Saks survey finds luxury shoppers optimistic but not willing to spend more — yet
Luxury shoppers are feeling upbeat about the economy, but that's not translating into increased sales.
That’s according to the latest Saks Luxury Survey, which found that luxury consumers’ optimism about the economy and their personal finances is growing. These positive sentiments, however, are not yet translating to plans to spend on luxury items.
As for when things might pick up, the survey noted it is unlikely there will be a significant change in luxury consumer behavior in the near term. However, spending may increase in the second half of the year.
“Luxury is a sentiment-based business, so we’re pleased to see that attitudes toward the economy are improving, particularly as consumers have grown used to the dynamic macro environment,” said Marc Metrick, CEO, Saks. “With that, we anticipate these positive sentiments will translate to an improvement in luxury spending in the back half of 2024.”
When asked what they would need in order to increase their spending on luxury in the next three months, the top answer was an enticing sale or promotional event (55%), followed by an increase in income (43%).
The survey found that the majority (93%) of luxury consumers are likely to engage in activities that will further enhance their shopping experience through personalization, with the top three activities being creating an account, generating a wishlist and answering questions about their shopping preferences.
Other insights from the report are below.
•When shopping for luxury fashion, 24% of respondents said they are inclined to pay full price rather than wait as long as needed for the item they like to be on sale, down two percentage points from the prior survey.
•Nearly 50% of luxury consumers said they are planning to spend the same or more on luxury in the next three months compared to the prior three months, consistent with the prior survey. However, this time last year, 62% said they planned to spend the same or more on luxury.
•Fifty-nine percent of millennial respondents said they are planning to spend the same or more on luxury, five percentage points more than respondents of the baby boomer/silent generations and one percentage point more than Gen X respondents.
•When shopping online for luxury fashion, 70% of luxury consumers say that they find value in personalization and are likely to engage in activities that enhance it.
•Luxury consumer optimism about the economy grew to 48%, an increase of 12 percentage points from the prior survey fielded in October 2023, and the highest level since the Saks Luxury Pulse started reporting on this question in April 2023.
•When it comes to their personal finances, 70% of luxury consumers feel both optimistic (up six percentage points compared to the prior survey) and calm (up three percentage points to the prior survey).
•The largest increase in overall optimism was among respondents with an income of $200k or more, with a 14 percentage point increase in optimism about the economy and an eight percentage point increase in optimism about their personal finances compared to the prior survey.
•Millennial respondents are the most optimistic generation about their personal finances.
•The majority of luxury consumers (93%) are likely to engage in activities that will further enhance their shopping experience through personalization, with the top three activities being creating an account, generating a wishlist and answering questions about their shopping preferences.
The Saks Luxury Pulse is a quarterly online survey of luxury consumers’ attitudes towards shopping, spending and fashion trends. It is based on responses from 3,211 U.S.-based luxury consumers over age 18 and was fielded between Jan. 10-16, 2024.