One in five to splash out this Christmas

Monday, 02 November 2009 12:26

A fifth of Brits will splash out this Christmas, despite the UK heading into the festive season still in recession.

Research by Mintel points to 20 per cent of consumers pushing the boat out this Christmas - with retail sales set to grow by two per cent as a whole.

However, there has been a two per cent rise - from Christmas 2008 - on the number of people pledging to stick to a budget.

A total of 34 per cent said they were tightly limiting their spending.

Richard Perks, director of retail at Mintel, said: "There's no doubt that consumer demand has held up far better than anyone expected a year ago and that is entirely down to the cuts in interest rates.

"Knowing that there are tough times to come, consumers will decide to have a 'good Christmas' while they can still afford it."

The research also revealed internet shopping will be the first port of call - with 22 per cent preferring to shop online and 29 per cent buying a few presents over the web.

Mr Perks said it was surprising online shopping was not increasing further, but this may be due to the post strike.

The rise in VAT on January 1st is also set to encourage some shoppers into some big ticket purchases for Christmas.

However, with economic growth to struggle through 2010, tax rises to come and unemployment set to rise, Mintel finds "prospects for 2010 and 2011 are poor".

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