High volume of vouchers gives hope for good deals in January. One-third buy last-minute gifts. Shopping on December 24 possible in many stores until 13:00.
Vienna (OTS) – One-third of Austrians buy their gifts (in part) only at the last minute in the last week before Christmas Eve, according to the core result of the latest Consumer Check survey by the trade association and Mindtake Research. Internal trade meets this strong demand and will open its doors tomorrow in several locations until 13:00. Natural flower and confectionery shops can even stay open until 6pm, and the Christmas tree trade is also open until 8pm in many locations on December 24th.
This year, the Christmas markets also proved to bring traffic to shopping streets and city centres. 83 percent of all people living in Austria made spontaneous purchases locally and took advantage of the opportunity to buy gifts in the Christmas spirit.
Christmas bestsellers: Vouchers at No. 1 for the first time, ahead of apparel and toys
Some of the favorite products to buy at retail this year for Christmas include: coupons (38%), clothes (35%), toy (30%), books (27%), candy (27%) and perfumes/cosmetics (26%). It is noteworthy that almost a tenth of the population has completely given up on buying gifts.
“After a mixed start, Austrian dealers are pleased with the final boost in Christmas business. With the receipt of Christmas bonuses, the mood improved and sales made have also increased noticeably since then. In the year of the inflation crisis, vouchers and cash gifts are more popular than ever. You also give your loved ones a degree of freedom. Dealers are likely to achieve the additional net sales of €1.36 billion forecast for December, which will stabilize at the level of last year’s inflation-adjusted sales and be well below pre-crisis sales. The large volume of vouchers gives us hope for good business in January”, says the Managing Director of Handelsverband Rainer Will balance sheet.
December 22nd to 24th are the busiest shopping days for the food trade. Fresh produce is purchased for Christmas and holiday dinners.
The 22nd to 24th of December are particularly important for the sale of fresh products in the food retail sector. Up to 40% more sales are expected here than on normal shopping days. As the Monday after Christmas Eve is also a public holiday, the availability of fresh produce is crucial this year.
“Austrian stationary trading now also meets the wishes of last-minute shoppers. A third of consumers do Christmas shopping and additional purchases in the last week before Christmas Eve. On the 24th of December, most stores are open until 1 pm for those who decide spontaneously”, summarizes Rainer Will🇧🇷
Avalanche of Christmas packages in eCommerce: volume of packages in 2022 at the same high level as in the last years of the pandemic
With a view to the Christmas business, the issue of the evolution of the volume of orders in the B2C area also arises year after year. While volume has increased sharply in recent years due to the pandemic, it is now likely to have stabilized at a high level. In the last two years of the pandemic, the volume of orders has increased by around 40% to around 200 million orders due to the lockdown. Order volumes this year are likely to be about the same as last year, despite the first drop in domestic online retail sales.
10 percent of Christmas deals are done between Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve
Traditionally, in the last shopping days before Christmas, business shifts more towards physical retail. About 10 percent of Christmas business is generated between Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve. From December 27th, cash gifts will be redeemed and the voucher business will grow through January 2023.
Questions and contact:
commercial Association
Mag. Gerald Kühberger MA
press secretary
+43 (01) 406 22 36 – 77
[email protected]
www.handelsverband.at
Michaela Kröpfl, BA
communications manager
+43 (01) 406 22 36 – 80
[email protected]
www.handelsverband.at