Marketing and research company Cityion Japan conducted a survey of 1,520 men and women aged 20 to 50 regarding their consumer attitudes after the consumption tax hike.
When asked about their aspirations and concerns regarding their standard of living after the tax hike, 78.8% said they "don't want to lower their standard of living as much as possible," while 73.0% responded that they "are more worried than before about the outlook for their household finances." Regarding consumer attitudes after the tax hike, in all categories of "amount of spending," "purchase frequency," "unit price," and "number of items purchased," "think it will decrease" exceeded "think it will increase."
Regarding purchases after the tax hike, 81.8% said they "want to prioritize quality more than ever before" and 82.3% said they "don't want to choose products of lower quality than those they purchased before the tax hike, even if they are cheaper" Regarding information gathering, 73.6% of respondents said they "want to gather more information than ever before when considering a purchase" and 73.2% said they "want to spend more time gathering information and considering before purchasing." While consumers have a critical view of spending after the tax hike, they are also keen to gather information and make careful selections when it comes to products.
On the other hand, when asked about their shopping failures, those who answered "I'm willing to put in a little effort and time to buy high-quality items at low prices" (71.4%) cited many failures with everyday items such as "clothing" (53.0%), "groceries" (38.0%), and "daily necessities" (18.6%). The top reasons cited were "choosing based on appearance alone (clothing)" (43.6%) and "cheap, but nasty (groceries)" (41.4%). "I would like to recommend the consumption concept of 'Smart Buy,'" says Kitamura Mori, former editor-in-chief of Nikkei Trendy and current product journalist, who oversaw this survey. Smart Buy involves proactively gathering information on the materials, ingredients, manufacturing methods, and technologies disclosed by companies, allowing you to identify high-quality products that are reasonably priced but of the same quality as more expensive items. This reduces spending and allows you to allocate funds that would be needed to purchase higher-priced, higher-quality products, potentially even improving your standard of living. "If you actively research product information to determine quality and develop the 'eye' to decide whether a product is necessary for you, you will avoid making mistakes when purchasing products and will find it easier to practice 'Smart Buying,'" says Kitamura.
When asked about their aspirations and concerns regarding their standard of living after the tax hike, 78.8% said they "don't want to lower their standard of living as much as possible," while 73.0% responded that they "are more worried than before about the outlook for their household finances." Regarding consumer attitudes after the tax hike, in all categories of "amount of spending," "purchase frequency," "unit price," and "number of items purchased," "think it will decrease" exceeded "think it will increase."
Regarding purchases after the tax hike, 81.8% said they "want to prioritize quality more than ever before" and 82.3% said they "don't want to choose products of lower quality than those they purchased before the tax hike, even if they are cheaper" Regarding information gathering, 73.6% of respondents said they "want to gather more information than ever before when considering a purchase" and 73.2% said they "want to spend more time gathering information and considering before purchasing." While consumers have a critical view of spending after the tax hike, they are also keen to gather information and make careful selections when it comes to products.
On the other hand, when asked about their shopping failures, those who answered "I'm willing to put in a little effort and time to buy high-quality items at low prices" (71.4%) cited many failures with everyday items such as "clothing" (53.0%), "groceries" (38.0%), and "daily necessities" (18.6%). The top reasons cited were "choosing based on appearance alone (clothing)" (43.6%) and "cheap, but nasty (groceries)" (41.4%). "I would like to recommend the consumption concept of 'Smart Buy,'" says Kitamura Mori, former editor-in-chief of Nikkei Trendy and current product journalist, who oversaw this survey. Smart Buy involves proactively gathering information on the materials, ingredients, manufacturing methods, and technologies disclosed by companies, allowing you to identify high-quality products that are reasonably priced but of the same quality as more expensive items. This reduces spending and allows you to allocate funds that would be needed to purchase higher-priced, higher-quality products, potentially even improving your standard of living. "If you actively research product information to determine quality and develop the 'eye' to decide whether a product is necessary for you, you will avoid making mistakes when purchasing products and will find it easier to practice 'Smart Buying,'" says Kitamura.
