© 2005 Blackwell Publishing Ltd International Journal of Consumer Studies, 30, 2, March 2006, pp189–201 189 doi: 10.1111/j.1470-6431.2005.00475.x Blackwell Science, LtdOxford, UKIJCInternational Journal of Consumer Studies1470-6423Blackwell Publishing Ltd, 2005 2006302189201Original ArticleFood shopping behaviour in ScotlandM.G. McEachern and G. Warnaby Correspondence Morven G. McEachern, School of Management, University of Salford, Salford, Greater Manchester M5 4WT, UK. E-mail: m.g.mceachern@salford.ac.uk Food shopping behaviour in Scotland: the influence of relative rurality Morven G. McEachern and Gary Warnaby School of Management, University of Salford, Salford, Greater Manchester, UK Abstract Despite a number of studies investigating consumer food purchase behaviour, few studies actually address the nature of the rural consumer. This may have implications for the generalization of much research on food purchase behav- iour, as official estimates of the UK rural population vary between 8.5% and 24%. This paper compares and contrasts the food shopping behaviour of customers in rural and urban areas in Scotland. Particular focus is given on respon- dent characteristics, attitudes towards rural and urban loca- tions, distance travelled for food shopping purposes and store patronage. Results from the research emphasize the notion that rural and urban retailing should be conceptual- ized as a continuum rather than being regarded as dichoto- mous, and a conceptual framework is proposed. Keywords Consumer shopping behaviour, food retailing, rural, urban. Introduction and research context To understand the development of rural municipalities, it is necessary to focus on social and demographic changes (Paquette and Domon, 2003). In turn, these factors will impact on the provision of rural services, including retailing. Concerns relating to the decline of retail provision, and the consequent impact on commu- nities, in rural areas are long established among agen- cies with responsibility for rural issues for example, the Department of Environment, Transport and the Regions (Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions, 2000); The Rural Development Com- mission (1994). However, it could be argued that spe- cific academic consideration of retailing in rural areas of the UK is relatively modest and somewhat dated (Dawson, 1976; Kirby, 1981, 1982, 1987). Indeed, much of the extant research relating to retailing in rural areas has occurred as part of wider research into small-scale retailing generally (Smith and Sparks, 2000a,b). More recently, the issue of retailing (particularly food retail- ing) in rural areas of the UK (i.e. particularly in Scot- land), has received increased attention, from different perspectives. These include the impact of rurality and isolation on food availability and choice (Clark et al., 1996; Skerratt and McKie, 1997; McKie et al., 1998; Skerratt, 1999), the impact of ‘outshopping’ (Broad- bridge and Calderwood, 2002) and the possible role and available strategic options for small-scale retailers in such areas (Jussila et al., 1992; Byrom et al., 2001, 2003). In terms of the market context, Scottish food retailing is similar to that of the UK more generally, in that it is extremely competitive, with £0.30 (sterling) in every £1.00 being spent in the top eight retailers (i.e. Asda, Iceland, Marks & Spencer, Safeway/Wm Morrison, Sainsbury’s, Somerfield, Tesco, Waitrose; IGD, 2005). The main retailers and their respective Scottish market shares are: Tesco (27.2%); Asda (24.0%); Safeway/Wm Morrisons (15.2%); Sainsbury’s (5.8%); The Co-op (7.9%); Somerfield (6.0%); and Others (i.e. including Marks and Spencer and Iceland) hold a market share of 23.9% (Flanagan, 2005). This paper considers the impact of rurality by inves- tigating the differences between customers in rural and urban locations in relation to their food purchasing behaviour. Most of the current literature relating to rural/urban research has been conducted in the US mar- ket (Miller et al., 1999; Gehrt and Shim, 2003). As such, the paper contributes to the existing literature through explicit comparison of rural and urban consumers in a specific UK context.