ROME (ITALPRESS) – A Christmas week “with flakes,” not only for the snow that fell in abundance, but also for purchases, which were higher than expected: from Friday 20 to today about 9 billion euros were spent between food, gifts and travel. A jump that, however, does not fully compensate for the slow sales trend in the first part of December.This is what Confesercenti estimates on the basis of a survey of its members conducted to draw an initial summary of holiday sales trends. The final acceleration in shopping, however, saw neighborhood businesses decisively win the battle with online for the last gifts, with 78 percent of member businesses reporting sales up from the previous week. Among last-minute gifts, clothing products and accessories were the protagonists, leading both the overall and last-minute shopping rankings. On the other hand, gastronomic products climbed to second place, followed by toys and then books and wine products: a great many Italians gave a ‘bottle’ under the tree, with made-in-Italy ‘bubbly’ leading the way. Food purchases, however, were mainly driven by domestic dinners and lunches: more than 80 percent of Italians spent December 24 and 25 at their own or relatives’ homes. On the table, traditional products were confirmed, especially among desserts, where panettone-increasingly artisanal and less and less industrial-decidedly beat pandoro. For the rest, fish dishes were the protagonists of the Christmas Eve dinners, while for Christmas lunches there was a prevalence of products ‘of the mountains’ on the ‘sea. “Now the hope of businesses,” explains Confesercenti, “is that the acceleration of consumption lasts until New Year’s Eve: a good sales performance in the days immediately preceding Christmas, in fact, often signals a last of the year marked by the best results. And, according to the expectations of merchants in the fashion sector, the start of the sales could mark a decisive affirmation of sales made at local businesses.”-Photo Agency Photogram-(ITALPRESS).
