GE Capital Retail Bank’s Second Annual Shopper Study Outlines Digital Path to Major Purchases

Patience and the pursuit of information pay off, according to GE Capital Retail Bank’s second annual Major Purchase Shopper Study.  Empowered by technology, flooring  and other large ticket shoppers extensively research and compare prices and financing offers before they make any major purchase.  More than 84 percent of flooring shoppers start their search process online from home, and spend an average of 137 days gathering information before making a major purchase. While consumers carefully consider before they buy, 41 percent of those in the market to make a Flooring purchase say they are more open to making a large purchase than they were a year ago.

The survey and interviews, conducted by Rothstein Tauber, Inc., a marketing research company based in Stamford, Conn., explored the shopping habits of 3,220 consumers nationwide (150+ responded in the Flooring category) who had recently made purchases of $500 or more and were in the market for major items in 12 segments including: appliances, electronics, flooring, home furnishings and bedding, home improvements, jewelry, eyewear, power sports products, and lawn and garden equipment. More than 2,200 of the participating consumers were GE Capital Retail Bank (GECRB) accountholders and one third of respondents were random shoppers.