A Consumer Behavior Analysis of REMA 1000
Group 6 · Knut Steckmest, Marius Andersen, Kai Thomas, Peder Olsen, Olav Lidal, Einar Storvestre
This paper examines how consumer behavior theory applies to everyday grocery shopping at REMA 1000, analyzing four product categories through the lens of a representative customer persona, Kristian Eriksen — a 37-year-old father of two in Bergen.
Analytical Framework
The paper is organized around three behavioral dimensions:
1. Internal Influences — How sensory perception, learning, memory, motivation, and perceived risk shape product evaluation. Explores Oatly’s brand knowledge through cognitive learning and classical conditioning, and proposes an olfactory strategy for Bergen Kaffebrenneri to increase trial through scent-based quality signaling at the shelf.
2. Attitudes & Decisions — Applies the Elaboration Likelihood Model to an Evergood campaign and uses dual-process theory to assess when System 1 vs. System 2 dominates across all four categories. Illustrates how compensatory and non-compensatory decision rules yield different outcomes in beer selection.
3. Being & Belonging — Analyzes how product choices express personal and social identity, from milk as parental responsibility to beer as taste signaling and coffee as community belonging. Proposes a social norm intervention to nudge coffee purchasing through descriptive norms.
Key Findings
- Habit dominates routine purchases. Milk and everyday coffee default to System 1 processing driven by brand familiarity, price heuristics, and predictable shelf placement.
- Sensory cues reduce uncertainty. Olfactory engagement at the coffee shelf bridges the gap between premium pricing and perceived quality, encouraging first-time trial of Bergen Kaffebrenneri.
- Context shifts the cognitive system. Beer for a dinner party and app adoption activate System 2, with consumers applying weighted additive, conjunctive, or lexicographic decision rules.
- Social norms can nudge behavior. A descriptive norm campaign for Bergen Kaffebrenneri can shift purchasing in low-involvement settings by highlighting peer behavior and community belonging.
