1. Introduction
The phenomenon of cross-border shopping has gained scholars’ attention and has been widely discussed in academia since at least the 1930s [
1]. The global economic impact of cross-border shopping makes this phenomenon an indispensable topic for scholarly research and is also warranted, considering the gaps in our existing knowledge of it [
2]. Various aspects promoting cross-border shoppers’ behavior have been discussed, i.e., economic [
3,
4,
5], marketing, socio-cultural [
5], psychological [
5], situational or regional [
4,
6], and also risks that might suppress cross-border shopping [
6] analyzed since then. Also, scholarly research in the domain represents various periods, areas [
7,
8], taxes [
1], and goods and services [
4].
The existing research in the field widely recognizes the impact of existing differences between countries on promoting cross-border shopping [
7]; however, every case is unique because of the differences in consumer characteristics [
5] and in the policies and specifics of bordering countries [
7,
8,
9]. Therefore, the determination of the principal factors affecting cross-border shopping helps regulate its flows and, afterwards, fosters the border region’s development [
9].
Borders between countries are intended to serve as a barrier for various exchanges and movements [
10] of products, services, humans, and capital [
11]. Moreover, differences in taxation might exist between bordering countries, leading to differences in the price of the same products [
1,
7]. Inflation differences also exist in the Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries [
12]. On the other hand, contemporary consumers are not limited by country borders in their search for optimal assortment, best prices, and easily accessible locations [
4], and such endeavors might encourage them to shop in another country. Michalkó and Rátz [
13] emphasize that although contemporary customers are not confined to the supply provided by local retailers, despite the emergence of online trade, people are still willing to travel hundreds of kilometers for a better deal or a more enjoyable shopping experience.
In the early 1990s, the CEE countries started the transformation and liberalization of their economies [
14]. The “fall of the Iron Curtain” corrected Europe’s political map [
9] and also encouraged the establishment of the EU’s single market [
4] by eliminating the obstacles created by the formal borders between European countries. The free-market reforms mostly affected finance and trade sectors, and trade volumes significantly increased [
14]. The border opening encouraged cross-border activities both in human movement and trade [
9]. On the other hand, borders and border areas can all be considered unique, being important areas because of their closeness to the country border [
6]. The scientific literature [
1] indicates that shoppers travel from smaller countries to larger ones, driven by the perception of higher quality.
Cross-border shopping is common among almost all borders in Europe [
13]. Being members of the EU, Lithuania and Poland are the bordering countries in the CEE region. Having a common border, the countries share historical, cultural, and national heritage and events. A Polish–Lithuanian Union, although informal, was established in 1386, when the pagan Lithuanian Grand Duke married a Polish queen and was baptized [
15]. Despite the similarities between countries in geographical location and historical social–political structures, the timing of reformation attempts, economic performance, cultural affinities, and consumer expectations have formed dissimilarly over the last decade [
5]. Currently, Poland can be considered a “Supermarket of Europe”, where shoppers from neighboring countries come to search for cheaper goods and services. The cheapness of products and services in Poland is determined by a wide national market in line with a competitive exchange rate of the Polish currency (PLN). The price level dissimilarities between Poland and Lithuania have resulted in 20 percent during 2022; therefore, consumer goods and services in Lithuania are about five times more expensive than in Poland [
16]. However, the scientific literature provides more factors that might also affect the consumers’ choice to shop cross-border.
The Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) sector was considered for the research. FMCG are frequently purchased and consumed products that are intended to satisfy continuous consumer demand and are commonly sold as single-use and disposable products [
17]. Currently, companies offering FMCG products are facing growing managerial challenges because the competition is very high in this market, and enterprises are forced to operate in a turbulent and fast-changing environment [
18]. Despite the relevance of the research for the FMCG sector, the search on the Scopus database identified only 400 documents analyzing cross-border shopping, and none of them indicated FMCG, thus outlining the existence of the gap in the scientific literature. Therefore, this research will be among the first studies identifying the factors encouraging and suppressing cross-border shopping for FMCG.
