Will consumer confidence improve
in the last threemonths of 2018?
Will the festive season get consumers in
the mood to spendon leisure?
Are consumers looking to treat themselves with products or experiences
this Christmas?
Will the year end on a high?
© 2018 Deloitte LLP. All rights reserved.
Numerical values represent changes as percentage points from one quarter to the next. The measure used is net spending which is the balance of those
spending more and those spending less.
As the summer has drawn to a close, the weather is not the only thing that
has cooled down: consumer confidence has declined three points between the second and third quarter of 2018. Yet, consumers remain as confident as they were this time last year, leaving leisure spending also on par with levels
seen a year ago. However, the trend towards fluctuating leisure spending suggests that the previously resilient consumer is gradually becoming more
aware of the wider economic uncertainty.
Passion for leisure
UK Leisure Consumer – Q3 2018
Q3 2018
Still creatures of habit?
Compared to a very positive Q2, leisure spending has declined in eight out of the 11 categories this
quarter, with most of the habitual categories seeing a fall. The spending on eating and drinking out
has been particularly affected by the extended period of summer weather as the hottest quarter on record has encouraged the consumers to enjoy their gardens instead of bars and restaurants.
Spending on holidays and short breaks has held up against Q2 but as this expenditure is very
seasonal, a focus on year-on-year changes is more meaningful.
In-home
leisure
Drinking
in pubs/
bars
Eating
out
Drinking in
coffee shops/sandwich
shops
-5 -5
Attending
live sports
events
Other
leisure
Betting
and
gaming
Leisure consumers reported spending less on…
Ch
an
ge
in
qu
arte
r
…apart from…
Going to
the gym or
playing
sport
-3 -1-2
+1Culture
and
entertain-
ment
Experiencing life
While the quarterly changes show a negative trend, leisure spending is still up in most categories
when comparing to this time last year. Gym and sport has seen a rise as consumers look to get
back in shape after a summer of fun. The other categories benefitting from a lift include big-ticket items such as holidays, entertainment and cultural activities, which shows that consumers still
place a high importance on memorable experiences. The spending patterns of younger and older
consumers also diverge notably, with the 18-34s prioritising everyday leisure, while the over-55s
have increased spending mainly on big ticket items such as holidays.
Consumers reported
spending less year-on-year…
Ch
an
ge
in
ye
ar
…while spending more or the same on…
Going to
the gym or
playing
sport
+2Eating
out
-2
+2
Long
holidays
Drinking
in pubs/
bars
-1
Other
leisure
+2
Betting
and
gaming
+1Drinking in
coffee shops/sandwich
shops
-3
In-home
leisure
No
change +2
Culture
and
entertain-
ment
Challenges ahead?
Consumers plan to continue to reign in their leisure spending at least until the end of this year by
spending less in the majority of the leisure categories. Long holidays and other leisure activities
might see a rise in net spending especially as younger consumers (18-24 year olds) focus their
spending on big experiences. However, consumers may not be planning to indulge in as many
festive meals out this year, with intended net spending on eating out down four points on Q3 2017.
This suggests that the restaurant sector will need to find ways of changing the consumers’ mind if they want demand to hold up.
Ch
an
ge
in
ye
ar
-3
Attending
live sports
events
No
change
Consumers expect to spend less in the majority
of categories……apart from...
Going to
the gym
or playing
sport
-2
Eating
out
-4
+1
Long
holidays
Drinking
in pubs/
bars
Short
breaks
Other
leisure
+3Betting
and
gaming
-1
Drinking in
coffeeshops/sandwich
shops
-1
In-home
leisure
-1
Cooling down
After a year of trending upwards, the Deloitte Consumer Confidence Index declined by three points in Q3 2018 from previous quarter. A more negative consumer sentiment around the level of debt
and disposable income were the biggest contributors to the quarterly fall. This explains why leisure
spending also dipped down this quarter. However, both confidence and net expenditure on leisure are flat year-on-year. The increasing fluctuation on the latter however suggests that consumers now feel the financial pressure to keep a closer eye on their discretionary leisure spending.
-12%
-11%
-10%
-9%
-8%
-7%
-6%
-5%
-4%
-3%
-2%
Q3 2018Q2 2018Q1 2018Q4 2017Q3 2017Q2 2017Q1 2017Q4 2016Q3 2016Q2 2016Q1 2016
Net spending on leisure
Source: Deloitte
Deloitte Consumer Confidence Index
Attending
live sports
events
Contacts
Simon Oaten
Partner
Transportation, Hospitality
& Leisure
020 7007 [email protected]
Andreas Scriven
Lead Partner
Hospitality & Leisure
020 3741 [email protected]
Alistair Pritchard
Lead Partner
Travel
07710 326724
Edward Jenkins
Director
Hospitality & Leisure
020 7007 [email protected]
-5 -3 -2
-2
+1
Short
breaks
-2
+1
Short
breaks
Long
holidays
No
change
No
change
Culture
and
enterta-
inment
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