270 francs for toys
Swiss households intend to spend an average of 270 Swiss francs on their toy purchases during this year's Christmas shopping season. These purchases will be made at shorter notice than in the previous year - thanks to immediate availability with a positive effect on stationary retail.
270 Swiss francs: that's how much a Swiss household plans to spend on toys at Christmas in 2016. Only 30 percent of respondents intend to spend more than CHF 300. Men in the younger (15-29 years) and middle (30-49) age categories spend the most money. In addition, 28 percent said they would not buy any toys at all.
Multichanneling is becoming increasingly important, online diversity is on the rise
More than half of the respondents shop both online and in stores, but there are no significant shifts compared with the previous year. There are no significant differences between the sexes. However, the high customer spending per consumer continues to be made in stores and less online, while people are increasingly obtaining information online beforehand. Online still accounts for less than 10 percent of annual sales, but the number of providers (including Swiss providers) is increasing significantly.
Toy purchases are being made at increasingly short notice
In general, the trend towards last-minute shopping is confirmed: one third of all consumers have not yet purchased any toys two weeks before the festive season. This also favors stationary stores because consumers do not want to risk receiving gifts too late.
Black Friday shows first effects
In 2016, the US sales idea of Black Friday also gained a foothold in Switzerland. Strongly supported by the media, this is reflected in the toy survey. 10 percent of respondents said they had bought toys on Black Friday this year. There are major differences between the language regions: in French-speaking Switzerland, 22 percent said they had benefited from Black Friday, in German-speaking Switzerland only 7 percent.
