Kurt Jetta (born 21 July 1961) is a consumer researcher who studies data about multinational corporations through his firm, TABS Analytics, which is based in Shelton, Connecticut. The corporations Jetta has analyzed include Amazon, Family Dollar, Dollar Tree, Walmart, Apple. In addition, Jetta has also studied the organic food industry, the vitamin industry, and the online grocery industry. Other investigations led by Jetta include sociological research that pertains to the purchasing habits of various ethnic groups. In the area of trade promotion, Jetta has developed an alternative methodology to current industry baseline models. Jetta also analyzes rewards programs. He was a 2017 Republican candidate in Florida’s 21st Congressional District.
Career
Between 1996 and 1998 he held a position as Chief Executive Officer of Binky-Griptight, Inc. Binky-Griptight is a supplier of infant products. Prior to Binky-Griptight, Jetta spent seven years at Playtex Products.
In 1998, Jetta founded TABS Group, where he is the Chief Executive Officer and Lead Product Developer. TABS Group provides marketing analysis for clients in the Consumer Products industry. Additionally, he serves as an independent Director for JM Global Holding, Co. Work by Jetta and TABS has been quoted in The New York Times, Forbes, Bloomberg, and other national media.
Consumer trends
Between 2009 and 2012, Jetta sampled 1,000 individuals who were aged 18–75 in order to study "their buying habits when it comes to organic products." Kurt Jetta's research, with regard to the organic food industry, suggests that the "percentage of people who buy organic products has stayed virtually the same for the past few years," at the 38-39% range. The study found that "Fresh Fruits continues to be the highest penetration category for Organics with 27% of consumers. This is followed by Fresh Vegetables (26%), Eggs (17%), Milk (16%), Chicken (13%), Skincare (7%), Red Meat (6%), Frozen Vegetables (6%), Haircare (5%), Frozen Fruit (4%), Ice Cream (4%), and Cosmetics (3%). Skincare and Haircare are the only two categories that registered consecutive years of annual gains, while Milk and Ice Cream showed declines in consecutive years." Jetta and his firm have also found that due to negative studies concerning multivitamins, the vitamin industry saw an "overall lethargy" in 2014.
Jetta has stated that "The most important thing that data is used for is to determine which products consumers prefer, and to make sure what's on the shelf is what they want to buy...For example, we're doing one project for a retail chain where we found that in areas with high African-American populations, not only do they buy African-American hair care products and cosmetics specifically, but they buy grooming products in general at a very high level. With that kind of information, the retailer can make sure all those products are stocked and available for them."
In early 2016, Jetta criticized the consumer packaged goods industry for stalling their own growth. His work, covered by both Wells Fargo and Food Navigator USA, showed that the consumer packaged goods industry focuses too much on less effective promotional tactics such as retailer loyalty programs and marketing to millennials at the expense of doing more traditional consumer trade promotion. He has also published opinion articles on the topic.
Also in 2016, Jetta’s research on online purchasing of baby goods by consumers received press when the study revealed that baby products are the largest online market of any of the consumer packaged goods categories studied.
Jetta began commenting on the online grocery business in 2016. After a TABS study found that fewer consumers purchased groceries online in 2016 than in 2015, he reported that “online grocery is failing,” and that Amazon would have difficulty breaking into grocery business because consumers enjoy grocery shopping in brick and mortar stores. When Amazon announced its intent to purchase Whole Foods in June 2017, Jetta’s research and commentary was quoted in Bloomberg and The Denver Post, and he was interviewed on NPR.