Do We Have Too Much Choice In Shops

[emmie]

or is that the point, one has the freedom to choose...
i went online to book my roughly weekly shop and put in
shampoo and nearly 200 variants came up.

[ummmm]

Canary - not everyone can use soap.

[emmie]

i do because i don't like other types of scented products, they irritate my skin...

[Zacs-Master]

I'm afraid it's an inevitable consequence of a growing population (Market) and capitalism. A population of 66.4 million / 200 types of shampoo = roughly 330,000 people for each type.

[emmie]

zacs but it's the sheer numbers on line, i couldn't believe there were that many.

[retrocop]

I can just imagine some bleak building in Eastern Germany where the politburo get first choice and the citizens are scrutinised and watched what little left there is on offer. Purchase too much and you are under suspicion.Welcome to Oxford Strasse under Comrade Jezza's regime. :-(

[emmie]

retro, haha

[Zacs-Master]

Yes, but I've shown that there are, potentially, 330,000 customers for each shampoo. Using an average of 1 bottle per month = Almost 4 million units per year. 10p profit per unit = £400k profit.

[THECORBYLOON]

ZM, have you factored in the number of bald folk in that calculation?

[Zacs-Master]

No. Please feel free to correct my 'fag-packet' calcs.

[THECORBYLOON]

It's the sort of basic mistake the folk on Dragons' Den would focus on and your bid would crumble...

[teacake44]

If you have a strange rash appear on your skin, good luck finding out what caused it, food additives, or chemical additives, but it won't be beef dripping on bread. :0)

[Zacs-Master]

I was hoping to demonstrate that people have trouble conceiving the number of people there are in the UK (and the world) and how that translates into a market for so many variants of one product. Taking out 39.23 of the male population would still give a healthy profit. It must do, otherwise the products wouldn't exist.

[emmie]

my point is i get rattled sometimes with so much choice.

[diddlydo]

Retrocop - didn't you know that East Germany no longer exists as the Wall came down years ago.

[emmie]

diddly he was being a little cheeky, by passed you i think

[teacake44]

Is that possible for the East to disappear ?

[retrocop]

Well I was aware that the Berlin wall came down.I saw whats left of it.
I am also aware that we have a unified Germany with one Capital (Berlin).
I was not aware that geographical cardinal points no longer apply to the Fatherland.!!

[Ellipsis]

> my point is i get rattled sometimes with so much choice.

You are not alone:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Paradox_of_Choice

The Paradox of Choice – Why More Is Less is a 2004 book by American psychologist Barry Schwartz. In the book, Schwartz argues that eliminating consumer choices can greatly reduce anxiety for shoppers.

Autonomy and Freedom of choice are critical to our well being, and choice is critical to freedom and autonomy. Nonetheless, though modern Americans have more choice than any group of people ever has before, and thus, presumably, more freedom and autonomy, we don't seem to be benefiting from it psychologically.

— quoted from Ch.5, The Paradox of Choice, 2004

[Old_Geezer]

Nearly 200 variants came up and still none were the one you were looking for.

I'm always amazed at the numbers of bottled or jarred sauces there are. How can the market cope with them all ? Who buys them on a regular enough basis ?

[emmie]

OG, exactly my point. Boxes and Boxes of different cereals, row and rows of jars of coffee and so forth