Dear Dr. Bronze,
Below you will find the results of my research regarding the
demographics of the stores mentioned in your questions.
======
TARGET
======
?Target's "target" market is a cut above the typical demographics of a
discount department store chain. The median age of a Target shopper is
44 with a household income of $54,000 a year. Four out of every five
patrons is female and a little more than half have completed college.?
Duel: Wal-Mart vs. Target: May 9, 2003
http://www.fool.com/news/commentary/2003/commentary030509ram.htm
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Research shows who shops at Target and Wal-Mart
By Lou Hirsh
?Who shops at the nation?s most prominent discount stores? Target
shoppers have a median age of 44, and a median household income of
$54,000. Target officials say 80 percent of their customers attended
college and 50 percent are college graduates. More than half are
employed in professional or other managerial positions.?
?Eighty percent of Target?s customers are female, and 40 percent have
children at home or in a shopping cart with them in the store.?
The Desert Sun: March 28th, 2004
http://www.thedesertsun.com/news/stories2004/business/20040328005052.shtml
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
?Target's supercenters are placed in large population centers with
upscale demographics. The hope is that loyal Target shoppers will
frequent the new stores on the food side and expand the retailer's
reputation for trendy goods to grocery.?
DSN Retailing Today: May 20, 2002
http://articles.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FNP/is_10_41/ai_86204722
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
?In a poll conducted by CNN/USA Today/Gallup in January, 1,011 adults
were given a choice of Kmart, Wal-Mart and Target. Consumers who
prefer Target do so on a sliding scale upward, depending on their
income. Only 16 percent of those with incomes of $20,000 or less
choose Target, but that climbs to 23 percent for those with incomes of
$20,000 to $29,000, 26 percent for those earning $30,000 to $39,000,
29 percent for $40,000 to $74,000 and 47 percent among those with
annual earnings of $75,000 or more. An expectedly proportionate curve
applies to education levels. Wal-Mart preferences cycle the other way,
with 59 percent of those making less than $20,000 and just 41 percent
of those making $75,000 or more preferring Wal-Mart.?
(..)
?But we also see some of Target's deftly nurtured cred bearing fruit
with a distinct set of consumers. Among the more fashion-inclined
female subset, for example, 33 percent prefer Target, compared with 22
percent of men, who find more lure in Wal-Mart's hardware, home and
sportsman's sections (to the tune of 58 percent, along with 47 percent
of women).?
?And while all age groups choose Wal-Mart, at around a dominant 50
percent rate, note how Target's "edge" has built more affinity with
the younger group: 33 percent of people age 18 to 29 prefer the store,
as do 33 percent of those 30 to 49, 26 percent of those 50 to 64 and
just 18 percent of those 65 or older. Moreover, if we factor out older
females, those over 50, Target's affinity with women climbs to 41
percent, a much narrower gap with Wal-Mart's 47 percent. Indeed, among
the 18- to-49 age group, males selecting Target even climb a couple
points, to 24 percent.?
American Demographics, Nov 1, 2002 by Matthew Grimm
http://articles.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m4021/is_2002_Nov_1/ai_93089469
============
TRADER JOE'S
============
?Scarborough Data, a market research firm, profiles the typical Trader
Joe's shopper as a college-educated, white homeowner with a median age
of 44 and a median household income of $64,000. Almost evenly divided
among married people and singles, females and males, two-thirds have
no kids at home.?
?According to Pat St. John, Trader Joe's vice president for marketing,
the company's target customer is a cost-conscious, health-conscious
label-reader who is not tied to national brand names. Company surveys
have found that many of them are well-traveled and looking to
replicate foods they have enjoyed elsewhere.?
?Anecdotal information gleaned informally from Trader Joe's shoppers
reveals several sometimes overlapping types: There's the frugal foodie
looking for the next new thing; the iconoclast who resents "customer
loyalty cards" and dislikes big-box retailers; the health-conscious,
ecologically sensitive parent seeking organic and pesticide-free
foods, environmentally friendly cleaning supplies and wholesome
snacks; child-free working couples and singles who favor the
convenience foods packaged just right for one or two; and a whole lot
of people who like to indulge in luxuries like flowers, candy, cheese,
wine and Greek yogurt without signing over their paycheck?
