Bargain-hungry shoppers spur billion-dollar Boxing Day blitz

Australians are on track to fork out $1.3 billion at shopping centres and stores on Boxing Day, as discounts on food and household items lure shoppers to tap into their shrinking personal budgets.

The Australian Retailers Association and Roy Morgan project that the billion-dollar Boxing Day blitz will spur a $3.7 billion spending spree – a 2.7 per cent increase from last year – in the six days after Christmas.

Myer expects household items – some discounted by 70 per cent – to be the department store’s top seller throughout the summer, as it maintains its Boxing Day offers until the end of January.

“Think sheets, towels, dinnerware, glassware,” a Myer spokesperson said. “Activewear [also] flies off the shelves for those new year resolutions, and it’s a great time for customers to pick up bathers too for those summer holidays.”

Discount retailer Big W – which observed “incredibly strong” sales on Boxing Day and in the lead-up to Christmas – said it has had more customers “focused on affordability” as households tackle the ongoing cost of living pressures.

Inflatable and above-ground pools, which have flown off the shelves as Australians find new ways to stay cool in summer, have been among Big W’s most in-demand items over Christmas.

Bunnings chief operating officer Ryan Baker said the warmer weather had led shoppers to spend on outdoor furniture, shade and BBQ accessories, including barbeques, gazebos and umbrellas.

Karl Winther, chief marketing officer at Kogan.com, also expected “seasonal products”, such as air-conditioning units, to be especially popular on Boxing Day as consumers combat a “hot summer on the horizon”.