LAS VEGAS — More than half of U.S. consumers say they are likely to shop elsewhere if they notice that a store is reducing selection, according to a Nielsen Co. study unveiled at the Consumer 360 Conference here Tuesday. The survey underscores risks to companies that reduce selections as part of the trend toward assortment rationalization, Nielsen noted.
“[T]he message to retailers is to choose carefully when it comes to deciding which products to trim,” Stuart Taylor, vice president of custom analytics for Nielsen said in a statement. “In many cases, strategically reducing assortment can result in an improved customer experience and greater profitability. Cut the wrong product, however, and the potential customer backlash could be costly.”
The survey said 7.2% of shoppers for personal care items would leave the store without purchasing any products if faced with a shelf that doesn’t contain the item they want. Shoppers would exhibit the same behavior in categories for household goods (5.7%), dry goods (4.7%), frozen food (4.4%), beverage (4.0%), dairy (3.9%) and snacks (3.3%).
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