Which products? To what extent? Where and when to buy? Consumers determine their shopping style and the amount they save on household expenses by responding to these questions. There is a lot of price variation for a product, depending on the brand, supplier store, packaging size, and even the time of purchase. This article points out some ways to buy household necessities that lead to cost savings.
Products are sometimes auctioned off, including temporary price reductions, allowing the consumer to save more for future use by buying more of the product at that time. The number of households purchasing at auction time can be interpreted from some of their demographic characteristics. For example, studies show that households with children or more family members are more likely to purchase their needed items when auctioned.
On the other hand, low-income households have the lowest purchases at auction, and middle-income families make the most purchases. A possible explanation for this could be that lower socio-economic households have less flexibility in terms of “warehousing,” “transportation,” and “liquidity” to use the benefits of buying at auction. On the other hand, households with a higher socio-economic class gain less marginal advantage from this type of purchase and have more free time, so they do not make an encouraging and practical profit.
Many groceries are non-linearly priced, meaning that larger packages are priced higher and at the same time have a lower unit price. The relationship between buying products in large sizes and the socio-economic class of households is the same as buying at an auction.
In both types of product purchases, both large and auction, the purchase amount will be more than needed. By changing lifestyle and life speed and the emergence of chain stores globally, this shopping method is increasing these days. However, the following cases as well must be considered in this type of shopping:
- Transportation costs
- Cost and storage space
- The using amount and the product’s price in the future
- Decreasing quality of the product during storage
One of the significant benefits of buying items in bulk is that in addition to directly saving on product costs, it saves time and energy in stores or reduces the fuel consumption of transportation, which also indirectly saves on costs. Bulk purchases, whether on using larger product sizes or products without brand or in bulk, reduce the use of mostly plastic packaging and significantly contribute to the environment.
On the other hand, its disadvantages include over-purchasing. Although the cost price of goods is lower than the retail price, ensuring the purchased amount consumption before the expiration date or corruption and having enough space for storing the products is needed. Otherwise, people will not benefit from this deal. From this point of view, it is more reasonable to buy bulk or whole products such as detergents that have easier storage conditions and longer expiration dates.
Many items are sold as non-branded goods or in the name of their supplier store, which is cheaper than the branded sample. Research shows that when the economic conditions of society become more complicated, the use of these products becomes more common. The products that retailers offer under their brand are generally cheaper than the original brands. Many retailers even offer economical versions of these products, which are still more affordable than the previous version, provided to a more price-sensitive community. They generally have less attractive packaging and less quality.
According to extensive research conducted mainly on food products in the United Kingdom, the potential savings considering the product prices are more significant in the following ways, respectively:
- In the economic version of the product offered by retailers under branded goods or in the name of the store that supplies them
- Buying the product in larger sizes
- Standard version of the offered product by retailers under branded goods or in the name of their supplier store
- Purchasing the product during the auction period
Only several shopping methods that benefit consumers are discussed in this article. A detailed study of shopping behavior and consumer preferences can be provided to maximize consumer satisfaction and profit and producer’s sale. Rahbar Bazaar is with you on this path.
