Consumer Behavior – Case Study

Answer 1:-

Main constraints faced by residents of Barimore are that there are only a few local shops in the locality
and are primarily not food retailers, they have poor range of food products and of low quality at a higher
price. The supermarkets and food retailers nearby have closed due to high competition from major
supermarkets but none of the new supermarkets have opened close to Barimore making it a deprived
place for shoppers.
Many people travel to major supermarkets such as Asda or Tesco and have range of goods available to
them at best value. Residents struggle to go home on trips of bus or take a lift home from someone they
know. It is a necessity and unavoidable as shoppers may pick small amounts of groceries so that they are
able to carry they home by travelling on buses.
As many residents are of lower-income groups such as unemployed or have a lower social class do not
have the luxury of travelling to supermarkets in cars. They buy groceries and do shopping from local
stores and have lesser choices as they are constrained from travelling far off and have lack of resources,
these people buy in bulk as shopping is expensive and has low mobility and carry lesser bags as they have
to travel in buses and commute through walking and public transportation.

Answer 2:-

Small local supermarkets and independent retailers are on a close proximity of 1.5 km that is a walk able
distance for healthy and fit consumers where as consumers with limited mobility have to take bus
journeys. Bus services are reliable but are expensive and residents have difficulties in carrying huge
amounts of shopping bags home from bus rides, people with disabilities and elders, those with large
families and small children also face similar difficulties. Due to this residents have poor access to grocery
stores and have constraints in purchasing groceries for their families. People with car convenience and
commute ease can visit independent and major supermarkets where they get good range of goods at best
value for money and this may sometimes be expensive but is a necessity. These people may sometimes
top up and visit local stores as well where they can undertake more shopping tasks and pick up other
groceries as well. Some residents spend money and have a big shopping when their incomes arrives and
as it starts to run out they spend small amounts until next pay day arrives.
Shoppers who are restricted and mainly deprived of shopping choices are typical in this community; this
may include disabled, elderly, with young children and families or lower income groups, this may also
include shoppers who once had better facilities related to shopping in the past. These shoppers are
dissatisfied and have less value available for the money they spend. They have less mobility and face
constraint in shopping.

Answer 3:-
Consumers who face shopping constraints most severely are older residents, disabled, family with
children and big families, consumers who face mobility issues and cannot commute to far off distances
are the most affected. These consumers are more dissatisfied and irritated as they have shopping
constraints and face severe mobility problems. They have poor value for money as local retailers do not
have high quality and range of products and these consumers have to shop from local retailers only due to
lack of resources, they may be consumers who had better shopping facilities available in the past and now
face issues. These consumers may not be able to carry many bags and groceries all at once and in bulk
and have no or low access to shopping outside the local retailers.

Answer 4:-

The Government or housing estate should take initiatives to develop better shopping experiences for
residents of the locality. They can support entrepreneurs and retailers who want to open shops and grocery
markets in the locality by supporting them and saving them from competitions by big supermarkets and
marts. Government should initiate policies that preserve local retailers and create advantage for them over
international competitors. Community centre’s and town shops should be opened so that communities
have opportunities to socialize and have an interaction with neighbors while going for shopping. Small
business owners when given opportunities tend to create good competition by providing good prices and
good quality products to their customers. Food vendors and local farmers can put up small shops with
range of groceries so that they are supported and customers can shop from local vendors at reasonable
prices. As local vendors have an understanding of their surrounding and taste and preferences of their
neighbors they can assist in providing good service and better products as per the likes of the residents.
Public transportation prices can be reduced for the convenience of residents and so that they can easily
commute through public transport.
Individuals can improve their situations by developing social initiatives such as locally helping out
deprived customers by understanding their needs and by helping and providing charity. Local boards and
social media pages can be created so that people who have lesser opportunities can inform others who
have better facilities can bring groceries for their neighbors who do not have resources to commute often.
Residents with cars and other resources can share and take neighbors along with them who do not have
these facilities so that they can have equal opportunities to shop.