The current article supplements the scientific discussion on cross-border shopping and trade by presenting the research results from the Lithuania–Poland border region. The aim of the article is to identify the factors encouraging and suppressing Lithuanian customers shopping for FMCG in Poland. To reach the aim, a hypothetical model is elaborated to demonstrate the theoretically established factors affecting the behavior of cross-border shoppers. To verify the established relationships, a questionnaire survey was provided in Lithuania and Poland by interviewing Lithuanians shopping for FMCG. Logistic regression was used to approve or reject the relationships of the model. Finally, a verified model is provided. The model of Lithuanian consumer behavior in the cross-border FMCG market in Poland might be useful and practically applied by local authorities and businesses in order to manage tourist as well as customer flows. The FMCG market must constantly change and adapt to current trends: the market is constantly developing, and new stores are opening to offer new FMCG, therefore serving even more people [
18]. Moreover, as sustainable consumers are individuals, considering social and economic issues of their behavior [
19], this study will contribute to the body of knowledge by assessing the influence of these issues on Lithuanians shopping for FMCG in Poland. Also, this study will provide a background for further research in the field of cross-border shopping for FMCG.
The article contains six main chapters: Conceptual Framework and Research Hypotheses are provided in
Section 2, Materials and Methods, where the main procedures of the research are presented and explained in
Section 3, followed by Research Results (
Section 4) and Discussion (
Section 5) presenting main aspects for consideration and their performance in line with the results obtained by the other scholars. Finally, Conclusions and Recommendations in line with research limitations provided to guide the other authors in their research regarding cross-border consumer behavior can be found in
Section 6.
4. Results
Based on the analyses, the impacts of seven socio-demographic characteristics (gender, age, education, place of residence, number of people in the household, professional activity, and income), the analyzed five determinants (economic, marketing, socio-cultural, psychological, and regional factors), and also the four risks (physical and functional, economic, socio-cultural, and regional) of the purchasing decisions of Lithuanians on the cross-border FMCG market in Poland were determined. The discretization of the explanatory variables identified five groups of factors having different strengths of influence on shopping behavior. To indicate the degree of significance of the influence of factors on purchasing decisions, factor loadings were calculated for each individual variable (
Table 3). The following variables in five groups (G obtained significant factor loadings (>0.700)):
G1—economic factors (0.848) and, on the verge of significance, professional activity (0.697);
G2—psychological factors (−0.712);
G3—regional factors (0.737);
G4—all the factor loadings were below 0.700, the highest loading for marketing factors (−0.523);
G5—income level (−0.740).
Table 3.
Matrix of representative variables.
Table 3.
Matrix of representative variables.
| Factor Loadings (Varimax Normalized) |
---|
Variable | G1 | G2 | G3 | G4 | G5 |
---|
Gender | 0.044300 | −0.044926 | 0.081289 | 0.414293 | −0.029766 |
Age | 0.130065 | 0.603491 | −0.446910 | −0.309799 | −0.077413 |
Education | −0.332009 | −0.338115 | 0.341371 | 0.135544 | 0.186173 |
Place of residence | 0.048286 | −0.032669 | 0.014082 | −0.236171 | 0.676025 |
Number of people in the household | −0.572030 | −0.120484 | 0.198982 | −0.458245 | −0.004099 |
Professional activity | 0.696907 | −0.147273 | 0.016042 | 0.461237 | 0.011727 |
Income level | 0.028559 | −0.066192 | 0.031022 | −0.135287 | −0.739605 |
Economic factors | 0.847970 | 0.161456 | 0.122123 | 0.013637 | −0.034501 |
Marketing factors | 0.509079 | 0.122365 | 0.564909 | −0.522642 | −0.031018 |
Psychological factors | 0.205784 | −0.712365 | −0.098274 | 0.075188 | 0.043204 |
Socio-cultural factors | 0.252106 | 0.250336 | −0.117279 | 0.557357 | −0.036184 |
Regional factors | 0.231526 | −0.043306 | 0.736885 | 0.082164 | 0.091172 |
Risk related to the physical and functional characteristics of the product | −0.034661 | 0.599511 | 0.099466 | 0.077477 | 0.003522 |
Risk related to economic factors | 0.426456 | 0.306402 | 0.019852 | 0.045718 | −0.013959 |
Risk related to socio-cultural factors | 0.450036 | 0.501269 | −0.045073 | 0.211705 | 0.065657 |
Risk related to regional factors | 0.216310 | 0.595624 | 0.253484 | 0.085013 | 0.156623 |
Table 4 presents eigenvalues, cumulative values, and the percentage of total variance obtained for the factor groups. The largest percentage of variance (18%) is explained by the first group of factors, the second group—14.1%, the third—9.5%, the fourth—7%, and the fifth—6.4%.
