Circana reports the improving economic outlook next year will influence consumer spending during the upcoming holiday season. As shoppers seek ‘affordable escapism’, this provides an opportunity for retailers and brands to creatively engage with consumers over the holiday sales period.
In Australia, two-thirds of people are buying items on sale more frequently than they have before – highlighting a primary way for retailers and brands to engage.
Finding ways to elevate at-home experiences, engaging consumers through interactive marketing campaigns and providing special offers or discounts, will be important to unlocking incremental spend, according to Circana head of analytics, insights and media for Asia Pacific, Alistair Leathwood.
“The cost-of-living squeeze has forced Australians to become more considered, savvy and promotionally reliant when it comes to shopping in general. With this backdrop, retail events such as Black Friday and Cyber Monday are growing in popularity, despite not being linked to traditional holidays in Australia,” he said.
“With growing positive sentiment around the economy, Australians are expected to increase their spend over the December period. We also expect a growing share of holiday shopping to be done online. We’ve already seen e-commerce sales growing this year at a double-digit rate and accounting for more than half of the unit sales growth in Circana-measured-sales.
“At Circana, we’re emphasising the need to strike a balance with marketing and promotion plans both in-store and online. It underpins successful omnichannel category management. In-store remains the leading way Circana shopper panellists discover new products. This is especially important at a time when innovation is needed to simulate demand. Shoppers have high expectations from the in-store environment, and stores need to continually innovate and invest to meet these.”