Choice of Retail Outlet for Fish: An Exploratory Study of Shoppers in Trinidad and Tobago.

Abstract

Traditionally, the public markets, roadside stalls and the landing sites were the primary retail outlets for fish in Trinidad. Today, shoppers have an extended range of options from which to purchase their fish products, including supermarkets, specialty fish shops and fish vendors who sell their wares from vans that make regular visits to dedicated areas across the country. Determining the demographic characteristics of a shopper that chooses one retail format instead of another is important information for retail outlet operators in today’s competitive environment. This study analyzed patronage behavior of fish shoppers across five retail outlets – supermarkets, public markets, specialty fish shops, roadside stalls and landing sites. The results of the study showed that the public market is still the most patronized for fish in Trinidad, while landing sites are least patronized.  For the five fish retail outlets analyzed in this study the demographic variables income, family size and ethnicity does not appear to influence the choice of retail outlet for fish in Trinidad.