Malcolm Gladwell's The Science Of Shopping

In “The Science of Shopping, author Malcolm Gladwell discusses several strategies stores use to encourage shopping. With hundreds of retail stores competing against each other in a single mall, businesses must resort to different theories and strategies in order to increase revenue. Founder of Envirosell, Paco Underhill observes customer behavior and sales in his client’s stores to pinpoint areas which need improvement. Throughout out his career, Underhill discovered customer behavior theories, such as the “Invariant Right,” “Decompression Zone,” and the “Butt-Brush theory.” Gladwell’s article takes the reader throughout several well thought out layouts and theories, showing in which there is more to a retail store than what the business portrays.
The design of a retail store is not only designed to maximize revenue but to ensure customers view all their products. Underhill states our peripheral vision narrows as our walking speed increases. As a …show more content…
Market Mavens play a pivotal role on how stores present advertisements and products due to the fact Market Mavens will examine them more thoroughly than the average consumer. Market Mavens keep our shopping experience honest by questioning the strategies of businesses. Also, in “The Science of Shopping,” Gladwell talks about different strategies stores are using to predict the preferences of consumers. By asking customers a series of questions, stores can predict what brands they utilize. This process is commonly known as typing. Paco Underhill’s company, Envirosell, also does a process similar to typing. Envirosell monitors customer behavior by videotaping in his client’s stores, analyzing the layout of the store, building focus groups, and asking customers about their shopping experience. Not only can outside sources help businesses improve their revenue and layout, but it can improve the consumer’s overall shopping