Food Retail in the Rural Periphery Using the Example of Germany

Abstract

Using a mixed-method approach, the author documents processes of decline in food retail on the spatial meso-scale of a northern German federal state and investigates the attitudes and patterns of demand of households dealing with the loss of local retail. Cluster and discriminant analysis are used to identify five relevant sub-groups, all of which are characterised by an ongoing discourse concerning the local retail structures. The five sub-groups define their (dis)interest in local retail using very different spatial, temporal, and substantial criteria. These criteria are drawn upon by local retailers to develop strength and weakness profiles and identify learning potential in an attempt to use innovative forms of niche marketing to better attract non-users or minimal users. Expert interviews with village shopkeepers and local producers of fresh goods indicate which solutions are being implemented to secure the commercial success of rural local retail in the long term and to distinguish such retail from the offerings of ubiquitous chains of supermarkets and discounters.