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It is conventional wisdom in the grocery industry that a high proportion of purchasing decisions are unplanned. New research into degrees of unplanned purchasing casts doubt on these claims. Rates of unplanned category purchasing - ie, buying a product from a category not originally on the shopper''s shopping list - are much lower than is widely suggested. Also, degrees of unplanned purchasing vary greatly according to different types of shopper. Shoppers with above average income, who travel by car, who have time to spare, whose shopping trip itself is unplanned, and who see in-store merchandising as a useful source of information have higher rates of unplanned purchasing. Shoppers with below average income, who don''t travel by car, whose attitude towards shopping is to be fast and efficient, and who don''t seek out in-store merchandising information have lower rates of unplanned purchasing. Many of these influences on rates of unplanned purchasing remain beyond the immediate reach of retailer or supplier marketing strategies. They relate to shopper traits which determine how willing the shopper is to be influenced by in-store marketing activities. This raises questions about the focus and intended objectives of different marketing initiatives.