Nature of water and purchase behaviours

It does not seem to be a risk to buy still water. Consumers suppose that it has a good quality because of regulations and quality control prior it is consumed, and the risk of pollution and/or intoxication because of the consumption of bottled water is pretty low. Thus, the risk in the performance of the product is low.

The involvement of the customer while doing the purchase of still water is low, and could be rational and/or emotional. It does not spend much time, though energy and other resourcesduring the purchase process.

90 % of the French consume mineral water. In France, there are 110 brands consumers can choose. This love affair with water started with Louis XIV when a court physician prescribed mineral water for his gout.

One of the reasons for the French craze for bottled water demand is a safety quest, a certain mistrust of tap water, without mentioning pollution problems in some areas. Then bottled water is more necessary than ever. Water is the food product that offers the greatest number of opportunities to be consumed in a day : at table, in the office, in the streets, in the bars... It is one of the least elaborate (most natural) food market where the messages to the consumer are clear and positive ie, sports, health, youth.

According to SOFRES/CI water polls, the proportion of regular water drinkers is 63%, down 3 points since 1999. But, after seeing a decline in recent years the overall bottled water environment in France increased by 2 percent in total volume terms in 2010. A survey says that 28 % of the French people say they never drink tap water. 64% say they drink bottled water at least once a week and 44 % many times a day. 50 % of the consumers say they drink both. These ‘mixed” drinkers say they drink 55 % of tap water and 45 % of bottled water.

It is estimated that, on average, each Frenchman drinks 110 litres of bottled water per year. The French can be suspicious about tap water and prefer still to sparkling water.

In a globally competitive market, water manufacturers promote their brands by targeting niche consumers and using unique selling points such as the bottling source and taste. Frequently used categories to differentiate water brands include carbonated or non-carbonated water, spring and mineral water as well as distilled enhanced, filtered and oxygenated waters. These attributes play a significant role when it comes to branding water, and they help companies to differentiate between the benefits of one type of brand over the other.

As the still water is a relative low price good, the size of pocket is low. It could be consider as a product with low price that is bought out of habit, without much thought.