Spending on Father’s Day gifts has slumped as the rising cost of living sees Aussie consumers rein in purchases for dads across the country.
Australians are set to spend $735 million on Father’s Day gifts this year, down 7.7 per cent from 2021, according to Australian Retail Association research released on Sunday.
The research, undertaken with polling firm Roy Morgan, also found fewer consumers planned to buy a Father’s Day gift, with that metric falling four percentage points to 36 per cent.
Forty-two per cent of respondents, who did plan to buy a gift, said cost of living challenges would impact how much they spent, the research found.
Father’s Day this year falls on September 4, amid rising inflation that is expected to peak at an annual rate of 7.75 per cent by the December quarter, before retreating.
ARA CEO Paul Zahra said the slip in Father’s Day spending was expected given the challenging economic environment.
“There’s no doubt it’s an incredibly difficult period for many businesses and consumers as inflationary pressures take hold … it’s not a surprise to see the spending forecasts for Father’s Day down a bit this year,” Mr Zahra said in a statement.
He said retailers would still be buoyed by the annual gift-giving event, pointing to food, wine, spirits and confectionary as the most popular purchases.
Environmental sustainability was also at the forefront of buyers’ minds, with 55 per cent of those polled planning to purchase something good for the planet.
Twenty-seven per cent of respondents said they planned to buy gifts online, the research also found.
“Father’s Day is the last gift-giving event before Christmas and provides retailers with a good barometer for how consumer discretionary spending is likely to track over the festive season,” Mr Zahra said.
“The concern is with inflation yet to peak, and cost of living challenges likely to worsen before they get better, consumers will be squeezed even further when it comes to their discretionary purchases.”
