Happy New Year from all at Retail Active

New Years Day is a time to reflect on the past and look forward to the future.  2012 has seen our business grow and it has been a pleasure helping you reach your goals.

To all of our clients, employees and our worldwide panel of mystery shoppers, auditors and interviewers, our success in 2013 depends on all of you.  Thank you and we wish you all and your families our best wishes for happiness and prosperity in 2013.

Happy New Year!

12 days of Retail Active

On the first day of Christmas, Mystery Shopping gave to me;
An email – “Welcome to the team!”

On the second day of Christmas, Mystery Shopping gave to me;
A local meal on my lunch break,
And I’m happy to be on the mystery shopper team!

On the third day of Christmas, Mystery Shopping gave to me;
Coffee on my commute,
A local meal on my lunch break,
And I’m happy to be on the team!

On the fourth day of Christmas, Mystery Shopping gave to me;
All of my Secret Santa presents,
Coffee on my commute,
Catching up with the girls on my lunch break,
And I’m happy to be on the team!

On the fifth day of Christmas, Mystery Shopping gave to me;
AN EXTRA PAY DAY!
All of my Secret Santa presents,
Two hour-long commute,
Did twenty visits on my lunch break,
I’m far too busy now I’m on the team!

On the sixth day of Christmas, Mystery Shopping gave to me;
Some make-up for the missus,
AN EXTRA PAY DAY!
All of my Secret Santa presents,
The coffee went cold in the rain,
Did twenty visits on my lunch break,
I’m far too busy now I’m on the team!

On the seventh day of Christmas, Mystery Shopping gave to me;
Toys for the children,
Some make-up for the missus,
AN EXTRA PAY DAY!
All of my Secret Santa presents,
Forgot to even pick up coffee,
No time on my lunch break,
And I’m happy to be on the team!

On the eighth day of Christmas, Mystery Shopping gave to me;
A much-needed night out dancing,
Toys for the children,
Some make-up for the missus,
IT’S ALL BEEN SPENT ALREADY?
I don’t even know James from Accounts,
I NEED CAFFEINE!
No time on my lunch break,
And I’m happy to be on the team!

On the ninth day of Christmas, Mystery Shopping gave to me;
A romantic meal for two,
A much-needed night out dancing,
“Barbie is SOOO last year!”
“Don’t you love me as I am?”
Another mid-month pay day,
How was I to know he was vegan?
THANK YOU for the coffee on my commute,
The local meal on my lunch break,
I’m so happy to be on the team!

On the tenth day of Christmas, Mystery Shopping gave to me;
My Christmas presents paid for,
But they messed up our order,
I trod on his toes,
What do you mean, you don’t like Barbie?
NO, YOU’RE BEAUTIFUL WITHOUT THE MAKE-UP!
IT’S ALL BEEN SPENT ALREADY AGAIN?
Had to re-wrap all of the presents,
Spilt the coffee on my commute,
Rescheduled the meal on my lunch break,
But I’m thankful I can get out of the house!

On the eleventh day of Christmas, Mystery Shopping gave to me;
Work to get me out the house,
My Christmas presents paid for,
“That’ll be to take away”,
Quick dash to the Pharmacy for plasters,
Thank goodness for gift receipts,
How is red the wrong colour?
How did we get through all this money?
Mixed up all of the gift tags,
Didn’t even get a chance to enjoy the coffee on my commute,
Christmas makes me crazy,
But I’m delighted to be on the team!

On the twelfth day of Christmas, Mystery Shopping gave to me;
A perfect Retail Active Christmas,
Some time to myself,
All the presents under the tree,
The turkey is in the oven,
Enjoyed our night out dancing,
Finally some peace and quiet,
You look gorgeous with that lipstick,
Every minute working was worth it,
Everyone’s happy in the end,
Drowned in a large glass of Bucks Fizz,
I love Christmas really,
And I’m delighted to be on the team!

