Aussie consumers expected to spend less on materialistic goods this Christmas
The gift lists may still be long but Aussies are actually expected to spend less money on their loved ones when compared to last Christmas.
Retail
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The current economic climate may just be the grinch that stole Christmas as Aussies prepare to tighten their belts in the lead up to the festive season.
Australians are expected to pay $100 less on their loved ones this year with PayPal research revealing that the average Australia will spend just $494 on gifts.
This is $102 less than the year prior where the average consumer spent $596 despite most Australians still planning to purchase up to ten gifts per person.
PayPal Australia’s shopping expert Danielle Grant said the decrease could be due to a number of factors – primarily that Australians were becoming savvier.
“The economic downturn has meant that Aussies are tightening spending, so this in turn has led to many of us becoming savvier shoppers, taking full advantage of big savings in the recent Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales.”
The pinch is being felt by Aussie businesses too with 39 per cent of businesses worried how Australians spending less will affect their sales according to the PayPal research.
Ever the optimist though, 32 per cent of businesses believe all the hard work leading up to Christmas will pay off with a further third expecting to see business grow.
It is not just gifts that chew up time and money but also buying and organising the Christmas menu.
Finder.com.au’s personal finance expert Kate Browne said that Aussies would spend roughly $358 on food and alcohol this Christmas.
“The silly season is a notoriously expensive time of year. It’s not just the presents and Christmas Day lunch that can lead to a blow out, but all the social get-togethers too.”
While it is easy to have a blow out, Ms Browne advised families to remain cautious and not let Christmas cheer bring down the bank account.
“It’s easy to get swept up in the festivities at this time of year, but don’t let too much Christmas cheer cloud your judgment and leave you cash-strapped in the new year.”
MOVE AWAY FROM MATERIALISTIC
Increasingly Australians are moving away from materialistic goods according to new research.
Eventbrite’s APAC general manager Josh McNicol agreed with the findings saying that Eventbrite’s own research showed a clear preference for experience over “stuff”.
“Our research shows that 81 per cent of Millennials and 72 per cent of Gen Xs would rather experience something than buy something, and this is a trend that we’re seeing accelerate in the lead up to Christmas,” he said.
Over half of these Millennials wanted to attend a live event so they would have social media content while 67 per cent of Australians believe experiencing new events was an essential element to a fulfilled life.
“Whether it’s an outdoor hike, a cooking class or tickets to a live music show, experiences-as-gifts create meaningful opportunities for both the person giving the gift, and the person receiving it, to enjoy a shared experience, and create great memories, together,” said Mr McNicol.
Eventbrite has even launched their own portal which includes events like whiskey making and bootcamps to help Aussies find a gift this Christmas.
Australians will also be looking to help give back to rural communities doing it tough this Christmas.
One such way Australians can do this is through the BuyFromTheBush campaign, a new gifting portal launched with PayPal that gives Aussies access to one-of-a-kind gifts that directly benefit the rural communities that are doing it tough.
“There are so many hidden treasures in our regional communities and I wanted to show Australians the range of unique and beautiful brands that are out there,” said BuyFromTheBush founder Grace Brennan.
Ms Brennan said there were a range of products from clothing to alcohol, books to jewellery and would allow Aussies to make a real difference to people’s lives.
“The beauty of the online gifting portal is that it shows how many of our growing rural businesses are just a click away and all Australians can do their bit to support our rural communities by shopping from the bush.”
Already the campaign has been successful for small business owners like Annabelle Kennedy who owns and operates The Kennedy Label.
The Kennedy Label sells sustainable bespoke children’s clothing with the entire business operating from the family’s farming property 50km north west of Nyngan in outback NSW.
“Since BuyFromTheBush launched we’ve gained 3000 Instagram followers. That’s our main marketplace and it has financially resulted in an increased turnover of 200 per cent from last year,” she told news.com.au.
The label was born out of a need to give the family a second income due to the tough drought conditions the farm faced.
“This was a passion project and side hustle but once the drought hit it became more. Without an on-farm income we had to create an off-farm income,” she said.
Ms Kennedy said she hoped Australians kept up interest in the campaign because while Christmas may end the drought wasn’t likely to end soon.
“I hope this campaign gives Australians a place to go when they want to buy gifts year round. The drought isn’t going to end just because Christmas does,” she said.
Originally published as Aussie consumers expected to spend less on materialistic goods this Christmas