Over 60 pc young Indians to give New Year's bash a miss and party at home, says study

A recent study by Velocity MR revealed that six out of every 10 people prefer partying at home or at a friend’s place during New Year’s Eve, with a significantly higher number of people planning to travel within India and go on long drives during New Year’s Eve this year. The study also showed that 73 per cent prefer shopping online. The survey was conducted for a second year in succession to understand shifting trends in this segment.

The national survey was conducted among a sample size of 2,010 respondents and covered prominent Indian cities including Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, and Chennai. “Over the past few years, India has matured as a market and grown at a rapid pace. The Indian E-commerce industry has been on an upward growth trajectory, with increased adoption of smartphones giving rise to a new level of the consumer experience. The same can be observed in this study, which shows an increasing trend for online shopping and gifting,” said Adds Jasal Shah, Managing Director and CEO of Velocity MR. “With all the westernisation, New Year’s Eve has become one of the most celebrated days all across the country. People like to celebrate this eventful day with family, friends and loved ones. It can be observed through this study that people prefer staying at home than standing in line for drinks or waiting in the cold for an oversold Uber.”

More than 60 per cent of the respondents plan to party at home or a friend’s home. While more than 70 per cent has shopped for Christmas or New Year’s Eve online in 2017 and 2016. Amazon, Flipkart, Myntra, Paytm remains to be the most preferred online shopping websites with more than 50 per cent of respondents preferring them. There is a high scope for online gift delivery websites like Oyegifts.com, 1800giftportal.com, cakeflowergifts.com, as 13 per cent of the respondents have expressed that they are willing to use it.

Myntra and Shein are most preferred by women, while men mostly prefer Paytm. Clothes seem to be the most preferred category of purchase, having 68 per cent of the respondents favouring it. Also, perfumes, chocolates, accessories, kids’ toys seem to be highly preferable. While women are more favourable towards cosmetics, jewellery, and accessories, men lean more towards shoes and gadgets.

Vacationing within India and long drives also seem to be most preferred with 36 per cent of the respondents choosing it. The younger age group (25 – 30 years) have plenty of options for the year-end celebrations — relatively higher for visiting discos and pubs. Foreign trips and long drives are the least favoured by the respondents less than 25 years of age. On an average people are ready to spend up to Rs 40,000 on vacations. People who are planning for a local trip or planning to go to a resort/homestay, are willing to choose either 4-star/3-star hotels on their own or going through OYO rooms, Treebo Hotels, and MMT.

Online food delivery and restaurants and hotels would have huge demand, as more than 55 per cent of the people prefer buying their snacks and dinner. Cakes, pastries, cookies, chocolates and full course Indian meals are the most preferred food/snacks.