Based on purchase data, doctors and pharmacists are 18% more likely to buy private-label versions of basic pain killers (like aspirin) than other shoppers. Nearly 90% of headache medicine bought by pharmacists is private label (vs. 71% for everyone else).
Chefs behave similiarly. They’re 13% more likely to buy private label flour and sugar than the general population.
Why? The theory is that these professionals are less subject to the allure of a name brand when they know the active ingredients of the products are identical.
Researchers at Chicago Booth have calculated that increasing shopper knowledge could reduce grocery and CPG spending by over a billion dollars. And with the entire internet in most peoples’ pockets, shopper knowledge will continue to rise.
These findings are part of a new raft of research coming out of Chicago Booth School of Business and allied academics, who have recently been given access to a treasure trove of longitudinal Nielsen data. It’s fun to see what academics are finding.
Photo: Ethan Decker
