// Made.com chair Susanne Given said that inflation and the Ukraine war have led shoppers to pull back on spending
// Price rises have been particularly notable in furniture, with a 16.8% increase reported last month by the Office for National Statistics (ONS)
Made.com chair Susanne Given has said that concerns over inflation and the conflict in Ukraine have led to shoppers scaling back on spending.
Given told PA News Agency: “The customer has definitely held back in the short term financially. The macroeconomic backdrop means that, however big a customer’s budget, they are thinking about spending.”
She said that Made.com has switched its focus to growing market share “because customers are definitely pulling back but we’ve steadily built momentum against competitors so are in a great position whatever the environment.”
READ MORE: Cost-of-living crisis to wipe £12bn from discretionary spent in 2022
Given’s warnings come as retail like-for-like sales fell 0.4% year on year in March and total sales growth slowed, according to the latest BRC-KPMG retail sales monitor. BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson said that consumer confidence had crashed to levels not seen since the 2008 financial crisis.
She said: “The rising cost of living and the ongoing war in Ukraine has shaken consumer confidence, with expectations of people’s personal finances over the next 12 months reaching depths not seen since the 2008 financial crisis.
“Furthermore, households are yet to feel the full impact of the recent rise in energy prices and national insurance changes.
“Ultimately, consumers face an enormous challenge this year, and this is likely to be reflected in retail spend in the future.”
Furniture prices rocket
Rising prices in the furniture sector has been a contributor to UK consumer price inflation, which rose to a 30-year high in March.
Furniture prices jumped by 16.8% year on year during the month, according to the ONS.
Made.com had to raise its prices as Given said all retailers in the sector would have to pass on some of the impact of increased shipping, labour and commodity costs onto consumer.
“There isn’t a business around, in furnishing or elsewhere, that won’t have had to reassess their pricing this year, and it means there is always potential people will start pricing down.”
Next boss Lord Wolfson said last month that prices in its home business would rise 13% in the second half of the year, compared to a 6.5% jump in its fashion prices.
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