Profital survey: More demand on Black Friday due to inflation

Everything is getting more expensive - so shopping events like Singles Day or Black Friday come at the right time for the population. A new survey conducted by the Profital shopping app and the Swiss Retail Federation shows that inflation is changing shopping behavior: Inflation is changing shopping behavior, and more consumers want to take advantage of the discounts on Singles Day and Black Friday in November.

For around 40 percent of consumers, Black Friday (Nov. 25, 2022) and Singles Day (Nov. 11, 2022) are of greater importance this year than in previous years. A full 89 percent of those surveyed want to benefit from the discounts in November. The main reason for this development is likely to be inflation, Profital estimates. More than half said they would be paying more attention to promotions because of rising prices. In the case of food, the figure is as high as 74 percent. Between 35 and 40 percent are already limiting their consumption of non-food products.

Higher expenses planned nevertheless

Nevertheless, consumers are planning to spend more on Black Friday and Singles Day than last year. Shoppers plan to spend an average of CHF 427 on Black Friday and CHF 343 on Singles Day. The propensity to spend is more than a third higher among men than among women. The Swiss prepare specifically for the shopping campaigns by informing themselves about offers. This applies to around three quarters of all respondents. 30 percent set themselves a maximum budget, 23 percent draw up a shopping list, while only 13 percent make no shopping preparations at all.

Fashion items such as clothing, shoes and accessories are in particular demand (68 percent), followed by electrical appliances (53 percent). Furniture and home furnishings came in third at around 37 percent. Around half of those surveyed said they store both online and in stores. Around 30 percent intend to shop only in stores, while around 20 percent intend to shop only online.

Werbewoche.ch spoke with Profital founder Raphael Tommen about the results:

Werbewoche.ch: Mr. Thommen - Profital is constantly working its way up to the position of thought leader in the retail and (e-) commerce sector. Is the day-to-day business running so independently that you are looking for other fields of activity "need"?

Raphael Tommen: More than 450,000 consumers per month use the Profital app to find out what Swiss retailers have to offer. In addition to our core business, we use this proximity to consumers to provide the retail industry with important insights into the accelerated changes in consumer behavior caused by the crisis.

Joking aside: In your new survey, one of the things you wanted to know was what impact Black Friday, Singles Day and inflation have on buying behavior. How important are these "imported" Retail holidays meanwhile for Switzerland?

We have been analyzing consumer behavior on these shopping days for a few years now and have noticed that awareness and popularity are steadily increasing - and this year is no exception: for almost 40 percent of those surveyed, Singles Day and Black Friday have once again gained in importance. Around 90 percent intend to take advantage of the offers this year.

Have these days now become part of the consciousness of a broad public - or is it a phenomenon that is known and used accordingly, especially among younger segments of the population?

Our survey results show that a majority in all age groups express interest in the shopping days. In fact, the younger the age group, the greater the interest: among those under 35, over 90 percent want to store on Shopping Days, while among those over 55, the figure is 70 percent.

What surprised you about the results of the study?

I was surprised by the seemingly unbroken and growing popularity of the shopping days. Only 11 percent of those surveyed expressed no interest whatsoever in the offers on Singles Day or Black Friday - and that despite countermovements like the "Green Friday".

To what extent do inflation - and the consumer climate, which is generally considered to be gloomy - affect the Swiss population's actual propensity to buy? Are we seeing more pro-cyclical or more counter-cyclical developments here?

Planned spending on Singles Day and Black Friday is higher on average this year than last. However, on the basis of this, only limited conclusions can be drawn about the general consumer climate. The survey also shows that in the non-food sector, more than 30 percent of respondents plan to buy less due to inflation. At the same time, almost 40 percent of respondents in the food sector are switching to cheaper products. What is particularly evident from the study is that purchasing planning is becoming more relevant as a result of rising prices.

Do you think that Black Friday & Co. occasions might even gain in importance in times of economic difficulties?

Inflation is increasing price sensitivity and consumers are changing their buying behavior by limiting or optimizing their consumption. Price reductions in the form of promotions are increasingly popular, and shopping days are becoming more important in these economically strained times.