Portobello Road



Portobello Road was a large open market. Venders with all different ethnicities lined the street selling goods. The marketing mix played a huge role in which vendors had full booths, and which vendors had empty booths. What I enjoyed most was the variety of products offered. I saw everything from original Rolling Stones records to the best “Jam Cream Do Nuts” I have ever eaten.  

Product: If a vender was selling something in high demand they had more customer interest. High interest goods included food and clothing. I bought a lot of food while walking around. Meat stands had more people on line than vegetarian stands. Meat was more desirable and people were willing to wait for it. One stand that attracted a lot of attention was a coconut juice stand. It was run by a man with lots of enthusiasm trying to sell an undesirable product. After receiving an order he would split open a large coconut with a machete and put a bright colored swirly straw and paper umbrella in it. I stood with a crowd of other potential customers watching him at work as he filled the few orders placed. I believe that if he had a better product more people would but it. For example, if he used oranges I would have gotten one. The pastry stand that sold me my Jam Cream Do Nut had a broad and deep product mix. Their Do Nut product line included frosted, powdered, sprinkled, jam creamed, gustard, and plain Do Nuts. Their muffin product line included chocolate chip and blueberry muffins. Offering even more products there was something for everyone, and everyone got more than one.    

Place: Where a vendor’s stand was located proved to be very important. I noticed many of the food stands were near each other. A hungry consumer had many options to choose from when deciding what to eat. Venders with less exposure from the street attracted less attention. When looking for food I went to an area with a high volume of food venders to compare their products and prices. I didn’t bother looking for hidden food stands away from the main group. People are very picky when it comes to food. One small difference between two similar vendors will be the difference between a sale and watching someone walk away. It is important to have a competitive edge in an open market with similar goods. An environmental factor that goes into place is location cleanliness. I wouldn’t go near booths with garbage and dirt lying around them. If a clothing booth had old food wrappers on the ground I walked until I found a clean one.

Price: If two vendors located near each other were selling similar products in high demand the stand with the lower price had more business. Most of the food vendors sold water. Since water is a commodity, the stand with the cheapest water sold more. Low priced water made money because vendors sold in high volume compared to high priced water where venders made money on their profit margin. I saw the same sized waters priced anywhere between one and three pounds. Many vendors had special deals which enticed customers to spend more money. Special deals included offers such as “buy one get one half off” or “but two get one free.” Another offer was “£1.20 or 3 for £3.” I wasn’t willing to spend a large amount of money on a single item because no returns could be made at the open market. All sales were final and as is so I made only low risk purchases.

Promotion: Self-promotion is essential in an open market setting. Vendors who were full of energy yelling at potential customers invoked more interest. When I walked down Portobello Road I heard venders calling out what they were selling and what it was priced at. With so much going on at once it was difficult to look at every booth. If I heard something I liked I would follow the vender’s voice until I saw them. Almost every non-food booth I went to let me touch the merchandise. If I touched a shirt with a nice feeling material I was more open to buying it. I like to feel products because it helps to better assess their value. For me, high quality means high value.    

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