The behavior and the opinions of the Bucharest consumers regarding the consumption of naturists products Cristiana Chiriac & Alina Anghel Group 1719… [601905]

MARKETING RESEARCH
The behavior and the opinions of the Bucharest consumers regarding the consumption of
naturists products

Cristiana Chiriac & Alina Anghel
Group 1719
Series D
Year I
Faculty of Marketing

The identification of the research issue and defining the theme
The opinions, attitudes and the behavior of Bucharest population regarding the consumption of
naturists’ products
The purpose of the research
The Romanian population has become more and more concerned about the extension of lif e
expectancy, being ranked on the fifth place in the Global M etaconsumer Index. This reveals that
the Romanian population has begun to be more aware on what they eat and has oriented to the
consumption of naturist products.
Through this marketing research we want to obtain as many information as possible and to find
out the opinion of the population from Bucharest, how many people are using the se category of
products and to observe if the se kind of products have succeed to replace the drugs through
naturist treatments.
The marketing research regarding this subject refers to the fact that there is a growing tendency
of the number of stores in Bucharest . Because of this research we can establish if the population
of Bucharest are followers of consuming naturis t products and if it’s necessary to open new
stores of this kind.
Chapter 1.Defining the objectives and the hypothesis of the research
1.1Stating the general hypothesis
General hypothesis:
 Most of the people from Bucharest buys naturist products
 The population of Bucharest is unequally informed about the benefits of the naturists
products
 The diversity of the naturist products satisfies a wide range of needs
 The prices of naturists products are higher than of the traditional ones
 There are people who use the se kind of products without the recommendation of a
specialist
 Few people claim that they’ve h ealed themselves after using these products
 These products can be used by all persons, no matter the age or gender
 The quality of the naturists products di ffers from one brand to another
 A part of the population doesn’t trust in the naturist products, so they don’t buy them
 Many people claim that they didn’t healed for good after using naturist products, but
they felt an improvement in their health conditio n
Statistical hypothesis
 H0 – At least 80% of the Bucharest’s population are informing on this matter
 H1 – More than 80% of the Bucharest’s population are informing on this matter

 H0 – At least 60% of the Bucharest’s population are consuming naturist products.

 H1 – More than 60% of the Bucharest’s population are consuming naturist products

 H0 – At least 70% of the Bucharest’s population chose the naturist products instead of
classic treatments
 H1 – More than 70% of the Bucharest’s population chose n aturist products instead of
classic treatments

 H0 – Less than 30% of the Bucharest’s population doesn’t trust in the naturist treatments
 H1 – More than 30% of the Bucharest’s population doesn’t trust in the naturist treatments

 H0 – Less than 40% of the Bucharest’s population go to a specialist in order to get a
naturist treatment
 H1 – More than 40% of the Bucharest’s population go to a specialist in order to get a
naturist treatment

 H0 –At least 50% of the Bucharest’s population ar e satisfied after a naturist treatment
 H1 –At most 50% of the Bucharest’s population are satisfied after a naturist treatment

1.2Establishing the objectives of the research
Basic aspects The questions of the research The objectives of the research
If the people from Bucharest
buys naturist products 1. How frequent do the
consumers buy the se kind of
products?
2. How many products do
they buy?
3. Which is the opinion of the
population regarding the se
category of products? 1. Determining the category
of cons umer s and their
attitude towards the se
products
2.Measuring how often they
buy naturists products
3.Determinig the motives for
buying those
If the population would
choose a naturist treatment
instead of a classic one 1. Have been cases of ill
people who have been healed
using a naturist product
instead of the classic one?
2. What are the reasons for
using a naturist treatment?
3. Which is the proportion of
the population of Bucharest
who prefers a naturist
treatment? 1. Measuring the attitude of
the Bucha rest people toward
naturist product instead of the
classic ones.
2.Defining the motives
behind adopting such a
treatment
3.Determining why a part of
the population from
Bucharest doesn’t buy
naturist products

