A hedonic analysis or retail Italian vinegar

Vinegar contribution to the Italian wine industry is rather relevant and Italy is the first world exporter for wine vinegar. Between 2000 and 2013 Italian vinegar sales on world market have increased three times. Nevertheless, the vinegar market features have received little attention by researchers while hedonic price analysis seems not to be applied to vinegar. Thus, a first attempt to investigate the most important features influencing the vinegar price has been undertaken through a sample survey on large scale retail outlets in Italy. The paper reports results of a hedonic price analysis carried out on a vinegar survey where items about intrinsic and extrinsic cues, brand, point of sale and merchandising have been collected. Bottle size and packaging features, though widely influencing the vinegar price, appear to hide the effect of other (especially intrinsic) attributes. The Modena Balsamic vinegar is a geographical denomination and receives a premium price than other vinegars while the increase of the acidity content reduces the vinegar price. Producer’s brands and the type of cap provide a significant price impact, but also shelf display features play an important role on vinegar price. However, further researches are required to confirm the results of this analysis for other markets. Knowledge about factors affecting the vinegar price, can help producers in making decisions about what vinegars should be produced and how to price them. This, in turn, will benefit also a consistent share of wine and grapes producers, whose profits rely more or less on the success of the vinegar industry.