Consumer spend in Wexford is down – apart from groceries

ACCORDING to AIB data, Wexford consumers are spending 19% less than normal overall since the Covid-19 crisis started to have an impact on Ireland. However, Wexford people are spending 26% more on groceries, with those aged between 45 and 54 years, recording the highest increase at 35%.

On March 12 when schools closed and people were asked to work from home, grocery spend nationally was 60% higher compared with the previous Thursday as people rushed to buy necessities, 20% higher than Christmas week.

Wexford consumers spent an average of €71 per grocery transaction on that day, compared with an average of only €47 the previous Thursday.

The national data was compiled from over one million anonymised transactions between March 8 and April 11.

Friday, March 13 saw consumers spending 4% more than usual as panic buying seemed to subside. From then on, there has been a significant drop in spending each day, with St Patrick’s Day recording a 47% drop in average spending – the lowest of any day since the crisis started.

Over 65s have recorded the biggest drop in spending as they adhere to government advice, with spending down 27% among this age group. Spending by the under 25s recorded a drop of 21%, while those between the ages of 35 and 44 showed a drop of 13%, the smallest decline of any age group.

Since shops were required to close due to Covid-19, Irish consumers have started to spend more online, with online clothing retailers performing strongly. The biggest online spending increase on a single day was on Friday, April 10, Good Friday, when consumers spent 107% more than usual on clothing.

The increase in clothing spend on that day was largely driven by under 25s as they spent 249% more than usual. Meanwhile, those over the age of 65 spent 37% more buying clothes online on the same day.

The increase in spend on grocery shopping is consistent right across the country. On average, consumers are now spending 30% more on groceries since Covid-19. People between the ages of 45 and 54 are spending 38% more than normal, more than any other age group.