Target market segment
Used bookstores serve the entire purchasing population of its geographical area but focuses on customers who desire to purchase books/music at discount prices because they are seen either as near commodity items or, in the case of books, are not considered to be a long-term investment (i.e. they will trade them back). Because of this relatively low value placed upon our merchandise by potential customers, dymocks can still flourish in an upscale environment. This is especially true with people seeking to cut costs with the bad economy. Even though we service the entire book reading population in the surrounding area, we can divide our customers based on purchasing habits.
• Casual Shoppers: These are customers who go to the bookstore with no set idea of what they want to purchase. They seek to spend a fair amount of time browsing the store and often are considered impulse buyers. Often they leave the store with small purchases or without buying anything. These customers are attracted to bookstores with low prices and large inventory.
• "Hard to Find" Shoppers: These are customers with very specific needs. They are looking for a difficult to obtain item, usually a book that is out of print. If we can satisfy this customer, then we are able to build significant customer loyalty. These clients are generally price insensitive and are also drawn to stores that have large inventory.
• Specific Category Shoppers: These customers are those types that generally buy books or music of one category, such as fiction or romance. These customers generally have a good idea of what they want to purchase and have the greatest buyback/trade potential. These customers represent the highest volume purchaser, often leaving the store having spent $30-$50.
The following table and pie graph show how our market segments are broken up into size and relative