Seattle Times
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/food/2001919736_traderjoefix05.html
Check out the Seattle Trader Joe?s Shopper Profile here:
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/ABPub/2001919761.jpg
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
?Trader Joe?s would fill a niche as a retailer of affordable,
specialty foods for all Davis residents.?
?Davis consumers match the demographics of the average TJ?s consumer:
well-educated (> 36,000 residents possess a 4-year college degree),
with a household median income of $50,000 - $70,000?
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/914081037?ts=1085850213&sign[partnerID]=1&sign[memberID]=723811144&sign[partner_userID]=723811144
Trader Joe's targets people with $500,000 homes.
?Company officials said they added another store at the Palms and
Sepulveda intersection because of the dense population of the nearly
$500,000 homes -- demographics Trader Joe's targets.?
http://articles.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m5072/is_43_24/ai_94023380
Trader Joe's targets 'educated' buyer
"Our favorite customers are out-of-work college professors," says Tony
Hales, captain of the store in Silver Lake. "Well-read, well-traveled,
appreciates a good value."
?Members of TJ Culture often share other characteristics. Volvos
abound, as does an ability to tolerate Greenpeace solicitors. There
are no class or racial tendencies, no age limits -- quasi-punks can be
seen hefting cat food into the cart of women bearing an uncanny
resemblance to the late Martha Raye.?
?But these are people who wear sunscreen, even over their tattoos; who
travel on frequent-flier miles and with the Lonely Planet guide rather
than a Frommer's. People who play guitar and pay their taxes. Who
roller-blade or bike to work on the days they're not driving the
minivan. Who dress their kids in tie-dye but have really good car
seats.?
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/137334_traderjoes30.html
=================
Whole Foods Market
=================
?Relative to shoppers in the Grocery channel, Whole Foods demonstrates
much stronger appeal among upper income households. Note that 6 out of
10 Whole Foods' shoppers have incomes of $50k +, and they drive 66% of
trips and 67% of dollar sales to Whole Foods.?
Facts and Figures
http://www.factsfiguresfuture.com/archive/june_2003.htm
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bar Graph ? Whole Food Shoppers
Source ACNielson
http://www.factsfiguresfuture.com/enlarged/Juneniche1.jpg
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
?Whole Foods is a national brand, with stores from Beverly Hills to Boston and
1.5 million shoppers who step through their doors each week -- a market the
company hopes to leverage for its Web business by promoting the site in the
stores.?
(..)
?The demographics of Whole Foods shoppers -- who tend to be affluent and
well-educated -- make them ideal for Internet sales.?
LEXIS-NEXIS® Academic Universe-Document
http://www.utexas.edu/coc/journalism/SOURCE/j331/misc/internet1999/web0320.txt
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
COMPANY: Whole Foods Market, Inc.
?Thus, this target market segment for natural food stores probably has a very
low propensity for substitution. Another category identified by FMI
represents 28 percent of shoppers defined as those who work to change
eating habits promoted by health concerns and interest in self-care.
These individuals that actively seek out health and nutritional
information, are younger to middle aged, and have medium to high
household incomes. Thus, this market segment likely has a higher
propensity to substitute than the segment above, but still is probably
lower than the overall market. In total, the organic segment of the
market should look to capture 39 percent of
consumers in the future.?
Spelman Research
http://www.spelmanresearch.com/reports/35.pdf
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Whole Foods
Median Household Income: $63,554
Median Ag: 36.2
Owner Occupied Homes: 62.40%
Bachelor?s Degree or Higher: 54.97%
http://fisher.osu.edu/~sanders_12/WFtwo.ppt
=========
Wild Oats
=========
?The target audience for the niche: baby boomers who were exposed to
back-to-the-Earth-type goods in the 1960s, as well as people who
increasingly are taking a holistic approach to their health and diet.?
