January 2022 Earnest Analytics (FKA Earnest Research) Spend Index

Earnest Analytics (FKA Earnest Research) Spend Index (ERSI) growth remained above year-ago levels but decelerated for the second consecutive month in January as online spend growth was negative. Most major subcategories decelerated from December, except for Gaming. Despite double-digit growth, Air Travel, Online Travel Agency, and Lodging & Accommodations all decelerated YoY, likely as Omicron fears put a damper on travel planning. Home Fitness spending fell significantly YoY during this New Year’s Resolution season, displaced by Workout Classes and Gyms growth, suggesting consumers pivoted back to in-person fitness. Casual Dining stood out among the Restaurants category with YoY growth, while QSR and Delivery Aggregators both posted rare sales declines while lapping tough pandemic comps. In contrast, Supermarkets spend grew YoY.

See the Earnest Analytics (FKA Earnest Research) Spend Index for December (Note: Historical numbers could vary slightly due to methodology updates.)

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*About the Earnest Analytics (FKA Earnest Research) Spend Index:

The Earnest Analytics (FKA Earnest Research) Spend Index (ERSI) is an alternative data-driven measure of consumer spending that tracks spend across 2,500+ large national brands in major consumer discretionary and staples subcategories. The near real-time data is derived from the credit and debit spend of millions of de-identified U.S. consumers. Advantages of using ERSI include better representation of e-commerce spend, disaggregation by geography, and online versus in-store breakouts.