Particular Features of Consumer Behavior of Well-To-Do Russians

Abstract

The article is devoted to the analysis of consumer behavior of the most successful strata of Russian society. We must mention that these are not the strata which form the political elite of the country or determine its economic policy. These are the wide strata of relatively successful population, which are characterized by peculiar styles and level of life and which in practice determine the situation at markets of many goods and services. The subject of the research is the consumer behavior of the well-to-do Russians, which allows to estimate the rationality of an individual and shows the direction and reasoning of his life strategies, efficiency of his behavior as a whole. The author analyses behavioral practices, types of consumption of certain goods and services by this group and makes a special emphasis on the character of using the available resources, orientation towards their accumulation or usage. Conducted analysis showed that well-to-do population of Russia does not constitute a homogeneous group. The author of the article cites the criteria and results of both vertical and different types of horizontal stratification of well-to-do Russians as consumers, their investment strategies are considered, including investment in human capital basing on the example of the consumption of chargeable educational, medical, sanitary and recreation services. The conclusions, presented in the article indicate the presence of the positive trends in the structure of consumption and behavioral practices of well-to-do Russians. They allow to forecast future development of certain markets as well as to make a number of important theoretical conclusions, among which there is the investment direction of the consumer behavior of well-to-do Russians, especially in the sphere of human capital.