"Girl math" is back in time for the holiday season, drawing attention to the new seasonal Xi that consumers are adopting this year.
Users on TikTok say that if you buy a gift in the months leading up to Christmas, it will be "free" by December. If you splurge on Cyber Week, you're technically saving more for Christmas.
Welcome to Girls' Math – but with a festive twist.
Girls' math is a hot topic for personal finance on TikTok. It reveals the ways in which female shoppers rationalize their spending Xi – often including mental gymnastics – to maximize happiness to justify their purchases.
The return of girls' math this holiday season could be a sign that consumers are starting to feel tight on their wallets, but just can't stop shopping.
*Start your holiday shopping in 2023*
While inflation has stabilized, it remains high and consumers are still spending.
According to a study by Bankrate, more than half of holiday shoppers say they feel financially burdened this holiday season.
However, even as consumers remain cautious, "shoppers do feel like they want to celebrate the holiday season properly." Retail Cities managing director Brian Gildenberg told CNBC in late November.
Analysts say that in *** cases, shoppers may use "girls' math" to rationalize their purchases in anticipation of gift-giving season.
Extended vacations can be an example of math for girls, as shoppers may perceive discounts as 'saving money'. Melissa Lee, a financial adviser at Greatest Eastern, said in an interview with CNBC, "For example, $100 of goods is 40% off, which saves them $40." ”
Girls' math has become a means for shoppers to create "mental labels" for their money and justify their spending Xi, she added.
In fact, according to McKinsey & Company, holiday shopping started earlier than in 2022 and is expected to end by the end of the year.
According to a McKinsey report, the 2023 holiday season in the U.S. is "getting longer" and starts just before Halloween — with 50% of holiday shopping starting in October or earlier, followed by 40% in November. Their research shows that consumers also say they'd rather shop in a few months than all at once, and they're starting to browse ahead of time in anticipation of **will**.
This led to an all-time high of $76.8 billion in pre-holiday spending in October, $4.3 billion more than a year ago, according to a report by Adobe Analytics.
According to the National Retail Federation**, holiday spending is also expected to surge in November and December, reaching $966.6 billion by 2023. CNBC NRF retail sales monitoring showed that core retail sales (excluding restaurants, automobiles and gasoline) rose 073%, a year-on-year increase of 417%。
However, most consumers feel that there is still a lot to buy.
According to a survey by Morgan Stanley, 61% of consumers will continue shopping between December 1 and Christmas, as they expect this day of trading to be better than Black Friday and Cyber Monday at the end of November.
* Who spends more money?*
After a summer of spending frenzy, shoppers don't seem to be spending back this winter.
According to a report by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC), the number of women in film and live meetings in the summer is "record-breaking", a trend that is likely to continue throughout the winter. According to the report, women's spending is expected to grow by 11% this year compared to 2022, and they are more likely to spend on gifts than men.
However, the increase in women's consumption may not reflect their profligacy. Rather, it reveals a strategic approach for women to discern the best value for money.
PwC's report shows that following the "rules" of girls' math, women seem to care less about the price tag and more about the value of the goods, free returns, delivery and ease of shopping.
In addition, young parents are highlighted as the main consumer group of the festival.
Ted Rossma, senior industry analyst at Bankrate, said in an interview with CNBC: "Young people are in the best period of spending, especially when they have young children, they are a large group of holiday shopping. ”
Families with young children are more likely to attend the holiday discount — a Bankrate report shows that 49% of parents with children under the age of 18 attended the October event, compared to 28% of holiday shoppers without children, according to Rothman.
On the other hand, vacationing with the family will also cost more.
A study by personal finance app Rocket Money found that people who go on vacation with their families expect to spend 53% more.
Research shows that more than half of those celebrating the holiday with their families consider their overspending in 2022 to be a "moderate to serious problem."
*Other Payment Methods*
Credit cards remain shoppers' preferred method of financing this holiday shopping season. According to a survey by Forbes Advisor, 523% of Americans plan to use credit cards and borrowing money to buy gifts.
In addition, the survey found that 42% of respondents said they plan to increase their balance by at least $501, with 11% expecting credit card spending to exceed $1,000 this holiday season.
The preference for more flexible payment methods is also on the rise.
In particular, the "buy now, pay later" installment payment method has been welcomed by consumers.
According to a report by Adobe Analytics, this year, Buy Now Pay Later hit 9An all-time high of $400 million, up 425%。The report shows that the number of items per order also increased by 11% year-over-year, as consumers are using Buy Now, Pay Later to purchase larger shopping carts.
Melissa Lee, financial adviser at Greatest Eastern, added that flexible payment methods like "buy now, pay later" are becoming increasingly popular with shoppers, who "don't immediately feel the pressure to spend money" and that debt can be paid off in a few months.
Adobe Analytics reported that Buy Now Pay Later amassed $8.3 billion from Nov. 1 to 27, potentially making November the biggest month on record for this payment method.