Consumer Shopping Strategies and Prices Paid in Retail Food Markets

摘要

We examine price search in retail food markets. Previous studies have concentrated on one aspect of search, shopping at multiple stores. We expand this by examining several strategies used to find low prices, including buying on sale and concentrating purchases at a store with low average prices. Using scanner data from 38 markets, we find that the effect of factors motivating search vary by the type of search strategy considered. We also find evidence that financial savings is not the only motivation for search. In particular, transaction utility, in which the value of a purchase depends on price paid relative to a reference price, may also play a role.