US Retail Trends

 - 10 November

Looking at the UK trade press, you could get the impression that the UK has been left in the doldrums while the rest of the world is experiencing a series of growth surges. In fact the news on the ground is quite different from the impression that macro-economic data might suggest. The market that is of most interest to us is the US, because the sentiment of the US consumer can make more of a difference to world trade than that of any other.

The National Retail Federation has just published some research which is aimed at giving us a view of US consumer sentiment as we approach the critical holiday shopping season. The more general points they make are all about the attitude of buyers and the message could not be clearer - the recession is still on, buyers are very cautious and the result is a focus on essentials and a hunt for bargains.

There were some interesting tactical details and which emerged from the study:

- While the focus will be on sales, buyers will not wait for last minute bargains. With inventories likely to be lower, they will find their bargains early.

- Payment methods will influence buyers. Credit cards are an obvious attraction, but so are innovative buy now, pay later schemes.

- Food is the one area where people will not cut back.

- Department stores are making a comeback, especially among the young, as they are seen as good value for money.

- The internet continues to grow as a purchasing and a search tool.

- Strict budgets will rule this year: forget about impulse spending.

The overall forecast is a fall of 1% in sales values, but of course that will be a composite of good results in food and less good results elsewhere. On balance, this looks pretty similar to the sentiment that we are finding among retail driven businesses in the UK.

This article is the property of Markmedia, a Level3 Consulting brand.

Tags: marketing market trends recession young consumers new business