Australian Made Products: Are Shoppers Buying?

We know the pandemic has changed buyer behaviour, with Australian-made products experiencing a boost due to global supply chain issues and delivery delays leading to a ‘shop local’ mentality. But are shoppers still buying Australian-made? And what are the drivers and deterrents for purchasing locally made products? Each fortnight, Power Retail surveys over 1,000 Australian online shoppers to find out exactly how consumer behaviour is changing.

FREQUENCY OF PURCHASE

We found that the overwhelming majority (a massive 96%) buy Australian made products. Of those, just a tiny 2% buy exclusively Australian made, but the greatest proportion (53%) purchase Aussie made ‘often’. A high percentage (41%) say they purchase Australian made ‘sometimes’. This last figure has received a slight increase year-on-year (up from 37% who sometimes purchased Australian made in 2021) in direct correlation with a dip in those purchasing exclusively (down from 4% to 2%) and often (down from 56% to 53%).

WHAT ARE THEY BUYING?

A third (33%) say their last Aussie made purchase was from the Food & Drink category (which makes sense given we know the average order is around $50). The next most popular purchase category for Australian Made products is Fashion, with 23% of consumers saying this was their last purchase made. House and Garden also ranks highly for Australian made purchases, in third place at 18%. This was the first year we included Kids and Pets (9%) which means we can’t compare year-on-year, however we can see general purchase trends are similar across all categories. What’s teling (and not unexpected) is that Electronics or Electrical Products as well as Fitness or Sporting Goods are generally not purchased from Australian producers.

Source: Power Retail Switched On Trajectory Report #48

WHAT’S DRIVING PURCHASE BEHAVIOUR?

Interestingly, what’s driving Australian made purchase behaviour isn’t the products themselves. The majority of consumers surveyed (54%) say they buy Australian made products to support local businesses. This number has remained steady year-on-year, showing it is a huge part of the ‘why’ behind Aussie made purchases. Keeping Aussie dollars onshore is in second place (at 13%), also for a second year running. If you are an Australian business and / or sell Australian made products, it’s important that this is part of your messaging and is clear on your website, as support for local is a huge part of buyer behaviour.

While supporting local is important to consumers, pricing does come into play, with 40% saying cheaper alternatives overseas are why they would be deterred from purchasing Australian made. A wider range of options overseas comes in second place at 15%.  But you know what comes in equal second place, also at 15%? That nothing would deter them from buying Australian made. It does mean that when the products are available, consumers are pretty keen to purchase Australian made (although pricing and range of products does come into play for some).

Want more? Download Trajectory #48, FREE to Power Retail Switched On Members.

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