Young consumers in the UK are more price-conscious
2021 has begun in a tumultuous fashion – the good news of a Brexit deal set against a fresh lockdown, and more national restrictions due to soaring levels of coronavirus infections. Those are not encouraging news for many of the British consumers as they are already uncertain about their financial stability. The economic insecurity faced by many has resulted in a change in consumer priorities, as 48% say in the last month they are now more price-conscious or have changed how they allocate their household budgets. Of these, more people are also buying products on promotion (61%) and are trading down – either by buying own label instead of branded (55%) or buying value ranges (43%). Almost half (47%) say they have started shopping in cheaper stores, reports from AHDB.
It is the youngest consumers who have become more price-conscious – 49% of 16-44’s compared to 39% of over 45s – highlighting the unequal economic impact of the pandemic. Younger consumers are normally more price-conscious than older but have become even more so over the course of the pandemic. Whilst habitual office workers have tended to save money due to taking fewer holidays, saving on commuting costs and eating at home more, the savings have been much less for those who could not previously afford to take holidays or eat out very often. It is that group who have been most likely to see their income fall via furlough or redundancy.
According to YouGov, the cost of food has become the biggest consideration for shoppers at this point (65%), ahead of preparation time (59%) and health (58%).
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