Feasibility Study of Store-Brand Sodas Prepared by Garret Addington Ryan Doyle Emma McKenzie Shalynn Spikes May 4, 2012
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Table of Contents Executive Summary... iv Introduction... 1 Methods of Evaluation... 2 Options and Criteria... 2 Why we chose this study... 2 Research and Gathering Information... 2 Results of Evaluation... 3 Option 1: Brookshire Brothers... 4 Option 2: Kroger... 5 Option 3: Dollar General... 6 Option 4: Wal-Mart... 7 Option 5: Sack n Save... 8 Conclusion... 9 Recommendation... 10 iii
Executive Summary The following feasibility study is showing the differences between five generic-brand sodas and how good they taste. Such a study would appear in a local newspaper ad or such to help prospective buyers choose the best tasting store-brand sodas for their price. The study provides details regarding each brand s price per 12-pack of soda, price per can, sugar content, number of calories, and the rating of each flavor (each of the thirty taste testings were done blind and then the tester rated the flavor from 1 being the worst to 5 being the best). This feasibility study would be completed in a few weeks just in time for summer to start May 7, 2012. The cost to perform this study will come out to a total of $50 to buy cans of each of the five soda flavor from each of the five different stores being tested. The manual itself will cost approximately $100 this includes the paper price, the ink price, and the binding price. We, the team members conducting this study are all qualified. We attended the University of North Texas in Denton, Texas and all were in a technical writing course specializing in the teaching of business and professional writing. Having a feasibility study like this one available to a community will easily help them decide where they should purchase their generic-brand sodas at a good, affordable price. iv
Introduction Our group conducted a feasibility study on what the best generic-brand soda you can buy from stores in Denton, Texas. We did this research to provide a researched recommendation for anyone who considers themselves a soda drinker and likes to save money. We went to five stores to investigate each generic brand; Brookshire Brothers, Kroger, Wal-Mart, Dollar General, and Sack n Save. We collected data on five flavors of off-brand soda that include: root beer, cola, Dr. Pepper, lemon-lime, and orange. We recorded the amount of calories, sugar content, and price of each variety of soda, and then conducted a survey to rank their flavor. The survey was a blind taste test we set up to determine which soda, on average, was preferred by the participants for each store and flavor. We combined all of the information recorded to determine which store has the best generic-brand soda. Many grocery stores provide their own generic-brand products as a way to make and save money. These products compete with name-brand products because they are cheaper and generally very similar to the original product. Primarily purchasing off-brand products is a way to save money when the time comes to buy groceries and they support the stores that you enjoy. Readers can use our information as an introduction into the world of generic-brand shopping. We provide a recommendation for the best generic brand soda you can buy. The report will show our tables with the research and other information we gathered to make our recommendation. 1
Methods of Evaluation Options and Criteria Brands: Brookshire Brothers, Kroger, Wal-Mart, Sack-N-Save, Walgreens Flavors: Orange, Cola, Rootbeer, Lemon-Lime, Dr. Pepper Criteria: Price, Quantity for Price, Sugar Content, Calories, Flavor Rank Price: We judged based on the cheapest to most expensive soda brand. Quantity for Price: We judge based on where you could get the most for your money. Flavor: We judged based on which flavor tested the best out of each category. Calories: We judged based on who had the lowest amount of calories. Sugar Content: We judged based on who had the lowest sugar content. Why we chose this study We chose to do a study like the following one because of the percentage of college students on a college student budget who drink sodas. The five flavors chosen are the most common flavors and are carried by most stores. When then chose the stores listed above because they are five of the closest stores to the University of North Texas campus, and all five of them carry the offbrand equivalents to five popular soda flavors. The criteria chosen would judge the sodas accordingly and help college students, and bargain shoppers alike, more aware of which store has the best tasting generic-brand soda had. Research and Gathering Information The team traveled as a whole to each of the five locations and bought a small sample of each of the five flavors at the stores. As a team, we then set up a small booth and had thirty people blindly taste test each soda from each store. Each soda had a letter to coincide with the soda and the tasters ranked the sodas from 1 the worst tasting, to 5 the best tasting. We then gathered all the information and ranked the sodas overall for which would be the best store-brand soda to buy from #1 to #5 2
