Gas Prices Siphoning Off Sales?

Teens are intrinsically linked to driving. Though the age at which they can get behind the wheel varies by state, teens can’t wait to borrow the keys to the family car and head out on the road.

Yet with gas prices flirting with $4 per gallon in many parts of the country, there’s a good chance that parents won’t be so quick to sanction trips to the mall to “hang out.”

In April, Worthington, Ohio-based BIGresearch surveyed adults who have 13- to 17-year-olds living in the household to determine whether gas prices were impacting spending. The research, part of the Consumer Intentions and Actions (CIA) survey, compared shoppers’ attitudes and behaviors today with what they were saying and feeling a year ago.

The findings suggest that a clear majority (86 percent) believe their spending has taken a hit as a result of gas price hikes, up 9 percentage points since April 2007. In all, 55 percent say they will be “driving less.”

Drilling down into the specifics is even more painful, particularly for retailers and restaurateurs. Forty-five percent say they’re spending less on clothing – up 18 percentage points from April 2007;

53 percent say they’ve reduced dining out (15 points higher than a year ago).

If adults who share their homes with teens are driving less, spending less on clothing and groceries and cutting back on eating out, it’s fair to assume that a trickle-down effect will be felt by teens — particularly those on the younger end of the age spectrum, who are most reliant on their parents’ purse and proclivity for running a “taxi” service.

The lesson most teens are likely to take away from the nation’s gassed-up fuel prices may be all about mileage – and not just as it relates to cars. Look for teens to start assessing purchases according to how much wear they’re going to get out of apparel items and electronics.