Brussels, 8 November 2011 – European consumers plan to spend €587 for year-end-festivities, a similar budget compared to last year. However, many European consumers indicate they are starting to feel the impact of the austerity measures on their personal income and expect a decrease in their purchasing power in 2012. Books and money (cash) remain the most desired gifts throughout Europe, while cosmetics/perfumes and chocolates are the items that European consumers are planning to give. European consumers are also adopting modern consumption patterns, such as cross-channel experience: using online as well as offline channels. These are the main European conclusions of the 2011 Deloitte Xmas survey, an annual survey that is conducted this year for the 14th time, investigating the year-end holiday season purchasing intentions among European consumers. The Belgian results of this study will be announced on 29 November 2011.

More than six out of ten European consumers think their country is currently in a recession. Nevertheless, this new “crisis” has yet to affect consumers’ perceptions about their spending power, as they readily admit: 4 out of 10 respondents consider that it has remained stable in 2011, and 2 out of 10 even indicate it has increased. In most European countries, the austerity measures and higher tax burdens that have already been announced will not have an impact on household budgets until next year. Koen Neijens, Director at Deloitte Belgium concludes; “Many European consumers, not only in Greece and Portugal, are starting to feel the impact of the austerity measures on their personal income and expect to see a decrease in their spending power in 2012.”

Budget maintained for year-end festivities 2011: European consumers plan to spend €587

In 2011, European consumers plan to allocate a budget of €587 on average for year-end festivities, just 0.8% lower than last year. As in the past, consumers will primarily seek to save money on their gift purchases, the main item in the budget. Spending on holiday meals, entertainment and outings will remain stable. The main reason for consumers to spend less, is the expectation that the economic situation will get worse.
Consumenten die verwachten minder te besteden doen dat vooral omdat ze verwachten dat de economische situatie nog verder achteruit zal gaan.

Distinctions across European countries are still pronounced, with the emergence of three main groups:
- Countries reporting a significant decrease in their holiday season budgets for the second consecutive year: Greece, Ireland, Portugal, Italy and perhaps surprisingly, also the Netherlands;
- Countries showing a modest increase in their holiday season budgets: Switzerland, Luxembourg, France, Spain and Belgium;
- Countries revealing a relatively strong rise in their holiday season budgets: the Czech Republic, Poland, Germany, Slovakia and Finland.

Top most desired and purchased gifts

Key highlights with regards to the most desired and most purchased gifts:

• Although still ranked among the top 10 gifts purchased, it seems that gift vouchers are touching the boundaries of their popularity. Matthieu van der Schueren, Director at Deloitte Belgium explains: “The restrictions experienced in using gift vouchers are criticised this year by European consumers. In particular, they feel that validity periods are often too short or they point to a mismatch between their own wishes and the selection of stores and products available. In other words, gift vouchers do not seem to offer them as much freedom as cash gifts, which explains the further increase in popularity of cash gifts.”
• Innovative products like tablet computers, 3D TVs and smartphones have not yet risen into the top 10 most wanted or most purchased gifts, since their prices, although falling, are still high.
• The most popular gifts offered to young children are educational toys (board games, puzzles and books). The most popular gifts offered to teens are video games, cash and books.

As was the case last year, the key factors in deciding upon purchases for the 2011 holiday season are a preference for products which are useful (priority for 79% of European consumers) and have the best price (priority for 70% of European consumers).

European consumers are already making use of the cross-channel experience

Moving beyond a simplified distinction between online and offline channels, European consumers have opted to make use of both channels at all three steps of their buying processes: searching, comparing and buying.

Consumers use social networks and blogs to find independent information on brands and retailers.

Acceptance by consumers of combining different channels is considerably strengthened by the fact that it offers them the possibility to find the respective advantages of each specific channel. Koen Neijens explains: “Consumers find information online that they are not able to obtain in stores, such as the opinions of other consumers, comparisons of products and prices etc. Conversely, they turn to stores for the ease with which purchases may be returned or exchanged, after-sales services, payment convenience and the pleasure of shopping.”

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