New research indicates Australian retailers will benefit from increased consumer confidence in the lead up to the Christmas trading period. The forecast for New Zealand is also strong with holiday season spending expected to be up on last year.
Amongst Australian consumers surveyed, 79 per cent said they expect to spend the same or more on Christmas this year than in 2014. New Zealanders are equally bullish with 77 per cent saying they will spend the same or more.
The new research commissioned by SAS, the leader in analytics, polled 3,458 consumers in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK and US to uncover retail trends over the coming holiday period.
“Most down-under retailers can expect to enjoy a good holiday shopping season this year,” said Alan Lipson, SAS Global Retail Marketing Manager, “But competition for a share of purse will be keener than ever as consumers increasingly resort to the internet to seek out bargains and compare prices”.
Across our region, the most received Christmas presents will be – Books, Music & Movies; Toys & Games; and Apparel & Accessories. Consumer Electronics and Sporting Goods are well down the list while New Zealanders are much more likely than Australians to give something homemade.
Online shopping intentions vary by country and across purchase types. New Zealanders are just as likely as Americans to buy toys and games online, while UK shoppers seem much more likely to do so. ANZ shoppers are unlikely to buy jewellery online, and perhaps needing the ‘touch-and-feel’ experience, they are also less likely than their US and UK counterparts to buy sporting goods online.
Shoppers in all five countries surveyed said they would trawl across different websites – or visit different stores – in pursuit of the specific brand of product they wanted.
While consumers in our region will spend plenty of time at bricks and mortar outlets, they remain price aware. In Australia, department stores and discount retailers will be visited more frequently than specialty shops and boutiques, while warehouse outlets will see a lot of traffic in New Zealand.
The full research report – 2015 SAS Holiday Shopper Survey – can be downloaded at http://www.sas.com/content/dam/SAS/en_us/image/sas-com/news/Press%20Releases/holiday-shopping-report.pdf
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