Dutch consumers prefer offline shopping during the holiday season

By

Shomara Roosblad

Published
Nov 14, 2017

According to a report by Deloitte, Dutch consumers favor physical stores over online shops during shopping for the Holiday season.

For the annual Christmas report, Deloitte surveyed 8,154 Europeans, of which 879 Dutch respondents, on their shopping intentions for the holidays. Dutch consumers polled were three times more likely to shop offline than shoppers from other countries, and showed a preference for specialty chains and traditional local shops.

Key contributing factors are the 'nostalgic experience' and festive ambience important to consumers, who also expect retailers to invest in decorations to improve the shopping ambience. Customers also appreciate the professional advice available in-store, the report said.

Still, festive cheer won't be enough to slow e-commerce over the holiday season, with online spending still set to increase by 7%, compared to the 1.2% forecast for offline growth. Platform sites including Bol.com and Zalando were named the most popular for online purchases, especially gifts. Home delivery is the most popular advantage of online shopping, shoppers said.

In regard to holiday spending, Dutch consumers spend significantly less than those in other European countries, about €296 per person, while the European average is at €445. Christmas is the most popular Dutch holiday: the Dutch spend €140 on Christmas; €60 on the Dutch holiday Sinterklaas; and €71 on New Years Eve.

Overall, Dutch consumers are the most positive about their current economic situation, compared to other European countries. About 80% of Dutch consumers believe that the country’s economic situation is stable or seeing positive growth.