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AIM Publications: Why are there different products and prices in different shops, cities, regions and countries?

The reasons are many. AIM’s Insights Paper, using a large range of academic and official sources, provides a  perspective on Assortment and Consumer Price Differences in Europe.

This briefing paper has been developed to give readers an understanding of some of the key elements involved in assortment and price decisions in the European supply chain, in respect of the EU motto “United in diversity”.

Consumer prices are set by retailers​ with regard to their business strategy, the nature and the intensity of their competitive environment, the consumers and shoppers. 

Read more on:

• Markets are local by history, by culture, by socio-economic difference
• Consumer preferences and choice
• Differentiation: a strategic business imperative 
• Differentiation and assortment​
• Differentiation and store size (format)​
• Differentiation and branding​
• Differentiation and consumer price​

“Even with identical retailing costs, the same product may be sold at different prices …reason lies in differentiation. A … consumer may prefer to buy his jar at a corner store in his posh neighbourhood even if he knows that the same item is less expensive in a less fancy, more crowded, or further away superstore.” Central Bank research