Publisher's Summary

Is there a method to our madness when it comes to shopping? Hailed by the San Francisco Chronicle as "a Sherlock Holmes for retailers," author and research company CEO Paco Underhill answers with a definitive "yes" in this witty, eye-opening report on our ever-evolving consumer culture. Why We Buy is based on hard data gleaned from thousands of hours of field research - in shopping malls, department stores, and supermarkets across America. With his team of sleuths tracking our every move, from sweater displays at the mall to the beverage cooler at the drugstore, Paco Underhill lays bare the struggle among merchants, marketers, and increasingly knowledgeable consumers for control.

In his quest to discover what makes the contemporary consumer tick, Underhill explains the shopping phenomena that often go unnoticed by retailers and shoppers alike, including:

What kinds of signage and packaging turn browsers into buyers

For those in retailing and marketing, Why We Buy is a remarkably fresh guide, offering creative and insightful tips on how to adapt to the changing customer. For the general public, Why We Buy is a funny and sometimes disconcerting look at our favorite pastime.

With clients ranging from McDonald's to Starbucks, Estie Lauder to Blockbuster, and Citibank to Wells Fargo, Paco Underhill has been profiled in The New Yorker and Smithsonian Magazine, has written for American Demographics and Adweek, and lectures widely on retail anthropology. His company, Envirosell, is based in New York City. Rick Adamson is an award-winning narrator of dozens of audiobooks for adults and kids, including How to Supervise People, Raving Fans, and O'Henry's The Ransom of Red Chief.

Executive Producer: Laura Wilson
Producer: Paul Ruben
Original cover design by Janet Perr
Original cover photograph by Daniel Lee Associates
©1999 by Obat, Inc.
(P)2000 Random House, Inc.
Originally published in hardcover by Simon & Schuster.