11.09.21
Bring on the mirthful mobs. As the world inches out of the Covid-19 pandemic, holiday shopping is expected to see a surge in growth this year, says management consulting firm McKinsey.
According to Tamara Charm, senior expert of McKinsey’s Agile Insights Group, beauty category spending decreased in the first half of 2020 with the start of the pandemic, but quickly picked up by the end of the year. And, beginning in March of 2021, spending was even higher than the baseline pre-Covid-19, the firm finds. This trend is projected to continue into the upcoming holiday season with an anticipated year-over-year growth of 7% driven by Millennial consumers and the high-income population.
“Part of this is supply chain, and part of this is just their excitement to shop again,” said Charm. “Those selling cosmetics and thinking about holiday will likely want to think as early as possible about what the trajectory will be like, and make sure that consumers are able to see things that inspire them on social media for their shopping.”
What’s more, consumers are starting their Christmas shopping earlier than ever this year. The firm says that 45% of shoppers had gotten a head-start on their holiday shopping in early October, while 31% had already finished three-fourths of their present-buying. And social media trumps traditional brick-and-mortar browsing. According to the firm, 37% of shoppers browsed in-store while 50% and 60% of Milennial and Gen Z shoppers scrolled through social media feeds, respectively. Eighty percent of each age group’s purchases is influenced by social media.
Whatever the avenue, both digital and brick-and-mortar sales are expected to grow compared with 2020; 60 to 70 percent of shoppers plan to shop in both channels.