Perks said: “The prospects for retailers are good. Short term – with confidence recovering we can be modestly optimistic for 2013. We can expect retail sales growth of between 2.5 – 3% again. Consumers will be cautious, but barring a storm from the Euro-zone, they should be prepared to spend more.”
Where will our money go?
“Mintel’s research also highlights where Brits intend to spend any extra cash they may be lucky enough to have spare at the end of the month.
Consumers have cut back most on leisure and that’s what they most want to spend on now. Retail will benefit from an upturn, but leisure stands to gain much more.”
So what about Christmas?
Perks added: “It was a good Christmas. The comparison was with a very strong December in 2011 and yet retailers still saw growth in both value and volume. In fact many were pleasantly surprised and were short of stock for the Sales.
“Our research looking at the consumer and Christmas shopping also finds some evidence that consumers were a little less cautious than last year. More than a quarter (28%) of consumers made a list and stuck to it compared to 32% in 2011, while less people had a budget and kept to it – 24% compared to 27% in 2011.
“But it’s a myth that a lot of people go into debt over Christmas and then struggle to pay it back in the New Year. Only 7% admitted to that for 2012 – the same number as in 2011.”
Source: Mintel
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