Blocking the bargain bonanza – maybe next year?

16 December 2011: Is the consumer looking for bargains? Yes... and no, according to sources.

Discounting will probably continue into the future, although not as much as in the past, says BNZ’s Tony Alexander, who believes that retailers’lower inventory levels this year will not prompt the widespread sell-off seen last Christmas.

“Retailers need to try and train their customers into not expecting a discount all the time,” he says, at the same time admitting “I think that is going to be a challenge in this environment.

"Raising brand awareness, I think will be important, brand loyalty too. But, when consumers are trying to get their debt levels down they will inevitably hunt for discounts…”

The bottom line on prices? “Much as it’s desirable not to slip into the discounting model, it’s going to be difficult to break out of that model in the coming year,” he warns. 

Exclusive GfK ConsumerScope stats suggest that price isn’t everything. But is price haggling ingrained? Yes and no, according to Canstar Blue’s latest Colmar Brunton Australia survey of 2,500 New Zealand consumers who have purchased a product from an electronics retailer in the past six months. 

It says that although more than half of New Zealand shoppers “feel confident they could talk their way to a better price when buying electronics”, Generation Y shoppers were the least likely to haggle for a better deal on their purchase. 

Moreover, shoppers in Christchurch were less likely to negotiate for a cheaper price with only 42% haggling compared to the national average of 54%.