Based on the categorization of variables, the Information Value (IV) coefficient was calculated as the predictive ability for individual variables. Gender, age, education, place of residence, and number of people in the household had very weak predictive power. The highest predictive power concerns the following features: professional activity (IV = 2.23), economic factors (IV = 2.20), regional factors (IV = 1.39), and income level (IV = 0.60). The following factors had very low predictive power: marketing (IV = 0.21), socio-cultural (IV = 0.06), and psychological (IV = 0.02). The types of risks analyzed had no or very low predictive power: risks related to the properties of the product (IV = 0.14), economic factors (IV = 0.09), socio-cultural factors (IV = 0.18), and regional (IV = 0.00). After calculating the correlation of factors, the latter variables were eliminated from the model: gender, age, education, place of residence, and number of people in the household.
The results of the point analysis indicate the socio-demographic determinants of FMCG purchases (
Table 5). The following had a statistically significant impact (
p < 0.05) on income level (
p = 0.00213) and professional activity (
p = 0.00078). In the model determining the determinants of FMCG purchases, the highest positive values for the socio-demographic characteristics of Lithuanians were given to professional activity: unemployed (241 points), student (172 points), and retired (132 points). A teacher (−11 points), an administrative employee (2 points), an employee of a company (19 points), and own business (41 points) showed a very low probability of purchasing FMCG. Considering the income, the range of points was from 10 (definitely above the national average) to 153 (significantly below the national average). People declaring the lowest income and below the national average income were characterized by a very high probability of purchase.
The presented scoring analysis enables identification of the determinants of Lithuanians’ purchasing decisions on the FMCG market in Poland (
Table 6). A statistically significant impact (
p < 0.05) was found by the economic factor (
p = 0.00093) and regional factor, which is the possibility of transporting the acquired products through the border (
p = 0.00234). Logistic regression analysis did not indicate a significant impact of other groups of determinants or types of risk. The
p-significance level for individual factors was: economic (
p = 0.21408), marketing (
p = 0.17468), psychological (
p = 0.73501), and socio-cultural (
p = 0.19479). Logistic regression analysis showed no significant impact of risk related to the product characteristics (
p = 0.48371), risk related to economic (
p = 0.38751), socio-cultural (
p = 0.51269), and regional (
p = 0.07466) features.
The analysis showed that the purchasing decisions of Lithuanians on the cross-border FMCG market in Poland were influenced by economic factors such as price, functional features, quality perceived according to physical features, product appearance, health values, quality of life, certificates and approvals, and cross-border transportation possibility. Among the analyzed socio-demographic factors, professional activity and income level have an impact. Considering the perceived threats, there was no impact of any of the analyzed risks. The results of hypothesis testing are presented in
Table 7.
5. Discussion
Cross-border shopping can be considered to be a source of investment and jobs for the border regions [
46]; therefore, understanding consumer motivations for choosing to cross the country border for shopping is an important task for every sector of consumer goods. It is crucial to gain a deeper comprehension of motivation and make use of the elements that influence it [
47].
The research results indicate a great consumer desire to cross the borders of neighboring countries for FMCG shopping; therefore, the study supported the convenience of border-free regions for shopping [
28,
48]. However, only four factors were found to have an influence on Lithuanian consumers’ choice to cross the Lithuanian–Polish border for FMCG shopping, i.e., income level and professional activity (socio-demographic factors) and economic and regional factors. The results of the research prompted changes in the hypothetical model (
Figure 2).
Apparently, socio-demographic factors are important shopping predictors. Income level and professional activity were also significant for Lithuanian food shoppers in Poland [
49]. Considering that, traditionally, consumers dedicate a substantial part of their budget to FMCG [
47], people declaring their income as equal to the national average and lower were characterized by a very high probability of choosing cross-border shopping for FMCG in Poland. A contradiction may be envisioned with an assumption that rational behavior occurs mainly in people with at least average income and are young and better educated, for whom shopping for goods is a pleasure [
23]; moreover, utilitarian shopping motivations have strengthened during the pandemic [
50].
