Circana research: Female shoppers are slowing discretionary purchasing faster than men

According to research from Circana, LLC, during the first half of 2025, as discretionary spending has been challenged by elevated prices across retail food and beverage, non-edible consumer packaged goods, and general merchandise, year-over-year demand for discretionary products among women fell flat, while unit sales from men were up 3%. Female discretionary spending grew just 1% during the same period, while male spending rose 2%.