Consumers spent more for less payoff this holiday season
COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KBTX) – Rising inflation has led to some households cutting back on spending this holiday season, leaving fewer gifts under the tree.
A new poll shows that two-thirds of Americans say their expenses have gone up over the past year. During a season of increased spending like the holidays, buying gifts could mean gifting yourself with debt.
“There has been a little increase on the credit card spending, and you’re gonna have that in these times,” Randy Ripple, Senior Vice President at Amarillo National Bank, said.
Although consumers are cutting back on holiday spending, a recent Mastercard poll showed a 3.1% increase in retail spending this holiday season compared to last year.
Costs are higher across the board, whether it’s at the gas pump or in the grocery store. High costs for essentials have led to consumers having less disposable income for the holidays.
“Instead of stuffing the stockings with a lot of extras, we’ve just really bought two or three things,” Ripple said.
According to Ripple, consumers have shifted to bargain-hunting online for gifts instead of visiting in-person stores in an attempt to be more budget-conscious.
“You’ve noticed less people in the store. It could be many factors, you know, online shopping is a big factor,” he said, “I think it just goes back to everyone watching their bottom dollar.”
One local business owner says some customers are still willing to splurge.
“If it is unique and special for the person that they’re shopping for, maybe they will spend a little bit more because gifting is such a wonderful thing,” Meredith McAuliffe, Co-Owner of Sabi Boutique, said.
She added that this has kept her sales strong, even compared to last year.
“Our year has been as good as last year, and we pray that continues to be the case,” McAuliffe said.
Overall, Ripple said that although inflation has slowed down, the effects of it have left the average consumer tightening their purse strings.
“The spending patterns that we’ve noticed is the consumers doing a little bit more online shopping, being a little bit more conservative on their spending. Everyone’s very aware of the inflation times,” he said.
