Consumer Attitudes & Behavior

Washington, D.C. -- Retailers and consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies are increasingly using technology to better connect with customers and drive profits, according to a new study from the Grocery Manufacturers Association and PwC US.

Results of “Growth Strategies: Unlocking the Power of the Consumer” indicate that despite generally slowing retail net sales growth in 2012, food, beverage and household products companies experienced positive net sales growth of 7%t, 5.5% and 3.2%, respectively.

Los Angeles -- Regency Centers Corp. has broken ground on Juanita Tate Marketplace, a $21 million grocery-anchored shopping center in underserved South Central Los Angeles.

Anchors include a 42,500-sq.-ft. Northgate Gonzalez Market and a 14,576-sq.-ft. CVS/pharmacy. The remaining space will include small shops, quick-service restaurants and a 1050-sq.-ft. educational community center operated by Concerned Citizens of South Central Los Angeles, a community revitalization group once led by Juanita Tate, who died in 2004.

Vancouver, B.C. -- Slow websites are a deterrent for customers using mobile devices, including smartphones and tablets, according to a report from mobile technology Mobify, which reveals the financial impact of slow loading mobile websites for the world's top 100 online retailers.

Oklahoma City -- The vast majority (91.4%) of American consumers plan to give up to three retail gift cards as gifts over the next three months, according to survey results released Tuesday by the Retail Gift Card Association.

However, the survey also found that consumers will continue to keep their wallets tight - only 30.6% of respondents would purchase something they would not normally buy. The rest, 69.4%, said they would spend the gift card on something they needed, or put it toward a larger purchase.

Marlborough, Mass. – According to the latest edition of the seasonal “The Why Behind the Buy” report from Acosta Sales & Marketing, consumers are increasing their usage of every digital tool except for email in their shopping activities. Concurrently, consumers are using traditional tools such as coupons and store flyers less frequently.

Specific results include:

New York – Improvements in real home prices, initial unemployment claims and real wages drove an increase in the Deloitte Consumer Spending Index last month. The Index, which comprises four components of tax burden, initial unemployment claims, real wages and real home prices, rose slightly in May to 4.27 from a reading of 4.12 the previous month.

Cincinnati -- Retail loyalty programs have seen some impressive growth since 2011, according to results of the latest Colloquy Loyalty Census. In 2013, department stores achieved 70% growth in loyalty program memberships since the 2011 Colloquy Census, far surpassing the 26.7% rate of growth in loyalty programs across all sectors tabulated in the 2013 census. The number of department store loyalty memberships is 193.9 million.

New York -- Sixty-percent of retailers have energy management systems within their site portfolios, but only 46% have a formal energy management strategy in place.
 
Those are among the findings of a survey conducted by Ecova, a total energy and sustainability management company. In other survey findings, 44% of the respondents said they currently benchmark their portfolio or sites, and 21% have applied for the Energy Star label for their portfolio.