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Mulled wine, turkey and Buck’s Fizz: What Christmas classics are most likely to get axed as cost of living bites?

Christmas cost of living
Shoppers are likely to spend £4 billion less on non-essential Christmas items this year due to the cost of living crisis. Image: Shutterstock.

While some may argue that October is too early to even mention Christmas, many have probably already started drafting their festive shopping lists.

The winter holidays usually start with an extensive list of all-time favourite essentials that have been at the heart of every festive celebration for decades.

And more often than not, Christmas decorations, mulled wine and turkey are just few of the items to get a well-deserved top spot.

But with energy bills going through the roof and hundreds of households struggling to make ends meet, some are also probably considering opting out from a thing or two.

Image: Shutterstock.

According to research by Retail Economics, UK shoppers are likely to spend £4.4 billion less on Christmas items this year as they try to keep afloat during the colder months.

While there is no definitive statistics about what people are or aren’t actually buying yet, a team from AskGamblers has managed to pin down the items that are more likely to be dropped.

Using Google search data, they have compared the number of searches for the top Christmas items in the first week of last October with the first week of this October.

What are people more inclined to say goodbye to?

The survey shows that mulled wine is the Christmas item most likely to be left out of UK homes this year.

The classic festive drink has dropped down by a staggering 60% – from 28,000 searches last year to only 11,000 this year.

To the surprise of many, the other item that will presumably be scrapped from the shopping list is the Christmas turkey.

With 6,400 searches last year and 4,100 this year – plunging by 36% – it appears some households might be pondering over cheaper alternatives to the Christmas dinner.

Pigs in Blankets are one of the most popular Christmas dishes. Image: Shutterstock.

While many Brits enjoy a glass of buck’s fizz on Christmas morning, figures show the fizzy drink is also under threat, dropping by nearly 31%.

Other items that could be absent from this year’s festive feast include pigs in blankets and Brussel sprouts, which have gone down by 29% and 27%, respectively.

Many of our favourite decorations could also be in danger – although it is probably safe to say that most of them are likely to remain on shopping lists in some shape or form.

Search results for baubles, tinsels and Christmas lights are down 20%, 17% and 15%, respectively, while Christmas crackers and advent calendars have decreased by 27% and 12%.

Image: Shutterstock.

However, a spokesman for AskGamblers said that it’s not all doom and gloom with some Christmas classics going up the Google search ladder compared to last year.

Searches for Bailey’s Irish Cream are up 33% compared to last year, and classic Mince Pies are also up 14%.

He added: “The cost-of-living crisis remains prominent as we slowly move into the Christmas period, and as a result we expect many households to be keeping a close eye on their finances this Christmas.

“As our research shows, many non-essential items could be left out.

“Retailers can also be expected to feel the burden of the financial crisis. Many Brits will be planning to budget their Christmas shopping, leaving high street and independent stores in danger of serious financial losses in their busiest time of the year.”

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