As the financial squeeze intensifies for households, most people are also making greater use of retailer loyalty schemes to secure lower prices, according to the latest KPMG Next Gen Retail Survey.<\/p>\n
It found that financial insecurity is among consumers has risen to its highest level since KPMG began tracking retail sentiment in October, 2024.<\/p>\n
The consultancy said its research found that nearly four in 10 Irish adults feel less financially secure compared to the start of the year.<\/p>\n
Higher motor fuel costs, rising home-heating oil prices, ongoing food inflation and rising health insurance premiums are leaving the \u201csqueezed middle\u201d feeling the pinch.<\/p>\n
There are also fears that inflation could track even higher then longer the conflict in the Middle East goes on.<\/p>\n
Financial insecurity among Irish consumers has risen, with 38pc saying they feel less financially secure than at the start of 2026.<\/p>\n
This sentiment is up from 30pc in April last year and 27pc in October 2024.<\/p>\n
KMMG said this reveals \u201ca consumer population under significant and intensifying financial strain\u201d.<\/p>\n
The fieldwork was carried out during the US-Iran conflict, before the Irish fuel protests, suggesting that consumer anxiety may have become more acute than these figures capture.<\/p>\n
Getting the best price was cited as the primary shopping factor by 55pc of consumers.<\/p>\n
And value for money is the top priority for 89pc when choosing a favourite retailer.<\/p>\n
Over half (or 55pc) of consumers are now buying fewer items to save money, with a further 53pc making greater use of retailer loyalty schemes to secure lower prices.<\/p>\n
Online shopping is now seen as cheaper than in-store by most consumers.<\/p>\n
The influence of loyalty schemes on retailer choice has grown continuously since 2023, KPMG said.<\/p>\n
The surge in financial insecurity is not evenly distributed.<\/p>\n
Women are significantly more affected than men.<\/p>\n
Those in the 35 to 54 age group \u2013 the so-called squeezed middle \u2013 have emerged as the cohort under the most acute financial pressure.<\/p>\n
Some 42pc of them feel less financially secure.<\/p>\n
This group is also the most price-sensitive when choosing where to shop, prioritising getting the best price above all other factors.<\/p>\n
With mortgage costs, childcare expenses and the general cost of living converging on this demographic, the commercial implications for retailers targeting these age groups are significant, the consultancy firm said.<\/p>\n
Head of consumer, retail and manufacturing at KPMG David O\u2019Kelly said: \u201cFinancial pressures have intensified, but consumers are adapting by seeking value, using loyalty, and switching channels to suit their needs.<\/p>\n
\u201cRetailers that combine fair prices with trusted experiences, seamless digital, and in\u2011store options that match different preferences will be best placed to retain and win customers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Adults in this country are actively adapting their shopping behaviours in response to financial stress.<\/p>\n
Over half have bought fewer items over the past year.<\/p>\n
Consumers are also making greater use of retailer loyalty schemes to secure lower prices, are buying more products on promotion or discount, and are switching to own-brand or value products.<\/p>\n
Evidence has also emerged of consumers selling unwanted items online in a bid to save money.<\/p>\n
KPMG\u2019s Next Gen Retail Tracker survey of consumer retail attitudes was conducted by Red C. Some 1,005 respondents aged over 18 was surveyed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As the financial squeeze intensifies for households, most people are also making greater use of retailer loyalty schemes…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":443257,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[72,3361,113,61,60,3362],"class_list":["post-443256","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-economy","tag-business","tag-charlie-weston","tag-economy","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-money-experts"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/443256","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=443256"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/443256\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/443257"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=443256"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=443256"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=443256"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}