A cross-cultural study on consumer preferences for olive oil

Abstract

In this paper, we study consumer preferences for olive oil across four countries (Denmark, France, Tunisia, and the US). Based on a large-scale study with olive oil consumers (N = 3,462), we use the Best-Worst Scaling method to measure perceived importance for product attributes known to influence consumer choice. Our results show that consumers across all countries rate type, price, prior experience, and country of origin as important product attributes. On the other hand, packaging, label design, and brands are considered as less important product attributes. While the perceived importance for olive oil attributes differs across countries, the order of importance is almost similar for all countries. We further derive a three-segment solution and describe each segment based on its attitudinal beliefs, usage, and socio-demographic profile. We discuss implications for the study of consumer preferences for olive oil and provide managerial insights.