P&K Research is a proven leader in qualitative testing for the food and beverage, personal care, home care and alcohol and tobacco industries

With decades of experience in the field, we’ve earned a reputation for delivering reliable, actionable results that help our clients make informed decisions about their products.

P&K offers a range of qualitative approaches, including:

  • Traditional in-person focus groups
  • One-on-one interviews
  • In-home ethnographies
  • Kitchen preparation and observation sessions
  • Shop-alongs
  • Online research through discussion boards, small group sessions and other platforms.

For your research, you can avail yourself of one of our in-house moderators skilled across a variety of methodologies or choose an external moderator you love. Either way, we have the expertise to design and execute your qualitative research project.

Qualitative research tailored to your needs

Qualitative research approaches are customized to the objective and vary widely across clients, ranging from focused product development investigations to broad early-stage category explorations. You might want to learn:

  • How do consumers shop the aisle in the supermarket where your product is placed?
  • How do consumers react to early product prototypes? What improvements or enhancements do they desire?
  • How do consumers view a potential new product in the context of current competitive offerings?
  • Based on observing how consumers use products in your category, are there unmet consumer needs that an innovation in product or package design could address?
Tray of chocolate chip cookies coming out of the oven

Case Study

“Qual Kitchen” Helps Foodservice Product Transition to Home

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Our product testing journeys are built around these key components:

Does the study have clearly defined research objectives? What decisions or next steps is the research intended to support?

Who are the appropriate research participants and by what criteria should they be selected?

The research objectives will largely drive the choice of methodology. Other factors impinge on the final selection, including project timelines, nature of the opportunity investigated, and budget. We work with you in balancing these considerations and arriving at the most appropriate approach.

To get the most out of your qualitative project requires active listening and keen observational skills. We assemble a research team, including the project lead or moderator, that is tightly aligned with your learning objectives and your product category, leveraging our deep expertise earned over past research successes. In this way we ensure that we are able to identify the attitudes and behaviors that can propel your innovation and product development.

Qualitative research results are best summarized in a story telling format, with ample multimedia clips to underscore the key insights. This effectively conveys the voice of the consumer and points the direction for further product development.

Why choose us for your qualitative research?

P&K provides deep, tenured expertise.

With an average of 20+ years in the industry, our team members are experts in designing and conducting research studies and focus groups, in-depth one-on-one interviews, ethnographies and other qualitative methods tailored to the specific needs of our clients and their products. As an innovator and originator of many foundational principles used across the industry, we offer deep capabilities aligned to the industries we serve.

We run—and partner with—leading-edge facilities.

While other companies outsource much of their research to groups and facilities outside their control, we own and operate market research facilities in strategic U.S. locations. These facilities are state-of-the-art, with our support staff able to quickly and easily make changes to fit your needs. When we do work with one of our widespread global partners, our expert team remains highly involved to ensure quality and efficiency at every step.

Our track record shows we deliver answers, not just data.

P&K Research is a name you can rely on, with three generations of family leadership and numerous long-term, loyal clients. We conduct hundreds of food and beverage, personal and home care, and alcohol and tobacco studies each year. Our research consistently delivers answers that help clients make smart choices for product development and optimization, marketing, and strategic business planning.

How can we partner with you to help you create your best products?

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