A typology of urban speciality shops selling rural provenance food products – a contribution from Portugal

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore and typify the characteristics and diverse features of urban speciality stores selling rural provenance food, taking the case of three cities in Portugal.Design/methodology/approachThe study was based on hierarchical cluster analysis, performed upon data collected from a survey to 113 shops, located in Aveiro (n = 15), Lisbon (n = 56) and Porto (n = 42).FindingsThe study identified three clusters of shops according to the type of rural provenance products sold, services provided and clientele characteristics: the wine focused, the rural provenance focused and the generalist. The study confirms that in Portugal, small food retail outlets, with different rural provenance patterns and degrees of specialization have considerably grown in large cities over the last decade.Research limitations/implicationsThe study contributes to typifying urban speciality food stores selling rural provenance products and to addressing critical research gaps on this topic. The study highlights the dynamism of small food retail outlets and their significance, mediating and responding to changing patterns of food consumption in urban spaces.Originality/valueThis study contributes to a better understanding and characterization of food speciality shops in urban settings and their links with rural territories of provenance, an under-researched topic on the food retail literature.

Rural Ties and Consumption of Rural Provenance Food Products—Evidence from the Customers of Urban Specialty Stores in Portugal

“…In the last decade, the number of specialty food stores selling rural provenance products has increased in urban centers. The different identities and roles played by these stores in promoting rural provenance foods and rural development has only recently attracted attention [ 1 , 3 ]. This is guided by the premise that as venues selling foodstuffs with characteristics indissociable of their provenance, these stores may act as showcases of the territories of origin, ways of production, and symbolic dimensions of local, regional, and cultural identities [ 3 ].…”

“…The rural sociocultural universes of provenance portrayed by these stores are more and more valued by urban consumers whose food preferences are increasingly leaning toward rural provenance food products [ 4 , 11 , 12 , 18 , 19 ]. A case in point is provided by a first attempt to typify urban specialty food stores [ 1 ] within the Portuguese cultural context according to the type of rural provenance products sold. The different rural provenance patterns and specialties, as well as overlapping features [ 1 ], within and between the found clusters of shops, reveal the diversity of national provenance (especially when addressing overseas customers) as well as their linkages to particular products, specific regions, villages, and producers.…”

“…The manifold definitions of these products may shape different types of stores [ 1 ]. Overall, they contribute to fostering consumers’ interest in rural provenance food products by promoting closer communication with customers and creating a specific environment [ 20 ].…”

“…The interest of both consumers and retailers in rural provenance food products has increased in recent years [ 1 , 2 ]. According to Figueiredo [ 3 ], rural provenance foods may be defined as all the products whose distinct qualities are anchored in their rural place of production and are shaped by the respective biophysical conditions and food-related cultural traditions.…”

“…The growing number (mainly in the last decade) of specialty stores selling rural provenance food in urban centers speaks favorably about new rural–urban connections and fluxes of people, products, capital, and knowledge [ 1 , 6 ]. It is argued that this recent phenomenon may influence the expansion and consolidation of agricultural production in rural areas, thus contributing to rural development, larger economic diversification, and the overall attractiveness of rural territories [ 3 , 7 , 8 ].…”