1.3The observation for the research
Why have we used the observation?
Observation is still used in a conventional sense, using the eyes and recording the data. Although
it’s time consuming, it provides real results for the market research project.
In our observation research, we went to three stores, one in Afi Palace, another one in sector 2
and other in sector 1.
In the store from Calea Dorobantilor,called Bucuria Naturii, we stayed near a newspaper stand
and we analyzed the consumers through the glass. We observed a female consumer, aged 4.Finding how this affects the
naturist industr y
The education of the
population regarding the
naturist products 1. Where do the consumers
inform about the naturist
products?
2. Which are the sources of
information?
3. Do the consumers go to a
specialist in order to find out
more about this category o f
products?
4. How much of the
population of Bucharest does
research about the products?
5. Why do the consumers
request this category of
products? 1. Identifying the main
sources of information on this
topic
2.Find out the proportion of
the population who seek
professional advice on this
matter
3.Determining the proportion
of the population which
inform about this
4.Determinig the r easons for
which people need the se
products

Which are the buying
intentions 1. How much does the
consumers intent to buy these
products?
2. Why do they still continue
buying the naturist products?
3. Do they want to follow a
treatment?
4. Which are the reasons that
determines the future
intentions? 1. Finding out the buying
intentions of the consumers
2.Determinig the motive s for
which they are still
continuing to buy
3.Follow their intenti ons to
have a treatment with the se
products
4.Identification of future
intentions
Which is the most important
target market for this
products 1. Wha t category of
consumers buys the se kind of
products?
2. The revenue is influencing
their choice on pursuing this
products? 1. Identification of the
category of consumers who
choose a naturist treatment
2. Identification of the factors
which determine them to
choose the se products instead
of others

between 30 – 40 years old, actually bought high -quality expensive products such as therapeutic
oil, some naturist drugs at an approximately price of 130 lei. Others didn’t finish the purc hasing
of the things the y need because either the store didn’t have the item or they weren’t satisfied with
the prices . Another client , a male aged between 25 – 30 years asked for lavender oil and the
seller offered him the product saying that i t’s even fo r internal use, although the customer
specified reading the label that is only for external use in aromatherapy and for massage. So, as
we can observe from this, the client was one of the followers who didn’t just buy the se kind of
products occasionally, b ut had docu mented about the product and it s benefits. Another female
consumer age between 50 – 60 years old came in and went straight for the counter where she
specified the exact products she wanted to buy. She purchased several boxes of tea based on
different plants while another male consumer, also age between 50 – 60, came in with a piece of
paper that he handed to the saleswoman and, after reading it, she gave him a tincture of lemon
balm (roinita).
In Bioritmo from Afi, in the afternoon, the store wasn’t receiving any clients although from
which we observed from the outside , they had cosmetic products and sugar free products, and
other products designed for a niche category – the vegan consumers.
In Ki life from Piata Romana, we acted as a shopper and we analyzed the behavior of others
around us. A female consumer, aged between 30 – 40 knew from the start what she want ed to
buy: products such as crude p ollen and henna for dyeing hair. Another female consumer in her
early 20’s came in and browsed the sh elves for about 5 minutes, after which she decided on
buying a jar of coconut oil. Later on (approximately 15 minutes later) she came back and bought
another one .
Other consumers came in, some asked for information about different products while others just
quickly browsed around. None of them spent more than 2 minutes inside the store.
We were analyzing these consumers in naturist stores on an interval of 30 minutes during 19th
May at Afi, 23rd at Ki life and 20th at Bucuria Naturii in the afternoon, at different hours. In Afi,
we chose to go at 15:10 pm, while at Bucuria Naturii we went at 16:00 pm, and at Ki life at
17:00 pm.
The objectives of our observation were to know:
-the buying intentions of consumers
-the level of information about these produc ts
-how the age of the consumers influences the purchasing of the things they need
-the category of products bought
The limitations we have encountered:
The research task becomes more complicated if you want to take a picture inside the store in
order to h ave a detailed view of the events in that store. This would require the permission of the
manager, and we were not sure if it will be granted.

Because of that we haven’t record it. We were only on the street, or in the store depending on the
case and took notes on our phones about consumer attitudes, behavior, the sum they spent on the
products, etc.
As you can see from the photos we stayed near the stores and
analyzed the consumers.