If you would like to be a mystery shopper, Google mystery shopper jobs, or visit retailactive.com

Christmas Spending Survey 2011

Mystery shoppers like most regular customers are planning their own spending cuts this Christmas despite the desperate need to "Spend, spend, spend" to boost our economy. A survey by leading UK Mystery Shopping company and Brand Auditing Specialists, Retail Active found that four out of ten shoppers say they plan to spend less or much less on Christmas than last year. In fact some would go as far as to decided to 'not do' presents at all!

Retail Active's managing director, Julian Chamberlain said: "We asked 2000 people for details of their Christmas shopping plans and 1279 responded. Well over half (66%) said the uncertain state of the economy  made them worried about spending money on Christmas.

"Families say they plan to save on Christmas spending this year, wherever possible - with more than nine out of ten saying they are  going to spend at least 30% less than last year.

"Times are tight and our survey shows that people are resorting to selling belongings to raise cash, dipping in to savings and using credit cards for Christmas Purchases."

Discount stores and better planning by family's have allowed some to reduce their overall spend. Spreading the cost by starting shopping earlier in the year, is a technique referred to by many of the shoppers that responded to our survey.

Christmas is a busy time of year here at Retail Active, and there are lots and lots of Mystery shopping jobs available, and an ideal way to get the inside scoop on current promotions etc on the high street. If you are interested in our Mystery Shopper programme or have a requirement within your business, then please visit our website for more information and ways to get involved. 

MALE CONSUMERS SPEND 15% MORE ON LAST MINUTE GIFTS

HAPLESS MALE CONSUMERS SPEND 15% MORE ON GIFTS AS THEY LEAVE CHRISTMAS SHOPPING TO LAST MINUTE

Men who loathe shopping and only venture out to buy presents on Christmas Eve rarely get a bargain, retail experts said today.

Dubbed 'Last Minute Man' by sales assistants, he can apparently be spotted sweating profusely as he scrambles through the leftovers of the Christmas shopping rush on December 24th.

In the end he is usually pounced on by a crafty salesman who will convince him to spend hundreds of pounds on gifts never to be seen again after Christmas Day.

The research was carried out by analysts Retail Active, which has been called in by a leading supermarket to train staff to spot the stereotypical Last Minute Man and make him buy something.

It surveyed 2,000 shoppers across the country and found men are 22 per cent more likely than women to do their present-shopping on Christmas Eve, spending on average 15 per cent more than is needed.

Despairing men looking for gifts often spend in excess of £1,000, while their purchases on December 24th account for 63 per cent of all the high-value sales that day.

The firm says 1 per cent of men are so last-minute they even buy their loved-ones presents in a 24-hour petrol station during the early hours of Christmas Day.

Julian Chamberlain, managing director of Retail Active mystery shopping, said: 'Last Minute Man is a salesperson's dream - he's cash rich and time poor. He often makes a 'distress purchase', when all rationality goes out of the window.

'Last Minute Man has no list and browses haplessly from aisle to aisle before going in for the kill with a credit card.

'Often the presents are ill thought-out, over-expensive and with one in three being taken back for refunds in the New Year.

'Another Last Minute Man trait is that they do 'one-stop shopping' by buying all their purchases in just one store.

'He also shops in isolation, whereas women tend to shop together as a social event, taking in the Christmas spirit.'

Mr Chamberlain added: 'We have been coaching staff on the jewellery counters of a major supermarket chain on how to spot him and make sure he doesn't get away without a sale.

'They have to look for a man looking through a wide variety of stock, not knowing what to buy and wearing a blank expression.

'He's got money but no time and he will end up spending more than he has to. We train staff to be extra helpful, offer him a choice of gifts, make a recommendation and then close the sale. He represents an ideal sales opportunity.'

As part of the survey, shoppers were asked questions about when they shop, the value of the presents they bought and how often they had to return unwanted gifts.

Following the study, Retail Active came up with a list of top tips to help wives and girlfriends to ensure their present, and those for the family, are bought with consideration.

A potential Last Minute Man should ask family, friends and partners what they would like, write a list, shop earlier and plan a special treat for Christmas Eve when they should be shopping.

Women can apparently help their men by providing them with a list and allowing them a reward, such as a visit to the pub to watch football, once they have ticked off so many items.