The new Consumer behavior paradigm: Permanent or Fleeting?

The economic shocks of the past two years have created greater urgency for retailers and their suppliers to understand and respond to the new marketplace realities—not the least of which is the fact that the recession has changed shopping behavior: seventy-two percent of all shoppers recently indicated that their shopping behavior has changed significantly or somewhat as a result of the economic environment, and only 7% have made no changes at all.

The shopping behavior data coupled with the demographic trends suggest that an enduring shift has taken place as a result of the Great Recession. Going forward, purchases will be more deliberate and purposeful. Conspicuous consumption will give way to more conscious or practical consumerism. Rampant deal-seeking will be replaced by more purchase selectivity and the use of shopping techniques and tools discovered during the recession.

Highlights:

* As a result of the shifts in shopping behavior emerging from this recession, shoppers will take a more thoughtful approach to buying, leaning toward more pragmatic and practical purchases vs. rampant deal-seeking behaviors.
* Up-market Gen X and Gen Y shoppers will take the lead in the recovery. Gen X is in the middle of a high-spending life stage and Gen Y has a greater willingness to spend, especially on new technologies.
* Companies need to recognize that there will not be a wholesale return to a pre-recession shopping mode and will need to adapt to the changed behaviors and patterns to win in today’s changed marketplace.

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