Chapter 2. Designing and writing the questionnaire considering the general theme of research
2.1 The survey
2.1.1 The plot for the survey
1. Credeți că bucureștenii sunt preocupați pentru sănătatea lor ?
2. Mergeți des la medic?
3. Care sunt motivele pentru care aveți nevoie de sfatul unui specialist?
4. Preferați tratamentele clasice în locul celor naturiste?
5. Puteți să ne spuneți motivele pentru care nu preferați tratamentele naturiste în locul celor
clasice?
6. Ați auzit de produsele naturiste?
7. Ce părere aveți despre produsele naturiste?
8. Ați cumpărat vreodată produse naturiste?
9. Ce brand -uri de produse folosiți în mod curent?
10. Ați simțit o ameliorare a stării de sănătate în urma unui tratament naturist?
11. Care sunt sursele de informare, cu privire la aceste produse?
12. Ați apelat la sfatul unui specialist când ați cumpărat aceste produse?
13. Cât de des folosiți tratamente naturiste?
14. Din ce motive folosiți tratamente naturiste?
15. Din ce motive nu folosiți tratamente naturiste?

16. Ce tipuri de produse naturiste folosiți?
17. Există magazine naturiste în apropierea locuinței dumneavostră?
18. Ați simțit vreo amel iorare după ce ați folosit produsele naturiste?
19. În ce măsură sunteți mulțumit/ă de aceste produse?
20. Credeți că aceste produse sunt 100% naturiste?
21. Prețul reprezintă un factor care vă influențează decizia de cumpărare a acestor produse?
22. Dacă veți suferi de v reo afecțiune în viitor, veți folosi produse naturiste?
23. Ne puteți spune motivele pentru care ați dori în viitor să urmați un asemenea tratament
naturist?
24. Ne puteți spune motivele pentru care nu ați dori în viitor să urmați astfel de tratamente?
25. În general citiți ziare, sau reviste?
26. Sexul dumneavoastră?
27. Vârsta dvs?
28. Naționalitatea dvs?
29. Ocupația dvs?
30. Venitul dvs?

Chestionar
1. Credeți că bucureștenii sunt preocupați pentru sănătatea lor?
Da (se trece la 3)
Nu (se trece la 2)
2. Care sunt motivele pentru care bucureștenii nu sunt interesați de sănătatea lor?
Neglijența

Nepăsarea
Alte motive.Care anume?…………………………….
3. Mergeți la control la medic?
Da(se trece la 4)
Nu(se trece la 5)
4. Cât de des mergeți la medic?
O dată pe lună
O dată la 6 luni
O dată pe an
Când e cazul
Rar
5. Din ce cauză nu obișnuiți să mergeți la medic?
Timpul
Banii
Distanța este prea mare
Sunt apt clinic
Alte motive. Care anume?……………………………….
6. Știați că există produse naturiste?
Da (se trece la 7)
Nu (se trece la 31)
7. Ce surse de informare aveți pentru aceste produse?
Ziare, Reviste, Reclame TV
Prieteni, vecini, cunoștințe
Plafar
Medic
Altele (care?)……………………
8. Folosiți produse naturiste?
Da (se trece la 10)
Nu (se trece la următoarea)
9. De ce nu folosiți acest tip de produse?
Sunt scumpe
Nu am încredere în eficacitatea lor
Greu de găsit pe piață
Alt motiv. Care anume?…………………
(se trece la 31)
10. De ce folosiți acest tip de produse?
Preț convenabil
Nu au efecte adverse
Varietatea lor
Altele (care?)………………………….
11. Cât de des cumpărați produse naturiste?

foarte des(zilnic) des nici des, nici r ar rar foarte rar(ocazional)

12. Cine v ă recomandă produsele naturiste pe care obișnuiți să le luați?

13. Menționați nivelul procentual în care folosiți următoarele produse:
 Produse cosmetice ………..
 Produse farmaceutice ……….
 Produse naturiste (medicamente, ceaiuri,creme, etc.)………
 Produse alimentare………
14. Într-un interval de la 1 la 10 vă rog să menționați cât de mulțumit sunteți de produsele
naturiste:
……………………………………………………………………………………………
15. Ce caracteristici ați schimba la un produs?
Ambalajul
Calitatea materiei prime
Prețul
Altele (care?)………
16. În ce măsură sunteți atras de un produs în funcție de următoarele caracteristici:

