2024-02-15 18:23:54
We already knew that the increases in grocery stores had changed the behavior of many customers, who have, for example, changed the way they consume, or pay more attention to flyers, but some changes are more radical than that.
• Read also: “I come twice a week instead of once”: Quebecers spend more time at the grocery store to find discounts
A recent Dalhousie University survey indicates, for example, that 62% of customers have changed their main store, while 56% will choose their grocery store based on discounts, and 59% look for foods on discounts.
A major change is that people are spending more time in grocery stores than before.
“We have had data since 2018, and we noticed that people visit the grocery store much more often than before; the frequency rate increased by 32%,” explains Sylvain Charlebois, agri-food industry specialist at Dalhousie University, in an interview on the “Mario Dumont” show.
A practice to adopt?
Customers therefore choose to go to the grocery store twice a week rather than once.
Sylvain indicates that it is better to increase the number of stores rather than going several times in a single week to the same store, since the discounts generally vary weekly.
Mr. Charlebois also advises going to different stores such as a discount banner, a conventional supermarket and a specialty store, especially for fruits and vegetables.
Host Mario Dumont wonders whether the strategy of spending more time in grocery stores does not also increase our chances of purchasing unforeseen items that we would otherwise have done without.
“The agri-food industry makes its money by depending on our impulses, that’s clear,” agrees Mr. Charlebois first, who however qualifies this reality by indicating that this is less and less the case.
“People are going to be much more strategic about store choice; for example, we will go to one place for our fruits and vegetables, we will go to another place for meat,” he explains.
Customers are therefore ready to go to more grocery stores and businesses in order to ensure the best prices.
Exponential reflation
Mr. Charlebois also believes that grocery store customers are much more disciplined than before, and are no longer easily tempted by products displayed at the checkout, such as chocolate or chewing gum.
“Items at checkout have increased in price; people are noticing it… and what’s more, these are products that have been reduced exponentially… the quantities have been reduced,” warns the expert.
Mario Dumont did not hesitate to add: “Bags of chips are no good! At some point we will wake up and the bag will be empty, we will buy air, we will buy a baloon,” warns the host.
Specialty stores
Sylvain Charlebois strongly recommends that people who want to save money on their fruits and vegetables pay attention to specialty stores, which are also very numerous in Montreal.
“There are a lot of small independent stores that offer very good prices because that’s what they do, they sell fruits and vegetables,” he says.
Even if its purchasing volume is much lower than the big banners, any small business – even with wooden boxes and an aged facade – is likely to offer better prices than its larger competitors.
“The independent will maintain very close relationships with certain suppliers,” explains Mr. Charlebois.
To find out everything about the best ways to save on your grocery bill, listen to the advice and explanations from Sylvain Charlebois in the video at the beginning of the article.
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