Results of Evaluation To determine the feasibility of choosing the best store-brand soda for the cost, we evaluated five of the most popular soda flavors from five nearby stores. We assessed the different sodas on the criteria of price, quantity for price, flavor, calories, and sugar content. We then analyzed our results according to these five categories and rated the different store-brands. 3
Option 1: Brookshire Brothers We analyzed Brookershire Brothers store brand soda according to price per can, price per 12 pack, sugar content, calorie content, and flavor rating. (All data is in Table 2 below) Brookshire Brothers received top ratings in the following flavor(s): Dr. Pepper Orange Brookshire Brothers did well in the following categories: Calories Sugar Content Brookshire Brothers performed poorly in: Price per can Price per 12 Pack Overall Brookshire Brothers was ranked #3 (in a tie). Orange Cola Rootbeer Lemon-Lime Dr.Pepper Price (can) $00.30 $00.30 $00.30 $00.30 $00.30 Quantity/price $3.39 $3.39 $3.39 $3.39 $3.39 (12 pack) Sugar 49g 43g 45g 41g 40g Flavor (1-5) 5 4 4 2 5 Scale Calories 190 160 170 150 150 Table 1 4
Option 2: Kroger We analyzed Kroger store brand soda (Big K) according to price per can, price per 12 pack, sugar content, calorie content, and flavor rating. (All data is in Table 2 below) Kroger received top ratings in the following flavor(s): Cola Dr. Pepper Root Beer Kroger did well in the following categories: Price Sugar Content Kroger performed poorly in: Calories Overall Kroger was ranked # 1 Orange Cola Rootbeer Lemon-Lime Dr.Pepper Price (can) $00.20 $00.20 $00.20 $00.20 $00.20 Quantity/price $2.39 $2.39 $2.39 $2.39 $2.39 (12 pack) Sugar 47g 40g 45g 39g 39g Flavor (1-5) 4 5 5 3 5 Scale Calories 190 160 180 160 160 Table 2 5
Option 3: Dollar General We analyzed Dollar General s brands sodas according to price per can, cost per pack, sugar content, calories, and overall flavors rating. (All data is in Table 3 below) Dollar General received top ratings in the following flavor(s): Cola Dr. Pepper Dollar General received well rating in the following categories: Orange Root-Beer Dollar General received bad rating in the following categories: Lemon-Lime We rated Dollar general as #3(tie) Orange Cola Rootbeer Lemon-Lime Dr. Pepper Price (can) $00.23 $00.23 $00.23 $00.23 $00.23 Quantity/price $2.75 $2.75 $2.75 $2.75 $2.75 (12 pack) Sugar 50g 44g 44g 47g 27g Flavor (1-5) 4 5 4 2 5 Scale Calories 200 170 170 180 100 Table 3 6
Option 4: Wal-Mart We analyzed Wal-Mart brand according to price per can, quantity price, sugar content, number of calories, and how well the soda tastes. (All data is in Table 4 below) Wal-Mart received top ratings in the following flavor(s): Dr. Thunder Wal-Mart performed well in the following categories: Sugar content Amount of calories Wal-Mart performed poorly in the following categories: Price per can Price per 12 pack Overall Wal-Mart was ranked #3 (in a tie). Orange Cola Rootbeer Lemon-Lime Dr. Thunder Price (can) $00.21 $00.21 $00.21 $00.21 $00.21 Quantity/price $2.49 $2.49 $2.49 $2.49 $2.49 (12 pack) Sugar 49g 49g 46g 40g 41g Flavor (1-5) 4 4 4 3 5 Scale Calories 180 180 180 150 150 Table 4 7
Option 5: Sack n Save We analyzed Shur Shine Soda according to taste, cost per can, and cost per 12 pack. (see Table below) Shur Shine received top ratings in the following flavor(s): Orange Dr. Pepper Shur Shine performed well in the following categories: Sugar content Amount of calories Shur Shine performed poorly in the following categories: Price per can Price per 12 pack Overall Sac n Save was ranked #2. Orange Cola Rootbeer Lemon-Lime Dr. Fine Price (can) $00.30 $00.30 $00.30 $00.30 $00.30 Quantity/price $3.48 $3.48 $3.48 $3.48 $3.48 (12 pack) Sugar 47g 40g 45g 33g 38g Flavor (1-5) 5 4 4 3 5 Scale Calories 190 160 180 130 160 Table 5 8
Conclusion We evaluated store brand sodas in five locations to determine which store sells the best store brand sodas for. Wal-Mart Dollar General Sack n Save Kroger Brookshire Brothers We evaluated the store brand soda by analyzing the following: Price per Can Price per Pack Sugar Content Flavor Ranking Calories Once we analyzed this data, we rated the soda flavor rating on the scale from 1 to 5 (1 being the worst tasting, 5 being the best tasting). We rated the following options: #1 Kroger #2 Sack-n-Save #3 Dollar General #3 Wal-Mart #3 Brookshire Brothers We hope the college student customers, and others wanting to save money, will find this analysis and rating helpful when they go looking for the store brand sodas in the future. 9
Recommendation Based on the results from our survey, we recommend Kroger brand soda. Out of all 5 of the stores it is the cheapest brand of soda costing only $00.20 per can. Also based on the results Kroger is the best tasting soda. Out of a possible 25 points Kroger received 22 points. If you are looking for getting more for your money and the maximum taste Kroger brand soda is your best bet. 10