Evansville, Ind., study shows importance of retailer image. (shopping habits study conducted by WSL Marketing)(Alliance for Opportunity)

Evansville, Ind., study shows importance of retailer image

NEW YORK - In the crowded retail marketplace of the 1990s, one that has seen an increasing duplication of the merchandise mix from one retailer to another, the store has become the brand for the American consumer. Thus, the single biggest determinant of where a consumer shops is not the products she wants to buy but her perception of the retailer selling those products. Indeed, in the current economic climate, the consumer's perception of the retailer and what that retailer stands for has become the single biggest reason for selecting a particular store to shop. So reveals a just-completed shopping habits study conducted by WSL Marketing, a New York City-based marketing consulting firm.

The survey was conducted over a two-week period in February and March in Evansville, Ind., a market chosen because its economy has been sluggish for some time and its array of mass market retailers is as complete and as representative as exists in any U.S. city.

Among the key findings in the WSL survey: * Conventional supermarkets in Evansville were shopped more heavily …