Food store loyalty: Application of a consumer loyalty framework

Abstract

In the intensely competitive food industry, increasing and sustaining repeat buying behaviour among store customers can significantly increase profits. Studies have analysed store loyalty, but no published studies have asked shoppers to define store loyalty; the authors conducted six focus group interviews with consumers in a mid-western US city, in which they investigated respondent likes and dislikes of a preferred food store and consumers' own definition of store loyalty. Participants' repeat buying behaviour was linked to multiple characteristics defining a shopping environment (eg promotion, low prices). Within the context of a customer loyalty framework, participants matched the description of spuriously loyal: high repeat patronage, but low relative attitude towards preferred stores. The results have specific implications for more profitable food store management and for further useful research on customer loyalty.