CONSUMERS MORE WORRIED ABOUT RUNNING OUT OF CIGARETTES THAN SOAP

CONSUMERS MORE WORRIED ABOUT RUNNING OUT OF CIGARETTES THAN SOAP
Prescient’s Beeline ProductsTM Study Shows Which Items Send Shoppers Dashing to the Store

WEST CHESTER, Pa.—

Got Milk? If you don’t, a new survey of Beeline ProductsTM—items you rush to replenish the moment they run out—says you can’t go another moment without it. Milk (number one by a more than 100 percent margin) tops the list of products that have consumers making a Beeline to the grocer, followed immediately by bread (2) and toilet paper (3).

The remaining top 10, in order: medicine (4), toothpaste (5), eggs (6), coffee (7), meat (8), fruit (9) and cigarettes (10). See attached for the complete list of Beeline Products.

Today’s Buzzzy Consumer Creates New Category: Beeline ProductsTM

This first-ever, national survey of Beeline Products was commissioned by Prescient, a leading provider of supply chain and advanced commerce solutions for retailers and suppliers. Prescient's new Consumer ZOOM Demand NetworkTM uniquely positions the shopper at the center of the retail transaction. Retailers and suppliers get a transparent view of the consumer and are consequently able to monitor their transactions, anticipate their demands and ultimately win their loyalty.

More than 1,000 consumers, age 18 or older, were interviewed for this survey with both sexes equally represented.

The fact that cigarettes made the top 10 may be an indication that some habits are hard to break. While other Beeline Products rounding out the top 10 suggest that consumers’ morning routines—eggs, toast and coffee—are sacrosanct. Then they brush their teeth and head out the door.

“We’ll chalk up the fact that consumers rush to buy pet food before baby food to the likelihood that more people have pets than infants … I hope,” said Jane Hoffer, president and CEO of Prescient. Baby food did not make the top 25 Beeline Products.

Indeed, the U.S. Department of Agriculture should be pleased: Its food pyramid is well represented. All five food groups, with the exception of the recent addition of “oil,” were named in the top 16 products for which consumers make a Beeline.

Bottled water, a relatively contemporary notion, tied with soda (11). Soap (13) and deodorant (17) still bested beer (23), which was immediately followed by aspirin/pain reliever (24)—a succession that seems oddly coincidental and somehow related.


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One in Five Have Worn Their Jammies Shopping

Approximately one in five consumers who participated in the Beeline Survey admits to wearing their jammies to the store. Seems when you’re making a Beeline, you don’t worry about appearances.

More women than men have worn their pajamas to the grocery store, by a margin of four percent.

When Grocers Run Out, So Do Their Customers

Grocers may want the good news first: Only one in 10 consumers who participated in the Beeline Survey admit to “pitching a fit” when the store is sold out of an item they need.

More men than women have thrown a fit in the grocery store by a small margin of two percent.

Here’s the bad news—nearly half of all shoppers, 49 percent, are likely to try a different grocery store next time. Therefore, grocers risk losing half of their customers on out-of-stocks alone. Make no mistake. Even if there is an existing loyalty to a destination, one unsuccessful shopping trip can have even the most loyal customers making a Beeline to the competition next time.

Men and women are equally likely, within two percentage points, to abandon that store next time. So much for the fairer sex.

Customers Can’t Afford the Time … or the Gas

“Today’s busy consumers simply don’t have extra time to make a second stop,” said Hoffer. “So stores that aggressively provide for this emerging product category of intense demand—the Beeline Products—have a better shot at keeping their customers coming back.”

With gas prices approaching the three dollar mark and expected to keep going up this summer people are going to be looking for ways to save at the pump. Having to make several trips to the store for Beeline Products is not going to help, and that could lead to a backlash against retailers.

“Bottom line,” added Hoffer, “when customers make a Beeline to find an empty shelf … it’s the grocer who’s going to get stung.”


About Prescient

Prescient, founded in 1985 (OTCBB: PPID), is a leading provider of supply chain and advanced commerce solutions for retailers and suppliers. Prescient’s solutions capture information at the point of sale, provide greater visibility into real-time demand and turn data into actionable information across the entire supply chain. As a result, the Company’s products and services enable trading partners to compete effectively, increase profitability and excel in today’s retail business climate. Household brand names like Ahold, AutoZone, Coors, Domino’s Pizza, Rite Aid, Sara Lee, Schwan’s and Wyeth rely on Prescient. For more information, go to www.prescient.com.


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Available for Interviews: Jane Hoffer, president & CEO, Prescient