Women are behind three-quarters of all retail transactions in Australia, and their hunger for more clothing during Easter drove apparel to the top of the best performing categories.
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Total retail sales grew by a "very modest" 3.4 per cent in the year to March, according to Mastercard's latest SpendingPulse report. But clothing sales at specialty stores grew significantly faster, while department store and household goods sales lagged.
"Women make 75 per cent of transactions, and I like to tease we influence the other 25 per cent," said Sarah Quinlan, MasterCard's New York-based senior vice-president of market insights. "She is making the household decisions, she's buying his clothes as well in many cases.
"The growth in the first quarter in clothing sales was for children's clothes. We use the Easter holiday as an excuse to get them a new wardrobe."
The ongoing SpendingPulse report was launched in Australia earlier this year and tracks card payments - and takes into account cash and cheque trends - to pinpoint consumer habits and produce forecasts.
While Australian retailers have enjoyed 24 months of non-stop sales growth, spending has slowed and will mostly likely stay that way with the looming Budget and likely July 2 federal election.
"Uncertainty always breeds caution in the consumer and Australia's no exception to that, so until the election is over, there'll be that cautiousness," said Ms Quinlan.
"The biggest concern I had when I looked at the consumer confidence report was the 6.6 per cent drop in the future index, of where people expect their circumstances to be in the next 12 months."
Ms Quinlan said the report - available in Brazil, Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, the UK and the USA - confirmed Australia was the leading country when it came to electronic payments.
She said the data showed announcements from online retailers such as same-day delivery and click-and-collect were overhyped, and such transactions "barely moved the needle".
"If people need something that day, they go to the physical store. The reality is, there's not enough just-in-time need, and if there is, they'll go to the store," she said.
"We know that 85 per cent of people globally use a mobile device when they're shopping. So the critical thing is for retailers to make certain their webpage is ready."
She also said that, in the past five years, the number of different stores the average Australian consumer visited had dropped by 20 per cent. Consumers were now splashing more of their cash at one store.
"It's not that they're less adventurous. They're looking for uniqueness, and when they pick a brand and it makes them feel unique and special, they'll stick with it," she said.
"This is the challenge for malls going forward. We don't spend a day at the mall anymore. People are very purposeful when they go into a mall."
She said the best response from retailers was to "know their customers" and develop a relationship.
What surprised her about Australia was its "resilience" compared to other countries.
Hong Kong's retail market was suffering, with sales for clothing, furniture, jewellery and many other categories "dramatically down". The only growing category was groceries. Japan was also down in March.
"Australia's resilience has been amazing. When you have a 75 per cent drop in the price of oil and a drop in demand in mining, to see the resilience of the economy, shows how well consumers have managed their personal balance sheets," she said.
"That's very impressive."