It must be noted that the research encompassed seven socio-demographic factors, namely: gender, age, education, professional activity, place of residence, household size, and income (income level). Five of them, i.e., gender, age, education, place of residence, and household size, had no significant influence on Lithuanians choosing to shop for FMCG in Poland. Also, Mexican tourist cross-border shopping research found that age and marital status were not significant factors in regard to this choice [
35]. As FMCG are the items privately used every day [
47], it might be assumed that consumer gender, age, education, or household size are not very relevant in regard to shopping decisions. If considering the place of residence, most respondents (61.4 percent) indicated coming from cities with more than 50,000 inhabitants; however, as their place of residence had no impact on their choice to shop cross-border, it might be assumed that regional factors were more important in this regard.
The research results confirmed a statistically significant impact of economic factors on the purchasing behavior of Lithuanians in the Polish FMCG market. Lithuanians know about prices in Poland and consider them to be much lower than in Lithuania. In addition, they are informed about the functional characteristics and quality of goods in the FMCG market in Poland. This information has a positive impact on purchasing decisions. The obtained research results confirm the thesis of other authors [
4] that when shopping, consumers look for the lowest price and the best quality. Similarly, the financial factor also was significant for Serbians’ choice to cross their country border for shopping [
5].
As regional factors can be reflected by one single feature: the possibility of transporting goods across the border, the obtained results indicate that Lithuanians are frequently using this possibility. Globalization of consumption results in the globalization of markets, particularly those close to country borders [
49]. The research results are especially important for Polish border entrepreneurs, as the flow of shoppers from Kaliningrad is decreasing; the research [
51] shows that among the citizens of Kaliningrad who were regularly traveling to Poland for shopping, 53% indicated a decline in the frequency of their trips from year to year. Considering the geographic location of the borders between the Kaliningrad area, Lithuania, and Poland, such a decline in shoppers from Kaliningrad can be compensated by attracting Lithuanians. To encourage more Lithuanians to come to Poland for shopping, better transportation possibilities can be offered as they positively affect cross-border exchanges. Also, recent research indicated the necessity of the symbiosis of research in the fields of entrepreneurship, digitalization, smart environments, and sustainability [
52], thus emphasizing the possible future changes in the role of regional factors through various forms of e-commerce.
The research results denied that social and legal differences on opposite sides of international borders are the major stimulators behind cross-border shopping [
50]. Marketing, socio-cultural factors, and psychological factors were found to be insignificant for Lithuanians choosing to shop for FMCG in Poland. Lithuanians have the same motives as Hungarians: the more attractive prices and the better price–quality ratio of specific goods or brands were indicated as the major reasons for Hungarians to shop cross-border [
13]. Although consumers who choose cross-border shopping can be characterized by low levels of economic patriotism [
5], this is not the case for Lithuanian FMCG shopping in Poland.
Considering marketing factors, the contrast between Lithuania and Poland in terms of market opportunities, availability of goods, prices, and shopping locations [
25] appeared to be not visible enough to motivate people to want to cross the border for shopping. On the other hand, the research results might be explained by market familiarity: shoppers know well when and how to shop, and they are well aware of existing promotional days on the other side of the border [
2]. The market familiarity and similarity for Lithuanians purchasing FMCG in Poland can also explain the absence of the effect of socio-cultural factors. The intercultural exchange while visiting Poland, i.e., an experience and an acceptance of cultural diversity [
27], was not important for Lithuanians. Also, maybe because of the very similar assortment of FMCG in Poland and Lithuania, Lithuanians were not likely to rely on recommendations provided by relatives and friends as opposed to the literature [
13]. However, to elaborate a more appealing and effective marketing mix, neuromarketing tools based on the consumers‘ neural responses (for example, emotions, attention, motivation, reward processing, and perception) might be used [
53].
Finally, considering psychological factors, the research results denied that such factors as enjoyment in shopping, self-confidence, or innovativeness [
5] stimulate cross-border shopping performed by Lithuanian FMCG consumers. As the Polish FMCG market is very similar to the Lithuanian one, respondents denied the effect of novelty and uniqueness, fashion, prestige, and demonstration of wealth on their choice to cross the border for shopping.
Moreover, even more interesting results were obtained regarding the factors suppressing Lithuanians’ cross-border shopping for FMCG in Poland. The results denied that a national border can act as a barrier to cross-border shopping [
4,
20] in the analyzed case. All the theoretically established risks were proved to be irrelevant for Lithuanians choosing to shop for FMCG in Poland. Apparently, the citizens of the border region travel to Poland for shopping without distinguishing any possible risks. Moreover, between Lithuania and Poland, there are no such border-crossing obstacles like border checks indicated in the literature [
6,
25]; therefore, border crossing is not so evident. Also, as FMCG prices are higher in Lithuania [
16], the existence of economic risks was also denied.
