“Our research reveals a tangible shift towards thoughtful spending. Instead of impulsively chasing the newest or most luxurious items, we’re seeing consumers opting for quality and functionality,” says Matinvesi-Bassett.
Many will have already shopped in recent major sales this year, including Singles’ Day and Black Friday. The 2022 data showed the best deals to be over Black Friday weekend. Prices surge just after Black Friday, but come down again around December 23 through to the Boxing Day sales, says Matinvesi-Bassett. That means buying in early to mid-December isn’t always going to get you the best value.
In the PriceSpy research, 43 per cent of people surveyed at the end of the Christmas period last year reported completing the majority of their Christmas shopping up to two months before Christmas Day.
At the other end of the scale, 5 per cent of shoppers said they were leaving it later, partly in order to get last-minute bargains.
I was quite surprised to see Worldline’s data for last year’s card spending on the NZ payments network, which showed spending on each of the last four days up until Christmas was significantly higher than on either Black Friday or Boxing Day. Last year, we spent more than double at retailers on our cards on December 23 than we did on Boxing Day. So we obviously still do shop at the last minute, and don’t buy as much at the Boxing Day sales as the frenzy suggests.
Some items are just going to cost more this year, whenever you buy them. “In particular, we’ve seen price points of tech goods increase significantly, " says Matinvesi-Bassett. Supply chain disruption, heightened demand, and shortages of semiconductors and components contributed to that.
It’s not all due to inflation, she says. Other broader influences may include greedflation, luxury marketing, wage dynamics and more, she says.
“On a more positive note, we’ve also seen some categories are starting to drop in price, which hopefully provides a silver lining for consumers in the current economic context,” she says.
The best way to get good prices is with a bit of planning. With presents such as electronic goods, shop around, check out the competition, and also the price points the item in question has been selling at in recent months. If you’ve missed the sale, the price almost certainly will drop again. Don’t be fooled by the retailers’ bluffing or hard sells. Keep a cool head and don’t panic-buy, says Matinvesi-Bassett.
One way around that is to give home-made or bought vouchers, and shop together when the prices drop. If you don’t want to or can’t go shopping together, the next best thing is to buy a voucher from a mall - although remember many people don’t like that.
The best way to spend your money wisely at Christmas is to make a paper-based or electronic plan for what you need to buy and budget around that. Microsoft has some great Excel templates for Christmas at tinyurl.com/msGiftTracker and tinyurl.com/msHolidayBudget. Apple’s App Store and Google’s PlayStore both have Christmas gift apps.
Make lists of every person you need to buy for and every item you need to buy. Then trim if you can. Does Auntie Florence really need a gift?
Think very hard about giving presents that people don’t want or need. I’m sure everyone has experienced that sinking feeling when you receive something you really don’t want. Will this particular item be used or cherished? If not, buy them something consumable, or nothing at all. For the right person, a gift to charity will be much appreciated.
If appropriate, ask the person what they want. It’s a bit like the list for Santa many parents get their children to write. It’s notable how often Santa provides just what that child asked for.
