Quarter of shoppers plan to travel North for bargains

Almost a quarter of shoppers plan to travel over the border to the North to avail of the weaker sterling.

According to the latest Recovery Index by business and credit risk analyst Vision-net.ie, over 45% of these shoppers will make the trip for the first time, with those aged 25-34 most likely to make the journey.

Some 71% of Irish consumers plan to make a major financial purchase before the end of 2017. Of that number, only 9% plan to do so before the end of this year.

Of those not planning to make a significant purchase, 54% said a lack of available finances was the biggest contributing factor to their decision, followed by not wanting to purchase anything in particular. Some 10% said they were putting off big spending until 2018.

A holiday was the most common planned purchase for Irish consumers (53%), followed by a secondhand car (34%), home improvement (32%), new car (24%), and home purchase (12%).

The managing director of Vision-net.ie, Christine Cullen, said the results of the study indicated a growing confidence among consumers. “As the economy steadies on its path to prosperity, Irish people feel comfortable making major financial decisions, like investing in cars, houses and holidays. However, many still rely entirely on their savings to make large purchases. In particular, the 25-34 age group, which endured some of the worst effects of the recession, still remain financially ‘frozen out’.”

Meanwhile Visa says contactless payments have grown across Europe from 36% in 2015 to 52% this year.

In Ireland, contactless card users are more open to using a mobile device as a payment method in a shop (52% contactless card user vs 32% non-contactless card user), to shop via a retailer app (54% vs 37%), and to pay for a meal (53% vs 31%).