Brits spend 2 billion pounds a year on delivery subscriptions

Delivery subscription services such as Amazon Prime and Asos Premier are on the rise in the UK, with a new survey stating that British consumers spend an average of 2 billion pounds a year on subscriptions, as they offer convenience and the chance to save money.

According to new research from delivery management company Whistl, the most popular subscription service is Amazon Prime, with 61.4 percent of those who took part in the survey signed up to benefit from the service. Other popular subscriptions were revealed to be: Graze (12.3 percent), Nextunlimited (9.7 percent), Asos Premier (8.8 percent), Pact Coffee (8.5 percent) and Glossybox (7.8 percent).

When it comes to who is buying these subscriptions, the research reveals that 1.5 million British men spend more than 300 pounds a year, while the average spend between men and women is around 60 pounds a year.

Consumers in the 45-54 age group are most likely to spend over 300 pounds a year on subscriptions, while one in three people in the 25-34 age group refuse to shop with retailers that they don’t have a subscription with the research suggesting that subscriptions are a good way of ensuring customer loyalty.

It isn’t just the retailers who benefit from subscription services, Whistl added that consumers can also make some huge savings, as on average people signing up for Amazon Prime save around 165 pounds a year.

Other reasons to sign-up includes convenience, with just under half of respondents (45 percent) choosing this option in the survey, while one in three Brits (30.4 percent) sign up to services for added benefits such as discounts and services from the provider, and one in five (18.6 percent) simply enjoy the novelty of receiving products through the post.

Carl Thompson of Hawkins and Shepherd, a British hand crafted shirt retailer who do a monthly subscription service of a new shirt per month, said in the report: “Since launching our subscription service in 2016, we have experienced steady growth in the UK around this model. Of our subscription customers around 37 percent have made additional purchases on the website outside of the subscription."

“Subscription services are becoming more and more part of the busy male lifestyle, so we wanted to offer our customers convenience. But more than this, some of our subscription options allow customers to split payments over months, making our handmade shirts more affordable.”

Melanie Darvall, director of marketing and communications at Whistl, added in a statement: “It’s great to see the popularity in monthly subscription services and how they are benefitting both businesses of all sizes and the consumers who sign up to them.

“It seems the key to making your subscription service a success is finding the balance and making your offering beneficial for both parties. Ensuring the quality of product or value of discount is high enough to make your customer base loyal and consider spending money outside of what is essentially a monthly “taster” service can certainly be a challenge, but once you’ve cracked that side of things, you’ll reap the rewards and hopefully retain a happy customer base.”

Photo credit: Sl Wong, Pexels