Stores face new challenge

At a seminar yesterday titled "Inside the Mind of the Shopper", hosted by Herb Sorensen, global scientific director at TNS Shopper Insights, the audience heard that today's shoppers are in a big hurry. They now spend less time shopping but do so with grater frequency.

"Shoppers also don't plan as much, as they go to the store all the time," said Sorensen.

He said in the US, the number of actual transactions was 1.8 times smaller than the number of people in a store, while in Asia, including Thailand, the number of transactions was at least three times smaller than the number of visitors. A large number of people who go to the store with their families do so to entertain themselves and gain retail experience.

"This has been recognised as a new challenge for all retailers, who need to convert people in their store into purchasers," said Sorensen.

He said retailers had to assume these people in the store are shoppers and connect them with the products they want to buy. They need to convince shoppers to make the purchase and then close the sale.

"Retailing is cutting-edge social evolution. It always has been and will be seen as fulfilling human needs and desires," said Sorensen.

Sorensen said retailers also had to focus on quick-trip shoppers and the few products that sell the best. They should also focus on where the shoppers are spending their time.

Meanwhile, Kittipong Veerataecha, vice president and director of idea strategies and brand consulting at Energy, a division of the WPP Group's Young & Rubicam Brands, said a company study showed today's consumers had changed their shopping habits in line with the economic recession.

The survey - "Y&Reflector 2009" - was conducted between February and April and shows about 79 per cent of Bangkok consumers have changed their shopping habits in this way. However, they maintain loyalty to those brands that have served them well but buy them less frequently. Some of them purchase items in smaller amounts than before. This change has been particularly evident in working adults aged 30-39 with modest salaries.

Amid the ongoing economic turmoil, consumers are still willing to pay for products that can cater to their needs in terms of design and impressive service. Students are the group least affected by the economic downturn.