(..)
?Wild Oats had record net sales in the fourth quarter of $253.9
million, up 14.5 percent, at its 102 Wild Oats, Henry's, Sun Harvest
and Capers Community Market stores.?
"For many years, the natural-organic segment was a coastal thing,"
said Todd Hultquist, a spokesman for the Food Marketing Institute, a
grocery trade group. "But in the last 10 years, it has spread across
the country and become very mainstream."
March 21, 2004 http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20040321/news_mz1b21family.html
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
?Tracy Spencer, a spokeswoman for the company, said Wild Oats shoppers
are concerned about health and want the grocer's natural and organic
products, including meats.?
CBC News
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/03/16/health/main606710.shtml
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Wild Oats shoppers are more involved in their shopping decisions and
hungry for information about products and healthy lifestyles," said
Marty Grosjean, VP of Business Strategy for Persona. "Persona's p-CRM
system is the perfect way for Wild Oats Markets to deliver
personalized, customized information to their shoppers, which leads to
even greater customer loyalty and satisfaction."
http://articles.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_2001_August_29/ai_77653686
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
?Wild Oats shoppers are not like the bargain-hunting rabble that buys
its groceries at Furr's, Albertson's, Smith's or Lucky Sav-on.?
?The Wild Oats faithful, enlightened about the social and nutritional
ramifications of what they eat, do not want their cucumbers
irradiated. They worry about whether migrant workers were forced to
spray dangerous pesticides on the fruit they will slice over their
whole-bran, preservative-free breakfast cereal. They want their toilet
paper made from recycled, dioxin-free paper.?
The Albuquerque Tribune
http://www.abqtrib.com/archives/business/033199wildoats.shtml
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wild Oats Markets, Inc.
http://ir.thomsonfn.com/InvestorRelations/PubCorporateOverview.aspx?partner=Mzg0TnpVek9BPT1QJFkEQUALSTO&product=MzgwU1ZJPVAkWQEQUALSTOEQUALSTO
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Natural Foods Supermarket Format
?Target shopper is interested in health and wellness, customer service
and an upscale shopping experience.?
Farmers Market Format
?Target shopper is price conscious and seeks freshness, value and
Authenticity?
Yahoo Finance http://biz.yahoo.com/e/040311/oats10-k.html
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
There is very little demographic information available for the
following chains. I will provide additional information for health
food chains in general below.
=========
Alfalfa?s
=========
Alfalfa's groceries to become Wild Oats
?Alfalfa's grocery stores, a part of Wild Oats Markets Inc. (Nasdaq:
OATS) will change its name to Wild Oats.?
Denver Business Journal
http://denver.bizjournals.com/denver/stories/2001/10/22/daily55.html
?Wild Oats Markets, Inc. (Nasdaq: OATS), a leading national natural
and organic foods retailer, announced today that it has changed the
name of its Alfalfa's Markets stores to Wild Oats Markets.?
http://64.233.161.104/search?q=cache:4fSUQnUC5SsJ:www.findarticles.com/cf_dls/m4PRN/2001_Oct_26/79474450/p1/article.jhtml+Alfalfa%27s+Markets,+Inc.&hl=en
=======================
Sprout?s Farmers Market
=======================
?Sales are up at other local health food stores, reflecting the
industry trend. For instance, revenue is up at Scottsdale-based
Sprouts Farmers Market. The company recently opened a third store in
Glendale and has plans for another 18 local stores in the next two to
three years, said Kevin Easler, Sprouts' vice president of sales and
marketing. Sales volume is spurring the company to build stores as
quickly as possible, he said.?
