The average amount that the Portuguese estimate to spend on Christmas shopping is €385,00, reveals a study carried out by IPAM to analyze the habits and behavior of the Portuguese during the Christmas season.
A value that has been evolving since 2018, since in last year's study, with a sample with identical characteristics, the value was €372.
“For Christmas 2019, the trend seen in the previous year is maintained, although there are changes in the average amount to spend. There are also changes in the place of purchase and in the date for making them”, says Mafalda Ferreira, professor and coordinator of the IPAM Study.
“As a result of the economic and financial crisis, in recent years the consumption habits of the Portuguese have changed, especially at a time of the year when traditionally there is a higher volume of sales in various business areas”, adds the responsible.
The Christmas subsidy will be spent by 28,59% of the Portuguese, who expect to spend 51% to 75% of this extra amount earned at Christmas.
IPAM observed whether the Portuguese would receive a Christmas subsidy to understand the financial situation of families, concluding that 14% of respondents will not receive the subsidy at this time, which will impact their behavior towards Christmas purchases. According to IPAM, "these values differ from last year, with the number of respondents who receive the Christmas subsidy increasing."
Of the total number of respondents who receive or will receive the Christmas subsidy, it should be noted that 5,7% will not use this money to make Christmas purchases. About 6,69% of respondents will spend the entire subsidy on Christmas shopping.
Trying to compare this situation with the previous year's panorama, during the study, respondents were asked to compare the amount they expect to spend in 2019 with the amount spent in 2018. 17% of respondents say that this year they will spend less than spent in 2018.
However, 24% said they intend to spend more than last year, referring to having greater economic availability (67%), so, in this sense, they intend to increase the number of purchases of gifts for family members (33%). The option focuses on family members, as the increase in the number of purchases for friends was not an option considered in the study.
It is noteworthy that in the study, 59% of respondents replied that they would spend the same amount as the previous year, which points to a stability in consumer behavior this year, when compared to 2018. While respondents will spend a lower amount ( 17%) report that they will make cuts on gifts for adult friends and family (70%).
Children are the preferred target of Christmas shopping in households with children (55% of respondents), and in 100% of the cases observed in the study, these are contemplated with Christmas gifts.
Overall, it is worth mentioning that in 67% of the cases the purchase of Christmas gifts for the spouse is mentioned and in 60% of the cases for the parents, siblings and other family members. Only 45% of respondents show intention to buy gifts for friends.
With regard to the type of products to buy, the study observed that for children up to 12 years of age, the gifts to buy will be mostly toys (48,6%), followed by clothes and shoes (12,2%) and books ( 9,9%). In the case of teenagers (between 12 and 18 years old) the choices are clothes/shoes (36,3%), electronic games (13,6%) and books (10,3%).
In the case of adults, the option most chosen by respondents for choosing Christmas gifts is clothes/shoes (28,5%), followed by books (17%) and accessories (12,3%).
As for the location for shopping, most respondents in the study prefer to shop in shopping centers (28,9%) or shopping centers and high street stores (28,6%). It should be noted, however, that 18,3% of respondents opt exclusively for high street retail and 6,1% exclusively for online shopping.
Regarding the timing of Christmas shopping, we found that 70,5% of respondents will make their purchases during December. In advance purchases, the price criterion is the most relevant, whether it is "Enjoy Black Friday promotions" (33%), "Find better prices" (23%), or "Take advantage of occasional promotions" (19%).
The IPAM study to characterize the behavior of consumers in relation to Christmas shopping is carried out for the ninth consecutive year, which allows for a detailed analysis of the main changes in consumer habits.
Study Technical File
The study was carried out by IPAM, under the coordination of Professor Mafalda Ferreira, coordinator of the Post-Graduate Consumer Insights at IPAM, PhD in Social Psychology at the University of Cádiz.
The analysis took place between November 27 and December 07, 2019, with a sample composed of 472 individuals, over 18 years old, with the following characteristics 8,7% of the sample from social class A, 34,8% from B , 16,3 from C1, 32,6% from C2 and 7,6% from D. Part of the surveys (16%) were administered directly through questionnaires and 84% were carried out online.
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