Britain scores lowest in Europe-wide shopping IQ test

Surely not? Britain has come last again! This time it's for everyday shopping in a Europe-wide study by Visa UK to compare our Shopping IQ scores against old rivals France and Germany and traditional big spenders, Italy and Spain.

Of the nine countries researched by Visa UK, shoppers in Britain scored the lowest overall in the Shopping IQ tests. The study focused on five main areas: thriftiness, self-control, openness to trying new products, comparison shopping (in store and online), and researching items prior to purchasing.

When shopping for everyday items the study shows that the British are really bad at:

• researching products (last place = 9th place)
• trying new products (8th place out of nine)
• saving money (8th place)
• self-control (6th place)

Poland, the winning nation, has the highest shopping IQ, where shoppers rarely spend impulsively and are particularly open to alternative brands. France has good all-round shopping habits and the Germans are good at swotting up on products before buying them. Spanish and Italian shoppers are among the best in Europe at being self-controlled and saving money when purchasing everyday items.

But it's not all bad! British shoppers do have one redeeming feature: we're great at comparing different products in stores. Britain was awarded first place in the best 'comparison shoppers' in Europe category.

Interestingly, shopping intelligence is equal overall between men and women. Men are better at avoiding impulse buying but women are more conscious of keeping costs down. Men are the keener researchers and comparers of products, whether during or prior to shopping.

The research shows that the most intelligent shoppers are those who research meticulously, either online or via store-by-store comparisons before they purchase. At the other end of the scale, those with a low shopping IQ fail to set themselves a shopping budget, are regularly seduced into making impulse purchases, and rarely carry out research to ensure that they're getting the most for their money.

Greg Twitcher, Vice President, Visa UK commented:
"This study shows that there is potential for us all to improve our Shopping IQ to some degree and pick up some tips from our European neighbours. Wherever in the world people shop, in-store or online, everybody wants to be able to access their money easily and efficiently. Visa UK understands that consumers want a fast, reliable and secure payment service, whether it is on a debit or credit card, so they can focus their time on researching and selecting the best everyday products for their household."

Shopping IQ is highest in all countries when buying electronic goods and mobile phones because these products are more expensive. This encourages shoppers to do their research and consider price. Shopping IQ dips lowest on food and clothes purchases because of impulse buys and the battle to keep control of the budget.

The study was carried out for Visa UK in France, Germany, UK, Spain, Italy, Sweden, Hungary, Czech Republic and Poland. A total of 8,500 respondents were surveyed.

- Ends -

Notes to editors:
1. Research for Visa UK was carried out by The Future Foundation, using telephone interviews with a nationally representative sample of adults aged 16+ in nine European countries (see above) during June 2006.

2. The Visa UK study consisted of Shopping IQ tests focusing on:

• Thriftiness
• Self-control
• Openess to change
• Comparison shopping
• Researching items prior to purchasing

3. The shopping IQ for each country was obtained using the following formula:

Average shopping IQ = thriftiness + self-control + openness to change and new products + willingness to compare products + prior research of purchases

4. The Shopping IQ ranking of the nine European countries in the study is as follows:

1. Poland
2. France
3. The Czech Republic
4. Germany
5. Sweden
6. Hungary
7. Spain
8. Italy
9. UK

5. Visa's Love Every Day lifestyle study will be conducting research on the nation's everyday lives throughout 2006.