How did you spend your time and money this bank holiday?
From pretty early on in lockdown, the tabloids were shouting from the roof-tops that we were all spending more on booze, groceries and takeaways than we ever have, before. But are we really? Where is our money going, and who are the real retail winners?
Clearly, up until recently the pubs and restaurants were shut, so it stands to reason even if you set aside a bit of panic buying, your food and grocery spend will have increased. Add to that the occasional treat to lift the family spirits and we soon saw much more spending in this area, but that still probably equates to less than we would spend if we were still indulging in trips to the favourite family Italian restaurant or the local pub.
So retail grocery wins, but no major change in family budget. But away from a cheeky Nando’s or a crate of your favourite tipple, where else are we spending and why?
With little else to do we all took on some great D-I-Y projects, so spending in that area has risen, as has the need for people to keep fit. There’s more spending taking place on fitness equipment and active wear, as we all plod the pavements or cycle the by-ways looking for that perfect post-COVID body. Add to this a spot of gardening and spending shot up in that sector too.
The common driver emerging here was 'TIME'. Having spare time, in the fundamental absence of simply moving about, whether to work, shops, nights out, etc has created a window to do all these other things. And where income remains available, that's where our spending goes.
The need to entertain ourselves is paramount, and we all sought available ways to do that. Staying at home we turned to even more subscription services to fill our time, and many digital platforms have seen massive increases in membership. Who’d have thought Zoom would become a category word in our language, like Hoover was or Google now is? Services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime are booming as we binge watch that box sets or snaffle popcorn over a re-run of Only Fools & Horses.
How we were forced to spend time, and consequently chose to spend time, then drove how we chose to spend money.
We saved money as well, from areas such as gym membership fees, travel season tickets, golf club memberships, football club season tickets and so many more. All huge savings, and along the way add in not buying your lunch at work and missing that quick pint … or two … after work, and our monthly budgets have completely reshaped themselves.
And one of the biggest expenditures of all: holidays! Shopping for seasonal clothes and other associated stuff as well as holidays themselves has fallen incredibly. Despite some restrictions being lifted, the confusion that still abounds, along with limited availability (and higher prices in some cases), and the general uncertainty about the experience, have all lead to many people actively choosing to stay at home.
When you add everything I've previously said here together, what emerges is habit forming behaviour. We get used to our new choices. We revise our previous assessments of how best to spend time and money, and we embrace new habits, even when slowly given the opportunity to go back to some of our old ones.
So many people will actively enjoy a staycation this year, in part due to the savings it creates, but also because they have invested plenty of that in their home environments.
One of our clients saw record enquiries on their website, naturally assisted by Yomdel capturing leads for them. Those lucky few who hadn’t spent thousands on a skiing trip decided to treat themselves in other ways.
So, whilst some of us have spent a little more on decking, rattan furniture and begonias, others have gone the whole nine yards to literally wallow in bubbly luxury in their very own back yards.
So it's these new habits, which stem from new time allocations and new budget expenditures, which mean that we're all a lot more likely to staycation this bank holiday, and possibly for many bank holidays to come. we've seen a new way of doing things, and we might just like it!
If you'd like to chat about new customer behaviours, get in touch with me: tim.breden@yomdel.com