A new survey of retail sales expectations shows that 21% of Aussies expect to spend less this Christmas than last year versus only 9% that expect to spend more:
Nearly half of all sales will also be conducted online:
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With 58% of Aussies expected to purchase more Christmas gifts online than last year:
Despite these findings, Roy Morgan and ARA CEO Paul Zahra have painted the findings as a good result:
Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine says that despite the current lockdowns of over half of the Australian population, consumers are looking forward optimistically to a bumper Christmas retailing season.
“This special ARA-Roy Morgan Snap SMS survey of over 3,000 Australians shows there is considerable optimism in the community looking forward to a Christmas retailing season that is set to see a record amount spent online,” Ms Levine said…
ARA CEO Paul Zahra said Christmas is a critical trading period, when most discretionary retailers make up to two-thirds of their profits for the year.
“The past few months have been a uniquely challenging time for most retailers, in particular small businesses navigating extended state-imposed lockdowns and restrictions that have limited their ability to trade. Despite this uncertainty, the good news is that consumer sentiment is upbeat for Christmas and retailers can look forward to healthy trading conditions over the busy festive season,” Mr Zahra said…
“With less than 15 weeks to go, the countdown is now on to the busiest time of year on the retail calendar, and with over $11 billion set to be spent on gifts this year, retailers look set to share in the Christmas spoils.”
The reality is that fewer sales, with more being done online by the likes of Amazon and Ebay, is undoubtedly bad news for bricks & mortar Australian retailers.
Leith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super. He is also a co-founder of MacroBusiness. Leith has previously worked at the Australian Treasury, Victorian Treasury and Goldman Sachs.
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