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Abstract
Retail shopper behaviour is that subset of human behaviour which is deeply rooted in psychology with dashes of sociology thrown in just to make things more interesting. This process is also influenced by the social and cultural environment. The total concept and idea of shopping has undergone an attention drawing change in terms of format and consumer buying behaviour, ushering in a revolution in shopping in India. Motivation is something that motivates a person into action and continues him in the course of action. It determines the behaviour of a consumer. In a shopping context, motivation can be described as the driving force within consumers that makes them shop. People of all ages engage in some form of shopping every now and then, whether they enjoy it or not; some people shop out of necessity, whereas others do it for leisure. No matter what the reasons for shopping are, everyone have their own unique shopping habits that are closely linked to their personality and spending power. Various types of shoppers tend to end up spending different amounts of money after each shopping trip. Therefore, it is believed that shoppers can be categorized according to their shopping habits into five main groups. Tauber (1972) found that shopping motives can be social and personal, as well as functional. Dawson, Bloch and Ridgway (1990) classified shopping motivations in experiential (watching other people, enjoying the crowd, meet new people, etc) and product-related needs (find new or unique products, see new things, etc.). A study by Hallsworth (1991) into grocery store shoppers within the UK found six central motivational dimensions: enjoyment, price, small and local, parking, sociability and quality. Stone (1954) offered the first typology based on consumers’ attitudes towards shopping. The 'economic consumer’ is concerned with price, product assortment and quality. The 'personalizing consumer’ seeks social relationships with retail personnel. This paper attempts to study the influence of shopping motivation on the shopper typologies. The study was based on descriptive method. A questionnaire was circulated to sample respondents and data were collected using personal interview method. The total of 470 respondents was surveyed using convenient sampling method. An independent t-test was applied fulfill the objective. The top-of-mind motivations indicated by the respondents for having a satisfying grocery shopping experience consist of five functional motivations (convenience, assortment, reliability and quality), and one experiential motivation (atmosphere).