Caracteristici Foarte
mult Mult Asa si asa Putin Deloc
Pretul produsului 5 4 3 2 1
Calitatea produsului 5 4 3 2 1
Notorietatea produsului 5 4 3 2 1
Brand -ul care
comercializeaza produsul 5 4 3 2 1
Recomandarea medicului 5 4 3 2 1
Forma de prezentare a
produsului 5 4 3 2 1

17. De unde obișnuiți să cumpărați categoria aceasta de produse?
Hypermarket -uri

-uri & Magazine naturiste

18. Aveți, în zona în care locuiți, magazine naturiste?

19. În ce măsură ați cumpăra aceste produse, dacă ați avea în zonă un magazine naturist?

nu deloc nu asa si a sa da cu siguranta
20. Considerați că aceste produse sunt 100% naturiste?

21. Ați urmat tratamente naturiste?
Da (se trece la 22)

22. Ați folosit tratamente naturiste pentru vindecarea unei răceli?

23. Pe o scară de la 1 la 5, ne puteți spune dacă sunteți mulțumită de aceste tratamente?
Foarte mulțumit(ă) 5 4 3 2 1 Complet nemulțumit(ă)
24. Ce părere aveți despre eficacitatea produselor naturiste?

25. Ați folosit produse naturiste pentru vindecarea unei afecțiuni?

26. Ați prefera un tratament clasic în locul celui naturist?

(se trece la 30)

27. Intenționați în viitor să urmați un tratament naturist?

28. Din ce cauză doriți să urmați acest tratament?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
………….

29. Din ce cauză nu doriți să urmați acest tratament?
……………………………………………………………………………………………
…………

30. Ați apelat la sfatul unui specialist pentru a vă informa despre astfel de tratamente?

31. De unde vă informați despre produsele naturiste?
– media
Medic
Internet
Altă sursă.Care anume?……………………………………….
32. Pe viitor, intenționați să cumpărați genul acesta de produse?

Intrebarile de identificare a subiectului :

33. Sexul dvs :

Femeiesc
Barbatesc

34. Nationalitatea dvs :

Romana

Germana

Maghiara

Alta nationalitate.Care anume ?

35. In ce interval se incadreaza venitul lunar net al familiei dvs ?
<499,99 lei 500 – 1499,99 lei 1500 – 2499,99 lei 2500 – 3499,99 lei >3499,99 lei
36. Puteti sa ne spuneti care este ultima scoala absolvita de dvs ?

Scoala generala

Scoala profesionala

Liceu

Scoala postliceala

Faculta te sau studii postuniversitare :masterat, doctorat etc.

37. Ocupatia dvs este :

Elev/student

Specialist/cadru cu pregatite superioara

Tehnician/maistru/invatator/functionar

Lucrator operativ in servicii/comert

Muncitor calificat/meserias

Somer

Pensionar

2.2 The analysis of connection between questions
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
24
23
START

Chapter 3.Metodology regarding sampling

3.1The researched population and the size of it.
The population investigated is represented by the citizens of Bucharest, age over 18 years, both
gender, no matter the studies, occupation or revenue.
This questionnaire is applicable to every citizen, even if he is interested in buying naturist
products or not. The population of Bucharest is of 1.677.985 inhabitants.
http://bucurestiul.info/populatia -bucurestiului/

3.2Establishing the size of the sample
For determining the size of the sample, in the case of random sampling, it is taken into
consideration the error and the level of trust
z² * 𝜎 ²
s= –––––––––
E²
Where: 𝜎- standard deviation of the estimated population
E- the accepted error (max 5%)

