Tightened spending hits Christmas sales

Stores selling ornaments on Hàng Mã Street, Hà Nội. Local store owners have found sales of decorations for the Christmas unusually low as consumers tighten spending. — VNA/VNS Photo Tuấn Đức

HÀ NỘI — Local store owners have found sales of decorations for this Christmas season unusually low as the economic slowdown takes a hit on consumer spending.

The festive atmosphere has come to major streets in big cities like Hà Nội, HCM City and Đà Nẵng with a variety of ornaments, from Christmas trees, wreaths, bells, baubles, snowmen, Santa Claus, snowflakes, reindeer, stockings and candles, with prices ranging from VNĐ10,000 to VNĐ1 million.

Despite a heavy flow of foot traffic on streets in Hà Nội’s Old Quarter such as Hàng Mã, Hàng Lược and Lương Văn Can, sales are not as robust.

Hà, an ornament store owner on Hàng Mã Street, Hà Nội said that prices of ornaments do not increase much from previous years, but sales are slow because consumers tighten spending on the impact of economic slowdown.

To stimulate demand, many stores launch promotions including free shipping and free decoration and the service of renting Christmas trees.

Mai Thu Hoà, owner of a store in Phú Nhuận District, HCM City, said that her store reduced the amount of goods for the Christmas season by 20-25 per cent compared to previous years due to concerns about lower demand. The products she sells are mostly of the affordable segment, suitable for most consumers in the context of economic difficulty.

She said that prices of imported Christmas trees this year soared by 40-50 per cent due to the rise in air transport cost, making sales of fresh pine trees slow.

Mai Nguyễn, store owner on HCM City’s Lê Văn Sỹ Street, said that she has never seen a Christmas sales as slow as this year, with the number of customer visits dropping by nearly 50 per cent.

Lê Yến Nguyện, a saleswoman of a store on District 1, HCM City, said that at the same time in previous years there were crowds of Vietnamese customers and wholesale buyers, but it is different this year. Popular products are mini-Christmas boxes and mini-Christmas trees.

With consumers spending less over the festive season, large ornaments are no longer a top choice of consumers.

Customers prefer small trees because they are suitable for their budget and indoor space. The highlight of this year’s Christmas season is the appearance of Christmas trees made from cinnamon, priced between VNĐ500,000 and VNĐ15 million each depending on height and decoration.

Thuỷ, a trader on Hàng Mã Street, said that cinnamon Christmas tree has a pleasant scent when kept indoor and many are small, so they are suitable for the pocketbook and demand of customers. — VNS