Discovery Bank has released an analysis of its client transaction data during December 2024, highlighting interesting festive spend behaviours.
Hylton Kallner, CEO of Discovery Bank, comments: “The December holiday period is known as a time of increased spending. So it’s no surprise that our clients, in general, spent an average of 15% more than in other months of the year.
“From our analysis, they also spent 7% more when compared with the same period in 2023.
“Some of the top categories of increased spend included 62% more spent on outdoor activities, 51% more on movies, 32% more on children’s toys, 26% more on eating out and takeout, and 15% more on clothes in December than the rest of 2024.
“It’s also fascinating to see the change in behaviour comparing categories like spend on alcohol in December compared to stationery, and how their respective patterns change come January – indicating a noticeable return to work and daily responsibilities as many people prepared for the upcoming year,” says Kallner.
During the festive travel period, Discovery Bank clients who booked flights on the Vitality Travel platform could be found on more than 18 000 planes, visiting over 90 countries and collectively flying more than 320-million kilometres.
Between 8 December and 14 January, 79 000 Vitality travellers booked 158 000 seats, filling the equivalent of 900 planes.