“The ROOTS 2010 survey clearly showed the importance of geography from a marketing point of view and emphasised that areas are different and constantly changing which is why we agreed that the Coming Home theme would be quite apt."

"Another aspect which continually comes through from the research is that people shop locally and we expect this trend to grow. Retailers around the world are experiencing the same trend as they move to smaller and more convenience format stores. Catchment areas for malls and stores are shrinking as the consumer looks closer to home for value and savings. Buyers have loads of options and they’re taking into account the cost of fuel when considering a destination. ROOTS is going to get to grips with these shoppers and buyers across a massive 130 different local areas.”

The ongoing cocooning trend identified by the NAB team has led to the company including a section which looks at the level of community involvement and participation experienced by participants.

ROOTS 2013 will also see data incorporated from areas never included before including a few new areas in the South West Cape, Limpopo, the Vaal and the North West province.

Furthermore, the survey will be covering over 70% of SA’s top 40 townships including Soweto, Umlazi, Gugulethu, Soshanguve, Mamelodi, Alexandra, Mongaung and Khayelitsha.

The research is compiled and vetted by TNS and will provide feedback from approximately 30 000 Purchase Decision Makers (PDM’s). This makes the survey the biggest in the country and given that it’s focused on the local urban landscape it is the most thorough microscope on the country’s economically active urban-based decision makers.

For more information, contact NAB at 011 889 0600 or follow @NAB_SA on Twitter at @NAB_SA or look for NAB page on Facebook.