We're using cards more often

The average transaction size is dropping. Photo / Filephoto

Kiwis are doing lots of little shops more often - and flashing the plastic at record rates.

Figures from Eftpos company Paymark show the average transaction size in retail outlets such as cafes, bars and bottle stores has been steadily dropping since 2004.

At the same time people are using their electronic cards more and more - there were 878 million transactions on the Paymark network last year, up 4.9 per cent on 2009. The average person swiped their card 201 times, up 3.6 per cent.

The area where transaction size has shrunk the most is in cafes and restaurants. In 2004 the average transaction was $29.60. Last year it was $25.10, a decline of 15 per cent.

Similarly in the bars and clubs of 2004 the average sale was $41.50 - now it's $36.60.

Two-thirds of transactions are electronic, with three-quarters of those processed by Paymark. Head of sales and marketing Paul Whiston said while the recession had had an impact, the underlying trend was the inevitable march towards a cashless society.

"Year-on-year there's a demographic shift in terms of card users - the principle being that older people still carry cash, but younger people, as they get access to bank accounts, all they have is cards."

However, there had been "blips" in some sectors which showed the influence of the economic downturn, he said.

The average transaction size in department stores had dropped 10 per cent, from $52.20 six years ago to $46.80.

"Department stores is an example where discretionary spend as impacted by the recession has shrunk."

The days of cash were definitely numbered, Coriolis Research retail expert Tim Morris said.

Retail statistics showed people weren't spending less overall, but they were making more shopping trips and spending less per visit.

People would do a big shop at the supermarket every two weeks, and then do "fill-in" shops.

"We're doing more fill-ins for less."

He said some store formats supported that. In the electronics sector, for example, purchases used to be mostly large items. But now stores such as JB Hi-Fi sold a lot of lesser value items such as DVDs and smaller electronic products.

The Paymark figures also reveal regional variations. The place where shoppers made the highest average purchase last year was the West Coast, at $55.15. Wanganui was the lowest at $43.89.

Allan Tempo, owner of Maggie's Kitchen in Greymouth, said between two-thirds and half of his customers used cards, sometimes for purchases as small as $2.

"It's just people not being bothered to carry cash around."

Samantha Hodges, duty manager at Wanganui's Indigo Cafe and Bar, said 90 per cent of her customers used cards. "A lot of purchases, especially lately, have been very small ones."