Housewares Business-to-business magazine for housewares retailers and their suppliers
Argos has seen a rise in the number of ‘Vampire Shoppers’ – people who take to Argos.co.uk and the Argos app in the dead of night to buy products – and they’re buying more than ever before.
The average Vampire Shopper – most active between 1am and 6am – buys 20% more products than the average Argos daytime shopper, and night-time visitors are spending big, filling their baskets with 27% more than they did six months ago.
Nocturnal gamers are among those leading the night time charge. In 2018, while family-friendly titles such as Super Mario Odyssey and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe prospered in the daylight hours, they disappeared from evening shopping lists, as gamers sought out all things cars, football and action.
Argos’ league of top 10 games bought between 1am-6am in 2018 is led by Red Dead Redemption 2 (PS4), followed by God of War (PS4), Marvel’s Spider-Man (PS4), PS4 Slim Console, FIFA 19 (PS4), Nintendo Switch Console, Call of Duty Black Ops 4 (PS4), DualShock 4 Wireless Controller, Forza Horizon 4 (Xbox One) and PS VR V2
Tired parents have also been pushing through the witching hour to spend their hard-earned cash on kids’ toys and products. Batteries benefit from an 88% sales uplift between 1am and 6am. Pillows also see a big increase in the night, as people become dissatisfied with their sleep set-up. And last summer, during the heatwave, fans made up the top-selling four items as customers desperately tried to cool down. LED night lights, baby video monitors and steam steriliser sets increased in sales at night as well.
According to the retailer, in the list of top 10 products bought between 1am-6am in 2018, LOL Surprise Dolls take the number one spot, followed by Poopsie Unicorn Slime Surprise, batteries, pillows, pushchairs, Sony PS4, steamer steriliser sets, baby video monitors, Argos Simple Value white desk fan and Dyson vacuum cleaners.
Manchester, Nottingham and Belfast are the three cities where people are most inclined to shop at night. (In Manchester alone, the average city-dweller shops at night more than three times a year.) In fourth place is Cambridge, followed by The Cotswolds, Newcastle, Birmingham, Norwich, Portsmouth and Cardiff.
An Argos spokesperson said: “It’s no surprise that customers have taken to the calm quiet of late-night shopping. The prevalence of tablet and smartphones at bedtime means that customers are shopping at a time convenient to them in ever greater numbers.
“Gamers appear to be the most likely group to stay up late and shop but sleep-deprived parents also log on in the dead of night to stock up on baby goods. The reign of the Vampire Shopper is one we can’t see ending anytime soon!”
