Tariff pressures and inflation are reshaping U.S. shopping habits, with a new Wunderkind report highlighting consumer caution, stronger deal-seeking and shifting brand loyalty across age and gender groups.
Consumer confidence, as reviewed in July, demonstrated that consumer activity is colored by caution and lingering economic uncertainty. In all, 23% of respondents felt more secure in July than they did in January, while a much larger share described themselves as cautious, pessimistic or even panicked at 62% combined.
Substantial demographic splits exist, however. Men, at 31%, Baby Boomers, at 28%, and Millennials, at 28%, are the most optimistic about the economy, in contrast to 16% of women and 15% of GenZers. Women and GenZers are the two cohorts most likely to feel panicked, at 22%.
U.S. shoppers have been responding in tangible ways to continued price increases and tariff-related pressures, with the majority having made noticeable changes to their purchasing habits. The shifts include 32% of consumers saying they are more aggressively looking for discounts, with 31% reporting they are buying fewer non-essential items. Only 12% of consumers said they haven’t adjusted their behavior.
Gender and age differences are clear. Men at 38%, and Millennials, at 39%, lead the move to cut non-essential purchases, Wunderkind pointed out, while women, at 43%, are deal seekers. Women, at 25%, are checking product origins far more than are men, at 9%, highlighting a higher awareness of how tariffs affect specific goods. Gen Z remains the least likely to change habits dramatically, though, even in this group, deal-seeking and careful spending are on the rise, Wunderkind added.
In adapting to economic pressures, 37% of consumers said they now visit more websites to compare prices, a trend strongest among GenXers, at 47%. Use of browser extensions and coupon apps is at 18% overall, following a generational pattern as well, with younger consumers more likely to be driven toward tech-based savings. Meanwhile, 32% of consumers said their online habits remain unchanged, with this figure peaking at 56% for Boomers.
Among loyalty drivers, transparent communication is decisive, Wunderkind noted, with 48% of shoppers saying they are more likely to maintain brand relationships if they are kept well informed. Millennials, at 54%, and Gen Z, at 55%, as well as men, at 53%, are keen on transparency. Women are also strongly motivated by transparency at 42%, but more likely than men to fall into the “maybe, if helpful” group, at 36%.
