Research from m1nd-set has revealed differences in DF&TR shopper behaviour by region when it comes to the level of interaction with in-store staff.

The Swiss travel research firm’s second regional analysis on Covid-19 recovery shopping behaviour shows that while more than 70% of global travellers tend to interact with sales staff, 62% of Europeans elect to seek information from personnel.

Conversely, around 80% of travellers in the Americas opt to engage with staff.

Additionally, eighty-six percent of those travellers were positively impacted in their purchasing decision as a result of interactions – higher than the global average of 80%.

PROMOTIONAL SENSITIVITIES

For European travellers, m1nd-set observes ‘lower-than-average positive trends’, with three in four international travellers from the region reporting a positive impact.

The research, which focuses on travel and shopping behaviour since the resumption of international travel, also reveals some interesting variations in shopper behaviour when it comes to promotions, exclusives and new and unique items in duty free shops, according to m1nd-set.

Americas shoppers are particularly sensitive to promotions, with nearly 80% of shoppers form the region buying on sale, higher than the global average of 73%.

Those from North and Latin America also have an above average tendency to purchase products they haven’t bought before (76% vs 72% globally).

They appear to be less interested in purchasing travel retail exclusives, with 43% of shoppers from the Americas region choosing a TREX versus the global average of 45%.

Europeans displayed below average behaviour across all three drivers – promotions, exclusives, and new and unique items.

Sixty-nine percent purchased on promotion, 67% bought a product for the first time in duty free and duty paid shops and 39% said they purchased an exclusive when shopping in travel retail – all below the global average.

“The impact of the pandemic appears to have been lesser in Europe and the Americas than for the Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific,” said M1nd-set CEO and Owner Peter Mohn.

“Forty-eight percent of travellers from the Americas and 54% of European travellers said they had been impacted negatively, which is lower than the global average of 55% and lower than for travellers from the MEA and Asia Pacific regions.

“However, significantly more travellers from the Americas than travellers from all other world regions say that they have been impacted positively by the pandemic. This explains the more dynamic behaviour among shoppers from the Americas across certain shopping drivers and other behavioural tendencies.”

M1nd-set adds that understanding cultural differences is important for retailers and brands to ensure staff and ambassadors are informed on how to approach customers in an appropriate manner.

“It’s incredibly useful for front-line staff to know how travellers from different regions respond and react differently to promotions, how sensitive they are to travel retail exclusives and new product launches or how willing or unwilling they are to engage with the sales staff,” added Mohn.

All charts courtesy of m1nd-set.