Globe and Mail, 26 / 01 / 2005

Poor image affects sales, study shows

By Keith McArthur
Wednesday, January 26, 2005 - Page B12

Fifty-one per cent of Canadians will not even walk into a store if they've heard something bad about it from friends or family, according to a survey released yesterday. The study was conducted by Consumer Contact and The Verde Group, which advises companies on the costs of customer dissatisfaction. The survey, which polled 1,014 Canadian consumers in the four weeks before Christmas, also found that 39 per cent of Canadians experienced problems shopping for items valued at $200 or less.