More Canadians shopping local, seeking discounts this Christmas

A new survey suggests more Canadians are cutting back on their holiday spending and changing how and where they buy. CTV’s Peter Szperling reports.

As a growing number of Canadians are cutting back on holiday spending, there are signs that shoppers are getting smarter by seeking out discounts and buying local when they can.

Shoppers are reconsidering their holiday spending habits, according to a TD Bank Survey,

“I think Canadians in general are stretched,” said Eric Fontaine, a TD Bank branch manager in Ottawa. “And then you overlay a time of year that, can be challenging for many Canadians.”

According to the TD Bank survey, “more than one in three Canadians (36 per cent) intend to cut back on holiday expenses this season, up significantly from 32 per cent last year.”

The survey says that for 60 per cent of those cutting back, groceries and household essentials instead will account for half of their total spending during the holidays.

“The overall theme is folks are kind of redefining what Christmas looks like for them, financially—where they spend their money, how they spend it,” said Fontaine.

According to TD:

• 46 per cent are cutting back on gifts for family,
• 44 per cent are dialing down social spending, and
• 38 per cent are scaling back on gifts for friends.

Fontaine says to plan a budget for holiday spending.

“Deciding upfront what you want to spend on and sticking through it becomes important.”

Shopping for discounts

As customers look for discounts and bargains, discount chain Dollarama is reporting an increase in profits.

“Over the last couple of years, they really kind of increased, like, what they have available,” says Stacey Smith, who was shopping at the South Keys Dollarama store Friday morning. “Where I can cut corners, that’s what I’m going to do.”

Shopping local

According to the TD Survey, as shoppers are cutting back, 57 percent are putting at least half their holiday budget toward small businesses.

“We’ve seen a huge influx of new customers looking to buy local this year,” says Gareth Davies, owner of Maker House in Hintonburg. “We’ve seen it all year long with the Buy Canadian movement, but especially during our busy time, November, December. A lot of new faces around the Maker House.”

• Sign up now for daily CTV News Ottawa newsletters
• The information you need to know, sent directly to you: Download the CTV News App