(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.)

A uthor: Suvrat Dhanorkar , Georgia Institute of Technology

Imagine walking out of a Walmart, Target or Costco. As you push your large shopping cart to your car, you ask yourself: Did I really need all that stuff?

The answer is you probably didn’t.

In a recent study , my co-authors Lina Wang , Sungho Park and I found that the presence of supercenters – large retailers that sell groceries alongside general merchandise – results in a significant uptick in consumer waste due to overpurchasing.

These supercenters often sit on lots in excess of 150,000 square feet. But figuring out how all that real estate affects people’s shopping habits – if it does at all – is tr

See Full Page