As a result of the many changes that are happening in the Brazilian retail, firms are being forced to pay close attention to their operations. This paper analyses how layout and the time spent inside the stores impact the total expenditure of the consumers, especially those that were not previously planned. Using data from a field research carried out by Programa de Administração de Varejo (PROVAR) in the second semester of 2001, two models were built: the first with the group of interviewed people who spent more than previously planned and the second with the consumers that spent the same or less than planned. It was possible to observe that the expenditure is very sensible to the time people stay inside the store. In relation to the layout of the products, it was observed that the group that spent less than planned reduced their purchase if complementary goods were put together.
marketing; impulse buying; retail; supermarkets
