the last thirty days. Forty-four percent visited drug stores most often. Since 1998, the number of shoppers going to discount stores most often for OTC products has risen 27 percent.
Discount store shopper purchasing decisions are motivated, primarily, by price. In addition, they are also looking for quick checkouts and a large product selection. Factors that are least important in the decision where to purchase are in-store computer assistance, online shopping and in-store demos.
Moderator’s Comment: Is share erosion a fait accompli
for supermarkets and drug stores in their competition with discounters?
Discounters have been taking share from grocery and drug
stores for what seems like forever. [George
Anderson – Moderator]
