The Green Sheet Online Edition
November 11, 2010 • 10:11:02
How much will consumers spend this holiday season?
In August 2010, Javelin Strategy & Research conducted an online survey of 3,000 consumers for the 2010 Western Union Payments Money Mindset Index Q3 - Holiday Data. Respondents answered several questions about their anticipated 2010 holiday spending. Here are some of the survey's findings.
Just over half of consumers (52 percent) intend to spend the same amount on holiday spending in 2010 as they did in 2009; 42 percent plan to spend less; only 6 percent anticipate spending more.
Broken down by generation, the 42 percent who intend to spend less comprise 51 percent of the baby boomers, 42 percent of gen X and 35 percent of gen Y surveyed.
Broken down by generation, the 6 percent who plan to spend more comprise 3 percent of baby boomers, 6 percent of gen X and 12 percent of gen Y surveyed.
Twelve percent of consumers will buy no gifts whatsoever this holiday season; 5 percent will spend $1,000 or more; the rest will spend from $1 to $999, with the most popular range being $200 to $500 (selected by 27 percent of respondents).
The average anticipated spend is $266 for baby boomers, $294 for gen X and $245 for gen Y, for an average among all three generations of $279.
Twenty-seven percent of respondents said they have hidden a gift purchase from their spouse or significant other.
About four out of five (79 percent) of working people do not intend to purchase gifts for their colleagues this year; 21 percent will do so.
Of that 21 percent of folks buying presents for colleagues, 65 percent said they will buy gifts because, "They are my friends and I enjoy buying presents for them"; 19 percent feel obligated "because they buy for me"; 6 percent are "trying to gain favor from bosses, clients and/or colleagues."
If they could do anything they wanted with money budgeted for holiday gifts, almost 4 in 10 respondents (39 percent) would still use the money to buy holiday gifts; 22 percent would instead use the money to pay off debt; 20 percent would use the funds to pay their monthly bills; 11 percent would take a family vacation; 4 percent would give the money to charity.
Fifty-eight percent of men surveyed intend to spend the same amount on holiday gifts in 2010 as in 2009; 47 percent of women expect to do the same.
Forty-eight percent of women surveyed expect to spend less this year than last on holiday gifts; 35 percent of men expect to spend less, as well.
Source: Javelin Strategy & Research
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