Almost two-thirds of British shoppers (64%) do not believe that retailers have done enough to reduce the cost of their weekly shop, forcing them to buy less, use value ranges and visit several stores to make ends meet.
That is the stark finding of a new study by Aldata, which also exposes “promotion confusion” among shoppers, with 37% spending time working out if retail promotions ultimately benefit them, to calculate the best deals.
Shoppers dislike ‘bundled’ offers: 44% wished that they could purchase products at a low price, rather than being forced into buy-one-get-one-free and similar offers; a sentiment which was higher in the male population.
Over a third of shoppers admit that they will go to several stores to get the best prices for their goods – although older shoppers are still focused on convenience over cost, with 22% of over 55s (compared to 14% of 18-34s) stating that they will keep going to one supermarket to get all their shopping in one place.
Aldata head of global customer support Mark Croxton said:“Retailers need to find more ways to support their shoppers. Promotions have led to a more cynical and cautious shopper. What is interesting is that shoppers are now equating loyalty schemes with ways to reduce the cost of their regular shop.
“Using insight to drive your whole supply chain and assortment planning at the store level has never been more vital.
“Unless supermarkets and smaller food retailers have real insight into the pressures which affect shoppers and offer tailored assortments and solutions that they perceive as valuable, customer loyalty will be affected and sales could drop significantly during 2012.”