?The company is tapping the market between a strict health-food
retailer and a conventional grocer, he said.?
http://64.233.161.104/search?q=cache:fAFAWI6nYsYJ:img.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/business/articles/0606coop06.html+%22Sprouts+Farmers+Market%22&hl=en
?Sprouts Farmers Market you will not find supermarket items such as
Coca Cola or Best Foods Mayonnaise, but you will find a large
selection of healthy, unique items. Our large variety of bulk foods
allows our customers the opportunity to buy the exact amount they
desire. Sprouts features all natural beef and chicken with no added
chemicals or artificial ingredients at supermarket prices, specialty
and organic produce from local farmers at great prices, a large health
food selection, beer and wine, and a giant vitamin selection.?
http://www.sprouts.com/
==============================
Health Food Markets in General
==============================
Who is buying?
?According to Linda Wilson, general manager for nutriant, a Cedar
Falls, IA-based division of Kerry Foods Natural-foods consumers tend
to be educated and earn middle- to upper-level incomes, Peterson
notes. Other demographic factors influencing natural purchases are
location and age. These consumers tend to be urban or suburban, almost
never rural, and on average are between the ages of 35 and 55.
Although race may influence purchase decisions to a small extent,
income and education are more indicative of who buys natural foods.?
Food Product Design
http://www.foodproductdesign.com/archive/2002/0302CS.html
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Food and Agricultural Products Center
?Target demographics for health food manufacturers and retailers have
changed dramatically over the past few years, said Chuck Willoughby,
Center business planning and marketing associate. The Natural
Marketing Institute conducts an annual survey of 2,000 U.S.
households, tracking the growth and changes in the natural and health
foods industry. In 1999, the average income of a consumer who shopped
at a health food store such as Whole Foods, or a nutrition supplement
store such as GNC, was $51,000. In the 2002 survey, the average salary
dropped to $47,000. Women constituted 76 percent of the customer base
for these stores in 1999. The 2002 survey showed a five percent drop,
while men made up almost 30 percent of the base. Research has shown
growth in two age groups. These groups include the college age group
through age 30 and baby boomers, Willoughby said. ?Both sets are
strong consumer groups,? Willoughby said. ?The first one is looking
for food purity and environmentally sound products, while the second
is searching for products related to health and wellness.?
Oklahoma State University,
http://www.fapc.okstate.edu/fapcflash/healthfood.pdf
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Specialty Foods' Demographic Factors
?The buyers of specialty foods boast certain demographic traits that
place them apart from the average consumer. The most significant
attributes are household income, education, and the region of the
country where they live. The least important factors include the
presence of children and age.?
http://atn-riae.agr.ca/us/e2779.htm#Specialty%20Foods'%20Demographic%20Factors
Appendix B contains information related to retail specialty food
outlets like Whole Foods and distribution in the Wisconsin market
Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade
http://atn-riae.agr.ca/us/e2779.htm#Specialty%20Foods'%20Demographic%20Factors
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Healthy Lifestyle
?Frequently the consumer of natural products fits a profile that is
described by the acronym LOHAS (Lifestyles of Health and
Sustainability). The natural food consciousness is only one part of a
larger picture. Generally this consumer is more affluent and has more
education than the general populace. According to Natural Business
Online, The LOHAS market comprises five core market
segments-Sustainable Economy, Healthy Lifestyles, Personal
Development, Alternative Healthcare and Ecological Lifestyles.?
(..)
Natural Food Supermarkets:
?The target demographic is the consumer who shops for natural and
organic products exclusively, or predominantly, and allows this
shopper the ability to find the types of products that they seek
quickly and easily. Focusing on the LOHAS lifestyle, a greater
emphasis is placed on products such as environmentally friendly
household products, and these chains often sponsor classes, forums,
and community projects that focus on sustainable lifestyle issues.?
(..)
?The leading natural food supermarket in the tri-state area is Whole
Foods Markets.?
Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade
http://atn-riae.agr.ca/us/3707_e.htm
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Search criteria:
Target demographics for Target Department Stores
Target demographics for health food chains Trader Joe?s
Demographics "target shoppers"
"Trader Joe's shoppers"
"Whole foods shoppers"
"Wild Oats shoppers"
"Sprouts Farmers Market"
Alfalfa?s Demographics
I hope you find this information helpful!
Best regards,
Bobbie7 |
