Supermarket UK is an industry-wide series of studies into the changing values and behaviours of shoppers to the big six supermarkets – Tesco, Asda, Waitrose, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and Co-Op. It will investigate the effect of societal changes - including the economy, new technologies and social media - on supermarket consumer behaviour, and examine trends for the future. This is the first in a series of research studies, which will culminate with an indepth report in 2012.

1. Supermarkets UK:
The Changing Values of UK Consumers

2. In a tough trading environment the ‘Big 6’
supermarkets are fighting over price and
quality
Mixed financial results
• Britain’s biggest retailer, Tesco, announced in early October one of its worst
sales performances in its UK stores for twenty years
• In contrast, Sainsbury’s reported on the same day that its like for like sales
were up 1.9% in the last quarter
• Morrisons has recently reported a 2.4% increase in Q3 sales, after stripping
out the impact of petrol sales
Value, quality or both?
• A week prior to the release of its sales performance , Tesco announced that it
was launching its £500m ‘Big Price Drop’ campaign.
• Sainsbury’s has launched it’s Live Well for Less campaign, focusing on price
and quality
• Even upmarket supermarket Waitrose with a reputation for quality has
announced that it will seek to improve on price. This includes a price match
Tesco on more than 1000 products, and the Essentials range.
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3. UK shoppers are increasingly motivated by
community and pleasure
• In an economic downturn, shoppers clearly want competitive prices and
quality
• Yet Starcom MediaVest Group research using our proprietary research
application ‘SpaceID’ shows that other factors are important to regular
shoppers, namely Community and Pleasure
• With all supermarkets focused on price, there is less to differentiate them.
Community and Pleasure are the new battlegrounds for supermarkets.
• Community means the importance to people of their local neighbourhood
communities, but it also means the importance to people of their networks of
friends and family
• Of course, quality is an important element of Pleasure. But Pleasure is also
about self-gratification, enjoyment of life, fun, even of the shopping
experience. Amid an economic downturn with all its doom and gloom, people
want to enjoy themselves.
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4. SpaceID measures the
value ‘space’ brands
occupy in the minds of
consumers
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5. SpaceID shows how supermarkets can
protect their customer base and poach
customers from competitors
• Uncovering peoples real emotional values enables us to more carefully and
precisely target them and understand media affinities
• Most research tries to uncover underlying values by asking direct attitudinal
questions of people. However, it is very difficult for people to understand, let
alone articulate their values
• SpaceID moves beyond this direct approach. It is an award winning annual
study of 2,500 people, that has been running since 2008 (Awarded at launch
by the Market Research Society its prestigious ‘Research Breakthrough
Award’).
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6. SpaceID does this by using Semiometrie
• Semiometrie uncovers people’s motives and values by measuring their
subconscious reactions to 210 key words
• These words have been identified through a 10 year long process of
research and analytics, as the most powerful at explaining the full range of
human emotional values.
• Through SpaceID, respondents are also asked which media and brands they
use
• All the results, values and consumer preferences are then measured in
proximity to each other by SpaceID’s sophisticated software. The resultant
proximity rankings are then plotted on a series of maps that reveal
consumers’ value associations with brands and media.
• In the latest wave of SpaceID we examined the values and emotions of UK
supermarkets’ customer base
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7. SpaceID measures consumer values
along 4 key axes
Community
A sense of belonging, what's in it
for all of us, prefer collaboration to
competition
Idealistic Spiritual
Driven by the way things Seeking enlightenment,
could be, value ideas and experiences and knowledge
optimism
Responsibility
Do what they feel Pleasure
they should do, not Do what they want
want to do, value to do, not ought to
safety, familiarity and do, value adventure
stability and taking risks
Materialistic
Practical
Seeking well-being, Driven by the way things are,
accumulating possessions value realism and
pragmatism
Autonomy
Self-determination,, strong
sense of individualism, what's in
it for them, prefer competition to
collaboration 7

8. Supermarket
UK findings
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9. Shoppers at different supermarkets have
different values – but most value community
and pleasure
Base – people spending £40 or more on grocery shopping per week 9

10. Who’s winning?
The supermarket values league tables - Community
Supermarket Contribution of community
values to shopper value profiles
Sainsbury’s 41%
ASDA 38%
Tesco 27%
Waitrose 23%
Co-Op 23%
Morrisons -10%
#1 - Sainsbury’s attracts the most
community minded shoppers
Base – people spending £40 or more on grocery shopping per week 10

11. Who’s winning?
The supermarket values league tables - Pleasure
Supermarket Contribution of pleasure
values to shopper value profiles
Co-Op 41%
Tesco 25%
ASDA 14%
Sainsbury’s 11%
Waitrose -3%
Morrisons -45%
#1 – The Co-Operative attracts the
most pleasure driven shoppers
Base – people spending £40 or more on grocery shopping per week 11

