Taking advantage of the weekend, Ms. Binh, 37 years old, living in Hanoi, invited her husband to go shopping for Tet. "It's close to Tet, so work and housework have piled up, so I only have time to shop now," she said.
In addition, she also wants to be sure about both of their bonuses to allocate expenses, avoiding a shortage. "This year the economy is difficult, everywhere there are news of reductions, even bonus cuts, so we can only calculate when we have money in hand," she shared.
In fact, a survey of retail systems in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City during the weekend of February 3-4 showed that the number of customers shopping for Tet Giap Thin increased sharply. Co.op Xtra supermarket (SC Vivo City area, District 7, Ho Chi Minh City) was still overloaded at the checkout counter even after 9 p.m., customers had to wait more than 20 minutes for their turn. Mostly families came here to buy Tet goods such as food, candy, soft drinks and beer.
Lotte, Winmart, Big C, and AEON supermarkets in both regions also recorded a bustling shopping situation. Parking areas, entrances, and payment counters were always overloaded.
Hanoi residents go shopping at AEON Mall Ha Dong supermarket system on the evening of February 3.
A representative of WinCommerce, the operator of the Winmart supermarket chain and the Winmart+ store chain, said that recently, the number of customers shopping at the points of sale has exceeded normal days. "Shopping demand is expected to increase from now until the Lunar New Year," he said.
In response to signs of increased purchasing power, Ms. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Thuy - CEO of Kingfoodmart (a chain of more than 50 supermarkets in Ho Chi Minh City) - said that the company has prepared a total value of goods worth about 300 billion VND for the first two months of the year, an increase of 150% compared to normal days.
Saigon Co.op and AEON both estimate that purchasing power is up 10% compared to last year. "Since the beginning of December, there have been signs of improvement, purchasing power has increased gradually over the weeks and continued to increase rapidly after the full moon of January," AEON representative shared.
Ms. Lien Nguyen, representative of Thu Duong Specialty, an agent distributing about 10 food brands in Ho Chi Minh City, also said that this year consumers are shopping for Tet later than usual.
"Every year, customers start shopping from the beginning of December. But this Tet, 2-3 weeks ago, people were still not very active, only in the last ten days or so," she said. Currently, products made from coconut nectar at the store have increased purchasing power by 30-40% compared to normal days.
According to Ms. Lien, the reason is that initially most people wanted to limit spending after a year of economic gloom, but as Tet approaches, they also decide to shop because the custom of preparing for Tet has become a tradition.
Spending a Sunday evening shopping at AEON Mall Ha Dong, Ms. Quynh, an office worker in Hanoi, said this was the second time this month she went shopping for Tet. "I had to wait and jostle, but as Tet approaches, there are more and deeper promotions. Shopping at this time also has a bustling atmosphere," she said. She also said that she divided her shopping into many times, both directly and indirectly through electronic platforms. "Online shopping often has discount codes, so I also save some money," she said.
In fact, retail businesses say that the trend of online shopping for Tet is positive during this time. According to a representative of Saigon Co.op, online goods have grown well in double digits. Therefore, combined with stimulus and promotional activities, this supermarket chain expects purchasing power to increase by 20-30% when the peak sales period ends.
Although purchasing power has improved, this year's shopping trend is seen as thrifty, Focusing only on essential goods, order value decreased sharply compared to previous years.
After 3 hours of shopping at the supermarket, Ms. Binh's shopping cart was filled with cakes, jams, candies, noodles, vermicelli, meat, and vegetables. She said she had cut down on beer and wine and only bought domestic cakes and candies. "I decided not to give wine in the gift basket but added some cakes and jams. Domestic products, but if you choose the specialties wisely, still ensure the criteria of delicious, nutritious, and cheap," she said. According to her, the shopping criteria now is "no frills, whatever you can cut down on is good for your wallet."
"If in previous years, gift baskets and self-service sets were commonly priced at 700,000-800,000 VND, now they are only 400,000-600,000 VND," said Ms. Nguyen Thi Bich Van, Communications Director of Central Retail.
Similarly, WinCommerce's records also show that customers currently prefer to buy confectionery, drinks, and household cleaning products - goods that are directly related and indispensable during the Lunar New Year. For the fresh and frozen food group, customers buy a lot of fruits and hot pot products such as pork, mushrooms, and beans.
In addition, to save more, consumers also tend to prioritize shopping on days when supermarket systems have promotions and accumulate points. "People often come in large numbers on the 5th and 20th of every month because those are the days when AEON members accumulate points and receive discounts," said AEON.
This unit also shared that the value of recent orders has decreased due to economic difficulties, customers are shopping more economically, only prioritizing essential goods and healthy products.
Accordingly, lingerie, mother and baby products, health care and beauty products are still selling. Because these are necessary products, even though they are economical, customers still need to buy them for their needs in life.
TB (according to VnExpress)Source
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