Consumers of food products represent a special group of good customers. A feature of food products is that there is a steady and urgent demand for many of them, since many types of nutrition products as a subclass of food products are consumed daily or often, and therefore are also purchased frequently. Many of these products, especially those in constant demand, must be physically and economically accessible to purchasers.
Nutrition products satisfy the physiological needs of people, in particular their varieties such as the need for water, energy, plastic needs, internal security, maintaining a constant body temperature, as well as organoleptic and ergonomic needs. In addition to these needs, which are among the main ones, nutrition products also satisfy additional needs: prestigious, hedonic, aesthetic, and some types of psychotropic substances (alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, etc.).
Managers and merchandisers of sales organizations should know how to operate and develop their strategy based on an understanding of consumer behaviour. Working with the consumer: analysis, forecasting of their behaviour is an important element of the professional activity of trade specialists.
With the development of market relations and increased competition in Russia, working with the consumer is becoming increasingly relevant for all participants in market relations. Orientation to consumers is the main principle of the quality management system, regulated by GOST R ISO 9000 - 2015 [1]. All employees of commercial enterprises should be focused on working with the consumer. Learning to understand and manage the behaviour of consumers, to know the customer is not so easy. The consumer often says, thinks of some desires, but when in the supermarket, he or she buys something completely different. Customers simply do not realize the motives for such a purchase, he/they may change their minds at the last minute. Therefore, it is necessary to study the stereotypes of consumer behaviour, their needs, consumer preferences, their perception of the product, etc. [2].