91 Per Cent of Australian Consumers Switch Brands for Better Offers

A report by retail industry association Shop ANZ and consumer insights platform Vypr reveals that 91 per cent of Australian consumers have switched brands for a better offer.

The study found that 79 per cent of shoppers have visited a different retailer to secure an offer, putting sustained pressure on retailers to continue promotional activity.

According to the findings, 81 per cent of respondents said price has become a more important factor when purchasing a product than it was a year ago, making customer retention increasingly difficult.

Promotional Cycles Drain Brand Value

Heavier promotional spending generates short-term transaction spikes, but it fails to secure lasting customer retention once items return to full shelf price. Suppliers that fund continuous price reductions face falling margins without gaining repeat foot traffic.

Vypr chief revenue officer Sam Gilding noted the structural weakness of relying on perpetual markdowns. “If a brand is recruiting shoppers heavily and then losing them to the next offer on shelf, it’s funding a cycle rather than building a base,” Gilding said.

Middle-Aged Buyers Drive Shift

Demographic data reveals acute pressure among mid-career shoppers, with 42 per cent of consumers aged 35 to 44 frequently switching brands because of a promotion. This demographic carries higher mortgage commitments and household expenses, making them faster to trade down than younger or older cohorts.

Retailers across the Asia-Pacific region have expanded loyalty apps to protect basket sizes, yet Australian consumer behaviour suggests shoppers treat these programs as discount search engines rather than commitments to a banner. When every rival matches the discount, the retailer funding the deepest markdown simply buys temporary volume at the expense of profit.

Shelf Pricing Faces Margin Test

Shop ANZ general manager Carla Bridge explained that while shoppers discover promotions across apps, email catalogues, and social media feeds, purchasing decisions are still confirmed directly at the physical shelf.

The findings follow two years of compounding inflation across Australian consumer staples, which reshaped grocery shopping habits and made weekly catalogue specials the primary driver of household spending routes.

Packaged goods suppliers negotiating trade terms for the upcoming trading quarters now face demands from major supermarket chains to co-fund deeper price cuts to protect category volume.