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As part of Savvy’s ongoing research into consumer trends and spending habits, we take a look at whether 2022’s Boxing Day sales will be a hot prospect in the light of pre-Christmas sales such as Black Friday.
- 52% of Australians intend to spend money at Boxing Day Sales in 2022
- 25% will spend from $100 to $500 at the sales
- Clothes, shoes, and electronics are the most sought-after items this Boxing Day
- 76% say they will be dipping into savings to fund their purchases
A recent representative Australian survey (n=1,000) conducted by Savvy has revealed that over half of Australians will be spending their leftover Christmas cash on Boxing Day sales in 2022.
20% of Australians surveyed said they’d be spending between $1 and $100; followed by 14% saying they’ll spend between $101 and $250, and 11% intending to spend $251 to $500.
Interestingly, 1% of surveyed men said they’d be spending up to $2,000.
As for how they’ll be paying for their post-Christmas presents, when asked to choose their top three methods, a whopping 76% told the survey that they’d mainly be using their savings – with 79% of women indicating they’d be primarily using savings.
The next most popular method was the credit card (28%) and Buy Now Pay Later services such as AfterPay or Zip Pay (17%).
What Santa Doesn’t Bring, Boxing Day Will
The clear winner on Boxing Day will be clothes shops and boutiques, with 62% reporting they’d be buying clothes and shoes: 57% of men and 67% of women, when asked to select their top preferences. 79% of the 18–24-year-old demographic also indicated that clothes and shoes would be on their Boxing Day shopping list.
The next most popular items were electronics (27%), beauty and cosmetics (18% – split 5% men and 31% women), and home wares or furniture (14%).
Savvy Spokesperson, Adrian Edlington;
Savvy spokesperson Adrian Edlington says that Australians are always hungry for a bargain, no matter what time of year it is.
“We do love taking advantage of a sale, and even if we spent up big during Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Australians are eager to do it all again on Boxing Day.
“What’s more curious and perhaps pleasing is that an overwhelming majority will be using their savings to do it, which may indicate Aussies are being more responsible with their finances instead of getting that after-Boxing Day credit card ‘hangover’ of high interest debt. For those that do go the credit option, it is better to use a lower interest personal loan with more favourable terms to pay off end of year debts. ”
However, 48% - 50% of men and 45% of women – say they won’t be buying anything on Boxing Day this year.
Boxing Day sales have always been the traditional holiday sales period for Australia. According to the ABC, Australian shoppers were expected to spend $21 billion on the Boxing Day sales in 2021. Further, the national broadcaster considers the sales to span the 26th of December to the 15th of January in bricks-and-mortar retail stores. The Commonwealth Bank’s own survey showed that Australians would spend about $4 billion, though it was unclear as to what they considered a “Boxing Day sale.”
During Black Friday this year, Australian retailers made almost $5 billion in sales, according to Smart Company. This included retail sales and online sales.
Despite the Reserve Bank lifting interest rates for an eighth consecutive month to 3.1%p.a., the ANZ/Roy Morgan consumer confidence report showed a dip of 0.5%. However, there was a slight recovery in perception of “current economic conditions” and a 5.2% rise in people indicating “it’s time to buy a big ticket/major household item.”
The forecasted retail spending during pre-Christmas sales in 2022, according to the Australian Retailers Association/Roy Morgan, stood at $63.9 billion, up 3% on last year.
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