Abstract:

This paper focuses on the identification of the most important factors of company prosperity. The main objective of the study is the area of retail foodstuff in the Czech Republic. This specific retail market can be characterized as highly competitive, mostly by way of external sources. Despite the fact that the foodstuff branch is generally considered to be a cyclically neutral area, the current economic recession in the Czech Republic is not only closely linked to the decrease of food consumption, but also to the structural changes in household consumption. Czech consumers are highly cost oriented, so the preference of cheaper, lower quality products is increasing.

The prosperity of retail foodstuff companies is affected by many factors, including not only general economics-related effects, but also social, political and psychological aspects. These factors all frame the conditions of consumer demand. Therefore, the study is aimed on a consumer demand analysis. The demand analysis includes analysis of external and internal factors. External analysis is orientated especially on influence of general fiscal and monetary tools on people’s purchasing power, which determinates consumers’ demand. Internal analysis deals with one particular Czech retail chain, covering over 230 small and medium-sized shops. These are scattered over an area of approximately 630 square kilometres. The results of the analysis are used as input for the creation of a prosperity model. This model (scheme) of the “conditional relations of company retail prosperity”, which can be used as the background for a company market strategy, is the main objective and output of the study.