SAS Economists Podcast #2: Determinants of demand for Starbucks vs. The Coffee Bean
welkerswikinomics.com on October 20th, 2007
By Claire Moon and So Yeon Yoon
For our second installment of the SAS Economists Podcast, Claire and So Yeon survey 55 students to discover what determines where they prefer to get their coffee fix in the Shanghai neighborhood of Gubei. They discover through their research that consumers base their decisions on a variety of reasons, and that price, while important, is not the only factor that determines which particular products consumers will purchase. Location, tastes, size of the market, and various other factors all play a role in consumer’s decisions between two alternatives in a competitive market like that for coffee in Gubei, a trendy neighborhood with no shortage of coffee outlets.
Click below to hear this excellent and enlightening investigation into consumer behavior and the determinants of demand for coffee in modern Shanghai! 
Determinants of demand for Starbucks vs. The Coffee Bean [5:24m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download
October 23rd, 2007 at 12:17 pm
Nice podcast! A couple of weird silences.. but it was good overall.
I think one thing you could have talked a little more about is the fad factor of the preference part of determinants of demand. It seems like Starbucks is way more “in” nowadays than Coffee Bean, so even if Coffee Bean had better tasting drinks, prices, etc, many people would still prefer Starbucks over it.
October 28th, 2007 at 12:59 pm
I agree with Christina, however, the fad factor was mentioned by a few of those that were interviewed: “I prefer Starbucks from Coffee Bean because Starbucks has a name value and a lot of people think Starbucks is better than Coffee Bean.” Still, you guys could’ve mentioned it as one of the determinants. Overall, you guys did an awesome job. Love the music.