The British Retail Consortium’s latest consumer expectations survey for the next three months delivered not-so-great news for the fashion sector on Thursday. However, there was an upside to the new figures.
Reuters
BRC-Opinium data from a survey conducted this month shows 25% of consumers planning to spend less on fashion during the Golden Quarter with only 15% planning to spend more. That gives a net result of -10%.
That’s clearly not a great number, so what’s the upside? It’s still better than the same survey conducted every month in the last year. The numbers for the whole of the last 12 months have been worse, much worse at times (as bad as -24% in January).
As for the health & beauty sector, 18% of those surveyed expect to spend less while 14% expected to spend more. That’s a net result of -4% and again, is better than the figures for the past year.
Overall the survey shows expectations of personal financial situations worsening but personal spending on retail being expected to rise and the amount consumers having saved likely to fall. That’s probably a reflection of the feeling that certain spending is unavoidable during the festive season.
Helen Dickinson, CEO of the British Retail Consortium, said: “With Christmas now around the corner, expectations of spending, particularly on retail goods, rose sharply, with a corresponding drop in expected savings. This effect was pronounced among Millennials and Gen X, the generations most likely to have children living at home. Worries about the cost of Christmas, coupled with concerns about potential tax rises in the upcoming Budget are likely to have contributed to the drop in sentiment around personal finances, which fell into double-digits for the first time since May.”