Despite the differences between Lithuanian and Polish languages, the problem of understanding the foreign language indicated in the literature [
6,
13,
20,
38] was not found to significantly affect the choice of Lithuanians to shop in Poland. To explain the absence of suppressing factors for Lithuanians to shop in Poland for FMCG, globalization and euro-integration processes and the measures simplifying and encouraging cross-border activities applied by the EU might be considered [
54].
Finally, the model of Lithuanian consumer shopping behavior in the Polish border FMCG market reveals the major socio-demographic factors to be considered by the Polish entrepreneurs, namely: consumer professional activity and income level. Knowing that for FMCG in Poland, shoppers are mainly unemployed, students, and retired people having an income of average and much below the country’s average, local entrepreneurs can adapt their marketing, merchandising, and pricing strategies to better serve specific consumer segments.
Considering the regional factors, the possibility of transporting goods across the border is already evident. However, it might be facilitated even more by offering more convenient types of transportation and engaging in cross-border e-commerce.
6. Conclusions and Recommendations
As cross-border trade reinforces the sustainable economic development of a country or region by enabling transnational cooperation and, consequently, encouraging local entrepreneurs to search for innovative and more socially responsible ways of customer attraction, this study contributes to the body of knowledge by identifying the factors to be addressed. The groups of factors included in the model were analyzed in the context of stimuli for making purchasing decisions on the cross-border FMCG market. The determining factors were the socio-demographic characteristics of consumers and economic and regional factors. Although neither marketing, psychological, or cultural factors had a significant impact on the purchase of FMCG in the cross-border market, consumers’ emotional experiences and risk aversion should not be underestimated.
The most significant influence had geopolitical conditions, the most important of which was the possibility of transporting acquired products through the border. Research on the economic and social impact and, especially, regional conditions for shaping consumer behavior on border markets can be used to propose solutions for the functioning of cross-border trade in the European Union’s markets located close to the country borders.
Facing the dynamically changing geopolitical conditions, the problem of objectively assessing the behavior of border regions’ residents in the market is evident. Despite the restrictions, it is necessary to constantly monitor the operating conditions of border markets and research the factors determining purchasing activity in these markets. Current research reflects only consumer cross-border shopping behavior at the time of the survey and does not estimate or forecast the behavioral changes in five, ten, or more years. For future research, it might be recommended to replicate the research and monitor changes in factors or possibly emerging risks. Also, as the possible impact of seasonality or closing Christmas period was not assessed, it is recommended to replicate the survey at different times of the year (for example, spring or summer) to obtain a more complex picture.
Another limitation of the study may be the fact that the operating conditions of markets in Lithuania and Poland are significantly different. Their most different feature is different currency: the euro in Lithuania and the Polish zloty in Poland, and different VAT rates on food. This means that in border markets with similar characteristics (same currency and taxes on FMCG), research may have different results.
A huge factor limiting the research is difficult access to respondents, reluctant participation in interviews, and uncomfortable conditions of conducting interviews (e.g., in shopping centers). The reluctance to answer is related to fears of reporting the transport of excessive amounts of goods to customs services. The number of observations does not allow for the formulation of representative conclusions.
Moreover, during the time of the research, several factors crucial for the functioning of cross-border markets coincided: the global economic crisis, the changing geopolitical conditions, and the war in Ukraine. The latter factors were followed by high inflation and increased fluctuations in the rate of exchange. Such market conditions resulted in a growth of the purchasing activity of Lithuanians in the Polish market for FMCG.
Hence, the findings and conclusions of this study should be exclusively attributed to the Lithuanian–Polish border market for FMCG until a comparative study is conducted in other country markets.
The authors are aware of the limitations of the study but, at the same time, express their willingness to develop research on purchasing behavior in other cross-border markets, both within and outside the EU. This is especially important from the perspective of expanding the structures of the European Union to other countries, e.g., Ukraine. By conducting broader research, it would be possible to explore more relationships between the determinants of shopping behavior expressed by the inhabitants of border regions.
Research should also be continued on the Polish–Lithuanian cross-border market for other goods and services.