The IT company, Square, has presented the results of its study Radiography of consumption in Spain, carried out to understand how the way of consuming Spanish people has recently changed. Thus, the consumption of Spaniards in retail stores, beauty and personal care salons, bars and restaurants is detailed.
The study is launched in a context of rising inflation that has had direct consequences on purchases by Spaniards throughout the last year. And it is that, although 2022 began with a reduced 0.5% and ended with 5.7%, the CPI reached 10.8% in the month of July, its highest level since September 1984, according to the National Statistics Institute (INE). This situation, added to a context of international uncertainty Due to the war in Ukraine and the measures adopted as a result of the pandemic that still survive today, it has had a direct impact on the consumption habits of Spaniards and on how businessmen have had to adapt to new challenges.
“The results of the survey that we present today give us extremely important information about how businessmen and consumers see the future of digital commerce and business in Spain”, says Gonzalo Saenz, director of sales for Square in Spain. “It’s clear that consumers are still looking for that personal touch that comes from supporting a local business, but they also value the ease of being able to pay online or with a contactless card. For entrepreneurs, streamline administrative functions and automate certain processes It will keep your customers and employees alike satisfied, allowing them to focus on generating new revenue streams and growing your business. Soon we will see more companies from all sectors expanding into other business areas and providing new options for their customers. There will be more restaurants selling their products or ingredients, more hair salons offering hair products that can’t be found anywhere else, and more retailers finding ways to sell online.”, Saenz adds.
How do Spaniards consume in shops?
Three out of four Spaniards state that they buy from local businesses more than 3 years ago, and 86.5% agree that it is now more important than ever support them. Therefore, most purchases tend to be made in person. Only 11% say they do more than half of them online. For 71.4% of the population, online purchases are reduced to less than a quarter.
This commitment by Spaniards to shopping in physical stores is also due to the fact that three out of five respondents agree that shopping in local stores is now more pleasant thanks to the measures that have been taken as a result of the pandemic to make shopping a contactless experience. Among these measures, if they had to choose one to last over time, 45.7% would opt for contactless payments. And it is that, when they were asked about their preferred payment method, contactless card payments (37.6%) rose as the favorite option, followed at a great distance by cash payment (24.3%) and traditional card payments (23.8%).
Finally, the Spanish also revealed the three main reasons that stopped them from buying in a certain business: inconvenient return policies (55.4%), not having a free delivery service (43.7%) and the absence of personnel in the establishment in case of needing help (36.4%). In addition, the study revealed that talking to employees (36%) is the main driver for customers calmly navigating a store, compared to selecting the items they need, paying and leaving the store. Other elements that would make Spaniards spend more time in stores are: the use of augmented reality to test items (29%), a contactless shopping experience through, for example, QR codes that provide more information about the products (23.3%) or the use of virtual reality to find out, among other things, where an item comes from or how it is manufactured (19.7%).
How do Spaniards consume in bars and restaurants?
Spain and gastronomy go hand in hand. In fact, it is the country with the most bars and restaurants in the world, with 277,539 catering establishments, according to INE data, the equivalent of a bar or restaurant for every 175 inhabitants.
“However, not all restaurants are valid for Spaniards and there are certain reasons that lead them to avoid certain places, as our study has revealed”says Gonzalo Saenz. “The first, the fact that the restaurant is crowded inside (53.7%), followed by the fact that they do not have the option of paying by card (35.9%) and, finally, the lack of availability in the terrace (33.5%). In addition, 15.1% of consumers would also avoid a restaurant that does not offer contactless payment options”, Saenz concludes.
And, once again, the study reveals that the payment method preferred by Spanish diners is card payment through the waiter (48.7%), closely followed by card payment at the counter (40.7%) and cash payment, either through the waiter (31.5%) or at the counter (25.5%). However, other digital payment methods are also beginning to stand out among Spaniards, such as mobile wallet applications such as Apple Pay, Google Pay or Samsung Pay (16.7%) or payment devices or applications at the table (13.9 %).
Not surprising, given that the digitization it has also been implemented in other areas in recent years. A clear example is digital menus: more than half of Spaniards (53.6%) often opt for them. Only 23.9% say they never use them. Among the different advantages of using digital menus, Spaniards mainly highlight the speed of ordering and not having to wait for the waiter to receive the menu (34.8%), the ease of consulting the menu (22.1%) and the reduction of contact with surfaces that other people have been in contact with (15.7%). In addition, automated ordering systems have also become more popular, with many consumers saying they would use them at fast food restaurants, either for takeout (40.5%) or take-out (15.5%). In addition, 12.8% would also use it in cafeterias. Only 2 out of 10 Spaniards would refuse to use it, regardless of the type of restaurant.
if we talk about order at home, 77.7% of Spaniards prefer to do it through the restaurant’s own website, while only 23.3% would opt for third-party applications. Likewise, 54.2% of consumers in Spain state that they have purchased retail items in a local restaurant in the last year, which shows the support of society for the Spanish hotel sector.
How do Spaniards consume in beauty and personal care establishments?
To opt for a beauty salon, what Spaniards value most is transparency, since 31.6% affirm that they like to have the list of services and prices available on the web. Likewise, in second place, they place the importance of having an appointment system that allows them to book with the specific professional they want (29.7%), followed by a system that allows them to make, reschedule or cancel appointments online (29.6%). %).
Even so, for the moment, Spanish consumers continue to prefer personal treatment when booking an appointment and, generally, they opt for phone calls (57%) or reservations in person (32.6%). On the contrary, there are also factors that can make you reconsider the decision, the main one being that the establishment do not offer card payment option (30.8%). And it is that, once again, card payments, whether traditional (47.7%) or contactless (17.3%), are the payment option preferred by customers of Spanish beauty salons, spas and hairdressers.
On the other hand, among the innovations that emerged as a result of the pandemic that Spaniards would like to continue to see in the future, those surveyed highlighted the improvement of cleaning procedures (42.8%), automated systems for making, rescheduling or canceling appointments (29.1%) and the exemption of expenses for canceling the appointment if the client is indisposed (26.5%). Likewise, among those aimed at maintaining health and safety, 45.9% opted first for reducing the number of customers receiving the service at the same time, 37.2% opted for the possibility of being able to book in the hours of less influx and 37% considered that they should continue betting on the payment options with contactless card or mobile device.
In addition, it should be noted that three out of five Spaniards claim to have purchased personal beauty products in their centers throughout 2022. Most of these purchases were made in person (40.9%), although 21.7% opted for doing so through the business website and 13% through their social networks.
