Q&A: Hartman Research Says Retailers Adding Convenience Food Better Check Consumer Definition

Retailers across the spectrum are trying to make getting a meal on the table easier for consumers but complicating that attempt is the reality that convenience means different things to different people, according to a study by The Hartman Group.

The study determined that 66 percent of consumers shopping for food and beverages will say convenience is very if not extremely important. Only 34 percent feel as strongly about brand name, while the proportion of those who are focused on price is only seven points higher at 73 percent despite the recession.

In breaking out what convenience means to consumers in dollars and cents terms, Hartman found that 23 percent of consumers wouldn’t pay anything extra for convenience food but 20 percent would pay up to five percent extra and 30 percent would be willing to pay as much as 10 percent extra.

Yet, consumers weigh other factors as well, including time and quality. Some consumers like mixing food and merchandise shopping trips, yet many make different choices, particularly when they focus primarily on food, and apply a new set of convenience standards.

Laurie Demeritt, president of The Harman Group, points out, though, that developing a convenience food program should consider how consumers shop and what they are thinking about when they apply the term.

Bnet: Your research seems to indicate that convenience means different things to consumers but what factors prompt them to visit a certain retailer or favor a certain product?

Demeritt: We believe there are two basic kinds of convenience. The classic kind, which is oriented to yesterday’s established foods made quick and easy to eat. Certain channels, mass discounters, convenience stores and mainstream grocery stores, are associated loosely with this kind of food, but consumers will tell you they can find “complete meals” in almost every channel. The emerging form of convenience — re-imagined convenience — is one that consumers are likely to seek out at channels with a brand image strongly rooted in a passion for food. When consumers want help with restaurant quality food preparation, they are more likely to head to specialty retailers today if they are in their local market.

Bnet: Has one-stop shopping, particularly as defined by Wal-Mart supercenters, had an impact on how consumers think about convenience?

Demeritt: Despite the lip-service consumers give to one-stop shopping, the evidence strongly suggests that very few Americans engage in it to get their weekly food needs met. Most consumers visit at least two different kinds of stores for different kinds of products, for example, they buy all packaged foods at the mass discounter and all fresh foods at the grocery store. Multi-channel shopping has grown during the recession in the hunt for good deals, bucking one element of convenience that mainstream grocers used to count on.

Bnet: Other shopping formats have arisen that use convenience in their selling proposition, including small, quick-in-and-out stores such as Tesco’s Fresh & Easy and Wal-Mart’s own Marketside, to stock up formats such as Costco where shoppers can take care of their month’s commodity needs in a single visit to Amazon.com that permit consumers to shop from home, but does consumer perception of convenience favor certain approaches over others right now?

Demeritt: Empirical evidence suggests Americans are into inconvenient shopping routines because of their concerns of maximizing discounts on low stakes categories — snack food at Costco — and maximizing quality on higher stakes categories — fresh produce at Whole Foods Market.

Bnet: In what ways might the recession be affecting perceptions of convenience — or perhaps acceptable convenience — and will consumers definitions change in a manner that will have an impact in the recovery and beyond?

Demeritt: We know that consumers are eating more at home and cutting back on restaurant visits. They are experiencing some relative deprivation in terms of enjoying restaurant quality food. The recession has strengthened the unmet need for convenient ways to cook restaurant quality food at home. Complete meals that you heat and serve do not count for consumers, because if there is no cooking, it’s not restaurant quality, no matter what the marketing copy says. So, re-imagined convenience is actually more relevant to consumer packaged goods marketers and retailers of food during the recession than before it. Consumers need help in terms of products that remove the most technically challenging parts of restaurant quality cooking, especially sauces, glazes, etc.