Published
Mar 16, 2021
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Pandemic drives Britons to switch to smaller bags

Published
Mar 16, 2021

Retailers might need to cut back on production of so many roomy bags post-pandemic as consumers have been avoiding the oversized in favour of easier-to-carry bags, a new study shows.


Phot0: Public domain/Pexels



The study from loyalty card Nectar said that a quarter of UK consumers say they want to carry less.

And there’s even a 50% drop in those who take a bag out with them, although that could change once they get back to an almost-daily commute post-pandemic.

Bag makers will need to make sure that their products have room for today’s essentials, which include hand sanitiser and masks, but the usual quota of pens, notepads and other items look likely to be left at home.

Overall, it seems less is more for Britons with the study showing people are trying to carry less with them. And that includes cash and cards. They’re leaving physical items such as loyalty cards and loose change at home, switching to digital apps instead. 

That could also mean less demand for small leatherwoods like purses and wallets, or at least a tendency to leave them at home some of the time. And will those purses need to be quite as big? Previously, the average purse or wallet contained nine different cards — including bank cards, travel cards and membership cards — despite people only using three regularly. And now they’re not even using those.

What won’t be left at home is the smartphone. Rather than the roomy bag, it’s the must-carry item in 2021, as consumers use them to pay for goods while out and about instead of using cards. That’s particularly the case for Gen Z consumers with 28% using smartphone payment capabilities compared to only 2% of the over-65s.

Nectar said the pandemic has “quickened the downward trend, with 21% calling time on the unnecessary stuff they slug around on a daily basis”.

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