31% to spend more on ‘eating out’ in UK

"Experiences" rather than other luxuries such as home furnishings, gadgets and jewellery, are attracting consumer interest following two years of Lockdowns under Covid-19, according to a new report from Axa Insurance UK & Ireland.

 

The insurance company commissioned The Priority Report, a nationally representative survey of 2,000 people in the UK, to ask about their spending over the next 12 months. With many households likely to have less money for non-essentials, it asked where do they think they’ll spend more, or less, over the next 12 months and found that 31% of respondents intended to spend more on ‘Eating out’ while 19% intended to spend less.

“Our figures show a trend towards spending more on experiences that involve getting out and about – such as holidays, eating out and spending time with family and friends,” states the report.

Gen Z want to get out of the house

Lockdowns have been hard for younger people keen to just get on with their lives – so it’s notable that the 18–24 age group are keener to spend on nightlife and socialising than any other group according to the report.

This age group is also far more likely than others to spend on clothes and takeaway coffees and the second-most-likely to want to spend more eating out.

19% of the 18-24 age group intend to spend more on nightlife & socialising. This figure was 16% for the 25-34 age group, 10% for the 35-44 age group and 11% for the 45-54 age group.

33% of the 18-24 age group intend spending more on eating out compared to 38% for the 25-34 age group, 31% for the 35-44 age group, 29% of the 45-54 age group, 27% of the 55-64 age group and 29% of the 65-plus age group.

While they’re less likely to want a takeaway coffee, over-65s still want to spend more on eating out and holidays, states the report.