PULSE OF THE NATION

DAVID ORGEL

Supermarkets have pulled out all the stops when it comes to one-stop shopping. And new research shows customers are reacting positively.

An SN national consumer survey on shopping preferences found respondents like these services and want more.

About 75% of consumers polled said having many types of services under one roof -- such as pharmacy, banking or photocopying -- is either somewhat or very important to them. A total of 45.5% said it is somewhat important, while 29.9% said very important. The remainder said it is not important.

The supermarket industry has doggedly pursued the one-stop shopping concept, and shoppers are aware of those efforts. A little over 60% said the number of services has increased in the grocery stores they have shopped over the past year.

But shoppers said supermarkets still have room to add more services. Asked for their choice if their favorite supermarket were to add one service, 21.6% said an in-store banking, 18.6% wanted a post office, 15.6% a pharmacy and 9% video rentals.

Despite embracing one-stop shopping, consumers don't want retailers to add so many departments that stores balloon in size. Almost 90% of respondents said they favored stores that are moderate-sized or large, but only about 10% liked stores that are huge.

The survey, conducted for SN by America's Research Group, Charleston, S.C., sampled 1,000 consumers. The questions delved into areas ranging from store format preferences to opinions about product safety. Among the other findings:

Price remains a very important factor in buying decisions, with consumers relying more on private-label items and coupons.

Consumers claim they are doing more cooking despite conventional wisdom to the contrary.

Shoppers are putting a premium on product variety and are seeking more choices in certain product sectors.

Consumers believe supermarkets are doing a better job in food safety.

Consumer responses highlight the importance of price even as supermarkets add more costly value-added items. While about 70% of those polled are holding steady in their level of store-label product buying, 25% are increasing those purchases. And 68.9% of consumers who changed store-label buying habits in the past year said price was the main factor.

Moreover, 54.5% of shoppers said they are using more coupons for purchases, compared to 43.1% who are not.

"This is the case even though fewer supermarkets are doubling coupon values," said Britt Beemer, chairman of America's Research Group.

The majority of consumers also contended they would like a store format focused on everyday low price as opposed to a high-low structure. About 71% of respondents picked EDLP while about 29% preferred a high-low structure that included weekly deals. Many consumers during the polling qualified their preference for EDLP with comments like, "Don't give us phony everyday low prices."

The survey's queries on cooking habits brought some surprising results -- just when cooking appeared to be in danger of extinction.

Asked to compare their cooking habits to a couple of years ago, the great majority said they are doing either the same or more cooking.

The result of polling about cooking is surprising in light of recent reports that time-starved shoppers are putting less effort into meal preparation. Such reports have helped spur the industry's home-meal replacement efforts.

In answering the question, "Are you or your household doing more, less or about the same amount of cooking as a couple of years ago," a total of 68.7% replied the same, while 24.2% answered more. Only 7.1% said less.

Beemer said the numbers don't necessarily indicate that Americans are suddenly focusing on cooking extensive meals from scratch. He pointed to outdoor food preparation as a likely important factor.

"We are in the best period in 2 to 3 decades in use of expensive outdoor grills," Beemer said. "There is more cooking outside, even in colder weather."

Shoppers weren't asked to specify their definition of cooking. As a result, some may even consider the preparation of value-added, chilled meals as cooking, while others may consider cooking to be a more elaborate exercise.

Shoppers were also asked how their buying habits have changed when comparing purchases of grocery products -- such as packaged or canned foods -- vs. already-cooked or prepared food or meals.

A total of 33.6% answered they are buying more grocery items and less prepared foods. Some 46% answered their relative purchases have held steady. About 10% said they are buying more of both, 8.3% said more prepared and less grocery, while 2.4% said less of both. The strong showing for grocery at first glance appears to conflict with the conventional wisdom that consumers are going for more convenience and faster meals. However, it may also indicate that producers of chilled, heat-and-serve packaged food and meals are making further inroads.

Beemer said the results show consumers still view groceries as their biggest purchases, but he pointed to the good news for prepared food.

"Close to 20% said they are either buying more prepared food or more of both prepared food and grocery," Beemer noted. "So those are still strong numbers for prepared."

The survey also addressed the issue of product variety. Consumers said they didn't mind paring down the number of brands if the result would provide more choice in types of products.

A total of 56.8% said they prefer a wider variety of products with just one or two brands compared to a smaller range of products with four to six choices of brands per product. But 42.9% took the opposite approach, favoring lesser variety with more brand choices.

About 70% said supermarkets are offering more variety than a year ago, and that they were happy with the change. Only 20.3% said supermarkets weren't providing more variety. Asked to point to areas where supermarkets can increase variety, shoppers picked frozen food (23.2%), fruit (22.3%), vegetables (19.7%) and healthier food (17.8%) as top choices.

Respondents also said their needs were being met for specialty and ethnic products. A total of 85.2% said supermarkets are doing well in this area, while 12.9% said that was not the case.

Supermarkets drew a strong vote of confidence on food safety. Ninety-seven percent of respondents said supermarkets are either pretty safe or very safe. Comparing the quality of food safety to one or two years ago, 40.9% of respondents said it was better while 58% answered about the same.

Shoppers said the biggest reason for a change in food safety was improved cleanliness and more attentiveness.

Shoppers said they particularly liked supermarket in-store sampling efforts and information on cooking and ingredients. About 82% like this form of merchandising.