The formula for %:
z² * p* q
s= –––––––––––
E²
Where: s – size of the sampling
z²- square of the coefficient z, according to the confidence level
p- estimate the percentages in case of success
q= 1-p estimate the percentages in case of failure
E² = square of the accepted error expressed in percentages
It was considered an accepted error of 5 %, to a confidence level of 95%, which according the
table of z distribution, has the value of 1.96. The size of the sample s was determined in the case
of the percentages after the formula from above. Because there aren’t any previous information
about p, the percentage of the ones which will answer “DA”, it will be used the maximum level
which can be reached, p=50%.
(1,96)² * 50 * 50
s= –––––––––––––– = 1.067 persons
3²

Due to the financial and organizatorical problema, the size of the sample was different from
the one above, more exactly of 45 persons. In this case the error will be:
z² * p *q ( 1,96)² * 50 * 50
E= √ ––––––––– = √ –––––––––––––––– = 10.43
n 45
3.3Short description of the observation unit, sampling and analysis
In the case of this research, the sampling unit is represented by persons from the Bucharest.
The unit of observation is represented by people aged over 18.
The unit of analysis researched for this theme is represented by the respondents, whose data
will be analyzed afterwards. From this sampling units, it will be obtained valid data for the entire
population of Bucharest.
3.4Choosing the sampling method
Becau se, the results need to be obtained as qu ickly, as possible it will be used the method of
volunteering , using an online survey, through random sampling.
Chapter 4.The analysis and the interpretation of the primary data and the secondary data

4.1The validation of the sample comparing to the main characteristics of the researched
population
4.1.1The identification of the demographics which will validate the sample
The demographics of the respondents, on which it will be realized the validation of the sample
are the gender of the population and the income, and they are the following:

Gender Researched population

Absolute
frequencies
(persons) Relative
frequencies
(%)
Female 30 66.67%
Male 15 33.33%
Total 45 100%
4.1.2 The income

33.33%
66.67%Populatia cercetata -Sexul
Barbatesc
Femeiesc

Absolute
frequencie
s (persons) Relative
frequencie
s (%)
I. <499,99 lei noi 3 6.67%
II. 500 – 1499,99 lei noi 3 6.67%
III. 1500 – 2499,99 lei noi 6 13.33%
IV. 2500 – 3499,99 lei noi 9 20%
V. >3499,99 lei noi 24 53.33%
Total 45 100%

We’ve chosen the se features because we want to know the categ ory of population which buys
these kind of products, if they are a part of the ones with low, medium or high incomes and if
there’s a difference between the genders, who buys more products, males or females.

4.2The analysis of the relevant questions

Q1 (6 of the questionnaire): 6. Stiati ca exista produse naturiste? 6.67%
6.67%
13.33%
20%53.33%Income of the respondents
<499,99 lei noi 500 –1499,99 lei noi 1500 –2499,99 lei noi
2500 –3499,99 lei noi >3499,99 lei noi

From the total of 4 5 respondents, according to the diagram 94,12 % have heard of naturist
products while 5,88% haven’t. This means that 42 of 45 respondents are aware of these products.

Q2 (from survey)7. Ce surse de informare aveti pentru aceste produse?

The interpretation:
These results show that most of the people (62.5%) are gathering information about this
category of products from friends, neighbours, while others (50% of them ) are informing from
Plafar. Only a small part (18.75%) are actually going to a specialist (which sho uld be the
recommended solution) and ask for medical advice. The rest of the respondents (37.5%) are
informing from mass -media. From the se results we can conclude that pe ople want to k now more
about the se products, no matter the source of information.

Q3 (from survey) 8. Folositi produse naturiste?

The interpretation:
The answers to this question indicate the fact that from 94.12% of the persons who have heard
about the naturist products, a percentage of 47.06% are using the products, while 52.94% aren’t.

Q4 (9 from survey) 9. De ce nu folositi acest tip de produse? (se trece la 31)

From the ones who responded negatively to this question, 55.56% based their an swer on the lack
of trust in the se products, while 44.44% due to other reasons.

Q5 (10 from survey)10. De ce folositi acest tip de produse?

On the other side, the people who responded positively, belonging to the percentage of 94.12%,
have mentioned that they are using this type of products because they don’t have side effects and
there’s a va riety of products on the market from which they can choose.

