The Consumers Perception of the Purchase Environment Elements in Stimulating Impulse Buying

Abstract

This research studies the consumers’ perception of the purchase environment elements in stimulating impulse buying. Impulse buying is a spontaneous and immediate purchase. Consumers engage in different physical behaviors while shopping. Although these behaviors might not seem important, these have an effect to affect and most of the time an eventual impulse purchase follows. Retailers are still discovering the factors that affect impulse purchases. Since in today’s society the awareness among the buyers regarding this topic has increased manifold this paper adds to the body of knowledge by approaching the topic from the consumers’ perspective. The conclusions drawn from the results show that consumers rated the store atmospherics, sales promotions and salesperson as having the highest impact whereas window and special displays, store layout and shelf placements having low impact upon their impulse purchases. Based upon the conclusions the paper extends recommendations to implement a legible retail environment where the shopping experience has to be reinvented to create excitement which will result in increased sales, and an enhanced shopping behavior at the point of sale.