If we were to adopt the vision of an optimist, we should also see the glass half full in the current crises. In other words, let’s admit that, against the background of the galloping price hikes that have hit the economy recently, we have become more frugal with our budget.
More and more analyzes carried out among Romanians reveal the fact that we were forced to learn basic elements related to financial education, against the background of the economic problems we have faced since this aggressive inflationary phenomenon broke out.
The out-of-control price hikes have radically changed our consumption behavior, and sociologists talk about the fact that Romanians have started to buy less than they should. What does this actually mean? That we think ten times before throwing the money out the window and mostly choose to buy things we really need, avoiding to satisfy some desires that may not necessarily be necessary.
Poverty and deprivation educate us financially
People have become more careful with their money, which is a wonderful thing, for which economists have been campaigning for years, trying to convince us to adopt such beneficial practices in relation to our personal finances.
“Thus, consumption behavior has also changed in the segment of necessities. Romanians now put more emphasis on controlling expenses, buy more often, but less and access products that are slightly inferior in quality to those purchased last year.
Consumers interacted with products several times before purchasing them, in physical stores and through repeated visits online, comparing prices. This behavior indicates the need for stores to offer a personalized and more efficient shopping experience”, according to an analysis by Footprints AI, a Romanian company that operates a Retail Media platform.
“In the last year, we have seen a significant change in consumer behavior, both in terms of the value and composition of the basket, as well as in relation to the purchasing habits of customers and the services offered by stores. In addition to the growth of online shopping and home delivery services, based on data and artificial intelligence, we anticipate the maturation of the end-to-end service for online sales, a better integration of the selection, delivery and return processes”, says Dan Marc, founder of Footprints AI.
