Recreational Shopping Report, 2006

Consumer Insights Study of the Recreational Shopper, Their Demographics, Their Shopping Choices and Their Motivations to Shop

Dynamic changes of paradigm shifting proportions are coming to retail. Shoppers are abandoning old patterns of shopping and turning away from favored retailers from the past. Rather than looking on shopping as just another task that has to be done, more shoppers today view shopping as recreation and entertainment. Today shopping is shifting toward an experience that people pursue for fun, recreation and adventure, as well as a way to buy more stuff.

This new report from Unity Marketing examines in depth the newly emerging recreational shopper — who they are, and surprise both men and women shop for fun; how they shop; where they choose to shop and who their favorite retailers for recreational shopping are; and most importantly, their drives, motivations and passions that incline them to look at shopping as fun.

Much of the future success of the entire U.S. economy depends on how well retailers anticipate and prepare for the shifts, turns and changing demands of the shopper in the future. In 2004 consumers’ personal consumption expenditures accounted for 70 percent of the entire $11.735 trillion U.S. economy. The amount shoppers spent at retail was $3.9 trillion, making retail one of the largest industries in the entire U.S. economy.

This report provides essential insights for companies that need to understand the shoppers’ mindset

Unity Marketing is at the forefront of research-based consumer insights for marketers that need to understand the mindset of the shopper. Its president and founder, author of Why People Buy Things They Don’t Need and Let Them Eat Cake: Marketing Luxury to the Masses — as well as the Classes, has conducted this new research study on the recreational shopper to help marketers and retailers understand the shopper better, why they shop, what they shop for and what makes for a truly unique, compelling and fun shopping experience.

The research results reported in this new study include insights from a series of focus groups among high-income women who love to shop. Also included is a section devoted to a discussion group among owners of specialty retail stores, including a florist, gift shop owner, fashion boutique, toy store, hobby shop, t-shirt retailer and home furnishings specialty store, to gain insights into their challenges in the face of increased retail consolidation.

The heart of the research study, however, is a survey among 1,250 upper-income shoppers (aged 25-to-65 years; average household income $111,800; 65 percent female and 35 percent male). The survey examines two key segments in the shopper sample: the majority (70 percent) who view shopping as entertainment, called the recreational shopper segment, and roughly 30 percent of non-recreational shoppers who provide perspective on what makes the recreational shopper truly distinctive. The results of the survey are analyzed from several key segmentation strategies, including gender; income ($50k-$74.9k; $75k-$99.9k; $100k-$149k; $150k + above); generations (Millennials; GenXers; Boomers; Swing); age (25-34, 35-44, 45-54, 55-64 years) and recreational shopper/non-recreational shopper segments.

Details about shopping gathered in the survey include:

Necessities shopping ( i.e. shopping for basic household necessities such as food, clothing, household cleaning, prescription drugs, etc.)

• Whether they are the family’s primary shopper for necessities
• How often they shop for necessities
• What types of stores they frequent (12 types of stores are included, see methodology for details) and which store they shop at most often for necessities
• Attributes that they find most important about choosing a shopping destination for necessities shopping (20 attributes are measured, see methodology for details)
• How much they spend shopping for necessities

Recreational shopping

• How often they shop recreationally
• What types of stores they frequent for recreational shopping (21 types of stores are included, see methodology for details) and their favorite store for shopping fun
• Attributes that they find most important about choosing a store for recreational shopping, i.e. what features they value most in a store where they shop for fun (20 attributes are measured, see methodology for details)
• How much they spend monthly shopping for recreation
• What categories of goods they buy for fun, including home furnishings, entertainment and recreational products, personal fashion and clothing and other goods (31 product categories included, see methodology for details)
• How frequently they recreationally shop for practical things for their home, decorative things for their home, things for recreation and entertainment, things for oneself, things for hobbies
• Whether they get the most fun out of browsing, buying, exploring, bargain shopping
• What types of shopping destinations they favor, such as enclosed malls, strip centers, downtown shopping areas, open air lifestyle centers, tourist/vacation shopping, historic shopping, freestanding stores, artistic/bohemian shopping, and luxury shopping districts
• How they define shopping, such as Shopping is…Fun; Exciting; a Mission; Something that has to be done; etc. (see methodology for details)
• Attitudes and motivations that drive the shopper when they shop, including 25 attitude statements (see methodology for details)

Special feature: Profile of five different personalities of the recreational shopper

A special feature included in Recreational Shopping Report 2006 is a psychographic profile of five key personality types of recreational shoppers. These include:

• Therapeutic Shopper who shops as a form of therapy and an escape from everyday life who likes to browse almost as much as buy. The Therapeutic shopper is the second most active recreational shopper personality.
  
• Uber Shopper, the most highly involved shopper, this personality shops more, spends more and gets the greatest enjoyment out of the shopping experience. Yet while she spends more, she is also an active bargain shopper.
  
• Discerning Shopper who carefully researches purchases, shops around and comparison shops before making purchases. This personality is the least impulsive shopper.
  
• Bargain Hunter, the quintessential discount bargain shopper. This recreational shopper always goes for the bargains and rarely pays full price, since she doesn’t have to. She knows where the discounts can be found and is continually on the hunt for good deals.
  
• Reluctant Shopper, while this shopper like all the other personalities finds shopping a source of entertainment, this shopper personality segment, made up of more men than women, has to be coaxed out into the stores. Yet when he gets there, he gets into the swing of the shopping experience. He spends the least amount of money shopping for fun and recreationally shops less often than the other personalities.

Written for anyone and everyone that needs to understand today’s shopper, this report is an essential tool to understand the dynamics of the retail market, today and into the future.

(January 2006, 175+ pages)

Published Price: $2,500

Major Findings

Table of Contents (PDF)

Methodology & Survey (PDF)

Sample Page (PDF)

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Executive Presentation and Leave-Behind Report