Indians Aren’t Upbeat About Spending Money, Amid Festivities

The spending desire among urban Indians during festivities is below average. With the festive season being just around the corner, a recent consumer poll by Public app with over 4 lakh respondents has revealed interesting social and economic, consumer insights this year, which has also been compared to a similar poll that was conducted in 2020. The poll highlights that while people are considerably more excited this year and plan to socialize, yet they will spend cautiously.

Public App's survey reveals that 53 per cent of respondents plan to spend less this festive season as opposed to pre-pandemic expenditure. When the same was asked last year, more than 61% had said that they will curb spending. This shows that though there is an improvement, the pandemic disruption is still high on people’s minds and purse strings will not be as open as businesses would be hoping for.

Expressing his views on the festive season Sandeep Aggarwal, Co-Founder, Candes said, "As the festive season has begun many people are still contemplating on spending money due to the pandemic. But with Candes the customer shouldn't fear about spending extra because we believe in giving the best with affordable price and we are offering great discounts to the customers so that they don't think twice!"  

The covid 19 has also induced a shift in how Indians shop. A very big part of urban Indians is planning of making their festive purchases through e-commerce platforms.

Festive celebrations are on the cards

On being asked if they are planning to celebrate in full swing over the coming few months, more than 82 per cent expressed that they are counting down the days. About 74% of the respondents are also planning get-togethers with their loved ones. Compared to 2020, these numbers have significantly gone up from 73 per cent and 63 per cent respectively, telling us how thrilled people are welcome the festivities.

Pankaj Grover, Founder, Khushboo and Pankaj said, "As the festivities and wedding season is approaching for well income individuals, that spending is still way far off from where it was before COVID and it has not recovered as much. That's potentially crippling because consumer spending is a huge driver of economic activity. So much of the country's economy depends on shopping."

Shiraz Ibrahim, MD, Transteel "This festive season we expect a definite shift to hybrid buying in the D2C segment of the furniture industry. Though we expect an increase in the sales number this festive season, the retail consumers are very cautious and are evaluating the spend. Looking at the need of the market, we launched the D2C segment during the first wave of Covid-19. Though we received good responses in the last year, we are expecting a boost in the sales figure this festive season.  Transteel D2C business has helped in witnessing a 66% increase in average order value as compared to last year. Customer confidence is returning, companies and other professionals are ready to invest in quality office furniture designed for the Buy now, Work now culture."

Market buzz comes alive
Myra Agarwal, Founder, MY|RA Footwear says, "Yes indeed, the pandemic has shaken the spirit of the people and so has the purchasing power. But as the festive season is here, we are seeing a rise in shopping and the enthusiasm that our audience has considering the situations are coming back to normal, slowly but surely. We are positive that in this festive season the market will not be as down as it was the last year for us and as a business, we will get some scope of work."

People are awaiting the delight of visiting the buzzing markets to get the festive feel! When asked about their preferred mode of shopping, 67.5% of respondents said they would prefer going to markets to shop for the festivities. As compared to last year, when only 53% of the people were confident to step out.

Lalit Arora, Co-Founder, VingaJoy said, "Consumers in 2021 are much more cautious than what they were before covid, they are not as aggressive as compared to 2020.  We are expecting a good turnout this festive season especially when it comes to trending gadgets as compared with last year. We are offering the best within their pocket prices.  

Clothes top the shopping lists

With social gatherings becoming frequent and offices being reopened, Indians are all set to revamp their wardrobe, with 23 per cent saying they will spend more on clothes vis-a-vis other items like electronics, automobiles and jewellery.

Aaradhya Khanna, CEO, Gem Selections & Khanna Gems Group said 'Following two years of COVID-19 restrictions, the trend towards offline purchasing has now gained momentum. While people have adapted to online buying, but looking at the festivity, they are keen to once again enjoy the market vibes. Also, in terms of gems and jewellery, since Dussehra and Diwali are around the corner, people want to buy heavy and customised jewellery in stores. Also, the buying behaviour has turned towards exploring stores, which is a result of restrictive buying habits due to covid. We expect 30% more footfalls in our stores this year as the fear of Covid is no longer there. This festive season will be more of offline buying than online purchases.'

'We at IGP. com has observed over 100% year on year growth. While we continue to grow in metros, a lot of new customers are from international markets such as Australia, Canada and the US. Even tier 2 and 3 cities in India have are showing substantial growth.

We launch exclusive and curated catalogues across festivals to cater to the ever-evolving customer offering unique and trendy products to celebrate and share their joy. This year, we have launched the #ApneLiyeApnoKeLiye campaign and are prepared to serve a 4x customer base by December.' Tarun Joshi, Founder and CEO, IGP.com.