Assignment 1 – 2nd Article According to Martinez and Kaufman’s “Twenty Years of Competition Reshape the U.S. Food Marketing System,” the food market is becoming increasingly competitive. Over the last 20 years there have been tremendous changes in the way food is bought in the retail market. Consumers are looking for value and differentiation and the retailers are working hard to follow. Traditional grocery stores have fallen by the wayside as supercenters and specialty food stores grow. They are increasingly looking for ways to differentiate themselves from the rest of the competition. Oftentimes, the supercenters are able to offer lower prices on food while offering a sizeable selection of other goods that food-only grocery stores find it hard to compete with. Some of these changes have come by mergers and the ability to purchase more for less and changing their appeal in the market. These stores have implemented new technologies such as self-checkouts and biometric technology that allows people to pay at the checkout with a scan of their finger to sway the consumer with convenience. Grocery stores are also differentiating themselves by touting their store brands, as premium goods as opposed to the well know value brands. They are changing their layouts and up scaling their stores to meet customers demands for a reason to enter their retail dwellings. Some groceries are offering even more convenience with the addition of specialty offerings such as Starbucks and fast food restaurants. Non-food retail stores are upping the ante by offering everyday convenience foods in their stores. Drug stores and dollar stores are offering most of the fundamentals of a person’s kitchen in their retail establishments. Grocery items can even be found in the local gas station. These store ad yet another player in the food market. Other competitors in the food market are targeting yet another audience. Some consumers are not after the
Assignment 1 – 2nd Article According to Martinez and Kaufman’s “Twenty Years of Competition Reshape the U.S. Food Marketing System,” the food market is becoming increasingly competitive. Over the last 20 years there have been tremendous changes in the way food is bought in the retail market. Consumers are looking for value and differentiation and the retailers are working hard to follow. Traditional grocery stores have fallen by the wayside as supercenters and specialty food stores grow. They are increasingly looking for ways to differentiate themselves from the rest of the competition. Oftentimes, the supercenters are able to offer lower prices on food while offering a sizeable selection of other goods that food-only grocery stores find it hard to compete with. Some of these changes have come by mergers and the ability to purchase more for less and changing their appeal in the market. These stores have implemented new technologies such as self-checkouts and biometric technology that allows people to pay at the checkout with a scan of their finger to sway the consumer with convenience. Grocery stores are also differentiating themselves by touting their store brands, as premium goods as opposed to the well know value brands. They are changing their layouts and up scaling their stores to meet customers demands for a reason to enter their retail dwellings. Some groceries are offering even more convenience with the addition of specialty offerings such as Starbucks and fast food restaurants. Non-food retail stores are upping the ante by offering everyday convenience foods in their stores. Drug stores and dollar stores are offering most of the fundamentals of a person’s kitchen in their retail establishments. Grocery items can even be found in the local gas station. These store ad yet another player in the food market. Other competitors in the food market are targeting yet another audience. Some consumers are not after the