Segmenting wine consumers on the basis of three main behavioural variables: a qualitative approach for identifying target segments for wine from Greece in the United Kingdom

This paper describes a study that focuses on the factors influencing UK consumers’ wine purchasing behaviour and identifies the marketing implications for Greek wine exports. The study uses a mixed methods approach employing both qualitative and quantitative research techniques. This paper presents the findings from the qualitative phase of the study which employed focus group discussions. Eight focus groups were conducted with wine consumers in the Newcastle upon Tyne area who had bought at least one bottle of wine in the month prior to the group discussion. Full transcripts of the focus groups were analysed using NVivo7. The analysis identified three main determinants of UK wine consumers’ buying behaviour, i) degree of adventure with wine, ii) involvement and iii) usage of wine, as well as the perceived by the discussants advantages and disadvantages of wine from Greece. These findings will be used to facilitate the development of a questionnaire to validate the key factors affecting UK consumers wine purchasing decisions and identify the key wine segments. On the basis of these findings consumer segments will be identified as potential target markets for Greek wine exports.