Fewer to Donate to Charity This Christmas
21 December 2010 at 4:24 pm
Fewer Australians will give to charity this Christmas – continuing the trend for a frugal festive season, according to the Australian National Retailers Association (ANRA) .
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Of the 1000 Australians surveyed in an ANRA and American Express survey, 41% said they would not be making a donation this year and in 2009 only 36% had the same intention.
The survey says cash donations remain the most popular way of giving to charity, but 5% fewer people will make that choice this year than in 2009. Donations across all avenues from giving food, adding a gift to a „wishing tree? or putting in our own time have all dropped significantly.
The CEO of the ANRA, Margy Osmond says retailers regularly offer charity wishing trees or a gift wrapping service to make a contribution, but they should expect to have fewer gifts to distribute this year. Only 9% of respondents intended to add an extra gift to their Christmas shopping list for someone in need this year – half as many as in 2009.
Osmond says retailers are well aware that consumers have been putting the brakes on spending in 2010, despite the good economic conditions, but the downturn in charity donations may come as a surprise.
She says Australians are definitely choosing to save over spend, this year they have also said they will reduce the number of gifts for friends and themselves, and it would seem charities will also bear the brunt of these changing consumer habits.
She says people still want to put a gift under the tree though and only 2% will choose to make a donation to charity in lieu of gifts. This option was relatively popular last year – attracting 5% of contributions.”
Men remain less charitable than women – almost one in two men (46%) said they would not contribute, while just over one in three (35%) women made the same claim. And Gen Y were more generous than some in the Gen X category with 55% of Gen Ys making a contribution compared with 51% of 35-44 year olds.
Osmond says that for retailers and for charities relying on donations, they will be hoping those trends change again in 2011.