12. Pen portraits
Pen Portraits
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13. The Passions TV Magazines Media
Behaviours
Co-operative
Animals E4 Closer Social
& Nature networking
Films 4Music Health and Newspapers
shoppers Photography
Beauty
Independent
travel
Environment
Famers
markets
Pleasure 41%
Community 23% 64% of the value profile of
Co-Op shoppers is around
Spiritual 13% Community and Pleasure
Idealism 7%
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14. Tesco Passions TV Magazines Media
Behaviours
shoppers
Health and Nickelodeon Closer Read online
fitness product
reviews
Celebrities Sky1 BBC Good Watching TV
Food with friends
Design 4Music Marie Claire National
lottery
Horse racing Instant
messaging
Environment
Education
Olympics
Ethical
purchasing
Community 27%
Pleasure 25%
52% of the value profile of
Idealism 21% Tesco shoppers is around
Materialism 14% Community and Pleasure
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15. Sainsbury’s Passions TV Magazines Media
Behaviours
Celebrities Sky1 Health & Posting
shoppers Beauty product
reviews
Olympics Nickelodeon Closer Price
comparison
websites
Local Glamour National
community Lottery
issues
Property Read online
product
reviews
Design
Ethnical
purchasing
Community 41%
Spiritual
52% of the value profile of
35%
Sainsbury’s shoppers is
Pleasure 11% around Community and
Idealism 11% Pleasure
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16. ASDA Passions TV Magazines Media
Behaviours
shoppers
Local Channel 4 Health and Entering
community Beauty competitions
issues
Celebrities Watch National
lottery
Fashion Watching TV
with partner
Daytime TV
Price
comparison
websites
Community 38%
Idealism
52% of the value profile of
29%
ASDA shoppers is around
Materialism 15% Community and Pleasure
Pleasure 14%
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17. Waitrose Passions TV Magazines Media
Behaviours
shoppers
Education BBC2 Red Read online
product
reviews
Current Fiver Marie Claire Reading
Affairs blogs
Personal More 4 Radio Times
Finance
Charity Work Five USA BBC Good
Food
Olympics Good
Housekeeping
DIY
Practical 44%
Community
23% of the value profile of
23%
Waitrose shoppers is around
Spiritual 13% Community
Responsibility 3%
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18. Morrisons Passions TV Magazines Media
Behaviours
shoppers
Documentary Cartoon Woman’s Playing
Network Own online Bingo
Rugby Food OK Voting on TV
Channel programme
DIY Sky Atlantic Now
Personal Smash! Hits What’s On
finance TV
Readers
Digest
Responsibility 45%
Values of Responsibility and
Spiritual 24% Autonomy are more
Autonomy 10% important to Morrisons
customers than Community
Idealism 0%
and Pleasure
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19. To win more share, supermarkets should
target the rival shoppers with value profiles
closest to their own
Supermarket Closest Community Closest Pleasure
value profile value profile
Co-Op Waitrose Tesco
Tesco Waitrose ASDA
Sainsbury’s ASDA ASDA
ASDA Sainsbury’s Sainsbury’s
Waitrose Co-op Sainsbury’s
Morrisons Co-op Waitrose
Sainsbury’s and ASDA will need to compete
strongly in 2012; Waitrose is especially vulnerable
to competitive poaching
Base – people spending £40 or more on grocery shopping per week 19

20. Summary and
implications
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21. Summary and Implications
• Whilst the economic climate remains gloomy, and consumers continue to
seek value in-store, they are also increasingly drawn to values of community
and pleasure (probably as an antidote to the austerity of the times). They
want shopping experiences that are pleasurable and seek brands that
exhibit community values.
• In 2012 Supermarkets will need to continue to complete on price and value,
but our research indicates that those brands that can differentiate
themselves on community and pleasure values will gain an extra advantage
– and a greater share of the changing consumer’s wallet.
• Sainsbury’s and The Co-Operative are currently best suited to meet this
shift. Morrisons has a very different profile of consumer values –
suggesting there will be a strong degree of consumer loyalty. Waitrose
looks to be most vulnerable in 2012.
• Supermarkets can appeal to the new consumer values of community and
pleasure through the way they act in-store and in their communications.
Associating with the right media products, with similar values and creating
rich consumer experiences are two potentially successful strategies to win
in 2012.
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22. About Starcom MediaVest
Group and Supermarket UK
Supermarket UK is an industry-wide series of studies into the changing values and behaviours of
shoppers to the big six supermarkets – Tesco, ASDA, Waitrose, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and Co-Op. It will
investigate the effect of societal changes - including the economy, new technologies and social media -
on supermarket consumer behaviour, and examine trends for the future. This report is the first in a
series - a second phase of research will be released later this year and will culminate in a full report to be
published in 2012.
Starcom MediaVest Group (SMG) is a global leader in communications strategy, media buying and
management, response media, internet and digital communications. SMG operates two separate
agencies under the group banner –MediaVest and Starcom– each built around a distinct focus and
expertise set, representing global brands such as Proctor & Gamble, Samsung and Honda.
SMG is part of Publicis Groupe, the world’s second largest media counsel and buying group, the world’s
third largest communications group and the world’s leading supplier of media services to FMCG brands.
To discover more insight into your retail brands, or to see how SMG’s unique approaches to insight,
planning and analytics can deliver results for your business, please be in touch.
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