Consumers Still Budgeting for Chocolate, Cigarettes, Alcohol

Mintel: Consumers Still Budgeting for Chocolate, Cigarettes, Alcohol

Despite the poor economy, consumers are indulging in “sin stocks” like chocolate, cigarettes and alcohol, according to Mintel.

Banks Have Opportunity In Diehard Home Owner Wannabes

MediaPost Publications - Banks Have Opportunity In Diehard Home Owner Wannabes - 09/15/2008

According to Mintel, Echo Boomers (those agea 13-30), African-American and Hispanic consumers plan to buy a house within the next five years. While only 23% of the general population intends to buy a house in that time frame, 38% of adults 18-24 and 39% of adults 25-34 said they will. Across all age groups, 42% of Asians, 37% of African-Americans and 30% of Hispanics say they will buy a home in the next five years, compared with 20% of whites.

Consumers Cut Back On Health, Food–But Not TVs

MediaPost Publications - Consumers Cut Back On Health, Food–But Not TVs - 09/09/2008

Nearly half (44%) of U.S adults report that their diets are becoming less healthy as food prices rise, 52% are buying fewer organic products, and 48% are spending less on health and wellness overall, according to a new study from cultural trend tracking firm Faith Popcorn’s BrainReserve.

Consumer electronics, including flat-screen TVs and video games, seems to be one of the very few category that has benefited as consumers become even more entrenched in cocooning to save money (43% report spending more on their homes, with consumer electronics on the top of the list), Popcorn points out.

Two-thirds (66%) of respondents report cutting back on overall spending, and 84% report making changes such as reducing shopping trips. Fully 90% of women and 79% of men (84% overall) report “buying less stuff,” and 90% report that they are considering opting for a simpler life.

The Rich Are Different: They Buy More And Better Stuff

MediaPost Publications - The Rich Are Different: They Buy More And Better Stuff - 09/08/2008

There is a direct relationship between how affluent one is and the amount and quality of goods and services one purchases.

Study: Shoppers Migrate Down, Down, Down

MediaPost Publications - Study: Shoppers Migrate Down, Down, Down - 09/03/2008

While discounters may be stealing some customers from department stores, for example, they are likely losing others to dollar stores. “As a result of shopper migration, retailers’ customer profiles are shifting,” says TNS Retail Forward’s report.

Majority of Consumers Using More Coupons

Majority of Consumers Using More Coupons

Bad news for trees, good news for business.

A new study finds that 72% of consumers are using more coupons than
they did six months ago. Three-quarters of those respondents
claimed the economy made them do it.

Moms Predict Increase in Back-to-School Spending

Moms Predict Increase in Back-to-School Spending - MarketingVOX

Back-to-school spend in ‘08 will be modestly higher than last year, with an 8 percent increase over 2007 spending levels — $484, compared with $449 in 2007 — according to (PDF) a national study of US mothers by the Marketing to Moms Coalition

Upscale Shoppers Lead Costco Pilgrimage

Upscale Shoppers Lead Costco Pilgrimage - MarketingVOX

As the economy weakens, traffic at club stores targeting budget-conscious shoppers has increased at a rate faster than US population growth — with upscale consumers driving the increase, according to new data from Mediamark Research & Intelligence (MRI), writes Retailer Daily.

The number of people that shop at club stores like Costco, B.J.’s and Sam’s Club increased 3.6 percent from September 2006 to April 2008, while the total adult population increased just over 1 percent in the same time period, according to MRI’s Survey of the American Consumer.

Back-to-School Shoppers Forsake Shoes, Clothing

Back-to-School Shoppers Forsake Shoes, Clothing - MarketingVOX

An overwhelming majority of consumers (90 percent) say they will likely change their back-to-school shopping behavior this year because of economic concerns, according to a survey from Deloitte, MarketingCharts reports.

Some 71 percent of consumers say they will spend less than last year on back-to-school purchases, and 88 percent plan to shop at discount/value department stores. Almost half (48 percent) plan to reduce their household spending by more than $100.

As Supercenters Gain, Wal-Mart Still Attracts The Affluent

MediaPost Publications - As Supercenters Gain, Wal-Mart Still Attracts The Affluent - 08/13/2008

While the limping economy has hurt most retailers, Wal-Mart continues to be a big beneficiary. A new report
from Information Resources Inc. finds that the Bentonville, Ark.-based company is posting market-share gains in an impressive 84% of the top 100 consumer-product goods categories.

While lower- and middle-income shoppers increased their spending at Wal-Mart when the economy started to soften, the report finds that the bigger change has been upper-income consumers who have flocked to
Wal-Mart in the last six months, as gas prices soared.