Research from Roy Morgan has shown that the power of the ‘pink dollar’, or the purchasing power of the gay community, can and should be important for everyday retailers.
As of March 2016, 5.2 per cent of Australian men and 3.1 per cent of Australian women agreed with the statement, ‘I consider myself a homosexual’. While gay men and women comprise a relatively low percentage of the population, they display distinct attitudes in shopping and buying behaviour.
Evidently, 61.7 per cent of gay women and 46.4 per cent of gay men enjoy grocery shopping while, in comparison, 49.6 per cent of straight women and 41.9 per cent of straight men enjoy shopping for groceries.
“The power of the pink dollar is no urban myth – our data shows that Australians who identify as homosexual tend to spend more on clothes and be more engaged with shopping than straight Aussies,” Roy Morgan Research Industry Communications Director Norman Morris said. “But the power of the pink dollar stretches beyond clothing: gay Australians spend higher-than-average amounts on several other retail categories, such as homewares, small electrical goods, personal entertainment, cameras and sporting equipment.”