Consumerism in Western culture is one of the defining components of a capital market. Every time I want to buy something, I have to proceed to a checkout line. The articles theory states that the richer you are, the more likely you are to “bolt” out of line if the line gets too long.
If this article’s findings are true, this phenomenon can be very useful for small businesses because they are easily manageable. They can adjust their prices according to the length of the lineup. To maximize a business’s profits, the longer the lineup, the higher the price and the shorter the lineup, the lower the price. This system can further be enhanced by utilizing information systems to identify patterns in customer behavior so the prices can be accurately adjusted.
However, I do believe this theory is flawed. Like many other things in life, the tendency to bolt depends on many other factors such as environment and personality instead of just how wealthy a person is. Another reason to doubt the legitimacy of this theory is if it were so accurate, how come businesses have not yet utilized this technique in their advantage?
Article and Picture: http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-10-07/are-you-too-rich-to-wait-in-line