Consumer Mindset - October 2023
This report is informed by the Credit Union Consumer Sentiment Index,
in partnership with Core Research.
As always, our Mindset report seeks to understand the influence of modern culture on how the public are making decisions. This month is no different, with a complex, often heart-breaking, mixture of news stories influencing the mood of the nation. From storms, to further atrocities in the Middle East, an Irish budget announcement and a Rugby World Cup exit, the start of Autumn has created a lot of events for people to navigate.
Households are continuing to combat and cope with rising inflation, stubbornly high above 6%, with little relief from the measures introduced in the Government’s Budget - 91% of people saying Budget 24 will have little to no impact on their personal finances.
However, in the background of these local financial challenges is further conflict in the Middle East. The rolling news updates, social media misinformation and harrowing images may be contributing to the public putting things into context.
CONCERN ABOUT INFLATION DECLINES (SLIGHTLY).
In October 2023, there might be a rebuilding of consumer confidence after a period of decline since July. The percent of people concerned about the cost-of-living situation is 53%. This half of the population who remain concerned say they are reducing their socialising and spending time on leisure activities.
The Credit Union Consumer Confidence Index, in partnership with Core Research at 58.8 in September, remains historically low.
The high cost-of-living has resulted in people saying they are prevented from buying the food they like, doing hobbies they enjoy or making plans to change their housing situation. As consumer confidence improves, there will be pent up demand in these areas.
HAPPIER, ONE YEAR ON.
Despite these concerns, there are more people happy this October than last. 42% of people admit to being happy, up from 35% in 2022.
In a similar positive trend, the proportion of people experiencing joy in October has risen from 26% in 2022 to 33% in 2023. This equates to 250,000 – 400,000 more people feeling happiness or joy this year.
While, the consumer remains cautious about their spending, more people are feeling positive about their everyday life. However, in another part of Irish society, stress levels are increasing. The percentage of people feeling stressed has increased for the fourth consecutive month, so brands need to be conscious of the worried consumers as we head into the winter months.
TOO EARLY FOR CHRISTMAS?
By the first week of November, two in five people will have started planning Christmas – booking dates with friends, researching gifts or stocking up on goodies. This timeline and more will be published in a special Christmas Mindset report released in November.