Q6 (11 from survey)11. C at de des cumparati produse naturiste?

The interpretation:
On this question, most of the people (50%) have responded that they are using the products
neither too frequently, neither too rare. A quarter of them (25%) said that they are using the
products often. It can be observed from this graph that most of the pe ople buy the products when
they need them so that ’s why they are mentioned as somewhere between frequently and rare.

Q7 (21 from survey) 21. Ati urmat tratamente naturiste?

From this graph, there is an equality between the ones who have used naturist tr eatments and the
ones who haven’t used them .
Q8 (23 from survey) 23. Pe o scara de la 1 la 5, ne puteti spune daca sunteti multumita de aceste
tratamente?

The interpretation:
From the respondents who used the se treatments , only approximately 66.66% have been satisfied
with the efficiency of them. On a scale of 1 to 5 (from least satisfied to completely satisfied),
they have chosen the note 5,4,3,2 and 1 in equal proportion of 33.33%.This means that almost
half of the peop le have been satisfied of the efficiency of the products, while the other part of
them haven’t been so satisfied.
Q9 (27 from survey) 27. Intentionati in viitor sa urmati un tratament naturist?

The interpretation:
As the graph shows only a quarter from the respondents will chose to follow a naturist treatment
in the future. The rest of the population will remain to the classical treatments.

Q10 (32 from survey) 32. Pe viitor, intentionati sa cumparati genul acesta de produse?

The interpretation:
The graph shows that most of the respondents are interested in buying in the future this category
of products. When ask ed if they will purchase the se naturist treatments, most of them (87.5%)
responded affirmatively, while only 12.5% responded negatively.

Q11 (18 from survey)18. Aveti in zona in care locuiti magazine naturiste?

The interpretation:
This graph shows the respondents awareness of naturist shops in their neighbourhood .

Conclusions

Although most people have heard about naturist products, they aren’t open to try a 100% naturist
treatment. They prefer their treatments to be medical even if it’s not the case. They recognize the
products’ efficiency but remain skeptical when it comes to replacing a medical treatment with
one based on natural products. Which leads us to another conclusion: that most people don’t ask
for medical advice before buying naturist products. According to the study, only 18.75% of the
respondents go to a specialist to ask what treatment should take. The rest of them (50%) base
their choices of the products on advices received from friends, neighbors or superficial research
on the internet. Overall, they are misinformed and influenced by unqualified people.
Women are more in favor of natural products use. They are generally more informed on the topic
and more open to try natural treatments before resorting to the classic, medical ones. The age
doesn’t influence significantly the con sumption of naturist treatments; alt hough most of the
respondents are people with the age between 18 – 30 years, while only 3 of them have the age
between 30 – 50 years.
The income is also a major factor that influence s the purchasing power of the consumers. The
people who buy frequently (once a week) the products, ar e the ones with revenues more than
>3499,99 lei noi and the ones who buy rarely are the people with incomes below 4 99,99 lei.
Another observation is that price along with quality are strong factors for which most people feel
inclined to try naturists products. The quality of some specific products influence s the choice of
the respondents in a percentage of approximately 63% , whil e the price influences only 12.5% .
So, people are willing to spend mo re on their naturist treatments in order to buy quality products.
Although they all believe in the efficiency of these products, the problem with following a
natural treatment arises from their lack of trust in the naturist products available on the market.
More to the poin t, more than a half of the respondents aren’t sure that the treatment is 100%
natural .
Regarding the issue if there’s a naturist store in their neighborhood, 87.5% have responded
positively to this question, but the buying intentions of all the consumers reflects the fact that
they aren’t sure if they will make an acquisition of some naturist treatments.
On this condition, we can observe besides the level of incertitude o f some respondents regarding
these products, that most of them see them as an alternative treatment which can heal even a
common cold. The future buying intention have proven that people are willing to spend money
on this products, so as a recommendation w e should invest in the education of consumers in
order to convince them about the benefits of these product s. Also, we can open new stores
because a part of the population doesn’t ha ve one near their home. This would also increase the
competition on the ma rket, which will lead to a greater variety of products at small prices.