How brands can drive fun purchases for cost-conscious shoppers

Driving joyful buys with intent

Generated by Klaviyo AI

The article explains how consumers still make discretionary “fun” purchases despite economic pressure, but with greater focus on value, timing, and preferred channels. It outlines research-backed insights on promotions, channel mix, and engagement timing to help brands align with more intentional buying behavior.

Value-driven promotionsMeaningful discounts or promotions influence 16% of fun purchases, showing that consumers want leisure spending to feel smart and justified.
Focused channel mixMost shoppers use 3–4 channels, so brands should prioritize consistent presence across a small set of trusted touchpoints rather than trying to be everywhere.
Channel-specific behaviorConsumers split spa and fitness purchases almost evenly between in-store and company websites, while email remains the top channel for keeping up with brand communications.
Timing for engagementEngagement peaks in the morning for email and SMS, and in the evening for social and in-app messages, with spa and fitness brands seeing strongest response in the evening.
Planned spontaneityFun purchases are still happening, but they are more planned, rewarding brands that align offers, channels, and timing with consumers’ intentional decision-making.

As inflation and economic uncertainty reshape how people approach discretionary spending, brands are being called to meet the moment with greater intention. Shoppers are still spending on spa days, fitness classes, vacations, and new gadgets—they’re just under more scrutiny.

The opportunity? People are still investing in joy. They’re simply being more thoughtful about when, why, and how they do it. That means consumers need the right motivation, at the right time, and through the right channel.

Recent research across 2,000 global consumers from Klaviyo uncovers what’s influencing these joyful buys, and how brands can be more intentional about creating them.

Deals are a big motivator

Across all respondents, promotions drive action. There is a meaningful discount or promotion on 16% of fun purchases, from spa visits to fitness classes. Even when spending for pleasure, value remains key.

The takeaway: Use with value-driven offers. Consumers want to feel like they’re making smart decisions, not indulgent ones. That means brands must lead with offers that feel compelling, time-sensitive, and personalized.

How consumers really shop across channels

The vast majority of consumers (77%) use 3-4 channels when shopping for fun, non-essential purchases. That includes social media, in-app messages, branded apps, push notifications, WhatsApp, SMS, email, and good old-fashioned in-store visits.

For spa and fitness studio purchases specifically, consumers are almost evenly split between buying in-store (23.5%) and through company websites (23.6%). And when keeping up with brand communications, email remains the top choice (25.7%), followed by social media and push notifications.

The takeaway: Stay present across 3 or 4 trusted channels. You don’t need to show up everywhere, but you do need to show up consistently where your customers already are. Most consumers rely on just 3 or 4 trusted channels, so identify your core touchpoints and make sure they work seamlessly together. Not sure where they are? Ask your top 10 customers where they expect to see you show up, or look at your store analytics to track where users are coming in from.

Timing matters more than you think

One of the most overlooked levers for driving engagement? Time of day.

The research shows consumers are most likely to engage with brands in:

The morning via email (36.5%) and SMS (30.0%)
The evening on social media (28.3%) and in-app messages (26.0%)

When it comes to category-specific timing, spa and fitness brands see the most engagement in the evening (20.5%), followed by late afternoon and weekends. This aligns with when people are winding down or planning personal time.

The takeaway: Time your outreach to match customer behavior. By understanding and aligning your message delivery to these rhythms, brands can show up not just in the right place, but at the right moment.

What these insights mean for marketers

Even in today’s leaner economy, people are still buying leisure goods, they’re just being more intentional about it. The brands that win in this environment will strategically match consumer intention.

The joy of a spontaneous purchase isn’t gone, it’s just a little more planned.

Jake Cohen

Jake Cohen is VP of Insights and Strategy at Klaviyo, the CRM built for consumer brands. In his role, Jake is dedicated to strengthening and expanding Klaviyo’s partnership with Shopify, driving the company’s position as a thought leader in ecommerce. Prior to Klaviyo, Jake was Director of Customer Marketing at DataGravity and also spent three and a half years at Privy developing a go-to-market strategy and building a B2B marketing funnel from scratch. He also gained valuable experience in sales and strategy during his three years at CBS Radio. Jake earned his bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Italian from Middlebury College.

Set as Preferred Source

Related content

Klaviyo news

Jul 21, 2026

4 new integrations for smarter marketing

See how Klaviyo integrations from Figma, Yotpo, Contentsquare, and Fairing feed live signals into your segments and flows to trigger smarter email and SMS.

Klaviyo news

Jul 13, 2026

Tracking pixels in email

France and Italy now require consent before using tracking pixels in email for most marketing. See what changed, what Klaviyo has built, and what to do now.

Klaviyo news

Jul 7, 2026

Klaviyo Social Marketing is here

Bring social into CRM by turning Instagram followers into subscribers, syncing to paid channels, and capturing every comment, DM, post and tag to fuel more personalized omnichannel marketing.

# How brands can drive “fun” purchases in a cost-conscious economy As inflation and economic uncertainty reshape how people approach discretionary spending, brands are being called to meet the moment with greater intention. Shoppers are still spending on spa days, fitness classes, vacations, and new gadgets—they’re just under more scrutiny. The opportunity? People are still investing in joy. They’re simply being more thoughtful about when, why, and how they do it. That means consumers need the right motivation, at the right time, and through the right channel. Recent research across 2,000 global consumers from Klaviyo uncovers what’s influencing these joyful buys, and how brands can be more intentional about creating them. ## **Deals are a big motivator** Across all respondents, promotions drive action. There is a meaningful discount or promotion on 16% of fun purchases, from spa visits to fitness classes. Even when spending for pleasure, value remains key. **The takeaway:** Use with value-driven offers. Consumers want to feel like they’re making smart decisions, not indulgent ones. That means brands must lead with offers that feel compelling, time-sensitive, and personalized. ## **How consumers really shop across channels** The vast majority of consumers (77%) use 3-4 channels when shopping for fun, non-essential purchases. That includes social media, in-app messages, branded apps, push notifications, WhatsApp, SMS, email, and good old-fashioned in-store visits. For spa and fitness studio purchases specifically, consumers are almost evenly split between buying in-store (23.5%) and through company websites (23.6%). And when keeping up with brand communications, email remains the top choice (25.7%), followed by social media and push notifications. **The takeaway: **Stay present across 3 or 4 trusted channels. You don’t need to show up everywhere, but you do need to show up consistently where your customers already are. Most consumers rely on just 3 or 4 trusted channels, so identify your core touchpoints and make sure they work seamlessly together. Not sure where they are? Ask your top 10 customers where they expect to see you show up, or look at your store analytics to track where users are coming in from. ## **Timing matters more than you think** One of the most overlooked levers for driving engagement? **Time of day.** The research shows consumers are most likely to engage with brands in: - **The morning** via email (36.5%) and SMS (30.0%) - **The evening** on social media (28.3%) and in-app messages (26.0%) When it comes to **category-specific timing**, spa and fitness brands see the most engagement in the **evening (20.5%)**, followed by late afternoon and weekends. This aligns with when people are winding down or planning personal time. **The takeaway: **Time your outreach to match customer behavior. By understanding and aligning your message delivery to these rhythms, brands can show up not just in the right place, but at the right moment. ## **What these insights mean for marketers** Even in today’s leaner economy, people are still buying leisure goods, they’re just being more intentional about it. The brands that win in this environment will strategically match consumer intention. The joy of a spontaneous purchase isn’t gone, it’s just a little more planned.