‘Shoppers likely to go elsewhere rather than spending extra when faced with shortage’

Almost half of consumers say they wouldn’t be willing to spend extra on groceries in the face of shortage and would go elsewhere to do their shopping, states a recent research.

According to the data from AI-powered supply chain management platform 7bridges, more than a fifth (22 per cent) of UK consumers said they have been unable to get hold of items at least once a week over the past year. In the past three months, over two fifths (43 per cent) of shoppers have experienced supply chain disruption when trying to purchase goods.

When it comes to availability of items in local supermarkets, a third of shoppers pointed to basics like eggs, bananas, tomatoes and oil as the most commonly unavailable. Also, almost half of UK consumers (47 per cent) believe that businesses can be doing more to prevent the level of disruption over the past few months.

When it comes to groceries, which have been under the supply chain and shortage spotlight recently, almost half of consumers (47 per cent) say they wouldn’t be willing to spend extra and would go elsewhere to do their shopping. Of those willing to spend more to get the products then and there, they are willing to pay an average of 11.51 per cent extra.

Consumer sentiment is marked by disappointment, with one in five (20 per cent) having reported feeling “let down” and 28 per cent “inconvenienced” by brands citing supply chain issues as the cause of food shortages.

Philip Ashton, CEO and co-founder of 7bridges commented that for brands and businesses across different sectors, it is critical that they are seen to take action, gaining better visibility and control over their supply chains to prevent empty shelves, out of stock products and customer frustration.

“At a time where consumers are keeping a close eye on their spending and will not hesitate to go elsewhere if they aren’t getting the experience they expect, brands need to work hard to ensure they aren’t faced with out-of-stock items or continually having to cite their supply chain as the reason for disruption.

“The processes and technology exists to mitigate and manage disruption, and consumers aren’t blind to that fact – inaction that leads to future disruption will not go unchecked, so brands must smarten up now. Leveraging technology that facilitates outcome-driven supply chains will put businesses in a strong position to make data-driven decisions more quickly to prevent shortages and nurture customer loyalty,” reports quoted Ashton as saying.