ROMIR and "Yakov and Partners": how and what consumers spend money on

About a quarter of Russians (21-26%) plan to reduce their spending on luxury goods and travel abroad every year, and 7-8% want to give up tobacco, but over the past year, the share of those using these products and services has hardly changed. At the same time, the majority are happy with the brands that have replaced those that left Russia. These are the conclusions reached by experts from ROMIR and the company "Yakov and Partners", who released a joint report "New Russian Society: Consumer Spending and Brands".

The study was conducted on the basis of data obtained in May 2024 on the basis of the ROMIR Longitudinal System, which allows analyzing the "sentiment" in society in dynamic development, taking into account all the features and segmentations by socio-demographic characteristics, lifestyle, values ​​and other criteria.

The survey showed that most often people want to save on luxury items, travel abroad, entertainment and household appliances. At the same time, respondents expect an increase in their mandatory expenses - food at home, housing and utilities, communications, medicine and medications. The only item of optional expenses that they have not reduced and do not plan to reduce is pets.

Respondents in the study say every year that they are starting to save and stop spending. Thus, 26% both last year and this year were going to stop spending on traveling abroad, 21-23% - on luxury goods, 11-13% - on leisure and entertainment. But the following year, the share of those using such products and services remains the same or almost does not change. In particular, 53% again bought luxury goods this year, and the share of those spending money on leisure and entertainment still reaches 85%.

In terms of generations, the survey showed that zoomers save the least, while representatives of older groups of respondents are the most thrifty. Most zoomers increased their spending on restaurants, electronics and trips abroad. The older the generation, the more respondents there are who have reduced spending on visiting restaurants and increased spending on eating out at home.

In terms of changes in their consumer basket compared to 2021, up to half
(40–49%) of respondents did not notice any changes in their consumer basket at all, and 33–43% believe that the range of brands has changed insignificantly. The fewest people who noted changes were among the older generation. But representatives of Generation Z more often noted changes, especially in the categories of “Clothing and footwear”, “Soft drinks”, “Food”, “Cosmetics, perfumes and personal hygiene” (63–69%).

At the same time, in general, consumers are satisfied with the replacement of brands: in all categories, there are more satisfied with the replacement than dissatisfied. Consumers are most satisfied with the replacement of brands in the categories “Food” and “Soft drinks”. They are least satisfied with the range of brands and the quality of goods in the categories "Household appliances and electronics" and "Transport".

"The results of the study show that a noticeable transformation of the range affected the products of high-tech industries, such as cars, gadgets or household appliances," notes ROMIR Executive Director Inna Karaeva. "If we talk about food products and soft drinks, many "departed" brands have successfully localized, and as a result, the consumer has hardly felt any changes in their range. In addition, thanks to the dynamic growth of marketplaces, niche local brands are also actively developing."

The top three leaders among favorite food products, as in the previous year, included only Russian brands. Among drinks from foreign brands, only Coca-Cola remained in the "Soft drinks" category and Martini in the "Alcohol" category. Consumers with high incomes are especially satisfied with the current range of brands in the categories "Food" and "Soft drinks", emphasizes Inna Karaeva.

As for clothing, electronics and cosmetics, respondents love foreign brands. Most often, consumers noted the brands they would like to return in the categories "Clothing" and "Household appliances and electronics". In electronics, Korean (Samsung and LG) and Chinese (Xiaomi, HONOR, HUAWEI and LENOVO) brands are in the lead, with Samsung chosen by almost every third respondent (27.9%). In the category "Clothing", the leader was again the German Adidas (9.8%), but consumers' love for cosmetic brands is much more vague.

Finally, Russians still love Japanese and German cars. Over the past year, the top three has hardly changed, but a domestic brand has entered the rating of favorite brands: Mercedes has dropped to fourth place, and LADA has entered the top three. Toyota turned out to be the most favorite car brand, and Sber took the leading position in the financial services sector.