Tracking Trends in the Retail Industry
To help retail and e-commerce brand leaders identify which consumer shopping behaviors are taking hold and which are not, Morning Consult is tracking shifting consumer e-commerce and retail industry trends through a monthly survey of U.S. adults.
Key Takeaways
High-income consumers reported increased spending compared to this time last year, although that’s not the case for other demographic groups. Inflation has moderated, but prices remain elevated, and high earners’ perception that they’re spending more on groceries, apparel, home furnishings, beauty and personal care products has grown over the last three months. These shoppers are increasingly leveraging “buy now, pay later” loans to support that spending.
The use of in-store and curbside pickup services for online orders has gained momentum in recent months, particularly among high-income shoppers purchasing apparel, beauty or personal care products, home decor and personal electronics. This convenient option is especially compelling for holiday shoppers who are taking advantage of these options at much higher rates than they did last year.
Online-only brands have gained consumer trust amid holiday shopping activity. Since the end of September, the share of U.S. adults who say they trust online-only retailers moved from 72% to 76%. While physical stores still earn much higher trust scores (93% of shoppers trust brick-and-mortar retailers), consumers appear to be having good experiences with emerging online-only brands like Temu as they seek out holiday deals.
Reasons Consumers Prefer Online and In-Store Shopping
Consumer Preference for Online Shopping by Category
Utilization of Fulfillment Channels by Category
Return Method Used by Purchase Channel
Source of This Data
Methodology
The Morning Consult Retail Monthly Trend Tracker relies on data collected through Morning Consult’s proprietary survey research capabilities. The interviews are conducted online, and the data are weighted to approximate a representative sample of U.S. adults based on gender, educational attainment, age, race and region. Results from the full survey have a monthly sample size of 2,200 to 4,400 U.S. adults and an unweighted margin of error of +/-2 percentage points.
On April 1, 2022, Morning Consult updated its general population weighting targets for the United States to be more representative of the most recent population data. Historical data has not changed.
About Morning Consult
Morning Consult is a global decision intelligence company changing how modern leaders make smarter, faster, better decisions. The company pairs its proprietary high-frequency data with applied artificial intelligence to better inform decisions on what people think and how they will act. Learn more at morningconsult.com.
Claire Tassin previously worked at Morning Consult as the lead retail & e-commerce analyst.