Londoners’ love of department stores shines through in new study

Harvey Nichols has been crowned Londoners’ favourite brand, according to Starcount’s new study, with Selfridges, Net-a-Porter and House of Fraser close behind. M&S and John Lewis are in fifth and sixth place, while Liberty also appears in the top ten brands, confirming that British department stores lie at the heart of the London shopping experience.

The report uncovered that London’s active consumers are almost 65% female, and fall into five key mindset segments:

1. Suburban Commuters
2. Local Trendsetters
3. Family Day Trippers
4. Affluent Cosmopolitans
5. Seasoned Spenders

Surburban Commuters tend to be professionals who travel into the city for both work and pleasure, while Family Day Trippers are professionals with young children who enjoy treating their families to trips to the theatre. Local Trendsetters flock to the latest neighbourhood hotspots while Seasoned Spenders fork out on stalls seats to the Royal Opera House and Affluent Cosmopolitans are happy to spend highly on designer clothing and accessories, and expensive nights out.

The National Theatre emerges as London’s most popular entertainment venue, while, unsurprisingly, British Airways still reigns as the number one airline for those travelling to and from the city. When choosing which brands to buy, British designers win out over international imports, with fashion-focused Londoners preferring Mulberry, Vivienne Westwood and Burberry to Dior and Chanel.

As people move through different lifestages, their priorities and passions alter, their brand loyalties switch and they make different purchasing decisions.

This insight comes from a wider study into how UK consumers spend their time and money, conducted by Starcount’s data scientists. Using a combination of transaction data, social intelligence and other third-party data sources, the study reveals the passions, motivations and mindsets that lead to purchase, as well as the brands, influencers and media titles favoured by these different consumer mindsets. The study also showscases how consumers move between segments, bringing to life their changing lifestages and the ways in which these impact buying behaviour.

Clive Humby, Chief Data Scientist at Starcount: “As people move through different lifestages, their priorities and passions alter, their brand loyalties switch and they make different purchasing decisions. By focusing on standard measurements and modes of categorisation such as age, address and average spend, brands are in danger of ignoring what truly differentiates their customers: their passions, mindsets and motivations.”

Additional insights include:

• The Suburban Commuters segment (those who commute into London for both work and leisure) is growing by almost 10%
• Caitlin Moran and Sue Perkins have the biggest influence over Londoners
• Londoners are 10% more likely to be active creators on social media than the general UK population
• ‘Wicked’ is the most popular show with Londoners, across theatre, music and dance productions
• 26% of Adidas consumers have become fans of Stella McCartney since Jan 2015, showing the effectiveness of the collaboration between the two brands

The full results of the report was launched at an event held in London on 14th June.

Starcount will be conducting similar reports throughout 2017, delving deeper into consumer behaviour across a range of industries including beauty, finance and gaming.

Click here to download the full Many Faces of Luxury whitepaper.