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Abstract
Food retail in Romania was very dynamic, in the last years. The objective of this research is to identify the main trends of trade with food products. Pursuing this, a documentary study was carried out, analyzing statistical data about values of retail with food and nonfood products, the number of stores, the main retailers who operate in Romania etc. Also, the results of a marketing research about consumers' buying behavior have been discussed. Research findings showed that the value of products sold in retails system increased, as well as the number of stores. Buying frequency, number of stores visited weekly and the budget spent increased in 2014 compared to 2013. This situation creates favorable conditions for developing private brands in food retail.
Keywords
food retail, private brands, buying behaviour
Introduction
This study tries to answer the question: What are the main trends of food retail in Romania? In pursuing this question, statistical data have been gathered and analysed.
Previous studies (Boboc, 2015) show that food retail developed in the last years, creating premises for launching private labels.
Retail is one of the most important stage of agro-food chains. Retailers are playing their role between producers and consumers or between wholesalers and consumers. They are buying products to resell them to their customers in small quantities, to be directly consumed in the shape and characteristics that were produced. Due to the size of their business, purchasing power and strategic position that they have inside the value chain, retailers are considered "filiere's captains", where 'filiere' is the name assigned to full value chain process and its related traceability (Kohls, 1998).
Thus, we come to the conclusion that they are deciding on important aspects: quantity, quality and services of full 'filiere' process.
Being directly and permanently in contact with end consumers, this strategic position offers retailers needed control over one of most important marketing tool: shelf allocation, layout and shelf space dedicated to goods in their shelves, vital characteristics for business success to agrarian producers, processors or wholesalers.
Specifically due to this strategic position as 'filiere' coordinator, owned in the past by processors (Manole, 2003), but earned in the last years by retailers, was possible the launch and development of own brands. This strategic position...