Indicators Influencing the Consumer Preferences in Buying from Street Vendors: A Study on Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh

Abstract

Existence of the street vendors in a developing country is a common phenomenon
and in recent years the activities of street vendors and their contribution through the informal
economy have become a contemporary issue. The study area, Cox’s Bazar, is considered as
the tourist capital of Bangladesh and street vendors play on that opportunity grabbing
massive attention of the consumers or more precisely tourists. Most of the street vendors in
Cox’s Bazar are seen alongside the edge of different important points of sea beaches. This
paper aims at stipulating the factors that motivate consumers buying from street vendors. A
structured questionnaire using likert scale was used to survey around 200 respondents and
through the factor analysis 6 important factors were identified. The study reveals that the
consumers prefer to buy the souvenir items to keep a memento from a destination, the value
for money, the diversity of products, showmanship of the vendors, nature of the products and
the flexibility in purchasing when buying from the vendors in Cox’s Bazar. Based on the
findings, the street vendors can construct a strong competitive advantage and a high level of
consumer satisfaction that can eventually improve their (vendors) wellbeing and the
economy as a whole.