Boom for women's spending power

Women are spending more on themselves

Women's spending power is set to increase sharply over the next five years as more look to live life to the full both before and after raising a family.

A report by market analysts Datamonitor suggests women are staying single for longer and increasingly looking for a lifestyle that puts an emphasis on having fun.

Women are also looking to recapture some of that lifestyle after raising children, with women in their 50s looking to live as active a lifestyle as possible for as long as possible, the report says.

As a result, the amount spent by women in Europe and the US is expected to rise to 2,000bn euros by 2007, compared with 1,400bn euros in 2002.

The report's author, Andrew Russell, said: "With the advent of higher earning power, more and more women are also choosing to delay both marriage and childbirth.

Women have become independent and confident consumers Andrew Russell, author of the report

"Women are staying single for longer, with the result that for many women the 20s and early 30s have become their `freedom years', offering independence and self-sufficiency."

The report suggests that women's spending is switching away from purchases for the household and more towards buying things for themselves.

Mr Russell said: "While marketers have always acknowledged women to be a powerful consumer force, this has been mainly due to their role as purchaser for the entire household.

"In recent years, however, women have become independent and confident consumers"

However, women in their 30s and 40s are rejecting the "superwoman" role, the report says.

Heavier drinking

The report says: "The perceived pressure on women to be not only a wife and mother but also a successful professional, one of the girls and a fulfilled individual is becoming too great.

"Media messages portraying this ideal woman are becoming unwelcome. In the future, rather than being expected to meet every demand 100%, women are going to be happy with 70%."

The rise in affluence of younger women has seen increased spending on fashion and beauty products, but also a rise in drinking.

The report quotes health organisation Eurocare's figures which show 20% of women aged 16-24 are drinking over 14 units per week, compared with 11% in the late eighties.