CHANGES OF FOOD PURCHASING HABITS

Abstract

Nowadays it is not only macro economical factors, such as the economic crisis, that effect the changes in the food purchasing behavior in a settlement, but also micro economical factors, like the appearance of a new food retail chain in the same settlement or the opening of another food retail unit of a chain already having units in that settlement. My objective was the analysis of the changes in food purchasing habits of the last decade, from the point of view of supply, in all the settlements of the aggregation of Szolnok city and in settlements with a significant population, and provided with food retail chains, in the Szolnok agglomeration. As a method of my research, I chose deep interview. I have carried out more than fifty deep interviews with food retail shop managers/ deputy managers and with Szolnok being the headquarters of Coop Szolnok Zrt, with the Chairman and General Director of the company, with the Marketing Manager and with two store managers. In order to process the deep interviews, I used the wordclouds method. The questions of the deep interview included the characteristics of the changes in purchasing behavior (timing, length of shopping, basket value, frequency, content and number) in general and also in particular regarding the shop of those questioned. Customer segments were mentioned according to their different purchasing habits, out of which a proportion has lost its importance. It is a general observation – with respect to the exceptions – that due to the daily operative tasks, decision-makers know only the purchasing habits of their own customers, having less view over the changes in purchasing habits characteristic for the settlement as a whole. Regarding the satisfied and loyal customer, all of the respondents could much easier draw a distinction between features from the point of view of the store of his own and those in general. Regarding store choice, I especially attached great importance to the factors influencing daily and big shopping at a different degree. To get to know the opinions of those questioned, I also enquired about the criteria influencing store choice, such as price, own-label products and Hungarian ownership. The deep interviews showed the grave effect of the „law of gravitation”, since not only the purchasing habits of those living in Szolnok, but also of those in the agglomeration changed as a result of the opening of a new or another hypermarket, supermarket or discount store. It is obvious that the development of the infrastructure has a greater effect that the natural changes in demand and complex premises have a better chance to win the competition in the area than scattered sites do. Negative attitudes towards chains are insisted on, but they are overwritten by convenience and a presumed lower price. The results of the organizational deep interviews served as a basis to compare them with the results of the representative customer questioning (with a questionnaire) and those of the deep interviews.