Australians spent big on looking good after lockdown ended
Many Australians came out of the long COVID-19 lockdowns of 2021 in need of a bit of pampering and the latest national economic snapshot reveals they did not hold back once hair salons, barbers and beauty parlours reopened late last year.
Wednesday’s National Accounts from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed households treating themselves, with spending increasing by 6.3 per cent in the final three months of 2021 as lockdowns ended in Melbourne, Sydney and Canberra driven by an unprecedented spike of more than 14 per cent in what the bureau calls “non-essential spending”.
By contrast, spending on relatively boring things such as food and housing grew by less than 2 per cent, while “personal and other services”, including hairdressing and beauty, also broke its growth record late last year, up by more than 15.4 per cent on the previous three months.
Somehow we managed to save amid all that shopping and grooming, with households hanging on to nearly 14 per cent of their disposable income in October, November and December, well above pre-pandemic levels.
But for the ABS, the story of the December quarter was all that household consumption with a distinctly personal flavour, as spending on travel, dining and accommodation soared.
“Personal services grew as people got a haircut,” the bureau noted on Wednesday.
“Compared to the September quarter 2021, production surged in industries most affected by restrictions. The air transport industry grew the fastest – by 56.5 per cent – followed by accommodation and food services at 26.1 per cent.
“Personal and other services, including hairdressing and beauty salons, grew by 15.4 per cent, the fastest quarterly growth ever for that industry.”
At Aldo’s salon in Brighton, Filomena Maraventano was not surprised by the figures.
The salon owner said a relatively swift return to normal trading conditions after Victoria’s sixth lockdown, rising prices and a greater appetite among her clients for more variety in services and products had all contributed to a greater post-lockdown spend at her two outlets.
“A lot of the people we saw were coming in just to be pampered after such a long time, just to feel a bit better about themselves, and we saw them spend a bit more on extra services,” Ms Maraventano told The Age.
“Things opened up quickly last year, compared to the year before.
“A lot of people have put their prices up because they have had to. The jobs were taking longer and you needed to pay for that extra time.”
However, Ms Maraventano said it remained to be seen if the post-lockdown uptick would be sustained, a sentiment echoed by the ABS, which noted the effects of the Omicron strain would not be fully seen until the next national accounts were published in June.
“It’ll be interesting to see if it still stays elevated … it’s definitely slowed up a little bit,” the salon owner said.
Australian Retailers Association chief executive Paul Zahra said the busy post-lockdown trading period had been a good start in getting the hair and beauty sector back on its feet.
“People went months without getting their hair done and visiting their beauty therapist, so businesses were positively overwhelmed with customers when the lockdowns were finally lifted,” Mr Zahra said.
“It’s pleasing to see the hair and beauty industry on the road to recovery given they’ve been subject to some of the toughest restrictions placed on businesses throughout the pandemic.”
